ishippu

Updated: May 25, 2025

Such names are mashmashu, the general term for 'the charmer'; kalû, so called, perhaps, as the 'restrainer' of the demons, the one who keeps them in check; lagaru, a synonym of kalu; makhkhû, 'soothsayer'; surrû, a term which is still obscure; shâilu, the 'inquirer, who obtains an oracle through the dead or through the gods; mushêlu, 'necromancer'; âshipu or ishippu, 'sorcerer. These names probably do not exhaust the various kinds of 'magicians' that were to be found among the Babylonian priests.

Morris Jastrow - The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria