Throughout history, civilizations and cities have typically placed men in positions of authority, showing their dominance in society and their giving all the power. Ancient Sumeria was a refreshing sight in contrast to this. Evidence from the literature and myths of the ancient Sumerians strongly supports the idea that Sumeria was a matriarchal society. Women, not men, were the dominant sex. Ancient hymns praise Inanna, a goddess who ruled over all humans, animals and other gods of Sumeria. She can easily be considered the ultimate god of Sumer, the one everyone looks up to. In fact, it may have aided matriarchy in Sumeria, as women were revered as superior to men and given more rights than they had. Just as the Ramayana serves as a great example of what a relationship should be like for couples in India, Inanna could have served as a model for the women of Sumeria. However, as androcratic ideas began to blend into Sumerian society, matriarchy was slowly overthrown and ancient Sumeria became as patriarchal as the rest of world history. The fall of Inanna in literature showed the drastic change from a female-dominated society to an androcratic society. The story of Gilgamesh became popular and remains better known than the hymns of Inanna. A great empire ruled by a great goddess, overthrown by influential powers. Sumeria, like the rest of the world, saw its power fall into the hands of men. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Inanna has been lauded and revered in many capacities. She was the “Queen of the Earth Gods, Supreme among the Sky Gods,” the “First Daughter of the Moon” and many other titles (Wolkstein and Kramer, 1983). The hymns depict her in such a bright light that shows how much they worshiped her. “The people of Sumer marched before the holy Inanna” and “purified the Earth for her” (Wolkstein and Kramer, 1983). It is difficult to identify from the hymns whether she was human or not, as the texts make numerous references to both ideas. Ultimately, Inanna was a savior of all people, someone all Sumerians could look up to. Loving someone so much and considering them as a symbol of power, of love - whether human or not - shows how Inanna was able to be a model, not only for women in Sumerian society, but also for all other people, as “prostitutes comb their hair in front of her” (Wolkstein and Kramer, 1983). In contrast, ancient India was a strong androcracy, in which men were treated better than their female counterparts. The Ramayana serves as an example, in which Sita, Rama's devoted wife, repeatedly speaks of her place at her husband's side, as her duty falls to him. Rama and Sita are hailed as role models for couples in India. If the couple is made up of a man and a woman, the male is inspired by Rama and the female by Sita. It is clear that Sumeria was unique in this area. Inanna was the one major god that everyone could turn to for almost everything. However, being one of the world's few matriarchies, the female-led society quickly began to assimilate to match the rest of the world. Sumeria began to progress and allow more foreigners to enter their country. The influence of foreign populations began to modify ancient Sumeria. Whether voluntarily or by force, Sumeria waspushed to evolve towards a patriarchy. Akkadians and Assyrians from neighboring territories began to settle in Sumer. Both were strong cultures that spoke Semitic languages ​​and both were heavily involved in warfare (Wilson, 2013). The Sumerians began to develop their own military, as they left their lands for materials they did not have themselves, and the influences of more warlike nations on their territories encouraged this behavior. Militaristic ideas and military leadership gradually became permanent, and democratic modes of government fell away, as the rise of monarchies ruled by kings emerged (Wise, 2013). Inanna was pushed aside, no longer the goddess that all Sumerians admired and worshiped. The goddess Ninlil did not replace Inanna, but her myths and legends may have contributed to the harsher treatment of women in Sumeria. Ninlil was raped four times by Enlil, once while he was not disguised, and three times while he was disguised as someone else (Black, 1998). The legend may have served as an excuse for men who saw fit to rape women and ultimately hold power over Sumerian women. The fall of Inanna was a disaster for the female population of Sumeria, as men began to diminish the value that women had in society and exchange them as slaves and wives for money (Wise, 2013) . They were seen as expendable members of society, with no purpose other than to procreate, cook, and hold themselves below men, just as the rest of the world had come to see women in their societies. From a position of power to a position of ridicule, Inanna's women's popularity declined among the ancient Sumerians, as even Gilgamesh himself looked down on her and despised who she was. The all-powerful and highly respected god of Sumeria is long gone. Gilgamesh, in which she is known as Ishtar, depicts her as a liar who wants nothing more than to seduce him and then dump him like she did with all of her previous lovers (Mitchell, 2004 ). She comes across as a spoiled brat and manipulative, as she convinces her father to give her the Bull of Heaven, then uses it to kill three hundred innocent people - there is no trace of the once highly renowned goddess and beloved who was known as the Great Lady of Heaven in ancient Sumeria. Gilgamesh is the most striking literary example of how Sumeria moved from a matriarchy to a patriarchy. Inanna, who was once considered the greatest being in all of Sumeria, had been replaced by Gilgamesh, a cruel king who did whatever he wanted as long as it was for his own benefit. He took sons from their fathers and daughters from their mothers and broke them. He was the sole ruler of Sumeria; there was no queen to rule alongside him. There is a stronger sense of monarchy today than when Inanna was worshiped with power. The city now admired Gilgamesh and, even after seeing his abuse of power, did not remove him from his position in the social hierarchy. Instead, they saw fit to appease him with another man, Enkidu, who would make Gilgamesh a better leader of the people. This is how Inanna fell and Gilgamesh rose to power, symbolizing the overthrow of matriarchy and the introduction of androcracy. Ancient Sumerian literature can be used to trace the shift in power between men and women in civilization. Early ancient Sumeria hailed Inanna, either a goddess or an ordinary human, as their queen, the strongest power in Sumeria whom all could look to for gain., 1983