Utnapishtim is the ancient Mesopotamian flood hero warned to build a boat in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
In the flood story embedded in the Standard Babylonian version of the epic, the god Ea warns Utnapishtim about the gods’ decision to send a devastating flood. Utnapishtim builds a large boat, saves living creatures and people, and survives when the waters overwhelm the land.
Utnapishtim is not the same character as Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is the king and questing hero who hears Utnapishtim recount the flood and asks about the secret of immortality. Enkidu is Gilgamesh’s companion, while Hammurabi was a historical Babylonian king from a different period.
The account is often compared with Genesis because both include a divinely warned survivor, a large vessel, animals, birds, and a flood. Similarities do not make the names interchangeable: Utnapishtim belongs to Mesopotamian literature, while Noah belongs to the Hebrew Bible.