What does ziggurat mean?
A ziggurat is an ancient stepped temple tower associated especially with Mesopotamia. Its name refers to a massive structure made of successive, receding levels, often with sloping walls and a central stairway or ramp. Ziggurats served important religious and political purposes, standing as prominent monuments in ancient cities and visually expressing the connection between the earthly world and the divine. The best-known example is the Great Ziggurat at Ur, although many others have been identified across ancient Mesopotamia. In modern writing, the word is most common in historical and archaeological discussion, but it can also be used figuratively for a building or arrangement of terraces that resembles a ziggurat. The term is useful because it names a distinctive form of monumental architecture and carries associations with ancient ritual, power, and human ambition.
nounA ziggurat is an ancient Mesopotamian temple tower built in receding tiers, with sloping walls and a stairway or ramp leading toward its upper level. The term may also be used figuratively for a large, stepped structure.
- An ancient Mesopotamian temple tower built as a series of receding, sloping tiers.
- A large stepped or terraced structure resembling an ancient ziggurat.
"The great ziggurat at Ur was one of the most imposing religious monuments of ancient Mesopotamia."
"The ruins of the ziggurat at Ur reveal the monumental scale of Mesopotamian temple architecture."
"The new library's floors rise in tiers, giving the interior the appearance of a modern ziggurat."
The standard plural adds -s; in scholarly writing, ziggurat also commonly appears in the unchanged form when discussing ancient place names or architectural categories.
"Several ziggurats were built in Mesopotamia during the third millennium BCE."
A ziggurat turns a journey toward the gods into a staircase: its monumental terraces made height feel like a destination.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ziggurat
The English word was borrowed from Akkadian ziggurratu, a term associated with a stepped temple tower. The Akkadian term was used in the ancient Near East for monumental structures of this kind, and English adopted it through scholarly and historical writing. The word has no widely used English cognates outside the architectural term itself.
How ziggurat is actually used
The word is chiefly used in historical, archaeological, and architectural contexts. Its figurative use is uncommon but idiomatic when describing a strongly stepped or terraced structure.
Easily confused with ziggurat
A ziggurat is a stepped Mesopotamian temple tower, whereas a pyramid is typically a solid monumental structure with triangular sides and a pointed or flat summit.