From Akkadian ≌≡ (Ninua), possibly related to ℩ (nūnu) meaning "fish". When written, the name is usually prefixed with ⌷ indicating a city. This may have referred to an aspect of Ishtar, as from an early time the city was a center of worship of the goddess. The cuneiform symbols used to represent the city's name depict a fish within a house.
Nineveh was an ancient city in northern Mesopotamia (near the modern Iraqi city of Mosul). It was the capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, but was destroyed in 612 BC.