Atargatis or
Ataratheh (; ) was the chief goddess of northern Syria in
Classical Antiquity.
Ctesias also used the name
Derceto for her, and the Romans called her
Dea Syriae ("Syrian goddess"). Primarily she was a goddess of fertility, but, as the
baalat ("mistress") of her city and people, she was also responsible for their protection and well-being. Her chief sanctuary was at Hierapolis, modern
Manbij, northeast of Aleppo, Syria. She is sometimes described as a
mermaid-goddess, due to identification of her with a fish-bodied goddess at
Ascalon. However, there is no evidence that Atargatis was worshipped at Ascalon, and all iconographic evidence shows her as anthropomorphic.