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I am Yam, the Sea-lord, and this world of Canaan has entrusted me with a Rule of great power. This burden I bear upon my shoulders is heavy with duty and responsibility. It is my obligation to devote my whole body, down to the last drop of blood, to the defense of the weak.
~ Yam

Yam, also known Yamm or Ym, was the Canaanite god of sea and chaos, who was vanquished by the storm god Ba'al.

His name comes from the Canaanite word Yam, meaning "Sea."

Description[]

Yam is the deity of primordial chaos and represents the power of the sea, untamed and raging; he is seen as ruling storms and the disasters they wreak. The seven-headed dragon Lotan is associated closely with him and the serpent is frequently used to describe him.

Despite his antagonistic role in myths, Yam was sometimes invoked in theophoric names, indicating some degree of cult, which sets him apart from another similar figure, Tiamat. As Ym's myth is generally believed to be older than the Enuma Elish, it's possible Tiamat was partially patterned after him.

Overview[]

Of all the gods, despite being the champion of El, Yam holds special hostility against Baal Hadad, son of Dagon (or El). Yam is a deity of the sea and his palace is in the abyss associated with the depths, or Biblical term, of the oceans. (This is not to be confused with the abode of Mot, the ruler of the netherworld.) In Ugaritic texts, Yam's special enemy Hadad is also known as the "king of heaven" and the "first born son" of El, whom ancient Greeks identified with their god Cronus, just as Baal was identified with Zeus, Yam with Poseidon and Mot with Hades.

While Baal Hadad was the lead god in Ugarit, in the Baal cycle it is Yam who is favored by El, and he even briefly rules over the other gods. Baal only rises to power after vanquishing him with the help of his allies Kothar-wa-Khasis, Astarte and Anat. Yam's ultimate fate is unclear, as the text makes references to both death and captivity, and in later sections of the myth Baal talks about Yam as if he was still alive and a possible threat.

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