The story
- akk-obb · derived from𒌷𒉌𒉡𒀀
- Akkadian · derived from𒌷𒉌𒉡𒀀 𒀏
- Ancient Greek · derived fromΝινευή
- Latin · derived fromNīnevē
- Biblical Hebrew · derived fromנִינְוֵה
- Old English · inherited fromNiniuea
- English todayNineveh
From Old English Niniuea (under influence from Biblical Hebrew נִינְוֵה (nīnəwē)), from Latin Nīnevē, from Ancient Greek Νινευή (Nineuḗ), ultimately from Akkadian 𒌷𒉌𒉡𒀀 𒀏 (/Ninua/) or Old Babylonian 𒌷𒉌𒉡𒀀 (/Ninuwā/) of uncertain origin, but is clearly a variation of 𒀏 (/ninâ/, “fish”). The cuneiform seems to denote "House of Fish", although whether this referred to literal fish, an aspect of Ishtar, a separate Hurrian goddess, or something else entirely is unclear. The traditional folk etymology in classical antiquity derived it from an eponymous founder Ninus (Greek: Νίνος (Nínos)).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.