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Lilith, a MythSource painting
Levantine

Lilith

Queen of Demons · Mother of Demons · First Wife of Adam

01Identity

Lilith in Levantine tradition

Lilith rejected Adam’s demand that he place himself above her, insisting that they were equally made from dust. She is a night demon and the reputed first wife of Adam, associated with long hair, wings, and the birth of monstrous beings. Unlike Eve, who was made from Adam’s flesh, Lilith disappeared after speaking God’s name and went to live among demons.

Top questions

The quick answers

  • Who is Lilith?

    Lilith is a Levantine being associated with night and darkness; childbirth, mothers, and infants; sexuality and seduction; sleep, dreams, and nocturnal emissions; and illness and death.
    Source

    Source

    • Fabulous Creatures, Mythical Monsters and Animal Power Symbols
    • Encyclopedia of the undead
    • Dictionary of Mythology
    • Gilgamesh. A New Translation of the Ancient Epic (2021) [Retail]

  • What is Lilith associated with?

    Lilith is associated with night and darkness; childbirth, mothers, and infants; sexuality and seduction; sleep, dreams, and nocturnal emissions; and illness and death.
    Source

    Source

    • Fabulous Creatures, Mythical Monsters and Animal Power Symbols
    • Encyclopedia of the undead

  • What family links are recorded for Lilith?

    Spouse: Adam.
02Family

Lilith’s family, at a glance

Lilith

with Adam, Cain, Samael

03The names

The names Lilith answers to

Lilit

Hebrew spelling variant of Lilith

SourceDictionary of Mythology

Lilitu

Akkadian female night spirit associated with the Lilith tradition

SourceGilgamesh. A New Translation of the Ancient Epic (2021) [Retail]

Ardat-Lili

A Mesopotamian female night demon related to the Lilith complex

SourceGilgamesh. A New Translation of the Ancient Epic (2021) [Retail]

Queen of Demons

Ruler or chief figure among female demons

SourceFabulous Creatures, Mythical Monsters and Animal Power Symbols

First Wife of Adam

The rebellious woman said in later Jewish folklore to precede Eve

SourceFabulous Creatures, Mythical Monsters and Animal Power Symbols

04The myths

The myths of Lilith

1 myth, with sources recorded for each.

Lilith and Adam’s Demon Children

Lilith spoke the name of God and left Adam after he rejected her demand to lie above him during intercourse. Both had been made from soil, and Lilith argued that they were therefore equals. Adam refused and insisted on lying above her. Lilith went to live among demons. God then made Eve from Adam’s flesh as his partner.

Later Jewish traditions describe Lilith as Adam’s first wife and as a night demon. She had a human form and long hair. Some accounts also give her wings. After Adam had been separated from Eve for a long period, Lilith returned to him. Their unions produced ghosts, demons, and other monstrous offspring. Adam was therefore called the father of ghouls.

The offspring multiplied in the wilderness. Lilith also continued to mate with demons and raise further monstrous beings. These creatures became enemies of humankind. After Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise, the wilderness was regarded as their dwelling place. They attacked human beings and caused illness, misfortune, and other harm.

A great flood was sent to cleanse the Earth, and most of Lilith’s offspring were destroyed. Some were believed to have survived the Deluge and continued to trouble the new human race. Some accounts connect Lilith with an older winged storm spirit called Lil in Sumer. Later Jewish traditions instead describe her as the mother of demonic beings born from her unions with Adam and with demons.

Lilith and Adam’s Demon Children, a MythSource painting of the scene

2 sources· checked 2026-08-18

  1. 1Encyclopedia of the undeadT1
  2. 2the ancient sourcesT1

    Quote

    “Lilith left Adam, joined demons, and was later said to have produced ghosts, demons, and monstrous offspring through unions with Adam and with demons.”

    the ancient sources