Nisaba was the Mesopotamian goddess associated with writing, accounting, and grain.
In Sumerian tradition, Nisaba was especially connected with scribes and the recording of administrative information. Her name and cult reflect the close relationship between literacy and economic management in Mesopotamian cities, where officials tracked grain, livestock, labor, land, and temple offerings.
Nisaba also had an agricultural identity. Ancient texts associate her with grain and reeds, the latter being important because reeds supplied the styluses used to impress cuneiform signs into clay. This combination made her a natural divine patron for both farming and scribal work.
Later Mesopotamian traditions sometimes gave greater prominence to the god Nabu as the patron of scribes and writing. Nisaba should not therefore be treated as identical to Nabu. The two figures belong to different linguistic and historical traditions, although their areas of responsibility overlap.