Ashnan or Ezina (dŠE.TIR; both possible readings are used interchangeably) was a Mesopotamian goddess considered to be the personification of grain. She could also be called Ezina-Kusu, which lead to the proposal that the goddess Kusu was initially her epithet which only developed into a distinct figure later on. She was already worshiped in the Uruk period, and appears in documents from many Mesopotamian cities from the third millennium BCE. She is also known from various works of Mesopotamian literature, such as the debate poem Debate between Sheep and Grain. Names and character The logogram dŠE.TIR can be read as both Ezina and Ashnan. According to Jeremy Black, both are used interchangeably to refer to the same deity in modern publications. Frank Simons argues the latter can be understood as the "Akkadianised version" of Ezina. The Sumerian word ezina was also a common noun referring to grain. The Akkadian ašnan could be interpreted the same way. However, the precise etymology of both is uncertain. The goddess designated by these names was associated with grain and agriculture. Early on in her history, she was a major deity, but in later periods she was simply perceived as the divine hypostasis of grain. In addition to her primary role, she could be invoked alongside Nintur to stop post-natal bleeding. It is possible that in art, Ashnan was depicted as a goddess surrounded by grain-like plants. In some cases this figure is depicted seated on a throne. Ezina-Kusu The compound theonym Ezina-Kusu, which combines the names of Ezina and Kusu, a purification goddess, is well attested. The Akkadian form Ashnan-Kusu is also used in scholarship. It already appears in sources from the Early Dynastic period. In most texts, it seemingly designates a deity analogous to Ezina, for example an inscription on one of the Gudea cylinders states that "Ezina-Kusu, the pure stalk, will raise its head high in the furrows in Gu-edina," while The Debate between Sheep and Grain uses the double name interchangeably with that of the grain goddess. Frank Simons has suggested that Kusu was not a distinct goddess at first, but rather an epithet, and only developed into a separate figure at a later date. However, it has also been argued that Kusu treated as an epithet was not related to the purification goddess, and should be understood as a generic appellation, "goddess filled with purity." Ezina-Kusu is also attested as