Utukku

In Sumerian mythology the utukku were a type of spirit that had escaped the underworld, either by their own power or by being summoned forth by a priest, such as the one appearing in the Epic of Gilgamesh. They could be either benevolent or evil. The evil utukku were called Edimmu or Ekimmu; the good utukku were called shedu. Two of the best known of the evil utukku were Asag (slain by Ninurta) and Alû. Though they are sometimes confused for The Seven Evil Spirits, an utukku is the raised spirit of a mortal, while The Seven were created by Anu as plague gods.

Etymology

The proper Sumerian form of the name is UDUG; Utukku is the Akkadian form. It is common to change /D/ to /t/ and /G/ to /k/ in converting Sumerian into Akkadian. The final /-u/ is the Akkadian nominative case-ending.

The canon of exorcism of the evil UDUG is known as UDUG HUL, the Akkadian expansion of which (known in Akkadian as Utukkū Lemnūtu) is in sixteen tablets.

Mythology

Akkadian

They were siblings of the Anunnaki. They were in the service of the underworld, and were required to fetch home the fruit of the sacrifices and burnt offerings, which generally consisted of the blood, liver, and other "sweetmeats" of the sacrificed animal.