アッシリアの王家の呪法は、イシュタルの主要な機能の両方を同時に呼び出すもので、効力と武勇を同様に取り除くためにイシュタルを呼び出した<ref>Zsolnay, 2010, p397-401</ref>。メソポタミアの文献によると、王が軍隊を率い、敵に勝利するような英雄的な特徴と性的能力は、相互に関連していると考えられていたようである<ref>Zsolnay, 2010, p393</ref>。
イナンナ/イシュタルは女神でありながら、その性別が曖昧になることがあった<ref>Asher-Greve, Westenholz, 2013, p17</ref>。 ゲイリー・ベックマンは、「曖昧な性別識別」はイシュタル自身だけでなく、彼が「イシュタル型」と呼ぶ女神たち(シャウシュカ、ピニキール、ニンシアンナなど)の特徴であったと述べている<ref>Beckman, 1999, p25</ref>。
While Inanna/Ishtar was a goddess, her gender could be ambiguous at times. [[Gary Beckman]] states that "ambiguous gender identification" was a characteristic not just of Ishtar herself but of a category of deities he refers to as "Ishtar type" goddesses (such as [[Shaushka]], [[Pinikir]] or [[Ninsianna]]).{{sfn|Beckman|1999|p=25}} A late hymn contains the phrase "she [Ishtar] is Enlil, she is Ninil" which might be a reference to occasionally "dimorphic" character of Ishtar, in addition to serving as an exaltation.{{sfn|Asher-Greve|Westenholz|2013|p=127}} A hymn to [[Nanaya]] alludes to a male aspect of Ishtar from [[Babylon]] alongside a variety of more standard descriptions.{{sfn|Asher-Greve|Westenholz|2013|p= 116-117}} However, Illona Zsonlany only describes Ishtar as a "feminine figure who performed a masculine role" in certain contexts, for example as a war deity.{{sfn|Zsolnay|2010|p=401}}
==Family==