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Gilgamesh flood myth
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Gilgamesh tablet XI
Flood tablet in Akkadian
Material
clay
Size
Length: 15.24 cm (6.00 in)
Breadth: 13.33 cm (5.25 in)
Depth: 3.17 cm (1.25 in)
Writing
cuneiform
Created
7th century BCE
Period/culture
Neo-Assyrian
Discovered
Kouyunjik
Present location
Room 55, British Museum, London
Identification
K.3375
The Gilgamesh flood myth is a flood myth in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Many scholars believe that the flood myth was added to Tablet XI in the "standard version" of the Gilgamesh Epic by an editor who utilized the flood story from the Epic of Atrahasis.[1] A short reference to the flood myth is also present in the much older Sumerian Gilgamesh poems, from which the later Babylonian versions drew much of their inspiration and subject matter.
Contents
[hide]
1 History
2 Tablet XI
3 Flood myth section
3.1 Ea leaks the secret plan
3.2 Building and launching the boat
3.3 The storm
3.4 Calm after the storm
3.5 The sacrifice
3.6 The flood hero and his wife are granted immortality and transported far away
4 Last third of Tablet XI-Outline
5 Comparison between Atrahasis and Gilgamesh
6 Material altered or omitted
7 Alternative translations
8 See also
9 References
10 Bibliography
11 External links
History[edit]
Gilgamesh’s supposed historical reign is believed to have been approximately 2700 BCE,[2] shortly before the earliest known written stories. The discovery of artifacts associated with Aga and Enmebaragesi of Kish, two other kings named in the stories, has lent credibility to the historical existence of Gilgamesh.[3]
The earliest Sumerian Gilgamesh poems date from as early as the Third dynasty of Ur (2100–2000 BCE).[4] One of these poems mentions Gilgamesh’s journey to meet the flood hero, as well as a short version of the flood story.[5] The earliest Akkadian versions of the unified epic are dated to ca. 2000–1500 BCE.[6] Due to the fragmentary nature of these Old Babylonian versions, it is unclear whether they included an expanded account of the flood myth; although one fragment definitely includes the story of Gilgamesh’s journey to meet Utnapishtim. The “standard” Akkadian version included a long version of the story and was edited by Sin-liqe-unninni sometime between 1300 and 1000 BCE.[7]
Tablet XI[edit]
Main article: Utnapishtim
The Gilgamesh flood tablet XI contains additional story material besides the flood. The flood story was included because in it the flood hero Utnapishtim is granted immortality by the gods and that fits the immortality theme of the epic. The main point seems to be that Utnapishtim was granted eternal life in unique, never-to-be-repeated circumstances. As if to demonstrate this point, Utnapishtim challenges Gilgamesh to stay awake for six days and seven nights. However, as soon as Utnapishtim finishes speaking Gilgamesh falls asleep. Utnapishtim instructs his wife to bake a loaf of bread for every day he is asleep so that Gilgamesh cannot deny his failure. Gilgamesh, who wants to overcome death, cannot even conquer sleep.
As Gilgamesh is leaving, Utnapishtim's wife asks her husband to offer a parting gift. Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh of a boxthorn-like plant at the very bottom of the ocean that will make him young again. Gilgamesh obtains the plant by binding stones to his feet so he can walk on the bottom of the sea. He recovers the plant and plans to test it on an old man when he returns to Uruk. Unfortunately, when Gilgamesh stops to bathe it is stolen by a serpent that sheds its skin as it departs, apparently reborn. Gilgamesh, having failed both chances, returns to Uruk, where the sight of its massive walls provokes him to praise this enduring work of mortal men. The implication may be that mortals can achieve immortality through lasting works of civilization and culture.
Flood myth section[edit]
Lines 1-203, Tablet XI [8] (note: with supplemental sub-titles and line numbers added for clarity)
Ea leaks the secret plan[edit]
Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh a secret story that begins in the old city of Shuruppak on the banks of the Euphrates River.
The "great gods" Anu, Enlil, Ninurta, Ennugi, and Ea were sworn to secrecy about their plan to cause the flood.
But the god Ea (Sumerian god Enki) repeated the plan to Utnapishtim through a reed wall in a reed house.
Ea commanded Utnapishtim to demolish his house and build a boat, regardless of the cost, to keep living beings alive.
The boat must have equal dimensions with corresponding width and length and be covered over like Apsu boats.
Utnapishtim promised to do what Ea commanded.
He asked Ea what he should say to the city elders and the population.
Ea tells him to say that Enlil has rejected him and he can no longer reside in the city or set foot in Enlil's territory.
He should also say that he will go down to the Apsu "to live with my lord Ea".
Note: 'Apsu' can refer to a fresh water marsh near the temple of Ea/Enki at the city of Eridu.[9]
Ea will provide abundant rain, a profusion of fowl and fish, and a wealthy harvest of wheat and bread.
Building and launching the boat[edit]
Carpenters, reed workers, and other people assembled one morning.
[missing lines]
Five days later, Utnapishtim laid out the exterior walls of the boat of 120 cubits.
The sides of the superstructure had equal lengths of 120 cubits. He also made a drawing of the interior structure.
The boat had six decks [?] divided into seven and nine compartments.
Water plugs were driven into the middle part.
Punting poles and other necessary things were laid in.
Three times 3,600 units of raw bitumen were melted in a kiln and three times 3,600 units of oil were used in addition to two times 3,600 units of oil that were stored in the boat.
Oxen and sheep were slaughtered and ale, beer, oil, and wine were distributed to the workmen, like at a new year's festival.
When the boat was finished, the launching was very difficult. A runway of poles was used to slide the boat into the water.
Two-thirds of the boat was in the water.
Utnapishtim loaded his silver and gold into the boat.
He loaded "all the living beings that I had."
His relatives and craftsmen, and "all the beasts and animals of the field" boarded the boat.
The time arrived, as stated by the god Shamash, to seal the entry door.
The storm[edit]
Early in the morning at dawn a black cloud arose from the horizon.
The weather was frightful.
Utnapishtim boarded the boat and entrusted the boat and its contents to his boatmaster Puzurammurri who sealed the entry.
The thunder god Adad rumbled in the cloud and storm gods Shullar and Hanish went over mountains and land.
Erragal pulled out the mooring poles and the dikes overflowed.
The Annunnaki gods lit up the land with their lightning.
There was stunned shock at Adad's deeds which turned everything to blackness. The land was shattered like a pot.
All day long the south wind blew rapidly and the water overwhelmed the people like an attack.
No one could see his fellows. They could not recognize each other in the torrent.
The gods were frightened by the flood, and retreated up to the Anu heaven. They cowered like dogs lying by the outer wall.
Ishtar shrieked like a woman in childbirth.
The Mistress of the gods wailed that the old days had turned to clay because "I said evil things in the Assembly of the Gods, ordering a catastrophe to destroy my people who fill the sea like fish."
The other gods were weeping with her and sat sobbing with grief, their lips burning, parched with thirst.
The flood and wind lasted six days and six nights, flattening the land.
On the seventh day, the storm was pounding [intermittently?] like a woman in labor.
Calm after the storm[edit]
The sea calmed and the whirlwind and flood stopped. All day long there was quiet. All humans had turned to clay.
The terrain was as flat as a roof top. Utnapishtim opened a window and felt fresh air on his face.
He fell to his knees and sat weeping, tears streaming down his face. He looked for coastlines at the horizon and saw a region of land.
The boat lodged firmly on mount Nimush which held the boat for several days, allowing no swaying.
On the seventh day he released a dove which flew away, but came back to him. He released a swallow, but it also came back to him.
He released a raven which was able to eat and scratch, and did not circle back to the boat.
He then sent his livestock out in various directions.
The sacrifice[edit]
He sacrificed a sheep and offered incense at a mountainous ziggurat where he placed 14 sacrificial vessels and poured reeds, cedar, and myrtle into the fire.
The gods smelled the sweet odor of the sacrificial animal and gathered like flies over the sacrifice.
Then the great goddess arrived, lifted up her flies (beads), and said
"Ye gods, as surely as I shall not forget this lapis lazuli [amulet] around my neck, I shall be mindful of these days and never forget them! The gods may come to the sacrificial offering. But Enlil may not come, because he brought about the flood and annihilated my people without considering [the consequences]."
When Enlil arrived, he saw the boat and became furious at the Igigi gods. He said "Where did a living being escape? No man was to survive the annihilation!"
Ninurta spoke to Enlil saying "Who else but Ea could do such a thing? It is Ea who knew all of our plans."
Ea spoke to Enlil saying "It was you, the Sage of the Gods. How could you bring about a flood without consideration?"
Ea then accuses Enlil of sending a disproportionate punishment, and reminds him of the need for compassion.
Ea denies leaking the god's secret plan to Atrahasis (= Utnapishtim), admitting only sending him a dream and deflecting Enlil's attention to the flood hero.
The flood hero and his wife are granted immortality and transported far away[edit]
He then boards a boat and grasping Utnapishtim's hand, helps him and his wife aboard where they kneel. Standing between Utnapishtim and his wife, he touches their foreheads and blesses them. "Formerly Utnapishtim was a human being, but now he and his wife have become gods like us. Let Utnapishtim reside far away, at the mouth of the rivers."
Utnapishtim and his wife are transported and settled at the "mouth of the rivers".
Last third of Tablet XI-Outline[edit]
In addition to the flood story material, (lines 1–203), tablet XI contains the following flood story elements:
List of titled subparts, Tablet XI-(by Kovacs):[10]
The Story of the Flood–(1-203)
A Chance at Immortality–(204-240)
Home Empty-Handed–(241-265)
A Second Chance at Life–(266-309)
Comparison between Atrahasis and Gilgamesh[edit]
These are some of the sentences copied more or less directly from the Atrahasis version to the Gilgamesh epic:[11]
Atrahasis Epic
Gilgamesh Epic, tablet XI
"Wall, listen to me." Atrahasis III,i,20 "Wall, pay attention" Gilgamesh XI,22
"Like the apsu you shall roof it" Atrahasis III,i,29 "Like the apsu you shall roof it" Gilgamesh XI,31
"I cannot live in [your city]" Atrahasis III,i,47 "I cannot live in your city" Gilgamesh XI,40
"Ninurta went forth making the dikes [overflow]" Atrahasis U rev,14 "Ninurta went forth making the dikes overflow" Gilgamesh XI,102
"One person could [not] see another" Atrahasis III,iii,13 "One person could not see another" Gilgamesh XI,111
"For seven days and seven nights came the storm" Atrahasis III,iv,24 "Six days and seven nights the wind and storm flood" Gilgamesh XI,127
"He offered [a sacrifice]" Atrahasis III,v,31 "And offered a sacrifice" Gilgamesh XI,155
"the lapis around my neck" Atrahasis III,vi,2 "the lapis lazuli on my neck" Gilgamesh XI,164
"How did man survive the destruction?" Atrahasis III,vi,10 "No man was to survive the destruction" Gilgamesh XI,173
Material altered or omitted[edit]
The Epic of Atrahasis provides additional information on the flood and flood hero that is omitted in Gilgamesh XI and other versions of the Ancient Near East flood myth. According to Atrahasis III ii, lines 40–47 the flood hero was at a banquet when the storm and flood began: "He invited his people ... to a banquet ... He sent his family on board. They ate and they drank. But he (Atrahasis) was in and out. He could not sit, could not crouch, for his heart was broken and he was vomiting gall."[12]
According to Tigay, Atrahasis tablet III iv, lines 6–9 clearly identify the flood as a local river flood: "Like dragonflies they [dead bodies] have filled the river. Like a raft they have moved in to the edge [of the boat]. Like a raft they have moved in to the riverbank." The sentence "Like dragonflies they have filled the river." was changed in Gilgamesh XI line 123 to "Like the spawn of fishes, they fill the sea."[13] Tigay holds that we can see the mythmaker's hand at work here, changing a local river flood into an ocean deluge.
Most other authorities interpret the Atrahasis flood as universal. A. R. George, and Lambert and Millard make it clear that the gods' intention in Atrahasis is to "wipe out mankind".[14] The flood destroys "all of the earth".[15] The use of a comparable metaphor in the Gilgamesh epic suggests that the reference to "dragonflies [filling] the river" is simply an evocative image of death rather than a literal description of the flood[16] However, the local river flood in Atrahasis could accomplish destruction of all "mankind" and "all of the earth" if the scope of "mankind" is limited to all of the people living on "all of the land" of the flood plains in the lower river valley known to the Atrahasis writer.[citation needed]
Other editorial changes were made to the Atrahasis text in Gilgamesh to lessen the suggestion that the gods may have experienced human needs. For example, Atrahasis OB III, 30–31 "The Anunnaki, the great gods [were sitt]ing in thirst and hunger" was changed in Gilgamesh XI, line 113 to "The gods feared the deluge." Sentences in Atrahasis III iv were omitted in Gilgamesh, e.g. "She was surfeited with grief and thirsted for beer" and "From hunger they were suffering cramp."[17]
These and other editorial changes to Atrahasis are documented and described in the book by Prof. Tigay (see below) who is associate professor of Hebrew and Semitic languages and literature in the University of Pennsylvania. Prof. Tigay comments: "The dropping of individual lines between others which are preserved, but are not synonymous with them, appears to be a more deliberate editorial act. These lines share a common theme, the hunger and thirst of the gods during the flood."[17]
Although the 18th century BC copy of the Atrahasis (Atra-Hasis) epic post-dates the early Gilgamesh epic, we do not know whether the Old-Akkadian Gilgamesh tablets included the flood story, because of the fragmentary nature of surviving tablets. Some scholars argue that they did not.[18] Tigay, for example, maintains that three major additions to the Gilgamesh epic, namely the prologue, the flood story (tablet XI), and tablet XII, were added by an editor or editors, possibly by Sin-leqi-unninni, to whom the entire epic was later attributed. According to this view, the flood story in tablet XI was based on a late version of the Atrahasis story.[19]
Alternative translations[edit]
As with most translations, especially from an ancient, dead language, scholars differ on the meaning of ambiguous sentences.
For example, line 57 in Gilgamesh XI is usually translated (with reference to the boat) "ten rods the height of her sides",[20] or "its walls were each 10 times 12 cubits in height".[21] A rod was a dozen cubits, and a Sumerian cubit was about 20 inches. Hence these translations imply that the boat was about 200 feet high, which would be impractical[22] with the technology in Gilgamesh's time (about 2700 BC).[23] There is no Akkadian word for "height" in line 57. The sentence literally reads "Ten dozen-cubits each I-raised its-walls."[24] A similar example from an unrelated house building tablet reads: "he shall build the wall [of the house] and raise it four ninda and two cubits." This measurement (about 83 feet) means wall length not height.[25]
Line 142 in Gilgamesh XI is usually translated "Mount Niṣir held the boat, allowing no motion." Niṣir is often spelled Nimush,[26] which is described as the newer reading.[27] The Akkadian words translated "Mount Niṣir" are "KUR-ú KUR ni-ṣir".[28] The word KUR could mean hill or country; it is capitalized because it is a Sumerian word.[29] The first KUR is followed by a phonetic complement -ú which indicates that KUR-ú is to be read in Akkadian as šadú (hill) and not as mātu (country). Since šadú (hill) could also mean mountain in Akkadian, and scholars knew the Biblical expression Mount Ararat, it has become customary to translate šadú as mountain or mount. The flood hero was Sumerian, according to the WB-62 Sumerian King List,[30] and in Sumerian the word KUR meant hill or country, not mountain. The second KUR lacks a phonetic complement and is therefore read in Akkadian as mātu (country). Hence, the entire clause reads "The hill/mound country niṣir held the boat".
Lines 146-147 in Gilgamesh XI are usually translated "I ... made sacrifice, incense I placed on the peak of the mountain."[31] Similarly "I poured out a libation on the peak of the mountain."[32] But Kovacs[33] provides this translation of line 156: "I offered incense in front of the mountain-ziggurat." Parpola provides the original Akkadian for this sentence: "áš-kun sur-qin-nu ina UGU ziq-qur-rat KUR-i"[34] Áš-kun means I-placed; sur-qin-nu means offering; ina-(the preposition) means on-(upon); UGU means top-of; ziq-qur-rat means temple tower; and KUR-i means hilly. Parpola's glossary (page 145) defines ziq-qur-rat as "temple tower, ziggurat" and refers to line 157 so he translates ziq-qur-rat as temple tower in this context. The sentence literally reads "I placed an offering on top of a hilly ziggurat." A ziggurat was an elevated platform or temple tower where priests made offerings to the temple god. Most translators of line 157 disregard ziq-qur-rat as a redundant metaphor for peak. There is no authority for this other than previous translations of line 157.[35] Kovacs' translation retains the word ziggurat on page 102.
One of the Sumerian cities with a ziggurat was Eridu located on the southern branch of the Euphrates River next to a large swampy low-lying depression known as the apsû.[36] The only ziggurat at Eridu was at the temple of the god Ea (Enki), known as the apsû-house.[37] In Gilgamesh XI, line 42 the flood hero said "I will go down [the river] to the apsû to live with Ea, my Lord."[38]
Lines 189–192 (lines 198–201) in Gilgamesh XI are usually translated "Then godEnlil came aboard the boat. He took hold of my hand and brought me on board. He brought aboard my wife and made her kneel at my side. Standing between us, he touched our foreheads to bless us."[39] In the first sentence "Then dingir-kabtu came aboard the boat" the Akkadian determinative dingir is usually translated as "god", but can also mean "priest"[40] Dingir-kabtu literally means "divine important-person".[41] Translating this as Enlil is the translator's conjecture.
See also[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Flood Tablet.
Atrahasis
Babylonian and Assyrian religion
Deluge
Enûma Eliš
Epic of Gilgamesh
Noah's Ark
Panbabylonism
Ziusudra
References[edit]
Jump up ^ (Tigay 1982)
Jump up ^ Georges Roux, Ancient Iraq, pages 123, 502
Jump up ^ Dalley, Stephanie, Myths from Mesopotamia, Oxford University Press (1989), p. 40–41
Jump up ^ Andrew George, page xix
Jump up ^ "The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature; The death of Gilgameš (three versions, translated)".
Jump up ^ Andrew George, page 101, “Early Second Millennium BCE” in Old Babylonian
Jump up ^ Andrew George, pages xxiv–xxv
Jump up ^ Kovacs, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI, p. 95-103. (Lines 1-203)
Jump up ^ "Literary tradition depicts Eridu as a city of the marshes and tells of a large body of fresh water, the Abzu, in the immediate vicinity of Eridu." Eridu in Sumerian Literature, Margaret Whitney Green, PhD disseration, University of Chicago, August 1975, page 6.
Jump up ^ Kovacs, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI, p. 95-103, 104-108. (Lines 1-203 & 204-319)
Jump up ^ (Tigay 1982, p. 217), "The eleventh tablet of the late version consists of two separate components: the flood story from Atrahasis, and the rest of Gilgamesh's encounter with Utnapishtim."
Jump up ^ Lambert & Millard, page 93
Jump up ^ (Tigay 1982, pp. 220, 225)
Jump up ^ Andrew George, p. xliv.; Lambert and Millard p. 12
Jump up ^ Frymer-Kensky, Tikva Simone (2006), Studies in Bible and feminist criticism, Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society. p. 354
Jump up ^ George, Andrew (2003), The Babylonian Gilgamesh epic: introduction, critical edition and cuneiform texts, New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 506, 875-876. Apparently, the appearance of large numbers of drowned dragonflies—or mayflies according to George—was a common phenomenon associated with Mesopotamian river floods.
^ Jump up to: a b (Tigay 1982, p. 226)
Jump up ^ (Tigay 1982, p. 244)
Jump up ^ (Tigay 1982, p. 245)
Jump up ^ Andrew George, page 90
Jump up ^ Kovacs, page 99
Jump up ^ Ships and Seafaring in Ancient Times, Lionel Casson, page 86.
Jump up ^ Ancient Iraq, Georges Roux, page 502 Table II
Jump up ^ Parpola, page 109
Jump up ^ The Assyrian Dictionary, John Brinkman et al. (editors), University of Chicago, 1980, vol. I–J under igaru, page 36.
Jump up ^ Rene Labat, Manuel D'Épigraphie Akkadienne, 1988, sign 374.
Jump up ^ Day, John (2011). James K. Aitken, Katharine Julia Dell, and Brian A. Mastin, eds. The Flood and the Ten Antediluvian Figures. On Stone and Scroll: Essays in Honour of Graham Ivor Davies. Walter de Gruyter. p. 213. ISBN 978-3-11-022805-2. CS1 maint: Uses editors parameter (link)
Jump up ^ Parpola, page 111, line 142
Jump up ^ The Assyrian Dictionary, Brinkman et al. (editors), vol. Š part 1, pages 58–59 under šadú.
Jump up ^ S. Langdon, "The Chaldean Kings Before the Flood", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1923, pages 251–259.
Jump up ^ Andrew George, page 94
Jump up ^ Heidel page 87
Jump up ^ Kovacs, page 102, at 12th line from the top.
Jump up ^ Parpola, page 111
Jump up ^ The Assyrian Dictionary, Brinkman et al. (editors), vol. Z, page 131.
Jump up ^ Eridu in Sumerian Literature, Margaret Whitney Green, pages 8, 169.
Jump up ^ Green, pages 201–202
Jump up ^ Green, page 98, at 21st line from top.
Jump up ^ Andrew George, page 95.
Jump up ^ Margaret Whitney Green, Eridu in Sumerian Literature, PhD dissertation, University of Chicago (1975), p. 224.
Jump up ^ Parpola, page 128
Bibliography[edit]
Tigay, Jeffrey H. (1982), The Evolution of the Gilgamesh Epic, University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, ISBN 0-8122-7805-4
W. G. Lambert and A. R. Millard, Atrahasis: The Babylonian Story of the Flood, Eisenbrauns, 1999, ISBN 1-57506-039-6.
George, Andrew R., trans. & edit. (1999), The Epic of Gilgamesh (reprinted with corrections 2003 ed.), Penguin Books, ISBN 0-14-044919-1 CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link)
Kovacs, Maureen Gallery, transl. with intro. (1985–1989), The Epic of Gilgamesh, Stanford University Press: Stanford, California, ISBN 0-8047-1711-7 CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link) Glossary, Appendices, Appendix (Chapter XII=Tablet XII). A line-by-line translation (Chapters I-XI).
Parpola, Simo, with Mikko Luuko, and Kalle Fabritius (1997), The Standard Babylonian, Epic of Gilgamesh, The Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project, ISBN 951-45-7760-4 CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link) (Volume 1) in the original Akkadian cuneiform and transliteration. Commentary and glossary are in English
Heidel, Alexander (1946), The Gilgamesh Epic and Old Testament Parallels, University of Chicago, ISBN 0-226-32398-6
Bailey, Lloyd R. (1989), Noah, the Person and the Story, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, ISBN 0-87249-637-6
Best, Robert M. (1999), Noah's Ark and the Ziusudra Epic, Eisenbrauns, ISBN 0-9667840-1-4
External links[edit]
Gilgamesh at DMOZ
Comparison of equivalent lines in six ancient versions of the flood story
Ancient Near East flood myths All texts: (Ziusudra, Atrahasis, Gilgamesh, Genesis, Berossus), commentary, and a table with parallels
Gilgamesh Tablet XI (The Flood Chapter)

Preceded by
15: Early writing tablet A History of the World in 100 Objects
Object 16 Succeeded by
17: Rhind Mathematical Papyrus
This article is about an item held in the British Museum. The object reference is K.3375 (The Gilgamesh Tablet).
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Raining Cats and Frogs (2003)
Noah's Ark (2007)
Evan Almighty (2007)
40 Days and Nights (2012)
Noah (2014)
Ooops! Noah Is Gone... (2015)
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The Flowering Peach (1954 play)
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Songs
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"Forever Not Yours" (2002)
Games
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Noah's Ark (1992)
Super 3D Noah's Ark (1994)
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Not Wanted on the Voyage (1984)
Many Waters (1986)
Not the End of the World (2004)
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Exclusions
"The Unicorn"
Peluda
Related theology
Book of Noah
Generations of Noah
Gopher wood
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Seven Laws of Noah
Other
Noah's Brother
Noah's Ark replicas and derivatives
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List of countries by literacy rate
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 27 August 2018.
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World map of countries shaded according to the literacy rate for all people aged 15 and over
This is a list of countries by literacy rate. The figures represented are almost entirely collected by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) on behalf of UNESCO with 2015 estimates based on people aged 15 or over who can read and write. Where data is taken from a different source, notes are provided. The data is collated by mostly using surveys within the last ten years which are self-declared by the persons in question.[1] UIS provide estimates based on these for the year 2015 with a Global Age-specific Literacy Projections Model (GALP).[2]
The global literacy rate for all people aged 15 and above is 86.3%. The global literacy rate for all males is 90.0% and the rate for all females is 82.7%. The rate varies throughout the world with developed nations having a rate of 99.2% (2013); Oceania having 71.3%; South and West Asia having 70.2% (2015) and sub-Saharan Africa at 64.0% (2015).[3] Over 75% of the world's 781 million illiterate adults are found in South Asia, West Asia and sub-Saharan Africa and women represent almost two-thirds of all illiterate adults globally.[4]
Contents
1 List of UN member states
2 List of other states and territories
3 See also
4 Notes
5 References
6 External links
List of UN member states[edit]
Country
UNESCO[3]
Non-UNESCO
literacy rate
Literacy rate (all)
Male literacy
Female literacy
Gender difference[note 1]
World 86.3% 90.0% 82.7% 7.3%
Afghanistan 38.2% 52.0% 24.2% 27.8%
Albania 97.6% 98.4% 96.8% 1.6%
Algeria 80.2% 87.2% 73.1% 14.0% 87.7%[5]
Andorra not reported by UNESCO 2015
Angola 71.1% 82.0% 60.7% 21.3%
Antigua and Barbuda not reported by UNESCO 2015 99.0%(2013)[3][note 2]
Argentina 98.1% 98.0% 98.1% -0.1%
Armenia 99.8% 99.8% 99.7% 0.1%
Australia not reported by UNESCO 2015
Austria not reported by UNESCO 2015
Azerbaijan 99.8% 99.9% 99.7% 0.2%
Bahamas not reported by UNESCO 2015
Bahrain 95.7% 96.9% 93.5% 3.5%
Bangladesh 72.8%[note 3] 75.6% 69.9% 5.7% 71% (2014)[6]
Barbados not reported by UNESCO 2015
Belarus 99.7% 99.8% 99.7% 0.1%
Belgium not reported by UNESCO 2015
Belize 82.7% 82.3% 83.0% -0.7%
Benin 38.4% 49.9% 27.3% 22.6%
Bhutan 64.9% 73.1% 55.0% 18.1%
Bolivia 95.7% 97.8% 93.6% 4.2%
Bosnia and Herzegovina 98.5% 99.5% 97.5% 2.1% 97.2% (2013)[7][note 4]
Botswana 88.5% 88.0% 88.9% -0.9%
Brazil 91.7% 91.4% 92.1% -0.7%
Brunei 96.4% 97.7% 95.1% 2.6%
Bulgaria 98.4% 98.7% 98.1% 0.7%
Burkina Faso 36% 43.0% 29.3% 13.7%
Burundi 85.6% 88.2% 83.1% 5.1%
Cabo Verde 87.6% 92.1% 83.1% 9.0%
Cambodia 77.2% 84.5% 70.5% 13.9%
Cameroon 75% 81.2% 68.9% 12.3%
Canada not reported by UNESCO 2015
Central African Republic 36.8% 50.7% 24.4% 26.4%
Chad 40.2% 48.5% 31.9% 16.6%
Chile 97.3% 97.4% 97.2% 0.2%
China 96.4% 98.2% 94.5% 3.7%
Colombia 94.7% 94.6% 94.8% -0.2%
Comoros 77.8% 81.8% 73.7% 8.1%
Congo 79.3% 86.4% 72.9% 13.6%
Congo, Democratic Republic of the 77.3% 88.9% 66.0% 22.8%
Costa Rica 97.8% 97.7% 97.8% -0.1%
Ivory Coast 43.1% 53.1% 32.5% 20.6%
Croatia 99.3% 99.7% 98.9% 0.7%
Cuba 99.7% 99.7% 99.8% -0.1%
Cyprus 99.1% 99.5% 98.7% 0.8%
Czech Republic not reported by UNESCO 2015
Denmark not reported by UNESCO 2015
Djibouti not reported by UNESCO 2015
Dominica not reported by UNESCO 2015
Dominican Republic 91.8% 91.2% 92.3% -1.1%
Ecuador 94.5% 95.4% 93.5% 1.8%
Egypt 75.2% 83.2% 67.3% 16.0%
El Salvador 88.4% 90.7% 86.4% 4.3%
Equatorial Guinea 95.3% 97.4% 93.0% 4.4%
Eritrea 73.8% 82.4% 65.5% 16.9%
Estonia 99.8% 99.8% 99.8% 0.0%
Ethiopia 49.1% 57.2% 41.1% 16.1%
Fiji not reported by UNESCO 2015
Finland not reported by UNESCO 2015
France not reported by UNESCO 2015
Gabon 83.2% 85.3% 81.0% 4.3%
Gambia 55.5% 63.9% 47.6% 16.3%
Georgia 99.8% 99.8% 99.7% 0.1%
Germany not reported by UNESCO 2015
Ghana 76.6% 82.0% 71.4% 10.7%
Greece 97.7% 98.5% 96.9% 1.6%
Grenada not reported by UNESCO 2015
Guatemala 79.3% 84.7% 74.4% 10.4%
Guinea 30.4% 38.1% 22.8% 15.3%
Guinea-Bissau 59.9% 71.8% 48.3% 23.5%
Guyana 88.5% 87.2% 89.8% -2.6%
Haiti 60.7% 64.3% 57.3% 7.0%
Honduras 88.5% 88.4% 88.6% -0.1%
Hungary 99.1% 99.1% 99.0% 0.2%
Iceland not reported by UNESCO 2015
India 72.1% 80.9% 62.8% 18.1% 74.0% (2011)[8][note 5]
Indonesia 93.9% 96.3% 91.5% 4.7%
Iran 86.8% 91.2% 82.5% 8.7%
Iraq 43.7% 43.0% 38.0% 15.0% 78.5%[9]
Ireland not reported by UNESCO 2015
Israel not reported by UNESCO 2015 97.8% (2011)[4][note 6]
Italy 99.2% 99.4% 99.0% 0.4%
Jamaica 88.7% 84.0% 93.1% -9.1%
Japan not reported by UNESCO 2015
Jordan 97.9% (in 2012) 98.4% 97.4% 1.0%
Kazakhstan 99.8% 99.8% 99.8% 0.0%
Kenya 78% 81.1% 74.9% 6.2%
Kiribati not reported by UNESCO 2015
Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 0.0%
Korea, Republic of not reported by UNESCO 2015
Kuwait 96.2% 96.9% 95.0% 1.9%
Kyrgyzstan 99.5% 99.6% 99.4% 0.2%
Laos 79.9% 87.1% 72.8% 14.3%
Latvia 99.9% 99.9% 99.9% 0.0%
Lebanon 93.9% 96.0% 91.8% 4.1%
Lesotho 79.4% 70.1% 88.3% -18.2%
Liberia 47.6% 62.4% 32.8% 29.6%
Libya 91% 96.7% 85.6% 11.1%
Liechtenstein not reported by UNESCO 2015
Lithuania 99.8% 99.8% 99.8% 0.0%
Luxembourg not reported by UNESCO 2015
Macedonia 97.8% 98.8% 96.8% 2.0%
Madagascar 64.7% 66.7% 62.6% 4.1%
Malawi 65.8% 73.0% 58.6% 14.4%
Malaysia 94.6% 96.2% 93.2% 3.0%
Maldives 99.3% 99.8% 98.8% 0.9%
Mali 38.7% 48.2% 29.2% 19.0%
Malta 94.1% 92.5% 95.7% -3.2%
Marshall Islands not reported by UNESCO 2015
Mauritania 52.1% 62.6% 41.6% 21.0%
Mauritius 90.6% 92.9% 88.5% 4.4%
Mexico 94.4% 95.6% 93.3% 2.2%
Micronesia not reported by UNESCO 2015
Moldova 99.4% 99.7% 99.1% 0.7%
Monaco not reported by UNESCO 2015
Mongolia 98.4% 98.2% 98.6% -0.4%
Montenegro 98.7% 99.5% 98.0% 1.4%
Morocco 72.4% 82.7% 62.5% 20.2%
Mozambique 58.8% 73.3% 45.4% 27.9%
Myanmar 75.6%[note 7] 80.0% 71.9% 8.1%
Namibia 81.9% 79.2% 84.5% -5.3%
Nauru not reported by UNESCO 2015
Nepal 64.7% 75.6% 55.1% 20.5%
Netherlands not reported by UNESCO 2015
New Zealand not reported by UNESCO 2015
Nicaragua 82.8% 82.4% 83.2% -0.9%
Niger 19.1% 27.3% 11.0% 16.3%
Nigeria 59.6% 69.2% 49.7% 19.5% 71.6% (2010)[11][note 8]
Norway not reported by UNESCO 2015
Oman 94.8% 96.9% 90.0% 6.9%
Pakistan 56.4% 69.6% 42.7% 26.9%
Palau 99.5% 99.5% 99.6% -0.1%
Panama 95% 95.7% 94.4% 1.2%
Papua New Guinea 64.2% 65.6% 62.8% 2.8%
Paraguay 95.6% 96.1% 95.0% 1.1%
Peru 94.5% 97.3% 91.7% 5.6%
Philippines 96.3% 95.8% 96.8% -1.0%
Poland 99.8% 99.9% 99.7% 0.2%
Portugal 95.4% 96.9% 94.1% 2.8%
Qatar 97.8% 97.9% 97.3% 0.6%
Romania 98.8% 99.1% 98.5% 0.6%
Russia 99.7% 99.7% 99.7% 0.0%
Rwanda 70.5% 73.2% 68.0% 5.2%
Saint Kitts and Nevis not reported by UNESCO 2015
Saint Lucia not reported by UNESCO 2015
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines not reported by UNESCO 2015
Samoa 99% 98.9% 99.1% -0.2%
San Marino not reported by UNESCO 2015
Sao Tome and Principe 74.9% 81.8% 68.4% 13.4%
Saudi Arabia 94.7% 97.0% 91.1% 5.9%
Senegal 55.7% 68.5% 43.8% 24.6%
Serbia 98.1% 99.1% 97.2% 1.9%
Seychelles 95.2% 94.7% 95.7% -1.0%
Sierra Leone 48.1% 58.7% 37.7% 21.1%
Singapore 96.8% 98.7% 95.1% 3.6%
Slovakia 99.6% 99.6% 99.6% 0.0%
Slovenia 99.7% 99.7% 99.7% 0.0%
Solomon Islands not reported by UNESCO 2015 84.1% (2015)[4][note 9]
Somalia not reported by UNESCO 2015
South Africa 94.3% 95.5% 93.1% 2.4%
South Sudan 26.8% 34.8% 19.2% 15.6%
Spain 98.1% 98.7% 97.5% 1.3%
Sri Lanka 92.6% 93.6% 91.7% 1.9%
Sudan 53.5% 59.80% 46.7% 13.1%
Suriname 95.6% 96.1% 95.0% 1.1%
Swaziland 87.5% 87.4% 87.5% -0.1%
Sweden not reported by UNESCO 2015
Switzerland not reported by UNESCO 2015
Syria 86.4% 91.7% 81.0% 10.7%
Tajikistan 99.8% 99.8% 99.7% 0.1%
Tanzania, United Republic of 80.3% 84.8% 75.9% 9.0%
Thailand 96.7% 96.6% 96.7% -0.1%
Timor-Leste 67.5% 71.5% 63.4% 8.1%
Togo 66.5% 78.3% 55.3% 23.0%
Tonga 99.4% 99.3% 99.4% -0.1%
Trinidad and Tobago 99% 99.2% 98.7% 0.5%
Tunisia 81.8% 89.6% 74.2% 15.4%
Turkey 95% 98.4% 91.8% 6.6%
Turkmenistan 99.7% 99.8% 99.6% 0.1%
Tuvalu not reported by UNESCO 2015
Uganda 73.9% 80.8% 66.9% 14.0%
Ukraine 99.8% 99.8% 99.7% 0.1%
United Arab Emirates 93.8% 93.1% 95.8% -2.6%
United Kingdom not reported by UNESCO 2015
United States of America not reported by UNESCO 2015
Uruguay 98.4% 98.1% 98.7% -0.6%
Uzbekistan 99.6% 99.7% 99.5% 0.3%
Vanuatu 85.2% 86.6% 83.8% 2.8%
Venezuela 95.4% 95.0% 95.7% -0.7%
Vietnam 94.5% 96.3% 92.8% 3.4%
Yemen 70.1% 85.1% 55.0% 30.1%
Zambia 63.4% 70.9% 56.0% 14.9%
Zimbabwe 86.5% 88.5% 84.6% 4.0%
List of other states and territories[edit]
Territory
Literacy rate (all)
Male literacy
Female literacy
Gender difference
Year
Notes
Aruba 97.5% 97.5% 97.5% 0.0% 2015[3] A constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Cayman Islands 98.9% 98.7% 99.0% -0.3% 2007[3] An overseas territory of the United Kingdom.
Guadeloupe 96.5% 96.4% 96.6% -0.2% 2015[3] Overseas region/department of France.
Guam 99.8% 99.8% 99.8% 0.0% 2015[3] The United States has sovereignty.
Kosovo 91.9% 96.6% 87.5% 9.1% 2003[4] Member of two UN specialized agencies (World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund). It is claimed by Serbia.
Macau 96.2% 98.0% 94.6% 3.4% 2015[3] A special administrative region of which China has sovereignty.
Martinique 97.0% 97.6% 96.4% 1.2% 2015[3] Overseas region/department of France.
New Caledonia 96.9% 97.3% 96.5% 0.8% 2015[3] Overseas region/department of France.
Palestine 96.7% 98.5% 94.8% 3.7% 2015[3] UN Observer State[12]
Puerto Rico 93.3% 92.8% 93.8% -1.0% 2015[3] The United States has sovereignty.
Réunion 93.9% 93.2% 94.5% -1.3% 2015[3] Overseas region/department of France.
Taiwan 98.70% 99.73% 97.69% 2.05% 2017[13] Member of one UN specialized agency (World Health Organization) as Chinese Taipei; Claimed by the People's Republic of China.
See also[edit]
International Literacy Day
Compulsory education
Indian states ranking by literacy rate
List of Brazilian states by literacy rate
Programme for International Student Assessment, which focuses on developed countries
Notes[edit]
Jump up ^ Gender difference is calculated as the male literacy rate minus the female literacy rate. Negative values shows countries with higher female rates than male.
Jump up ^ The breakdown by gender is 98.4% male, 99.4% female (difference of -1.0%)
Jump up ^ Adult rate: 72.76%. By gender: M=75.62%,F=69.90%. All figures 2016.[6]
Jump up ^ Gender breakdown is 99.2% male and 95.2 for females. "Data on literacy were collected for persons aged 10 or more years who did not receive any kind of formal education or with incomplete primary education. A person capable of reading with understanding and writing a statement on his/her daily routine shall be considered to be a literate person."
Jump up ^ The breakdown by gender is 82.1% male, 65.5% female (difference of 16.6%)
Jump up ^ The breakdown by gender is 98.7% male, 95.8% female (difference of 2.9%)
Jump up ^ Adult rate: 75.55%. By gender: M=80.01%,F=71.85%. All figures 2016.[10]
Jump up ^ The breakdown by gender is 79.3% male, 63.7% female (difference is 15.6%)
Jump up ^ The breakdown by gender is 88.9% male, 79.2% female (difference is 9.7%)
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Literacy Statistics Metadata Information Table". UNESCO Institute for Statistics. September 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
Jump up ^ Lutz, Wolfgang & Scherbov, Sergei (July 2006). Global Age-specific Literacy Projections Model (GALP): Rationale, Methodology and Software (PDF). Adult Education and Literacy Statistics Programme. UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years (both sexes, female, male)". UIS Data Centre. UNESCO. August 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
^ Jump up to: a b c d "Country Comparison to the World of Literacy Rate". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
Jump up ^ "«Le taux d'analphabétisme a baissé à 12% en Algérie»". La Tribune. 24 January 2017. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
^ Jump up to: a b Bangladesh - Literacy rate (2017). Bangladesh rises the literacy rate. Expansion Publication.
Jump up ^ "BiH Census 2013" (PDF). BHAS. 2016. p. 138.
Jump up ^ "State of Literacy" (PDF). Census India. 2011. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
Jump up ^ https://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/iraq_statistics.html
Jump up ^ Cite error: The named reference myanma-2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Jump up ^ "National Literacy Survey". National Bureau of Statistics. June 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
Jump up ^ "Non-member States". United Nations. Archived from the original on 9 May 2009. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
Jump up ^ "Republic of China's population over the age of 15 education statistics" (in Chinese). Ministry of the Interior. 25 February 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-04-24. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
External links[edit]
World Bank – Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above), for historical use.
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World Bank high-income economy
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