Where did Bahamut come from?

[A2Z]

Where did Bahamut come from? As Tiamat's counterpart I wonder why they didn't choose the name Marduk to be the god of good dragons. Tiamat of course is from Babylonian and Sumerian mythology, and Marduk is the god who eventually defeats her. I don't think Marduk was ever portrayed as being a dragon but i think he still makes more sense than making up a name.

Then again maybe Bahamut is a name from mythology. I'm not sure, I can't find any information on it. That's why I thought I'd ask.

 

[diaglo]

Supplement IV Gods, Demigods, & Heroes

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Supplement IV Gods, Demigods, & Heroes

I think he's aiming at WHERE did those guys from days past come up with the name Bahamut.

 

[WizarDru]

This is another case of Gygax mixing-and-matching mythologies; See below.

VI. So, in AD&D, Tiamat is this five-headed evil dragon, but they got her from the Enuma Elish, right? What about her counterpart, Bahamut?

Bahamut, according to Edgerton Sykes' Who's Who of Non-Classical Mythology, is "The enormous fish on which stands Kujara, the giant bull, whose back supports a rock of ruby, on the top of which stands an angel on whose shoulders rests the earth, according to Islamic myth. Our word Behemoth is of the same origin." (Sykes, p. 28)

[Note: Sykes's use of the phrase "Islamic myth" is misleading as this bit of cosmology is not considered Islamic doctrine. Bahamut is pre-Islamic, most likely Arabic. I don't have a second source for Kujara.]

Behemoth then, is usually the male counterpart to Leviathan, and is a great beast that roams on land. He is sometimes equated with a hippopotamus, and is alternately listed in the Old Testament as a creature on the side of God and as one over whom God has or will triumph over.

 

[Aust Diamondew]

From ancient Sumerian mythology I'm pretty sure. I know thats where Tiamat came from.

 

[DaveMage]

Where did Bahamut come from?

Well, a long time ago, Bahamut's mommy and daddy fell in love, and then, um....nevermind.

 

[Bregh]

Supplement IV Gods, Demigods, & Heroes

D, baby, it was Sup. I, Greyhawk.

For shame.

(Though he wasn't named until the AD&D Monster Manual).

 

[diaglo]

I think he's aiming at WHERE did those guys from days past come up with the name Bahamut.

that's what i was aiming for too. (7/ 1976) Supplement IV

Jim Ward... drawmij

and Rob Kuntz

are probably the guys to ask.

it is also no coincidence why the 1edADnD ... Deities and Demigods.. (1980) is created with them as authors.

 

[diaglo]

D, baby, it was Sup. I, Greyhawk.

For shame.

(Though he wasn't named until the AD&D Monster Manual).

that's what happens with memory.. it goes somewhere... i think

 

[MrFilthyIke]

D, baby, it was Sup. I, Greyhawk.
For shame.
(Though he wasn't named until the AD&D Monster Manual).

OD&D FIGHT!!