Sumerian god, well known since the Early Dynastic period, son of Enlil and the mother-goddess Ninhursanga. He was originally an agricultural and rain deity and was called “the farmer of Enlil” who “lets the barley grow.” His main temple was the Eshumesha at Nippur. By the end of the third millennium B.C., he had become more of a warrior, “the right arm of Enlil,” and some myths describe him doing battle against the “hordes of the mountains.” Marduk replaced Ninurta as the “champion of the gods” in the Old Babylonian period. However, he continued to enjoy great popularity in Assyria, where he was both a storm god and a warrior.
Historical Dictionary of Mesopotamia. EdwART. 2012.