Astarte

Etymology

Astarte (Phoenician ʿštrt, ʿAshtart) is the direct Canaanite-Phoenician cognate of the Akkadian Ishtar — all derive from the Semitic root 'ṯtr. In Ugarit (14th century BCE) she appears as ʿAshtart or ʿAttart; in Biblical Hebrew she is ʿAshtoret (with the polemical vocalization imposed by the Masoretes, who substituted the correct vowels with those of bošet, “shame,” as a polemical device against the Canaanite cults rival to monotheism). In ancient Greek, Astártē (Ἀστάρτη).

Who She Is

Astarte is the chief goddess of the Canaanite-Phoenician Levant during the late Bronze Age and Iron Age (~1500–500 BCE). She inherits the love-and-war complex of Ishtar, but with regional modifications:

• Maritime. The Phoenicians were the seafaring people of the Mediterranean, and Astarte is frequently invoked as protector of ships. Coastal temples in Tyre, Sidon, Byblos.
• Civic. She is strongly linked to the kingship of Phoenician city-states — kings styled themselves beloved of Astarte.
• Companion of Baal. Though not exactly a “wife” in the Greek sense, she acts in tandem with Baal (lord of the storm) and with Anat (sister goddess, more martial) in Ugaritic mythology.

Astarte and the Old Testament

The Hebrew texts of the OT mention Astarte (singular ʿAshtoret and plural Ashtarot) repeatedly — generally in condemnatory polemic. Solomon is accused in I Kings 11 of having erected a sanctuary to Astarte. The prophets attack the recurring “Yahweh + Astarte” syncretism in pre-exilic Israel. This biblical polemic is itself indirect archaeological evidence of how present Astarte was in popular Israelite religion before the Josianic reform (~622 BCE).

The Cypriot Bridge

The critical link in the syncretic chain lies at Paphos, on the island of Cyprus. Paphos was a Phoenician colony/trading post since at least the 12th century BCE, and housed an exceptionally important temple to Astarte. When Mycenaean Greeks and later Achaeans arrived in Cyprus, they found this cult well established and adopted it, renaming it “Aphrodite”.

Greek authors knew this: Herodotus (5th century BCE) states explicitly in Histories I.105 and I.131 that the cult of Aphrodite came from the Syrians (= Levantines) via Paphos and Cythera. Pausanias confirms. The name Aphrodítē Ourania (Heavenly Aphrodite) is likely the Greek translation of the Phoenician epithet Astarte of the heights / Lady of the heavens.

Carthage and Tanit

When the Phoenicians founded Carthage (~814 BCE), they brought Astarte — but there she merged with/was supplanted by Tanit (Tnt), a local North African deity. Tanit absorbed Astarte’s functions and became the chief goddess of Carthage, with the epithet “face of Baal.”

Syncretisms

• Ishtar ← Akkadian (direct origin)
• Astarte ← Canaanite-Phoenician (this article)
• Tanit ← North African (Carthaginian daughter)
• Aphrodite ← Greek (via Paphos)
• Venus ← Roman

Game Perspective

In Mensageiros do Vento, Astarte is the Canaanite/Phoenician layer of the chain. Characters with maritime, commercial, or eastern Mediterranean origins in-game invoke Astarte. The Wiki makes explicit that she is not exactly Ishtar nor exactly Aphrodite — she stands between the two, at the historical moment when the goddess crosses the sea toward the West.

See Also

• Inanna
• Ishtar
• Aphrodite
• Venus
• Syncretism