Enûma Eliš

The Enûma Eliš (pronounced Enuma Elish), meaning “When on high”, is a creation myth story of ancient Mesopotamia, that has its roots in Sumerian culture. The chief figure of the Sumerian creation myth was probably Enlil, the Sumerian storm god. After Babylon conquered the rest of Mesopotamia and established the Old Babylonian Empire around 1800 BCE, it became necessary to explain how the local god of Babylon, Marduk, had now become supreme among the gods. Therefore, theoretically, the older Sumerian myth of creation was retold and Marduk was substituted for Enlil.

Babylonian version
The Babylonian Enûma Eliš creation myth re-envisions the male hero as Marduk, who battles a very ancient Sumerian mythological figure, known as Tiamat, a female described as a primordial dragon. Marduk defeats Tiamat and her minions of gods and monsters, and with her mutilated body, uses it to form the covering of the sky and the Earth. The hero then creates man on Earth, for worshiping the gods.

The earliest records of the Babylonian Enuma Elish are dated during the Assyrian period (c. 700-600 BCE), but may have been compiled as early as 1800 BCE. Its heavy use of Sumerian words and concepts, suggests that the core of the story is far more ancient. At present, the theoretical Sumerian version has not yet been discovered.

Resources

 * Babylon Wiki, Enûma Eliš (Full translations)