The hot sun of Babylonia, that burns with fierce intensity, brings pestilence and death, and carries on a severe contest against man.

From being the cause of death, it is but a step, and a natural one, to make Nergal preside over the region, prepared for those whom he has destroyed.

The course taken by Babylonian theology is responsible for the prominence given to the latter role of Nergal, which finally overshadows his other phases to the extent of suggesting the fanciful interpretation of his name as the 'ruler of the great dwelling place for the dead.' In the light of the facts set forth, another explanation for his name must be looked for that would connect the god with solar functions.

The name may in fact be divided into two elements, the first having the force of chief or ruler, the second 'great.' The combination would be an appropriate designation for the sun, in the role of a destructive power.

But Nergal, after all, represents only one phase of the sun-god.