Al-Lat

2023-10-05T12:06:04Z

Actorbolly: Pre-Islamic Arabian goddess

{{Short description|Pre-Islamic Arabian goddess}}

{{lowercase title}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Arabian
| name = al-Lat
| deity_of = Goddess of war, peace, combat, and prosperity
| image = Allat_Palmyra_RGZM_3369.jpg
| caption = Al-Lāt with a palm branch and lion from the [[Temple of Baalshamin]] in [[Palmyra]], 1st century AD. [[Damascus]], [[Syria]]
| symbol = Lion, gazelle, crescent, cubic rock
| cult_center = [[Palmyra]], Iram,{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=111}} [[Ta'if]] (according to Islamic sources)
| consort = {{plainlist|
*[[Lion of Al-lat]] (Palmyrene tradition){{sfn|Butcher|2003|p=309}}
*[[Dushara]] (Nabataean tradition)}}
| siblings = [[Al-Uzza]], [[Manat (goddess)|Manat]]
| children = [[Dushara]] (Nabataean tradition)
| region = [[Arabia]]
| Roman_equivalent = [[Minerva]]
| Greek_equivalent = [[Athena]]
| equivalent1_type = Canaanite
| equivalent1 = [[Astarte]], [[Atargatis]]
| equivalent2 = [[Allatu]]
| equivalent2_type = Carthaginian
}}
{{Fertile Crescent myth (Arabian)}}

'''al-Lat''' ({{lang-ar|اللات|translit=al-Lat}}, {{IPA-ar|alːaːt|pron}}), also spelled '''Allat''', '''Allatu''', and '''Alilat''', is a [[Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia|pre-Islamic Arabian]] [[List of pre-Islamic Arabian deities|goddess]], at one time worshipped under various associations throughout the entire [[Arabian Peninsula]], including [[Mecca]], where she was worshipped alongside [[Al-Uzza]] and [[Manat (goddess)|Manat]] as one of the daughters of [[Allah]]. The word ''Allat'' or '''Elat''' has been used to refer to various goddesses in the [[ancient Near East]], including the goddess [[Asherah|Asherah-Athirat]].

The worship of al-Lat is attested in [[Old South Arabian|South Arabian]] inscriptions as '''Lat''' and '''Latan''', but she had more prominence in north Arabia and the [[Hejaz]], and her cult reached as far as [[Syria]].{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} The writers of the [[Safaitic]] script frequently invoked al-Lat in their inscriptions. She was also worshipped by the [[Nabataeans]] and was associated with al-'Uzza. The presence of her cult was attested in both [[Palmyra]] and [[Hatra]]. Under [[Greco-Roman world|Greco-Roman]] influence, her iconography began to show the attributes of [[Athena]], the [[Greek mythology|Greek goddess]] of war, as well as her Roman equivalent [[Minerva]].

According to Islamic sources, the tribe of [[Banu Thaqif]] in [[Ta'if]] especially held reverence to her. In [[Islamic culture|Islamic tradition]], her worship ended when her temple in Ta'if was demolished on the orders of [[Muhammad]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir - 53:19 - english|url=https://quran.com/53:19/tafsirs/169?locale=en|access-date=2021-05-21|website=quran.com|archive-date=2021-05-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521145545/https://quran.com/53:19/tafsirs/169?locale=en|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Etymology and name ==
There are two possible etymologies of the name ''al-Lat''.<ref name="EI2">Fahd, T., "al-Lat", in {{harvnb|Bosworth|Donzel|Lewis|Pellat|1986|pp=692}}</ref> Medieval Arab lexicographers derived the name from the verb ''latta'' (to mix or knead barley-meal). It has also been associated with the "idol of jealousy" erected in the temple of Jerusalem according to the [[Book of Ezekiel]], which was offered an oblation of barley-meal by the husband who suspected his wife of infidelity. It can be inferred from [[Hisham ibn al-Kalbi|al-Kalbi]]'s ''[[Book of Idols]]'' that a similar ritual was practiced in the vicinity of the image of al-Lat.<ref name="EI2" /> The second proposed etymology takes al-Lat to be the feminine form of [[Allah]].<ref name="EI2" /> She may have been known originally as ''ʾal-ʾilat'', based on Herodotus' attestation of the goddess as ''Alilat''.{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=112}}

Al-Lat was used as a title for the goddess [[Asherah]] or [[Asherah|Athirat]].{{sfn|Monaghan|2014|p=31}} The word is akin to [[Asherah|Elat]], which was the name of the wife of the Semitic deity [[El (deity)|El]].{{sfn|Sykes|Turner|2014|p=7, 8, 63}} A western Semitic goddess modeled on the Mesopotamian goddess [[Ereshkigal]] was known as ''Allatum'', and she was recognized in [[Ancient Carthage|Carthage]] as [[Allatu]].{{Sfn|Jordan|2014|p=13}}

The goddess Allat's name is recorded as:{{sfn|Rabinowitz|1956}}{{sfn|Robin|2005}}
* {{lang|arc|{{script|Armi|𐡄𐡍𐡀𐡋𐡕}}}} ({{transliteration|arc|han-ʾIlat}}) in [[Imperial Aramaic]];
* {{lang|mis|{{script|Nbat|𐢀𐢑𐢞}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|Allāt}}) in [[Nabataean Arabic]];
* {{lang|mis|{{script|Palm|𐡠𐡫𐡶}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|Allāt}}) in [[Palmyrene Aramaic]];
* {{lang|mis|{{sc|ʾlt}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|ʾIlāt}}), {{lang|mis|{{sc|h-lt}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|ha-Lāt}}), and {{lang|mis|{{sc|lt}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|Lāt}}) in [[Safaitic]];
* {{lang|mis|{{script|Narb|𐪁𐪉}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|Lāt}}) in [[Dadanitic]];
* {{lang|mis|{{script|Narb|𐪁𐪉}}}} ({{transliteration|mis|Lāt}}) in [[Thamudic]];
* {{lang|grc|Ἀλιλάτ}} ({{transliteration|grc|Alilát}}) in [[Ancient Greek]];
* {{lang|xsa|𐩡𐩩}} ({{transliteration|xsa|Lāt}}) and {{lang|xsa|𐩡𐩩𐩬}} ({{transliteration|xsa|Lātān}}) in [[Sabaean language|Sabaean]];
* {{lang|ar|أللاَّت}} {{transliteration|ar|ʾal-Lāt}} in [[Classical Arabic]].

== Attestations ==

=== Pre-Islamic era ===
Al-Lat was mentioned as ''Alilat'' by the Greek historian [[Herodotus]] in his 5th-century BC work ''[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]]'', and she was considered the equivalent of [[Aphrodite]] ([[Aphrodite Urania]]):<ref name=":0">Corrente, Paola, "Dushara and Allāt alias Dionysos and Aphrodite in Herodotus 3.8", in {{harvnb|Bernabé|Jáuregui|Cristóbal|Hernández|2013|pp=265, 266}}</ref>{{blockquote|The [[ancient Assyrians|Assyrians]] call Aphrodite ''[[Mylitta]]'', the [[Arabians]] ''Alilat'' [Greek spelling: Ἀλιλάτ], and the [[Persian people|Persians]] ''[[Mithra]]''.<ref>[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]] I:131</ref>|sign=|source=}}
According to Herodotus, the ancient Arabians believed in only two gods:

{{Multiple image
| align = right
| direction = horizontal
| total_width =300
| image1 = Palmira_Museo_-_GAR_-_7-01.jpg
| caption1 = Statue of al-Lat-Athena found in the [[temple of Al-Lat]], [[Palmyra]]. Palmyra Archaeological Museum
| image2 = Al-Lat-Minerva, Damascus Museum.jpg
| caption2 = 2nd-century AD statue of al-Lat-Minerva from [[As-Suwayda]], [[Syria]]. [[National Museum of Damascus]]
}}
{{blockquote|They believe in no other gods except [[Dionysus]] and the Heavenly Aphrodite; and they say that they wear their hair as Dionysus does his, cutting it round the head and shaving the temples. They call Dionysus, ''[[Orotalt]]''; and [[Aphrodite]], ''Alilat''.<ref>[[Histories (Herodotus)|Histories]] III:8</ref>}}

Al-Lat was widely worshipped in north Arabia, but in [[South Arabia]] she was not popular and was not the object of an organized cult, with two [[amulet]]s (inscribed "Lat" on one, "Latan" on the other) being the only indication that this goddess received worship in the area.<ref name=":1">Robin, Christian Julien, "South Arabia, Religions in Pre-Islamic", in {{harvnb|McAuliffe|2005|pp=88}}</ref> However, she seems to have been popular among the [[Tribes of Arabia|Arab tribes]] bordering [[Yemen]].<ref name=":1" /> She was also attested in [[eastern Arabia]]; the name ''Taymallat'' (a theophoric name invoking the goddess){{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14–15}} was attested as the name of a man from [[Gerrha]], a city located in the region.{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=25}}

From [[Safaitic]] and [[Hismaic]] inscriptions, it is probable that she was worshipped as Lat (''lt'').{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} In [[Safaitic]] inscriptions, al-Lat was invoked for solitude and mercy, as well as to provide well-being, ease and prosperity.{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=207}} Travelers would invoke her for good weather and protection.{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=207}} She was also invoked for vengeance, booty from raids, and infliction of blindness and lameness to anyone who defaces their inscriptions.{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=207}}

The [[Qedarites]], a northern Arabian tribal confederation, seemed to have also worshipped al-Lat, as evidenced by a silver bowl dedicated by a Qedarite king, with the goddess' name inscribed on it.{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=63}}

The [[Nabataean]]s and the people of [[Hatra]] also worshipped al-Lat, equating her with the Greek goddesses [[Athena]] and [[Tyche]] and the Roman goddess [[Minerva]].{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=136}} She is frequently called "the Great Goddess" in Greek in multilingual inscriptions.{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=136}} The Nabataeans regarded al-Lat as the mother of the deities, and her family relations vary; sometimes she is regarded as the consort of [[Dushara]] and at other times as the mother of Dushara.{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} [[Nabataean alphabet|Nabataean]] inscriptions call her and [[Al-‘Uzzá|al-'Uzza]] the "brides of [[Dushara]]".<ref>Corrente, Paola, "Dushara and Allāt alias Dionysos and Aphrodite in Herodotus 3.8", in {{harvnb|Bernabé|Jáuregui|Cristóbal|Hernández|2013|pp=263}}</ref>
[[File:Palmyra,Al-Lat T.jpg|thumb|200x200px|Remains of the [[Temple of Al-Lat|temple of al-Lat]], [[Palmyra]], [[Syria]]|alt=]]

A temple was built for al-Lat in [[Iram of the Pillars]], by the tribe of [[ʿĀd]].{{Sfn|Zayadine|Farés-Drappeau|1998|p=256}} Al-Lat was referred to as "the goddess who is in Iram" in a [[Nabataean alphabet|Nabataean]] inscription.{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=111}} She was also referred to as "the goddess who is in [[Bosra]]".{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=111}} Perhaps a local Hijazi form of her attested in [[Mada'in Saleh|Hegra]] alongside [[Dushara]] and [[Manāt|Manat]] was "Allat of 'Amnad".{{Sfn|Healey|2001|p=111}}

Al-Lat was closely related to [[Al-‘Uzzá|al-'Uzza]], and in some regions of the [[Nabataean Kingdom|Nabataean kingdom]], both al-Lat and al-'Uzza were said to be the same goddess.{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} John F. Healey believes that al-Lat and al-'Uzza originated as a single goddess, which parted ways in the [[Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia#Mecca and the Kaaba|pre-Islamic Meccan tradition]].{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} Susan Krone suggests that both al-Lat and [[Al-‘Uzzá|al-'Uzza]] were uniquely fused in central Arabia.{{sfn|Frank|2006|p=96}}

[[File:Statue of an enthroned Arabian goddess or idol, probably Al-Lat (also Allat, Allatu, and Alilat), from Hatra, Iraq. 2nd to 3rd century CE. Sulaymaniyah Museum, Iraq.jpg|thumb|Statue of an enthroned Arabian goddess or idol, probably Al-Lat, from Hatra, Iraq. 2nd to 3rd century CE. Sulaymaniyah Museum, Iraq]]

Al-Lat was also venerated in [[Palmyra]], where she was known as the "Lady of the temple".{{Sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=54}} According to an inscription, she was brought into the Arab quarter of the city by a member of the [[Bene Ma'zin]] tribe,{{Sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=53}} who were probably an Arab tribe.{{Sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=36}}{{Efn|Ma'zin is an Arabic word meaning "goat herders".<ref name="Gawlikowski">Gawlikowski, Michal, "Palmyra: From a Tribal Federation to a City", in {{harvnb|Freyberger|Henning|Hesberg|2003|pp=9}}</ref> While Teixidor described the tribe as Arab,{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=36}} Michał Gawlikowski, head of the Polish archaeological expedition in Palmyra between 1980 and 2011, stated that the tribe is best understood as an alliance of pastoralists from different origins who settled in the city.<ref name="Gawlikowski" />}} She had a [[Temple of Al-Lat|temple]] in the city, which Teixidor believed to be the cultic center of Palmyrene Arab tribes.{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=54}} The practice of casting [[divination]] arrows, a common divination method in [[Arabian Peninsula|Arabia]], was attested in her temple; an honorific inscription mentioning "a basin of silver for [casting] lots (''lḥlq'')".{{sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=156}}

By the second-century AD, al-Lat in Palmyra began to be portrayed in the style of [[Athena]], and was referred to as "Athena-Allāt", but this assimilation does not extend beyond her iconography.{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=62}} The Palmyrene emperor [[Vaballathus]], whose name is the Latinized form of the theophoric name ''Wahballāt'' ("Gift of al-Lat"), began to use ''Athenodorus'' as the Greek form of his name.{{sfn|Butcher|2003|p=284}}

=== Islamic tradition ===
In Islamic sources discussing [[pre-Islamic Arabia]], al-Lat is attested as the chief goddess of the [[Banu Thaqif]] tribe.{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14}} She was said to be venerated in [[Ta'if]], where she was called ''ar-Rabba'' ("The Lady"),{{sfn|Brockelmann|1960|p=9}}{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=107}} and she reportedly had a shrine there which was decorated with ornaments and treasure of [[gold]] and [[onyx]].{{sfn|Tabari|1990|p=46}} There, the goddess was venerated in the form of a cubic granite rock.{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14}}{{sfn|Jordan|2014|p=13}} The area around the shrine was considered sacred; no trees could be felled, no animal could be hunted and no human blood could be shed.{{sfn|Eckenstein|2018|p=24}}

According to [[Hisham ibn al-Kalbi|al-Kalbi]]'s ''[[Book of Idols]]'', her shrine was under the guardianship of the Banū Attāb ibn Mālik of the [[Banu Thaqif]].{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14–15}} She was also venerated by other [[Tribes of Arabia|Arab tribes]], including the [[Quraysh]], and their children would be named after the goddess, such as ''Zayd al-Lat'' and ''Taym al-Lat''.{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14–15}}

Al-Lat is also mentioned in pre-Islamic Arab poetry, such as in [[al-Mutalammis]]' satire of [[Amr ibn Hind]]:{{Sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=15}}

{{Blockquote|text=Thou hast banished me for fear of lampoon and satire. No! By Allat and all the sacred baetyls (ansab) thou shalt not escape.|sign=|source=}}

[[File:Relief of the Arabian goddess Al-Lat, Manat and al-Uzza from Hatra. Iraq Museum.jpg|thumb|Relief of the Arabian goddesses Al-Lat, Manat, and al-Uzza from Hatra, 2nd century AD. Iraq Museum]]
A poem by the pre-Islamic monotheist [[Zayd ibn Amr]] mentions al-Lat, along with [[Al-‘Uzzá|al-'Uzza]] and [[Hubal]]:{{sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=100}}

{{Blockquote|text=Am I to worship one lord or a thousand? If there are as many as you claim, I renounce al-Lat and al-Uzza, both of them, as any strong-minded person would. I will not worship al-Uzza and her two daughters… I will not worship Hubal, though he was our lord in the days when I had little sense.|sign=|source=}}Al-Lat was also called as a daughter of [[Allah]] along with the other two chief goddesses [[Al-‘Uzzá|al-'Uzza]] and [[Manāt|Manat]].{{sfn|Berkey|2003|p=42}}{{sfn|Robinson|2013|p=75}}{{sfn|Peters|1994|p=110}}{{sfn|Peterson|2007|p=21}} According to the ''Book of Idols'', the [[Quraysh]] were to chant the following verses as they circumambulated the Kaaba:{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=17}}
{{blockquote|text=By al-Lat and al-'Uzza, And Manat, the third idol besides. Verily they are the ''gharaniq'' Whose intercession is to be sought.|sign=|source=}}
The word ''gharaniq'' was translated as "most exalted females" by Faris in his English translation of the ''Book of Idols'', but he annotates this term in a footnote as "lit. Numidean cranes".{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=17}}

According to Islamic tradition, the shrine dedicated to al-Lat in Ta'if was demolished on the orders of [[Muhammad]], during the [[Expedition of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb]], in the same year as the [[Battle of Tabuk]]{{sfn|Tabari|1990|p=46}} (which occurred in October 630 AD).{{sfn|Muir|1878|p=207}} The destruction of the cult image was a demand by Muhammad before he would allow any reconciliation to take place with the tribes of Ta'if, who were under his siege.{{sfn|Muir|1878|p=205}} According to the ''Book of Idols'', this occurred after the [[Banu Thaqif]] converted to [[Islam]], and that her temple was "burnt to the ground".{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=15}}

==== Quran and Satanic Verses incident ====
{{main|Satanic Verses}}
In the [[Quran]], she is mentioned along with [[al-‘Uzzá|al-‘Uzza]] and [[Manāt|Manat]] in [[Quran 53:19–22]],<ref>[[Quran]] [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D53%3Averse%3D19 53:19-22] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923032328/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D53%3Averse%3D19 |date=2020-09-23 }}</ref> which became the subject of the alleged [[Satanic Verses]] incident,{{sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=165}} an occasion on which the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]] had mistaken the words of "satanic suggestion" for divine revelation.<ref name=":2">{{cite journal|last=Ahmed|first=Shahab|date=1998|title=Ibn Taymiyyah and the Satanic Verses|journal=Studia Islamica|publisher=Maisonneuve & Larose|volume=87|issue=87|pages=67–124|jstor=1595926|doi=10.2307/1595926}}</ref> Many different versions of the story existed (all traceable to one single narrator Muhammad ibn Ka'b, who was two generations removed from biographer Ibn Ishaq).{{Sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=165}} In its essential form, the story reports that during [[Muhammad]]'s recitation of Surat An-Najm, when he reached the following verses:
{{blockquote|text=Have you thought of al-Lāt and [[al-‘Uzzá]] and [[Manāt]], the third, the other?|sign=|source=[[Quran 53:19–20]]}}
[[Iblis|Satan]] tempted him to utter the following line:{{sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=165}}
{{blockquote|text=These are the exalted gharāniq, whose intercession is hoped for. (In Arabic تلك الغرانيق العلى وإن شفاعتهن لترتجى.)|sign=|source=}}Following this, the angel [[Gabriel]] chastised Muhammad for uttering that line, and the verses were abrogated with a new revelation:{{sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=166}}
{{blockquote|text=Are yours the males and His the females? That were indeed an unfair division!|sign=|source=[[Quran 53:21–22]]}}
The majority of Muslim scholars have rejected the historicity of the incident on the basis of the theological doctrine of ''[['isma]]'' (prophetic infallibility i.e., divine protection of Muhammad from mistakes) and their weak ''[[isnads]]'' (chains of transmission).<ref name=":2" /> Due to its defective chain of narration, the tradition of the Satanic Verses never made it into any of the canonical [[hadith]] compilations,{{sfn|Rubin|1997|p=161}} though reference and exegesis about the Verses appear in early histories, such as [[al-Tabari]]'s ''Tārīkh ar-Rusul wal-Mulūk'' and [[Ibn Ishaq]]'s ''[[Prophetic biography|Sīrat Rasūl Allāh]]'' (as [[Ibn Ishaq#Translations|reconstructed]] by [[Alfred Guillaume]]).{{sfn|Ishaq|1955|p=165}}

==== The "Grinder" legend ====
Various legends about her origins were known in medieval Islamic tradition, including one which linked al-Lat's stone with a man who grinds cereal (''al-latt'', "the grinder").{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=143}} The stone was used as a base for the man (a Jew) to grind cereal for the pilgrims of [[Mecca]].{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=102}} While most versions of this legend place the man at Ta'if, other versions place him at either Mecca or 'Ukaz.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=143}} After the man's death, the stone, or the man in the form of a stone, was deified,{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=102}} according to some legends after the [[Banu Khuza'a|Khuza'a]] drove the [[Jurhum]] out of Mecca, while other legends report it was Amr ibn Luhayy who deified the grinder.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=143}}

Michael Cook noticed the oddity of this story, as it would make al-Lat masculine.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=142}} Gerald Hawting believes the various legends that link al-Lat with that of ''al-latt'', "the grinder", was an attempt to relate al-Lat with Mecca.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=143}} He also compared the legends to [[Isaf and Na'ila]], who according to legend were a man and a woman who fornicated inside the [[Kaaba]] and were petrified.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=102}}

== Mythological role ==
F. V. Winnet saw al-Lat as a lunar deity due to association of a crescent with her in 'Ayn esh-Shallāleh and a [[Lihyan]]ite inscription mentioning the name of [[Wadd]] over the title of '''fkl lt''.{{Sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} [[René Dussaud]] and Gonzague Ryckmans linked her with Venus, while others have thought her to be a solar deity.{{Sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} John F. Healey considers al-Uzza actually might have been an epithet of al-Lat before becoming a separate deity in the Meccan pantheon.{{Sfn|Healey|2001|p=114}} ''Redefining Dionysos'' considers she might have been a god of vegetation or a celestial deity of atmospheric phenomena and a sky deity.<ref name=":0" /> According to Wellhausen, the Nabataeans believed al-Lat was the mother of [[Hubal]] (and hence the mother-in-law of [[Manāt]]).<ref>Wellhausen, 1926, p. 717, quoted in translation by [http://hanskrause.de/HKHPE/hkhpe_32_01.htm Hans Krause] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050216223426/http://hanskrause.de/HKHPE/hkhpe_32_01.htm|date=2005-02-16}}</ref>

It has been hypothesized that Allah was the consort of al-Lat, given that it is typical of deities in that area of the world to have consorts.{{sfn|Monaghan|2014|p=30}}

== Iconography ==
In Ta'if, al-Lat's primary cult image was a cubic stone,{{sfn|al-Kalbi|2015|p=14}} sometimes described as white in color.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=138}} [[Al-Waqidi|Waqidi]]'s mention of the 'head' (''ra's'') of ''ar-Rabba'' may imply that the image was perceived in human or animal form, although [[Julius Wellhausen]] resisted this implication.{{sfn|Hawting|1999|p=138}}

[[File:Lion in the garden of Palmyra Archeological Museum, 2010-04-21.jpg|thumb|The Lion of Al-Lat, representing the goddess and her consort.|alt=]]
Early [[Palmyra|Palmyrene]] depictions of al-Lat share iconographical traits with [[Atargatis]] (when seated) and [[Astarte]] (when standing).{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=61}} The [[Lion of Al-Lat]] that once adorned her temple depicts a lion and a gazelle, the lion representing her consort,{{sfn|Butcher|2003|p=309}} and the gazelle representing al-Lat's tender and loving traits, as bloodshed was not permitted under penalty of al-Lat's retaliation.{{sfn|Baaren|1982|p=70}}

Al-Lat was associated with the Greek goddess [[Athena]] (and by extension, the Roman [[Minerva]]) in [[Nabataeans|Nabataea]], [[Hatra]] and [[Palmyra]].{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=62}}{{sfn|Healey|2001|p=136}} It seems that her identification with Athena was only a mere change in iconography,{{sfn|Teixidor|1979|p=62}} and al-Lat's character noticeably softened the warlike Athena in places where she was equated with al-Lat.{{sfn|Taylor|2001|p=130}} One [[Nabataeans|Nabataean]] relief of Athena-al-Lat depicts the goddess bearing both Athena and al-Lat's attributes.{{sfn|Taylor|2001|p=130}} The relief depicts the goddess in the style of Athena, but having a [[Nabataean religion]] stylized eye-[[betyl]] in place of the [[Gorgoneion]].{{sfn|Taylor|2001|p=130}}

Al-Lat can also be identified with the Babylonian goddess [[Ishtar]], with both of the deities taking part in prosperity, warfare, and later being linked to [[Aphrodite]] and Athena. The two's similarities also appeared in their symbols, as both were associated with lions, morning star<ref>{{cite book|last1=Coulter|first1=Charles Russell|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sEIngqiKOugC&q=allat&pg=PA37|title=Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities|last2=Turner|first2=Patricia|date=2013-07-04|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-96390-3|access-date=2020-10-15|archive-date=2023-04-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404052626/https://books.google.com/books?id=sEIngqiKOugC&q=allat&pg=PA37|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Monaghan|first=Patricia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8zHxlL8my-YC&q=AL-LAT+morning+star&pg=PA59|title=Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines [2 volumes]|date=2009-12-18|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-34990-4|access-date=2020-10-15|archive-date=2023-04-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404052629/https://books.google.com/books?id=8zHxlL8my-YC&q=AL-LAT+morning+star&pg=PA59|url-status=live}}</ref> and crescents.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Kanishk Tharoor|author2=Maryam Maruf|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35720366|title=Museum of Lost Objects: The Lion of al-Lat|date=2016-03-04|publisher=BBC News|access-date=2020-03-13|language=en-GB|archive-date=2020-02-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214025054/https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35720366|url-status=live}}</ref> Like Al-Lat, Ishtar's origin was of Semitic roots.

== Modern relevance ==
The [[Lion of Al-lāt|Lion of Al-Lat]] statue that adorned her temple in [[Palmyra]] was damaged by the [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]] (ISIL) in 2015 but has been since restored.{{sfn|Makieh|Perry|Merriman|2017}} It now stands in the [[National Museum of Damascus]], but it may be returned to Palmyra in the future.{{sfn|Makieh|Perry|Merriman|2017}}

== See also ==
* [[Banu Thaqif]]
* [[Hubal]]
* [[List of pre-Islamic Arabian deities]]
* [[Manāt]]
* [[Satanic Verses]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{notelist}}

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==External links==
*{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0126:book=1:chapter=131|title=Herodotus, The Histories, Book 1, chapter 131|publisher=www.perseus.tufts.edu|access-date=2019-01-26}}
*{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0126:book=3:chapter=8|title=Herodotus, The Histories, Book 3, chapter 8|publisher=www.perseus.tufts.edu|access-date=2019-01-26}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1332|title=Lat, al- - Oxford Islamic Studies Online|publisher=www.oxfordislamicstudies.com|access-date=2019-01-26}}

{{Pre-Islamic Arabia}}
{{Characters and names in the Quran}}

[[Category:Al-Lat]]
[[Category:Arabian goddesses]]

Bharatpedia - User contributions [en]

Al-Lat