Puzur-Ashur King of Assyria III

• Preferred Name: Puzur-Ashur King of Assyria III^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]}
  
• Gender: M
  
• Death: Y
  
• http://familysearch.org/v1/TitleOfNobility: King of Assyriaabout 1503 BC—about 1479 BC (24 years) (or ruled for 24/14 years) (or 1521 BC—1498 BC) with note: -- Wikiwand: Puzur-Ashur III -- Wikiwand: List of Assyrian kings -- Livius: The Assyrian King List -- "Ancient and Modern Assyrians: A Scientific Analysis," by George V. Yana -- "Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia," by Stephen Bertman -- Project Gutenberg: Assyria
  
• FSID: L5YX-Q5W
  
• Notes:

  === Life Sketch ===
  Puzur-Ashur III was the king of Assyria from 1503 BC to 1479 BC. According to the "Assyrian King List," he was the son and successor of Ashur-nirari I and ruled for 24 years (or 14 years, according to another copy). He is also the first Assyrian king to appear in the synchronistic history, where he is described as a contemporary of Burnaburiash of Babylon. A few of his building inscriptions were found at Assur. He rebuilt part of the temple of Ishtar in his capital, Ashur, and the southern parts of the city wall.
  
  -- Wikiwand: Puzur-Ashur III

1. Title: Wikiwand: Ashur-nirari I
   Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Ashur-nirari_I;
   Note: Aššur-nārāri I, inscribed "aš-šur-ERIM.GABA," "Aššur is my help," was an Old Assyrian king who ruled for 26 years during the mid-second millennium BC, speculatively ca. 1534–1509 (Landsberger) or 1523–1499 BC (Gasche). He was the 60th king to be listed on the "Assyrian Kinglist" and expanded the titles adopted by Assyrian rulers to include "muddiš," "restorer of," and "bāni," "builder of," to the traditional epithets "ensi," "governor," and "iššiak," "vice-regent," of Aššur. Biography He was the son of Išme-Dagān II, and succeeded his brother Šamši-Adad III to the throne, ruling for twenty six years, an identification that all three Assyrian Kinglists (Khorsabad, SDAS and Nassouhi) agree on The Synchronistic Kinglist gives his Babylonian contemporary as Kaštil[...], possibly identified as Kaštiliašu III, the son and (eventual) successor of Burna-Buriyåš I, the Kassite kings of Babylon during the period when the dynasty was beginning to exert control over southern Mesopotamia. Evidence of his construction activities survives, with four short inscriptions commemorating work building the temple of Bel-ibrīia on bricks recovered from an old ravine, restoring the Abaru forecourt and rebuilding the Sîn-Šamaš (Moon-god/Sun-god) temple, called the é.ḫúl.ḫúl.dir.dir.ra, "House of Surpassing Joys," "which later would be restored by Tukulti-Ninurta I and Aššur-nāṣir-apli II. He ruled in a peaceful and uneventful period of Assyrian history following the overthrow of the Babylonians and Amorites by Puzur-Sin c. 1732 BC and the rise of the Mitanni in the 1450s BC. He was succeeded by his son Puzur-Aššur III. Inscriptions ^ "Khorsabad Kinglist," tablet IM 60017 (excavation nos.: DS 828, DS 32-54) ii 36. ^ "SDAS Kinglist," tablet IM 60484, ii 28. ^ "Nassouhi Kinglist," Istanbul A. 116 (Assur 8836), ii 32. ^ "Synchronistic Kinglist," Ass 14616c, KAV 216, i 21.
   
2. Title: "Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia," by Stephen Bertman
   Author: OUP USA, Jul 14, 2005 - History - 396 pages
   Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&pg=PA104&lpg=PA104&dq=Sharma-Adad+I+of+Assyria&source=bl&ots=StbawnLaA7&sig=ACfU3U3sg1NEZvePXSLOMo70l0_0UOIfyg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj198vj0qLoAhUBlHIEHU0JBbsQ6AEwBnoECBYQAQ#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
   Note: Modern-day archaeological discoveries in the Near East continue to illuminate our understanding of the ancient world, including the many contributions made by the people of Mesopotamia to literature, art, government, and urban life "The Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia" describes the culture, history, and people of this land, as well as their struggle for survival and happiness, from about 3500 to 500 BCE. Mesopotamia was the home of a succession of glorious civilizations—Sumeria, Babylonia, and Assyria—which flourished together for more than three millennia. Sumerian mathematicians devised the sixty-minute hour that still rules our lives; Babylonian architects designed the famed Tower of Babel and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon; Assyrian kings and generals, in the name of imperialism, conducted some of the shrewdest military campaigns in recorded history. Readers will identify with the literary works of these civilizations, such as the Code of Hammurabi and the Epic of Gilgamesh, as they are carried across centuries to a period in time intimately entwined with the story of the Bible. Maps and line drawings provide examples of Mesopotamian geography, while other chapters present the Mesopotamian struggle to create civilized life in a fertile land racked by brutal conquest.
   
3. Title: "Hebraica, Volume 38"
   Author: University of Chicago Press, 1921
   Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=DwE2AAAAIAAJ&dq=Erishum+III&q=Shamshi-Adad+II#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
   
4. Title: Wikiwand: Inanna
   Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Inanna;
   Note: Inanna is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess associated with sex, war, justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Sumer and was later worshiped by the Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians under the name Ishtar. She was known as the "Queen of Heaven" and was the patron goddess of the Eanna temple at the city of Uruk, which was her main cult center. She was associated with the planet Venus and her most prominent symbols included the lion and the eight-pointed star. Her husband was the god Dumuzid (later known as Tammuz) and her "sukkal," or personal attendant, was the goddess Ninshubur (who later became the male deity Papsukkal). Inanna was worshiped in Sumer at least as early as the Uruk period (c. 4000 BC – c. 3100 BC), but she had little cult prior to the conquest of Sargon of Akkad. During the post-Sargonic era, she became one of the most widely venerated deities in the Sumerian pantheon, with temples across Mesopotamia. The cult of Inanna-Ishtar, which may have been associated with a variety of sexual rites, was continued by the East Semitic-speaking people who succeeded the Sumerians in the region. She was especially beloved by the Assyrians, who elevated her to become the highest deity in their pantheon, ranking above their own national god Ashur. Inanna-Ishtar is alluded to in the Hebrew Bible and she greatly influenced the Phoenician goddess Astoreth, who later influenced the development of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Her cult continued to flourish until its gradual decline between the first and sixth centuries AD in the wake of Christianity, though it survived in parts of Upper Mesopotamia as late as the eighteenth century. Inanna appears in more myths than any other Sumerian deity. Many of her myths involve her taking over the domains of other deities. She was believed to have stolen the mes, which represented all positive and negative aspects of civilization, from Enki, the god of wisdom. She was also believed to have taken over the Eanna temple from An, the god of the sky. Alongside her twin brother Utu (later known as Shamash), Inanna was the enforcer of divine justice; she destroyed Mount Ebih for having challenged her authority, unleashed her fury upon the gardener Shukaletuda after he raped her in her sleep, and tracked down the bandit woman Bilulu and killed her in divine retribution for having murdered Dumuzid. In the standard Akkadian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar asks Gilgamesh to become her consort. When he refuses, she unleashes the Bull of Heaven, resulting in the death of Enkidu and Gilgamesh's subsequent grapple with his mortality. Inanna-Ishtar's most famous myth is the story of her descent into and return from Kur, the ancient Sumerian Underworld, a myth in which she attempts to conquer the domain of her older sister Ereshkigal, the queen of the Underworld, but is instead deemed guilty of hubris by the seven judges of the Underworld and struck dead. Three days later, Ninshubur pleads with all the gods to bring Inanna back, but all of them refuse her except Enki, who sends two sexless beings to rescue Inanna. They escort Inanna out of the Underworld, but the "galla," the guardians of the Underworld, drag her husband Dumuzid down to the Underworld as her replacement. Dumuzid is eventually permitted to return to heaven for half the year while his sister Geshtinanna remains in the Underworld for the other half, resulting in the cycle of the seasons. Etymology Inanna and Ishtar originally were separate, unrelated deities, but they were equated with each other during the reign of Sargon of Akkad and came to be regarded as effectively the same goddess under two different names. Inanna's name may derive from the Sumerian phrase "nin-an-ak," meaning "Lady of Heaven," but the cuneiform sign for "Inanna" (𒈹) is not a ligature of the signs "lady" (Sumerian: nin; Cuneiform: 𒊩𒌆 SAL.TUG2) and sky (Sumerian: an; Cuneiform: 𒀭 AN). These difficulties led some early Assyriologists to suggest that Inanna originally may have been a Proto-Euphratean goddess, possibly related to the Hurrian mother goddess Hannahannah, who was only later accepted into the Sumerian pantheon. This idea was supported by Inanna's youthfulness, and as well as the fact that, unlike the other Sumerian divinities, she seems to have initially lacked a distinct sphere of responsibilities. The view that there was a Proto-Euphratean substrate language in Southern Iraq before Sumerian is not widely accepted by modern Assyriologists. The name "Ishtar" occurs as an element in personal names from both the pre-Sargonic and post-Sargonic eras in Akkad, Assyria, and Babylonia. It is of Semitic derivation and probably is related etymologically to the name of the West Semitic god Attar, who is mentioned in later inscriptions from Ugarit and southern Arabia. The morning star may have been conceived as a male deity who presided over the arts of war and the evening star may have been conceived as a female deity who presided over the arts of love. Among the Akkadians, Assyrians, and Babylonians, the name of the male god eventually supplanted the name of his female counterpart, but, due to extensive syncretism with Inanna, the deity remained as female, despite the fact that her name was in the masculine form. Origins and development Inanna has posed a problem for many scholars of ancient Sumer due to the fact that her sphere of power contained more distinct and contradictory aspects than that of any other deity. Two major theories regarding her origins have been proposed. The first explanation holds that Inanna is the result of a syncretism between several previously unrelated Sumerian deities with totally different domains. The second explanation holds that Inanna was originally a Semitic deity who entered the Sumerian pantheon after it already was fully structured, and who took on all the roles that had not yet been assigned to other deities. As early as the Uruk period (c. 4000 – c. 3100 BC), Inanna was already associated with the city of Uruk. During this period, the symbol of a ring-headed doorpost was closely associated with Inanna. The famous Uruk Vase (found in a deposit of cult objects of the Uruk III period) depicts a row of naked men carrying various objects, including bowls, vessels, and baskets of farm products, and bringing sheep and goats to a female figure facing the ruler. The female stands in front of Inanna's symbol of the two twisted reeds of the doorpost, while the male figure holds a box and stack of bowls, the later cuneiform sign signifying the En, or high priest of the temple. Seal impressions from the Jemdet Nasr period (c. 3100 – c. 2900 BC) show a fixed sequence of symbols representing various cities, including those of Ur, Larsa, Zabalam, Urum, Arina, and probably Kesh. This list probably reflects the report of contributions to Inanna at Uruk from cities supporting her cult. A large number of similar seals have been discovered from phase I of the Early Dynastic period (c. 2900 – c. 2350 BC) at Ur, in a slightly different order, combined with the rosette symbol of Inanna. These seals were used to lock storerooms to preserve materials set aside for her cult. During the Akkadian period (c. 2334 – 2154 BC), following the conquests of Sargon of Akkad, Inanna and Ishtar became so extensively syncretized that they became regarded as effectively the same. The Akkadian poet Enheduanna, the daughter of Sargon, wrote numerous hymns to Inanna, identifying her with Ishtar. Sargon himself proclaimed Inanna and An as the sources of his authority. As a result of this, the popularity of Inanna-Ishtar's cult skyrocketed. Worship During the Pre-Sargonic era, Inanna had virtually no cult, but, after the reign of Sargon, she quickly became one of the most widely venerated deities in the Sumerian pantheon. She had temples in Nippur, Lagash, Shuruppak, Zabalam, and Ur, but her main cult center was the Eanna temple in Uruk, whose name means "House of Heaven" (Sumerian: e2-anna; Cuneiform: 𒂍𒀭 E2.AN), The original patron deity of this fourth-millennium BC city was probably An. After its dedication to Inanna, the temple seems to have housed priestesses of the goddess. During later times, while her cult in Uruk continued to flourish, Ishtar also became particularly worshipped in the Upper Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria (modern northern Iraq, northeast Syria and southeast Turkey), especially in the cities of Nineveh, Aššur and Arbela (modern Erbil). During the reign of the Assyrian king Assurbanipal, Ishtar rose to become the most important and widely venerated deity in the Assyrian pantheon, surpassing even the Assyrian national god Ashur. As Ishtar became more prominent, several lesser or regional deities were assimilated into her, including Aya (the wife of Utu), Anatu (a Semitic warrior goddess), Anunitu (an Akkadian light goddess), Agasayam (a warrior goddess), Irnini (the goddess of cedar forests in the Lebanese mountains), Kilili or Kulili (the symbol of desirable women), Sahirtu (the messenger of lovers), Kir-gu-lu (the bringer of rain), and Sarbanda (the personification of sovereignty). Androgynous and hermaphroditic men were heavily involved in the cult of Inanna-Ishtar. During Sumerian times, a set of priests known as "gala" worked in Inanna's temples, where they performed elegies and lamentations. "Gala" took female names, spoke in the "eme-sal" dialect, which traditionally was reserved for women, and appear to have engaged in homosexual intercourse. During the Akkadian Period, "kurgarrū" and "assinnu" were servants of Ishtar who dressed in female clothing and performed war dances in Ishtar's temples. Several Akkadian proverbs seem to suggest that they may have also had homosexual proclivities. Gwendolyn Leick, an anthropologist known for her writings on Mesopotamia, has compared these individuals to the contemporary Indian "hijra." In one Akkadian hymn, Ishtar is described as transfor..
   
5. Title: Wikiwand: Ashur
   Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Ashur;
   Note: Ashur (אַשּׁוּר) was the second son of Shem, the son of Noah. Ashur's brothers were Elam, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram. Prior to the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, there was contention in academic circles regarding whether Ashur or Nimrod built the Assyrian cities of Nineveh, Resen, Rehoboth-Ir and Calah, since the name "Ashur "can refer to both the person and the country (compare Genesis 10:8–12 AV and Genesis 10:8–12 ESV). Sir Walter Raleigh devoted several pages in his "History of the World" (c. 1616) to reciting past scholarship regarding the question of whether it had been Nimrod or Ashur who built the cities in Assyria. Both the JPS Tanakh 1917 and the 1611 King James Bible clarify the language of the Septuagint and Vulgate translations of Genesis 10:11-12, by explicitly crediting Ashur as the founder of the cities of Nineveh, Rehoboth, Calah, and Resen. The Ge'ez version of the Book of Jubilees, affirmed by the 15 Jubilees scrolls found amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls, affirms that the contested lands in Genesis 10:8–12 were apportioned to Ashur. Jubilees 9:3 states, "And for Ashur came forth the second Portion, all the land of Ashur and Nineveh and Shinar and to the border of India, and it ascends and skirts the river." The 1st century Judaeo-Roman historian Flavius Josephus also gives the following statement: "Ashur lived at the city of Nineveh; and named his subjects Assyrians, who became the most fortunate nation, beyond others" (Antiquities, i, vi, 4). Ashur, father of Tekoa Another Ashur, the father of Tekoa, is mentioned in 1 Chronicles 4 as one of the Judahite descendants. Wives Helah was the first wife of Ashur and Naarah was his second wife.[citation needed] The name "na'arah" means "girl" or "maiden" in Hebrew. Naarah was of the tribe of Judah and gave birth to Ahuzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari (1 Chr. 4:5, 6).
   
6. Title: "The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, Volume 38"
   Author: University of Chicago Press, 1922
   Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=N601AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA225&lpg=PA225&dq=Sharma-Adad+I+of+Assyria&source=bl&ots=KfB17jWCuI&sig=ACfU3U2oR3nUfD1sPD0mz5v4Qg2efsKpGw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjVxZ3BvaToAhXSlHIEHduwB744FBDoATACegQIFBAB#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
   
7. Title: "Ancient and Modern Assyrians: A Scientific Analysis," by George V. Yana
   Author: Xlibris Corporation, Apr 10, 2008
   Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=32HS_jUi4NEC&pg=PA143&dq=Sharma-Adad+II&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwir6cHKv6ToAhXUl3IEHQTyBOYQ6AEwAHoECAUQAg#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
   Note: Some scholars have doubted or denied the continuity of the Assyrian people from the times of empire to the present time. This work, based on a scientific analysis, sheds light on the subject, and demonstrates the continuous existence of the Assyrian people. Assyria, (northern Iraq), was a state grouped about the heavily fortified city of Ashur, on the middle of the Tigris River. Assyrians had become civilized in the third millennium BC, under the impetus of Mesopotamian development. They created the first empire known to history that was run by an empire administration. The empire created by Sargon Sharukin, much earlier in the third millennium, did not have an administration to hold it together. Toward the close of the Bronze Age (1700-1200 BC), Assyria had expanded westward to the middle of the Euphrates River, and in the south they held Babylon temporarily. Tiglat-Pileser I (1114-1076), extended Assyrian rule to the Mediterranean. But, Adadnirari II (911-891 BC) may be called the father of Assyrian imperial administration. Empire building was a necessity of economic development, which was based on the technological advances caused by the introduction of iron and the alphabet. International trade was necessary for the growth of industry and manufacture, and the Assyrians became the tools to carry out this historic economic necessity. The Assyrian army was the first army to use iron arms. The Assyrian Empire was defeated, in 612 BC, by an alliance of Medes (an Iranian people), Persians (Iran), Babylonians, and Cythians. Since then, Assyria has been governed by Persians, Greeks, Arabs and Turks. The Assyrians were the first non-Jewish people to accept Christianity, and since then, Christianity has become their identity. They burned all their ancient books that reminded them of their pagan kings. Thus, with time, a dark cloud was cast over their memories that separated them from their glorious past. But, now and then, there were sparks from the remote past that testified to the persistence of memory. Only recently has the full national awareness been restored. There are, still, scholars who doubt or deny any link between the ancient and the Modern Assyrians. They argue that the Assyrians were all massacred during the destruction of their empire. This book sets out to demonstrate that the Assyrians were not all massacred during the destruction of their country in 612 BC, and that they emerged as a Christian people in Assyria (northern Iraq) and the neighboring countries.
   
8. Title: "Dictionary of the Ancient Near East," edited by Piotr Bienkowski, ‎Curator of Egyptian and Near Eastern Antiquities National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside Honorary Research Fellow
   Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=KdlhaAfK1sYC&pg=PA39&lpg=PA39&dq=Ashur-Nirari&source=bl&ots=Bxunc3pB4K&sig=ACfU3U0AAfyBFvHkkt_wW5JhFdaRkB5OPQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj1p7relKjoAhUBhuAKHb2YDlE4FBDoATAMegQIExAB#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
   Note: Selected by Choice magazine in 2000 as an Outstanding Academic Book The earliest farms, cities, governments, legal codes, and alphabets developed in the ancient Near East. Four major religions--Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam--began in the region. Ideas, inventions, and institutions spread to all parts of the globe from the urban centers of the ancient Egyptians, Syrians, Hittites, Assyrians, Babylonians, and other peoples of the biblical world. For good reason is the ancient Near East known as the cradle of civilization. The only single-volume dictionary to embrace the whole of the ancient Near East, this major reference work covers Anatolia, Mesopotamia, the Levant, and the Arabian peninsula from the earliest times, through the Old Testament period, until the fall of Babylon to the Persians in 539 B.C. From "Achaemenids" to "Ziwiye," "administration" to "ziggurat," in 500 concise, cross-referenced, and comprehensively indexed entries, the Dictionary of the Ancient Near East describes and explains the major ideas, institutions, places, peoples, and personalities that shaped the earliest development of Western civilization. Architecture, literature, economics, labor, religion, and society are all extensively treated, as are such subjects as crime, dreams, drunkenness, shipwrecks, and sexual behavior (and misbehavior). Each entry, written by a scholar of international standing, includes up-to-date bibliographic references. The book is richly illustrated with photographs, maps, and plans of major sites. Contributors: Douglas Baird (Lecturer in Near Eastern Archaeology, University of Liverpool), Jeremy Black (University Lecturer in Akkadian, Oriental Institute, Oxford University), Paul T. Collins (freelance lecturer in the Ancient Near East, London), Stephanie Dalley (Shillito Fellow in Assyriology, Oriental Institute, Oxford University), Anthony Green (Lecturer in Near Eastern Archaeology, Free University of Berlin), Gwendolyn Leick (Lecturer in Anthropology, the American International University, London), Michael Macdonald (Research Fellow, Oriental Institute, Oxford University), Roger Matthews (Director, British Institute for Archaeology, Ankara), Gerald L. Mattingly (Lecturer, Johnson Bible College, Knoxville, Tennessee), Graham Philip (Lecturer in Archaeology, University of Durham), Geoffrey Summers (Lecturer in Archaeology, Middle East Technical University, Ankara).
   
9. Title: Wikiwand: Puzur-Ashur III
   Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Puzur-Ashur_III;
   Note: Puzur-Ashur III was the king of Assyria from 1503 BC to 1479 BC. According to the Assyrian King List, he was the son and successor of Ashur-nirari I and ruled for 24 years (or 14 years, according to another copy). He is also the first Assyrian king to appear in the synchronistic history, where he is described as a contemporary of Burnaburiash of Babylon. A few of his building inscriptions were found at Assur. He rebuilt part of the temple of Ishtar in his capital, Ashur, and the southern parts of the city wall.
   
10. Title: Project Gutenberg: Assyria
    Author: Title: Assyria Author: World Heritage Encyclopedia Language: English Subject: 7th century BC, 8th century BC, Babylonia, Urartu, 9th century BC Collection: 13Th-Century Bc Establishments in Asia, 612 Bc, 7Th-Century Bc Disestablishments in Assyria, Ancient History of Iran, Ancient History of Iraq, Ancient History of Turkey, Assyria, States and Territories Disestablished in the 7Th Century Bc, States and Territories Established in the 13Th Century Bc
    Publication: Name: http://www.self.gutenberg.org/article/WHEBN0000002085/Assyria;
    Note: Assyria, a major Mesopotamian East Semitic kingdom and empire of the Ancient Near East, existed as an independent state for a period of approximately nineteen centuries, from the 25th century BC to 605 BC, spanning the mid to Early Bronze Age through to the late Iron Age. For a further thirteen centuries, from the end of the 7th century BC to the mid-7th century AD, it survived as a geo-political entity, for the most part ruled by foreign powers, although a number of small Neo-Assyrian states such as Assur, Adiabene, Osroene and Hatra arose at different times between the 1st century BC and late 3rd century CE. Centered on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia (modern northern Iraq, northeastern Syria and southeastern Turkey), the Assyrians came to rule powerful empires at several times. Making up a substantial part of the greater Mesopotamian "cradle of civilization," which included Sumer, Akkad and much later Babylonia, Assyria was at the height of technological, scientific and cultural achievements for its time. At its peak, the Assyrian empire stretched from Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea to Persia (Iran), and from what is now Armenia to the Arabian Peninsula and Egypt. Assyria is named for its original capital, the ancient city of Aššur (a.k.a. Ashur), which dates to c. 2600 BC (located in what is now the Saladin Province of northern Iraq), originally one of a number of Akkadian city states in Mesopotamia. In the 25th and 24th centuries BC, Assyrian kings were pastoral leaders. From the late 24th century BC, this people became subject to Sargon of Akkad, who united all the Akkadian Semites and Sumerian-speaking peoples of Mesopotamia under the Akkadian Empire, which lasted from c. 2334 BC to 2154 BC. Following the fall of the Akkadian Empire c. 2154 BC, and the short-lived succeeding Neo-Sumerian Empire that ruled southern Assyria but not the north, Assyria regained full independence. The history of Assyria proper is roughly divided into three periods, known as Old Assyrian, Middle Assyrian and Neo-Assyrian. These terms are in wide use in Assyrology and roughly correspond to the early to Middle Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, respectively. In the Old Assyrian period, Assyria established colonies in Asia Minor and the Levant and, under king Ilushuma, it asserted itself over southern Mesopotamia. From the mid 18th century BC, Assyria came into conflict with the newly created state of Babylonia, which eventually eclipsed the far older Sumero-Akkadian states in the south, such as Ur, Isin, Larsa and Kish. Assyria experienced fluctuating fortunes in the Old Assyrian period. Assyria became a regionally powerful nation with the Old Assyrian Empire from the late 21st century to the mid 18th century BC. Following this, it found itself under short periods of Babylonian and Mitanni-Hurrian rule in the 18th and 15th centuries BC respectively, and another period of great power occurred with the rise of the Middle Assyrian Empire (from 1365 BC to 1056 BC), which included the reigns of great kings, such as Ashur-uballit I, Arik-den-ili, Tukulti-Ninurta I and Tiglath-Pileser I. During this period, Assyria overthrew the Mitanni-Empire and eclipsed the Hittite Empire, Egyptian Empire, Babylonia, Elam and Phrygia in the Near East. Beginning with the campaigns After its fall (between 612 BC and 605 BC), Assyria remained a province and geo-political entity under the Babylonian, Median, Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman and Sassanid empires until the Arab Islamic invasion and conquest of Mesopotamia in the mid-7th century AD, when it was finally dissolved, after which the remnants of the Assyrian people (by now almost exclusively Eastern Rite Assyrian Christians) gradually became an ethnic, linguistic, cultural and religious minority in the traditional Assyrian homelands, surviving there to this day. (see Assyrian continuity). NAMES Assyria also sometimes was known as Subartu and "Azuhinum" prior to the rise of the city state of Ashur after which it was 𒀸𒋗𒁺 𐎹, "Aššūrāyu," and after its fall, from 605 BC through to the late 7th century AD variously as Athura and also referenced as Atouria according to Strabo, "Syria" (Greek), "Assyria" (Latin) and Assuristan. After its dissolution in the mid 7th century AD it remained "The Ecclesiastical Province of Ator." The term "Assyria" also can refer to the geographic region or heartland where Assyria, its empires and the Assyrian people were (and still are) centered. The modern Assyrian Christian ethnic minority in northern Iraq, north east Syria, south east Turkey and north west Iran are the descendants of the ancient Assyrians (see Assyrian continuity). PRE-HISTORY OF ASSYRIA In prehistoric times, the region that was to become known as Assyria (and Subartu) was home to a Neanderthal culture such as has been found at the Shanidar Cave. The earliest Neolithic sites in Assyria were the Jarmo culture c. 7100 BC and Tell Hassuna, the center of the "Hassuna culture," c. 6000 BC. During the 3rd millennium BC, a very intimate cultural symbiosis developed between the Sumerians and the Semitic Akkadians throughout Mesopotamia, which included widespread bilingualism. The influence of Sumerian (a language isolate, i.e., not related to any other language) on Akkadian (and vice versa) is evident in all areas, from lexical borrowing on a massive scale, to syntactic, morphological, and phonological convergence. This has prompted scholars to refer to Sumerian and Akkadian in the 3rd millennium BC as a "sprachbund." Akkadian gradually replaced Sumerian as the spoken language of Mesopotamia somewhere after the turn of the 3rd and the 2nd millennium BC (the exact dating being a matter of debate), but Sumerian continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the 1st century AD. Akkadian gradually replaced Sumerian as the spoken language of Mesopotamia somewhere after the turn of the 3rd and the 2nd millennium BC (the exact dating being a matter of debate), but Sumerian continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the 1st century AD. The cities of Assur (also spelled Ashur or Aššur) and Nineveh, together with a number of other towns and cities, existed since at least before the middle of the 3rd millennium BC (c. 2600 BC), although they appear to have been Sumerian-ruled administrative centres at this time, rather than independent states. According to some Judaeo-Christian writers , the city of Ashur was founded by Ashur the son of Shem, who was deified by later generations as the city's patron god. However, it is not among the cities said to have been founded by him in Genesis 10:11–12, and the far older Assyrian annals make no mention of the much later Judeo-Christian figures of Shem and Ashur. Assyrian tradition lists an early Assyrian king named Ushpia as having dedicated the first temple to the god Ashur in the city in the 21st century BC. It is highly likely that the city was named in honour of its patron Assyrian god with the same name. Julius Africanus which dates the founding of Assyria to 2284 BC. The Roman historian Velleius Paterculus citing Aemilius Sura states that Assyria was founded 1995 years before Philip V was defeated in 197 BC (at the Battle of Cynoscephalae) by the Romans. The sum therefore 197 + 1995 = 2192 BC for the foundation of Assyria. Diodorus Siculus recorded another tradition from Ctesias, that dates Assyria 1,306 years before 883 BC (the starting date of the reign of Ashurnasirpal II) and so the sum 883 + 1306 = 2189 BC. The "Chronicle" of Eusebius provides yet another date for the founding of Assyria, with the accession of Ninus, dating to 2057 BC, but the Armenian translation of the "Chronicle" puts this figure back slightly to 2116 BC. Another classical dating tradition found in the "Excerpta Latina Barbari" dates the foundation of Assyria, under Belus, to 2206 BC. EARLY ASSYRIA, 2600–2335 BC The city of Ashur, together with a number of other Assyrian cities, seem to have been established by 2600 BC, however it is likely that they were initially Sumerian dominated administrative centres. In c. the late 26th century BC, Eannatum of Lagash, then the dominant Sumerian ruler in Mesopotamia, mentions "smiting Subartu" (Subartu being the Sumerian name for Assyria). Similarly, in c. the early 25th century BC, Lugal-Anne-Mundu the king of the Sumerian state of Adab lists Subartu as paying tribute to him. Of the early history of the kingdom of Assyria, little is known positively. In the Assyrian King List, the earliest king recorded was Tudiya. In archaeological reports from Ebla, it appeared that Tudiya's activities were confirmed with the discovery of a tablet where he concluded a treaty for the operation of a "karum" (trading colony) in Eblaite territory, with "king" Ibrium of Ebla (who is now known to have been the vizier of Ebla for king Ishar-Damu). This entire reading is now questionable, as several scholars have more recently argued that the treaty in question may not have been with king Tudiya of Assyria, but rather with the unnamed king of an uncertain location called "Abarsal." Tudiya was succeeded on the list by Adamu and then a further thirteen rulers (Yangi, Shuhlamu, Harharu, Mandaru, Imshu, Harshu, Didanu, Hanu, Zuabu, Nuabu, Abazu, Belu and Azarah). Nothing concrete is yet known about these names, although it has been noted that a much later Babylonian tablet listing the ancestral lineage of Hammurabi, the Amorite king of Babylon, seems to have copied the same names from Tudiya through Nuabu, though in a heavily corrupted form. The earliest kings, such as Tudiya, who are recorded as "kings who lived in tents," were independent semi-nomadic pastoralist rulers. These kings at some point became fully urbanised and founded the city state of Ashur. ASSYRIA IN THE AKKADIAN EMPIRE AND NEO-SUMERIAN EMPIRES During..
    
11. Title: "Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 2 (1913)," "Assur," by Gabriel Oussani
    Publication: Name: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Catholic_Encyclopedia_(1913)/Assur_(2);
    Note: (Sept., Assour.) (1) The name used in the Old Testament to designate the Assyrian land and nation. (See ASSYRIA.) (2) The name of one of the sons of Sem, mentioned in Gen., x , 22. In verse 11 of the same chapter, the Douay version has: "Out of that land came forth Assur." Here the name in the original refers not to a person, but to the country, as above, and the reading: ". . . he (Nimrod) went forth into the Assyria (Assur)" is preferable. Another Assur, or Ashur, "father of Thecua," is mentioned in I Paral., ii, 24, and iv, 5. (3) The national god of the Assyrians (in the cuneiform inscriptions Assuhr, Ashur). The religion of the Assyrians, like their language and their arts, was in all essential particulars derived from the Babylonians. But together with the preponderance of the Assyrian power over the southern provinces came a corresponding exaltation of the local tutelary deity. Asshur, who was originally the eponymic god of the capital of Assyria (also called Asshur), thus became a national god, and was place at the head of the Assyrian pantheon. In his name, and to promote his interests, the Assyrian monarchs claim to undertake their various military expeditions. He is styled King among the gods; the god who created himself. Differently from the other deities, Asshur is not represented as having a consort or posterity. His Symbolic representation is ordinarily a winged disc, sometimes accompanied by the figure of a human bust. (See ASSYRIA.) GABRIEL OUSSANI
    
12. Title: Livius: The Assyrian King List
    Author: This page was created in 2006; last modified on 16 December 2019.
    Publication: Name: https://www.livius.org/sources/content/anet/564-566-the-assyrian-king-list/;
    Note: Assyrian King List: list of rulers of ancient Assyria, used as a framework for the study of Mesopotamian chronology. Incomplete lists of Assyrian kings have been discovered in each of Assyria's three capitals: Aššur, Dur-Šarukkin, and Nineveh. There are also two fragments. The texts of these copies are more or less consistent and goes back to one original, which was based on the list of yearly limmu-officials, who were appointed by the king and had to preside the celebration of the New Year festival. As a consequence, modern scholars tend to believe that the numbers of regnal years mentioned in the Assyrian King List are correct; however, there are minor differences between the copies. Down to the reign of Aššur-dan I, they offer identical information, and it is therefore reasonable to assume that the list is more or less reliable until his regnal years, 1178-1133. Before 1178, the three documents show divergences. Edition Jean-Jacques Glassner, Chroniques Mésopotamiennes (1993) (translated as Mesopotamian Chronicles, 2004) Assyrian King List [1-17] Tudija, Adamu, Janqi, Sahlamu, Harharu, Mandaru, Imsu, Harsu, Didanu, Hanu, Zuabu, Nuabu, Abazu, Belu, Azarah, Ušpija, Apiašal. ------------------------------------------ Total: 17 kings who lived in tents.note ------------------------------------------ [18-26] Aminu was the son of Ilu-kabkabu, Ila-kabkabi of Yazkur-el, Jazkur-ilu of Yakmeni, Jakmeni of Yakmesi, Jakmesi of Ilu-Mer, Ilu-Mer of Hayani, Hajanu of Samani,Samanu of Hale, Hale of Apiašal, Apiašal of Ušpia. ------------------------------------------ Total: 10 kings who were ancestors.note ------------------------------------------ [27-32] Sulili son of Aminu, Kikkija, Akija, Puzur-Aššur [I], Šalim-ahum, Ilušuma. Total: 6 kings named on bricks,note whose number of limmu-officials is unknown. ------------------------------------------ [33] Erišum [I], son of Ilušuma, [...] ruled for 30/40 years. ------------------------------------------ [34] Ikunum, son of Erishu, ruled for [...] years. ------------------------------------------ [35] Sargon [I], son of Ikunu, ruled for [...] years.note ------------------------------------------ [36] Puzur-Aššur [II], son of Sargon, ruled for [...] years. ------------------------------------------ [37] Naram-Sin, son of Puzur-Aššur, ruled for N+4 years. ------------------------------------------ [38] Erišum [II], son of Naram-Sin, ruled for [...] years. ------------------------------------------ [39] Šamši-Adad [I], sonnote of Ila-kabkabi, went to Karduniaš in the time of Naram-Sin. In the eponymy of Ibni-Adad, Šamši-Adad went up from Karduniaš. He took Ekallatum, where he stayed three years. In the eponymy of Atamar-Ištar, Šamši-Adad went up from Ekallatum. He ousted Erišum, son of Naram-Sin, from the throne and took it. He ruled for 33 years. (1813-1781) ------------------------------------------ [40] Išme-Dagan [I], son of Šamši-Adad, ruled for 40 years. ------------------------------------------ [41] Aššur-dugul, son of a nobody,note who had no title to the throne, ruled for 6 years. ------------------------------------------ [42-47] In the time of Aššur-dugul, son of a nobody, Aššur-apla-idi, Nasir-Sin, Sin-namir, Ipqi-Ištar, Adad-salulu, and Adasi, six sons of nobodies, ruled at the beginning of his brief reign. ------------------------------------------ [48] Belu-bani, son of Adasi, ruled for 10 years. ------------------------------------------ [49] Libaja, son of Belu-Bani, ruled for 17 years. ------------------------------------------ [50] Šarma-Adad [I], son of Libaja, ruled for 12 years. ------------------------------------------ [51] Iptar-Sin, son of Šarma-Adad, ruled for 12 years. ------------------------------------------ [52] Bazaja, son of Iptar-Sin, ruled for 28 years. ------------------------------------------ [53] Lullaja, son of a nobody, ruled for 6 years. ------------------------------------------ [54] Šu-Ninua, son of Bazaja, ruled for 14 years. ------------------------------------------ [55] Šarma-Adad [II], son of Šu-Ninua, ruled for 3 years. ------------------------------------------ [56] Erišum [III], son of Šu-Ninua, ruled for 13 years. ------------------------------------------ [57] Šamši-Adad [II], son of Erišum, ruled for 6 years. ------------------------------------------ [58] Išme-Dagan [II], son of Šamši-Adad, ruled for 16 years. ------------------------------------------ [59] Šamši-Adad [III], son of [another] Išme-Dagan, brother of Šarma-Adad [II], son of Šu-Ninua, ruled for 16 years. ------------------------------------------ [60] Aššur-nirari [I], son of Išme-Dagan, ruled for 26 years. ------------------------------------------ [61] Puzur-Aššur [III], son of Aššur-nirari, ruled for 24/14 years. ------------------------------------------ [62] Enlil-nasir [I], son of Puzur-Aššur, ruled for 13 years. ------------------------------------------ [63] Nur-ili, son of Enlil-nasir, ruled for 12 years. ------------------------------------------ [64] Aššur-šaduni, son of Nur-ili, ruled for 1 month. ------------------------------------------ [65] Aššur-rabi [I], son of Enlil-nasir, ousted him, seized the throne and ruled for [...] years. ------------------------------------------ [66] Aššur-nadin-ahhe [I], son of Aššur-rabi, ruled for [...] years. ------------------------------------------ [67] Enlil-nasir [II], his brother, ousted him and ruled for 6 years (1420-1415).note ------------------------------------------ [68] Aššur-nirari [II], son of Enlil-nasir, ruled for 7 years (1414-1408). ------------------------------------------ [69] Aššur-bêl-nišešu, son of Aššur-nirari, ruled for 9 years (1407-1399). ------------------------------------------ [70] Aššur-rem-nišešu, son of Aššur-bêl-nišešu, ruled for 8 years (1398-1391). ------------------------------------------ [71] Aššur-nadin-ahhe [II], son of Aššur-rem-nišešu, ruled for 10 years (1390-1381). ------------------------------------------ [72] Eriba-Adad [I], son of Aššur-bêl-nišešu, ruled for 27 years (1380-1354). ------------------------------------------ [73] Aššur-uballit [I], son of Eriba-Adad, ruled for 36 years (1353-1318). ------------------------------------------ [74] Enlil-nirari, son of Aššur-uballit, ruled for 10 years (1317-1308). ------------------------------------------ [75] Arik-den-ili, son of Enlil-nirari, ruled for 12 years (1307-1296). ------------------------------------------ [76] Adad-nirari [I], son of Arik-den-ili, ruled for 32 years (1295-1264). ------------------------------------------ [77] Šalmaneser [I], son of Adad-nirari, ruled for 30 years (1263-1234). ------------------------------------------ [78] Tukulti-ninurta [I], son of Šalmaneser, ruled for 37 years (1233-1197). ------------------------------------------ [79] During the lifetime of Tukulti-ninurta, Aššur-nadin-apli, his son, seized the throne and ruled for 4 years (1196-1193). ------------------------------------------ [80] Aššur-nirari [III], son of Aššur-nadin-apli, ruled for 6 years (1192-1187). ------------------------------------------ [81] Enlil-kudurri-usur, son of Tukulti-ninurta, ruled for 5 years (1186-1182). ------------------------------------------ [82] Ninurta-apil-Ekur, son of Ila-Hadda, a descendant of Eriba-Adad, went to Karduniaš. He came up from Karduniaš, seized the throne and ruled for 3 years (1181-1179). ------------------------------------------ [83] Aššur-dan [I], son of Aššur-nadin-apli, ruled for 46 years (1178-1133). ------------------------------------------ [84] Ninurta-tukulti-Aššur, son of Aššur-dan, briefly.note ------------------------------------------ [85] Mutakkil-Nusku, his brother, fought him and took him to Karduniaš. Mutakkil-Nusku held the throne briefly, then died. ------------------------------------------ [86] Aššur-reš-iši [I], son of Mutakkil-Nusku, ruled for 18 years (1132-1115). ------------------------------------------ [87] Tiglath-pileser [I], son of Aššur-reš-iši, ruled for 39 years (1114-1076). ------------------------------------------ [88] Ašarid-apil-Ekur, son of Tiglath-pileser, ruled for 2 years (1075-1074). ------------------------------------------ [89] Aššur-bêl-kala, son of Tiglath-pileser, ruled for 18 years (1073-1056). ------------------------------------------ [90] Eriba-Adad [II], son of Aššur-bêl-kala, ruled for 2 years (1055-1054). ------------------------------------------ [91] Šamši-Adad [IV], son of Tiglath-pileser, came up from Karduniaš. He ousted Eriba-Adad, son of Aššur-bêl-kala, seized the throne and ruled for 4 years (1053-1050). ------------------------------------------ [92] Aššurnasirpal [I], son of Šamši-Adad, ruled for 19 years (1049-1031). ------------------------------------------ [93] Šalmaneser [II], son of Aššurnasirpal, ruled for 12 years (1030-1019). ------------------------------------------ [94] Aššur-nirari [IV], son of Šalmaneser, ruled for 6 years (1018-1013). ------------------------------------------ [95] Aššur-rabi [II], son of Aššurnasirpal, ruled for 41 years (1012-972). ------------------------------------------ [96] Aššur-reš-iši [II], son of Aššur-rabi, ruled for 5 years (971-967). ------------------------------------------ [97] Tiglath-pileser [II], son of Aššur-reš-iši, ruled for 32 years (966-935). ------------------------------------------ [98] Aššur-dan [II], son of Tiglath-pileser, ruled for 23 years (934-912). ------------------------------------------ [99] Adad-nirari [II], son of Aššur-dan, ruled for 21 years (911-891). ------------------------------------------ [100] Tukulti-Ninurta [II], son of Adad-nirari, ruled for 7 years (890-884). ------------------------------------------ [101] Aššurnasirpal [II], son of Tukulti-Ninurta, ruled for 25 years (883-859). ------------------------------------------ [102] Šalmaneser [III], son of Aššurnasirpal, ruled for 35 years (858-824). ------------------------------------------ [103] Šamši-Adad [V], son of Šalmaneser, ruled for 13 years (823-81..
    
13. Title: Wikiwand: Old Assyrian Empire
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Old_Assyrian_Empire;
    Note: The Old Assyrian Empire is the second of four periods into which the history of Assyria is divided, the other three being the Early Assyrian Period (2600–2025 BC), the Middle Assyrian Empire (1392-934 BC), and the Neo-Assyrian Empire (911–609 BC). Assyria was a major Mesopotamian East Semitic-speaking kingdom and empire of the ancient Near East. Centered on the Tigris–Euphrates river system in Upper Mesopotamia, the Assyrian people came to rule powerful empires at several times. Making up a substantial part of the "cradle of civilization," which included Sumer, the Akkadian Empire, and Babylonia, Assyria was at the height of technological, scientific and cultural achievements at its peak. At its peak, the Assyrian empire ruled over what the ancient Mesopotamian religion referred to as the "four corners of the world": as far north as the Caucasus Mountains within the lands of what is today called Armenia and Azerbaijan, as far east as the Zagros Mountains within the territory of present-day Iran, as far south as the Arabian Desert of today's Saudi Arabia, as far west as the island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea, and even further to the west in Egypt and eastern Libya. Assyria is named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur, which dates to c. 2600 BC, originally one of a number of Akkadian city states in Mesopotamia. Assyria also sometimes was known as Subartu and Azuhinum prior to the rise of the city-state of Assur, and during the Sasanian Empire as Asōristān. History In the Old Assyrian Empire, Assyria established colonies in Anatolia and the Levant and, under king Ilu-shuma, it asserted itself over southern Mesopotamia (what was later to become Babylonia). The first written inscriptions by urbanized Assyrian kings appear c. 2450 BC, after they had shrugged off Sumerian domination. The land of Assyria as a whole then consisted of a number of city-states and small Semitic-speaking kingdoms, some of which were initially independent of Assyria. The foundation of the first major temple in the city of Aššur was traditionally ascribed to king Ushpia who reigned c. 2050 BC, possibly a contemporary of Ishbi-Erra of Isin and Naplanum of Larsa. He was reputedly succeeded by kings named Apiashal, Sulili, Kikkia and Akiya (died c. 2026 BC), of whom little is known, apart from much later mentions of Kikkiya conducting fortifications on the city walls, and building work on temples in Aššur. Between c. 2500 BC and c. 2400 BC, Assyrian kings were pastoral leaders. The main rivals, neighbors or trading partners to early Assyrian kings between c. 2200 BC and c. 2000 BC would have been the Hattians and Hurrians to the north in Anatolia, the Gutian people, Lullubi and Turukkaeans to the east in the Zagros Mountains of the northwest Iranian Plateau, Elam to the southeast in what is now south central Iran, the Amorites to the west in what is today Syria, and their fellow Sumero-Akkadian city-states of southern Mesopotamia such as Isin, Kish, Ur, Eshnunna and Larsa. Around 2400 BC, the Assyrians became subject to Sargon of Akkad, who united all the Sumero-Akkadian-speaking peoples of Mesopotamia under the Akkadian Empire, which lasted from c. 2334 BC to c. 2154 BC. At that time, the Sumerians were eventually absorbed into the Akkadian (Assyro-Babylonian) population. Assyria became a regionally powerful nation in the Old Assyrian Empire from c. 2100 BC to c. 1800 BC. The Amorites had overrun the kingdoms of southern Mesopotamia and the Levant between c. 2100 BC and c. 1900 BC, but had hitherto been successfully repelled by the Assyrian kings during this period. However, Erishum II (c. 1818 BC – c. 1809 BC) was to be the last king of the dynasty of Puzur-Ashur I, founded c. 2025 BC. In c. 1808 BC he was deposed and the throne of Assyria was usurped by Shamshi-Adad I (c. 1809 BC – 1776 BC) in the expansion of Amorite tribes from the Khabur River delta in the north eastern Levant. About 1800 BC, Assyria came into conflict with the newly created city state of Babylon, which eventually eclipsed the far older Sumero-Akkadian states and cities in the south; such as Ur, Isin, Larsa, Kish, Nippur, Eridu, Lagash, Umma, Uruk, Akshak and Adab, incorporating them into a greater Babylonia. Assyria remained untroubled by the emergence of the Hittites and Mitanni, both to the north of Assyria, and by the Kassites who had seized Babylonian from its Amorite founders. After securing its borders on all sides, Assyria entered into a quiet and peaceful period in its history which lasted for two and a half centuries. The emergence of the Mitanni Empire in c. 1600 BC did eventually lead to a short period of sporadic Mitannian-Hurrian domination in c. 1500 BC. The Indo-European-speaking Mitanni are thought to have conquered and formed the ruling class over the indigenous Hurrians of eastern Anatolia. The Hurrians spoke a language isolate, i.e. neither Semitic nor Indo-European. Origin of name See also: Subartu "Assyria" is named after its first capital city, Assur. The city Assur is itself named after its patron deity, Ashur. Assyria was also sometimes known as "Azuhinum," prior to the rise of the city-state of Assur, after which it was referred to as "Aššūrāyu." "Assyria" also can refer to the geographic region of the Assyrian homeland, roughly equivalent to the territory of the Old Assyrian Empire, and the land of the modern Christian Aramaic-speaking Assyrians. Scholars suggest that Subartu may have been an early name for Assyria proper along the Tigris river and further upriver into Upper Mesopotamia, although there are various other theories placing it sometimes a little further out to the north, west, and/or east within the Tigris–Euphrates river system. Settlements Capital cities Assur Main article: Assur Assur was the capital city of Assyria c. 2025 BC – c. 1754 BC and c. 1681 BC – c. 1379 BC. The oldest remains of the city were discovered in the foundations of the Ishtar temple, as well as at the Old Palace. In around 2025 BC, Puzur-Ashur I founded a new dynasty, and his successors such as Ilu-shuma, Erishum I and Sargon I left inscriptions regarding the building of temples to the gods Ashur, Adad and Ishtar in the city. Assur developed rapidly into a center for trade, and trade routes led from the city to Anatolia, where merchants from Assur established trading colonies. These Assyrian colonies in Asia Minor were called karu, and traded mostly with tin and wool. In the city of Assur, the first great temples to the city god Ashur and the weather god Adad were erected. Assur was the capital of the empire of Shamshi-Adad I (c. 1754 BC – c. 1721 BC). He expanded the city's power and influence beyond the Tigris River valley, creating what some regard as the first Assyrian Empire. In this period, the Great Royal Palace was built, and the temple of Ashur was expanded and enlarged with a ziggurat. This empire came to end when Hammurabi, the Amorite king of Babylon incorporated the city into his short lived empire following the death of Ishme-Dagan I c. 1681 BC, and the next three Assyrian kings were regarded as vassals. A king named Adasi drove the Babylonians and Amorites from Assur and Assyria as a whole c. 1720 BC, however little is known of his successors. Renewed building activity is known a few centuries later, during the reign of a king Puzur-Ashur III, when the city was refortified and the southern quarters incorporated into the main city defenses. Temples to the moon god Sin and the sun god Shamash were erected c. 1490 BC. The city was then subjugated by the king of Mitanni, Shaushtatar c. 1450 BC, who removed the gold and silver doors of the temple to his capital, Washukanni, as plunder. Ashur-uballit I overthrew the Mitanni c. 1365 BC, and the Assyrians benefited from this development by taking control of the eastern portion of Mitanni territory, and later also annexing Hittite, Babylonian, Amorite and Hurrian territories. Shubat-Enlil Main article: Shubat-Enlil Shubat-Enlil was the capital city of Assyria c. 1754 BC – c. 1681 BC. Shubat-Enlil was known as Shekhna c. 2000 BC. The conquest of the region by Shamshi-Adad I (c. 1754 BC – c. 1721 BC of Assyria revived the abandoned site of Shekhna. He renamed it from Shekhna to Shubat-Enlil, meaning, "the residence of the god Enlil" in the Akkadian language. In the city a royal palace was built and a temple acropolis to which a straight paved street led from the city gate. There was also a planned residential area and the entire city was enclosed by a wall. The Babylonians were defeated and driven out of Assyria by the Assyrian king Adasi, however Shubat-Enlil was never reoccupied and the Assyrian capital city was transferred to its traditional home in Assur. Among many important discoveries at Šubat-Enlil is an archive of 1,100 cuneiform clay tablets maintained by the rulers of the city. These tablets date to c. 1700 BC and record the dealings with other Mesopotamian states and how the city administration worked. Šubat-Enlil was abandoned c. 1681 BC. Other cities Nineveh Main article: Nineveh Nineveh was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia. The historic Nineveh is mentioned during the reign of Shamshi-Adad I (c. 1754 BC – c. 1721 BC) as a center of worship for the god Ishtar, whose cult was responsible for the city's early importance. The goddess' statue was sent to the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III (c. 1386 BC – c. 1349 BC), by orders of the king of the Mitanni. The Assyrian city of Ninâ became one of Mitanni's vassals for half a century until c. 1378 BC. Karum Main article: Karum (trade post) Assyrian merchants had established the "karum" (Akkadian: "kārum," "quay, port, commercial district," plural "kārū," from Sumerian kar "fortification (of a harbor), break-water") small colonial settlements next to Anatolian cities which paid taxes to the rulers of the cities c. 1960 BC. Among them were: Kanesh, Ankuwa, and Ḫattuša. There were also smalle..
    
14. Title: Wikiwand: Babylon
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Babylon;
    Note: Babylon was the capital city of Babylonia, a kingdom in ancient Mesopotamia, between the 18th and 6th centuries BC. It was built along the left and right banks of the Euphrates river with steep embankments to contain the river's seasonal floods. Babylon was originally a small Akkadian town dating from the period of the Akkadian Empire c. 2300 BC. The town became part of a small independent city-state with the rise of the First Babylonian dynasty in the 19th century BC. The Amorite king Hammurabi created a short-lived empire in the 18th century BC. He built Babylon into a major city and declared himself its king. Southern Mesopotamia became known as Babylonia and Babylon eclipsed Nippur as its holy city. The empire waned under Hammurabi's son Samsu-iluna and Babylon spent long periods under Assyrian, Kassite and Elamite domination. After being destroyed and then rebuilt by the Assyrians, Babylon became the capital of the short-lived Neo-Babylonian Empire from 609 to 539 BC. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. After the fall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the city came under the rule of the Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman, and Sassanid empires. It has been estimated that Babylon was the largest city in the world c. 1770 – c. 1670 BC, and again c. 612 – c. 320 BC. It was perhaps the first city to reach a population above 200,000. Estimates for the maximum extent of its area range from 890[3] to 900 hectares (2,200 acres). The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq, about 85 kilometers (53 mi) south of Baghdad, comprising a large tell of broken mud-brick buildings and debris. The main sources of information about Babylon—excavation of the site itself, references in cuneiform texts found elsewhere in Mesopotamia, references in the Bible, descriptions in classical writing (especially by Herodotus), and second-hand descriptions (citing the work of Ctesias and Berossus)—present an incomplete and sometimes contradictory picture of the ancient city, even at its peak in the sixth century BC. Name The spelling "Babylon" is the Latin representation of Greek "Babulṓn" (Βαβυλών), derived from the native (Babylonian) "Bābilim," meaning "gate of the god(s)." The cuneiform spelling was 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 KA2.DIG̃IR.RAKI. This would correspond to the Sumerian phrase "kan diĝirak," "gate of the god." The 𒆍 KA2 is the ideograph for "gate," 𒀭 DIG̃IR is "god," and the 𒊏, "ra" is phonetic. The final 𒆠 KI is the determiner for a place name. Archibald Sayce, writing in the 1870s, postulated that the Semitic name was a loan-translation of the original Sumerian name. However, the "gate of god" interpretation is increasingly viewed as a Semitic folk etymology to explain an unknown original non-Semitic placename. I.J. Gelb in 1955 argued that the original name was "Babil" or "Babilla," of unknown meaning and origin, as there were other similarly-named places in Sumer, and there are no other examples of Sumerian place-names being replaced with Akkadian translations. He deduced that it later transformed into Akkadian "Bāb-ili(m)." The Sumerian name "Ka-dig̃irra" was loan translation of the Semitic folk etymology, and not the original name. The re-translation of the Semitic name into Sumerian would have taken place at the time of the "Neo-Sumerian" Third Dynasty of Ur. ("Bab-Il"). In the Hebrew Bible, the name appears as "Babel" (Hebrew: בָּבֶל,‎" Bavel," Tib. בָּבֶל, "Bāḇel"; Classical Syriac: ܒܒܠ,‎ "Bāwēl," Aramaic: בבל,‎" Babel; in Arabic: بَابِل‎ Bābil), interpreted in the Book of Genesis to mean "confusion," from the verb "bilbél" (בלבל, "to confuse"). The modern English verb, "to babble" ("to speak meaningless words"), popularly is thought to derive from this name, but there is no direct connection. Ancient records in some situations use "Babylon" as a name for other cities, including cities like Borsippa within Babylon's sphere of influence, and Nineveh for a short period after the Assyrian sack of Babylon. Geography The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq, about 85 kilometers (53 mi) south of Baghdad, comprising a large tell of broken mud-brick buildings and debris. The site at Babylon consists of a number of mounds covering an area of about 2 by 1 kilometer (1.24 mi × 0.62 mi), oriented north to south, along the Euphrates to the west. Originally, the river roughly bisected the city, but the course of the river has since shifted so that most of the remains of the former western part of the city are now inundated. Some portions of the city wall to the west of the river also remain. Only a small portion of the ancient city (3% of the area within the inner walls; 1.5% of the area within the outer walls; 0.1% at the depth of Middle and Old Babylon) has been excavated. Known remains include: . Kasr – also called Palace or Castle, it is the location of the Neo-Babylonian ziggurat Etemenanki and lies in the center of the site. . Amran Ibn Ali – the highest of the mounds at 25 meters (82 ft) to the south. It is the site of Esagila, a temple of Marduk which also contained shrines to Ea and Nabu. . Homera – a reddish-colored mound on the west side. Most of the Hellenistic remains are here. . Babil – a mound about 22 meters (72 ft) high at the northern end of the site. Its bricks have been subject to looting since ancient times. It held a palace built by Nebuchadnezzar. Archaeologists have recovered few artifacts predating the Neo-Babylonian period. The water table in the region has risen greatly over the centuries, and artifacts from the time before the Neo-Babylonian Empire are unavailable to current standard archaeological methods. Additionally, the Neo-Babylonians conducted significant rebuilding projects in the city, which destroyed or obscured much of the earlier record. Babylon was pillaged numerous times after revolting against foreign rule, most notably by the Hittites and Elamites in the 2nd millennium, then by the Neo-Assyrian Empire and the Achaemenid Empire in the 1st millennium. Much of the western half of the city is now beneath the river, and other parts of the site have been mined for commercial building materials. Only the Koldewey expedition recovered artifacts from the Old Babylonian period. These included 967 clay tablets, stored in private houses, with Sumerian literature and lexical documents. Nearby ancient settlements are Kish, Borsippa, Dilbat, and Kutha. Marad and Sippar were 60 kilometers (37 mi) in either direction along the Euphrates. Sources Historical knowledge of early Babylon must be pieced together from epigraphic remains found elsewhere, such as at Uruk, Nippur, and Haradum. Information on the Neo-Babylonian city is available from archaeological excavations and from classical sources. Babylon was described, perhaps even visited, by a number of classical historians including Ctesias, Herodotus, Quintus Curtius Rufus, Strabo, and Cleitarchus. These reports are of variable accuracy and some of the content was politically motivated, but these still provide useful information. Early references References to the city of Babylon can be found in Akkadian and Sumerian literature from the late third millennium BC. One of the earliest is a tablet describing the Akkadian king Šar-kali-šarri laying the foundations in Babylon of new temples for Annūnı̄tum and Ilaba. Babylon also appears in the administrative records of the Third Dynasty of Ur, which collected in-kind tax payments and appointed an ensi as local governor. The so-called Weidner Chronicle (also known as ABC 19) states that Sargon of Akkad (c. 23d century BC in the short chronology) had built Babylon "in front of Akkad" (ABC 19:51). A later chronicle states that Sargon "dug up the dirt of the pit of Babylon, and made a counterpart of Babylon next to Akkad." (ABC 20:18–19). Van de Mieroop has suggested that those sources may refer to the much later Assyrian king Sargon II of the Neo-Assyrian Empire rather than Sargon of Akkad. Classical dating Ctesias, quoted by Diodorus Siculus and in George Syncellus's "Chronographia," claimed to have access to manuscripts from Babylonian archives that date the founding of Babylon to 2286 BC, under the reign of its first king, Belus. A similar figure is found in the writings of Berossus, who according to Pliny, stated that astronomical observations commenced at Babylon 490 years before the Greek era of Phoroneus, indicating 2243 BC. Stephanus of Byzantium wrote that Babylon was built 1002 years before the date given by Hellanicus of Lesbos for the siege of Troy (1229 BC), which would date Babylon's foundation to 2231 BC. All of these dates place Babylon's foundation in the 23rd century BC; however, cuneiform records have not been found to correspond with these classical (post-cuneiform) accounts. History By around the 19th century BC, much of southern Mesopotamia was occupied by Amorites, nomadic tribes from the northern Levant who were Northwest Semitic speakers, unlike the native Akkadians of southern Mesopotamia and Assyria, who spoke East Semitic. The Amorites at first did not practice agriculture like more advanced Mesopotamians, preferring a semi-nomadic lifestyle, herding sheep. Over time, Amorite grain merchants rose to prominence and established their own independent dynasties in several south Mesopotamian city-states, most notably Isin, Larsa, Eshnunna, Lagash, and later, founding Babylon as a state. Old Babylonian period According to a Babylonian date list, Amorite rule in Babylon began (c. 19th or 18th century BC) with a chieftain named Sumu-abum, who declared independence from the neighboring city-state of Kazallu. Sumu-la-El, whose dates may be concurrent with those of Sumu-abum, is usually given as the progenitor of the First Babylonian dynasty. Both are credited with building the walls of Babylon. In any case, the records describe Sumu-la-El's military successes establishing a ..
    
15. Title: Wikiwand: List of Assyrian kings
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/List_of_Assyrian_kings;
    Note: The King of Assyria (Akkadian: "šar māt Aššur"), called the Governor or Viceroy of Assyria (Akkadian: "Išši’ak Aššur") in the Early and Old periods, was the ruler of the ancient Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria, which existed from approximately the 26th century BC to the 7th century BC. All modern lists of Assyrian kings generally follow the Assyrian King List, a list kept and developed by the ancient Assyrians themselves over the course of several centuries. Though some parts of the list are probably fictional, the list accords well with Hittite, Babylonian and ancient Egyptian king lists and with the archaeological record, and is generally considered reliable for the age. The ancient Assyrians did not believe that their king was divine himself, but saw their ruler as the vicar of their principal deity, Ashur, and as his chief representative on Earth. In their worldview, Assyria represented a place of order while lands not governed by the Assyrian king (and by extension, the god Ashur) were seen as places of chaos and disorder. As such it was seen as the king's duty to expand the borders of Assyria and bring order and civilization to lands perceived as uncivilized. Originally vassals of more powerful empires, the early Assyrian kings used the title governor or viceroy ("Išši’ak"), which was retained as the ruling title after Assyria gained independence due to the title of king ("šar") being applied to the god Ashur. Later Assyrian kings, beginning with Ashur-uballit I (14th century BC) adopted the title "šar māt Aššur" as their empire expanded and later also adopted more boastful titles such as "king of Sumer and Akkad," "king of the Universe" and "king of the Four Corners of the World," often to assert their control over all of Mesopotamia. The line of Assyrian kings ended with the defeat of Assyria's final king Ashur-uballit II by the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the Median Empire in 609 BC, after which Assyria disappeared as an independent political unit, never to rise again. The Assyrian people survived and remain as an ethnic, linguistic, religious (Christians since the 1st–3rd centuries AD) and cultural minority in the Assyrian homeland and elsewhere to this day. Sources Incomplete king-lists have been recovered from all three of the major ancient Assyrian capitals (Aššur, Dur-Šarukkin and Nineveh). The three lists are largely consistent with each other, all originally copies of a single original list, and are based on the yearly appointments of "limmu"-officials (the eponymous officials for each year, appointed by the king to preside over the celebration of the New Year festival). Because of the consistency between the list and the method through which it was created, modern scholars usually accept the regnal years mentioned as more or less correct. There are some differences between the copies of the list, notably in that they offer somewhat diverging regnal years before the reign of king Ashur-dan I of the Middle Assyrian Empire (reign beginning in 1178 BC). After 1178 BC, the lists are identical in their contents. The king-lists mostly accord well with Hittite, Babylonian and ancient Egyptian king lists and with the archaeological record, and are generally considered reliable for the age. It is however clear that parts of the list are fictional, as some known kings are not found on the list and other listed kings are not independently verified. Originally it was assumed that the list was first written in the time of Shamshi-Adad I circa 1800 BC but it now is considered to date from much later, probably from the time of Ashurnasirpal I (1050–1031 BC). The oldest of the surviving king-lists, List A (8th century BC) stops at Tiglath-Pileser II (c. 967–935 BC) and the youngest, List C, stops at Shalmaneser V (727–722 BC). One problem that arises with the Assyrian King List is that the creation of the list may have been more motivated by political interest than actual chronological and historical accuracy. In times of civil strife and confusion, the list still adheres to a single royal line of descent, probably ignoring rival claimants to the throne. Additionally, there are some known inconsistencies between the list and actual inscriptions by Assyrian kings, often regarding dynastic relationships. For instance, Ashur-nirari II is stated by the list to be the son of his predecessor Enlil-Nasir II, but from inscriptions it is known that he was actually the son of Ashur-rabi I and brother of Enlil-Nasir. Titles See also: Akkadian royal titulary Assyrian royal titles typically followed trends that had begun under the Akkadian Empire (c. 2334–2154 BC), the Mesopotamian civilization that preceded the later kingdoms of Assyria and Babylon. When the Mesopotamian central government under the Third Dynasty of Ur (c. 2112–2004 BC) collapsed and polities that had once been vassals to Ur became independent, many of the new sovereign rulers refrained from taking the title of king ("šar"), instead applying that title to their principal deities (in the case of Assyria, Ashur). For this reason, most of the Assyrian kings of the Old (c. 2025–1378 BC) and Middle Assyrian period (c. 1392–934 BC) used the title Išši’ak Aššur, translating to "governor of Assyria." In contrast to the titles employed by the Babylonian kings in the south, which typically focused on the protective role and the piety of the king, Assyrian royal inscriptions tend to glorify the strength and power of the king. Assyrian titularies usually also often emphasize the royal genaeology of the king, something Babylonian titularies do not, and also drive home the king's moral and physical qualities while downplaying his role in the judicial system. Assyrian epithets about royal lineage vary in how far they stretch back, most often simply discussing lineage in terms of "son of ..." or "brother of ...". Some cases display lineage stretching back much further, Shamash-shuma-ukin (r. 667–648 BC) describes himself as a "descendant of Sargon II," his great-grandfather. More extremely, Esarhaddon (r. 681–669 BC) calls himself a "descendant of the eternal seed of Bel-bani", a king who would have lived more than a thousand years before him. Assyrian royal titularies were often changed depending on where the titles were to be displayed, the titles of the same Assyrian king would have been different in their home country of Assyria and in conquered regions. Those Neo-Assyrian kings who controlled the city of Babylon used a "hybrid" titulary of sorts in the south, combining aspects of the Assyrian and Babylonian tradition, similar to how the traditional Babylonian deities were promoted in the south alongside the Assyrian main deity of Ashur. The assumption of many traditional southern titles, including the ancient "king of Sumer and Akkad" and the boastful "king of the Universe" and "king of the Four Corners of the World", by the Assyrian kings served to legitimize their rule and assert their control over Babylon and lower Mesopotamia. Epithets like "chosen by the god Marduk and the goddess Sarpanit" and "favourite of the god Ashur and the goddess Mullissu", both assumed by Esarhaddon, illustrate that he was both Assyrian (Ashur and Mullissu, the main pair of Assyrian deities) and a legitimate ruler over Babylon (Marduk and Sarpanit, the main pair of Babylonian deities). To examplify an Assyrian royal title from the time Assyria ruled all of Mesopotamia, the titulature preserved in one of Esarhaddon's inscriptions read as follows: “The great king, the mighty king, king of the Universe, king of Assyria, viceroy of Babylon, king of Sumer and Akkad, son of Sennacherib, the great king, the mighty king, king of Assyria, grandson of Sargon, the great king, the mighty king, king of Assyria; who under the protection of Assur, Sin, Shamash, Nabu, Marduk, Ishtar of Nineveh, Ishtar of Arbela, the great gods, his lords, made his way from the rising to the setting sun, having no rival.” Role of the Assyrian king Ancient Assyria was an absolute monarchy, with the king believed to be appointed directly through divine right by the chief deity, Ashur. The Assyrians believed that the king was the link between the gods and the earthly realm. As such, it was the king's primary duty to discover the will of the gods and enact this, often through the construction of temples or waging war. To aid the king with this duty, there was a number of priests at the royal court trained in reading and interpreting signs from the gods. The heartland of the Assyrian realm, Assyria itself, was thought to represent a serene and perfect place of order whilst the lands governed by foreign powers were perceived as infested with disorder and chaos. The peoples of these "outer" lands were seen as uncivilized, strange and as speaking strange languages. Because the king was the earthly link to the gods, it was his duty to spread order throughout the world through the military conquest of these strange and chaotic countries. As such, imperial expansion was not just expansion for expansion's sake but was also seen as a process of bringing divine order and destroying chaos to create civilization. There exists several ancient inscriptions in which the god Ashur explicitly orders kings to extend the borders of Assyria. A text from the reign of Tukulti-Ninurta I (r. c. 1233–1197 BC) states that the king received a royal scepter and was commanded to "broaden the land of Ashur." A similar inscription from the reign of Ashurbanipal (r. 668–631 BC) commands the king to "extend the land at his feet." The king also was tasked with protecting his own people, often being referred to as a "shepherd." This protection included defending against external enemies and defending citizens from dangerous wild animals. To the Assyrians, the most dangerous animal of all was the lion, used (similarly to foreign powers) as an example of chaos and disorder due to their aggressive nature. To prove themselves worthy of rule and..
    
16. Title: Wikiwand: Assur
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Assur;
    Note: Aššur (/ˈæsʊər/; Akkadian; Syriac: "ܐܫܘܪ,"‎ "Āšūr"; Old Persian "𐎠𐎰𐎢𐎼," "Aθur," Persian: "آشور‎": Āšūr; Hebrew: "אַשּׁוּר": "Aššûr," Arabic: "اشور"‎), also known as Ashur and Qal'at Sherqat, was the capital of the Old Assyrian Empire (2025–1750 BC), the Middle Assyrian Empire (1365–1050 BC), and for a time, of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (911–608 BC). The remains of the city lie on the western bank of the Tigris River, north of the confluence with its tributary, the Little Zab, in what is now Iraq, more precisely in the al-Shirqat District of the Saladin Governorate. Occupation of the city itself continued for approximately 4,000 years, from c. 2600 BC to the mid-14th century AD, when the forces of Timur massacred its population. The site is a World Heritage Site, having been added to that organization's list of sites in danger in 2003 following the conflict that erupted following the 2003 invasion of Iraq and as a result of a proposed dam which would flood some of the site. Assur lies 65 kilometers (40 mi) south of the site of Nimrud and 100 km (60 mi) south of Nineveh. History of research Exploration of the site of Assur began in 1898 by German archaeologists. Excavations began in 1900 by Friedrich Delitzsch, and were continued in 1903–1913 by a team from the Deutsche Orient-Gesellschaft led initially by Robert Koldewey and later by Walter Andrae. More than 16,000 clay tablets with cuneiform texts were discovered. Many of the objects found made their way to the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. More recently, Ashur was excavated by B. Hrouda for the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the Bavarian Ministry of Culture in 1990. During the same period, in 1988 and 1989, the site was being worked by R. Dittmann on behalf of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Name Main article: Name of Syria Aššur is the name of the city, of the land ruled by the city, and of its tutelary deity from which the natives took their name, as did the entire nation of Assyria which encompassed what is today northern Iraq, north east Syria and south east Turkey. Today the Assyrians are still found throughout the Middle East, particularly in Iraq, Iran, Syria, Turkey, and the Diaspora in the western world. Assur is also the origin of the names Syria and terms for Syriac Christians, these being originally Indo-European derivations of Assyria, and for many centuries applying only to Assyria and the Assyrians (see Etymology of Syria) before also being applied to the Levant and its inhabitants by the Seleucid Empire in the 3rd century BC. Early Bronze Age Archaeology reveals the site of the city was occupied by the middle of the 3rd millennium BC. This was still the Sumerian period, before Assyria emerged in the 25th to 21st century BC. The oldest remains of the city were discovered in the foundations of the Ishtar temple, as well as at the Old Palace. In the subsequent period, the city was ruled by kings from the Akkadian Empire. During the Third Dynasty of Ur, the city was ruled by Assyrian governors subject to the Sumerians. Old and Middle Assyrian Empire By the time the Neo-Sumerian Ur-III dynasty collapsed at the hands of the Elamites around the end of the 21st century BC according to the Middle Chronology and mid-20th century according to the Short Chronology following increasing raids by Gutians and Amorites. The native Akkadian-speaking Assyrian kings were now free while Sumer fell under the yoke of the Amorites. The Assyrian king Ushpia who reigned around the 21st century BC is credited with dedicating the first temple of the god Ashur in his home city, although this comes from a later inscription from Shalmaneser I in the 13th century. The temple likely dates to the original settlement of the site when the people of Ashur established their nation under the patronage of the city's god. Soon after in around 2000 BC, Puzur-Ashur I founded a new dynasty, with his successors such as Ilushuma, Erishum I and Sargon I leaving inscriptions regarding the building of temples to Ashur, Adad and Ishtar in the city. Prosperity and independence produced the first significant fortifications in this period. As the region enjoyed relative peace and stability, trade between Mesopotamia and Anatolia increased, and the city of Ashur greatly benefited from its strategic location. Merchants would dispatch their merchandise via caravan into Anatolia and trade primarily at Assyrian colonies in Anatolia, the primary one being at Karum Kanesh (Kültepe). With Shamshi-Adad I's (1813–1781 BC) capital at Assur, he magnified the city's power and influence beyond the Tigris river valley, establishing what some regard as the first Assyrian Empire. In this era, the Great Royal Palace was built, and the temple of Assur was expanded and enlarged with a ziggurat. However, this empire met its end when Hammurabi, the Amorite king of Babylon conquered and incorporated the city into his short lived empire following the death of Ishme-Dagan I around 1756 BC, while the next three Assyrian kings were viewed as vassals. Not long after, the native king Adasi expelled the Babylonians and Amorites from Assur and Assyria as a whole around 1720 BC, although little is known of his successors. Evidence of further building activity is known from a few centuries later, during the reign of a native king Puzur-Ashur III, when the city was refortified and the southern districts incorporated into the main city defenses. Temples to the moon god Sin (Nanna) and the sun god Shamash were built and dedicated through the 15th century BC. The city was subsequently subjugated by the king of Mitanni, Shaushtatar in the late 15th century, taking the gold and silver doors of the temple to his capital, Washukanni, as spoils. Ashur-uballit I emulated his ancestor Adasi and overthrew the Mitanni empire in 1365 BC. The Assyrians reaped the benefits of this triumph by taking control of the eastern portion of the Mitanni Empire, and later also annexing Hittite, Babylonian, Amorite and Hurrian territory. The following centuries witnessed the restoration of the old temples and palaces of Assur, and the city once more became the throne of a magnanimous empire from 1365 BC to 1076 BC. Tukulti-Ninurta I (1244–1208 BC) also constructed a new temple to the goddess Ishtar. The Anu-Adad temple was established later during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I (1115–1075 BC). The walled area of the city in the Middle Assyrian period made up some 1.2 square kilometers (300 acres). Neo-Assyrian Empire In the Neo-Assyrian Empire (912–605 BC), the royal residence was transferred to other Assyrian cities. Ashur-nasir-pal II (884–859 BC) moved the capital from Assur to Kalhu (Calah/Nimrud) following a series of successful campaigns and produced some of the greatest artworks in the form of colossal lamassu statues and low-relief depictions of the royal court as well as battles. With the reign of Sargon II (722–705 BC), a new capital began to rise. Dur-Sharrukin (Fortress of Sargon) on a scale set to surpass that of Ashurnasirpal's. However, he died in battle and his son and successor Sennacherib (705–682 BC) abandoned the city, choosing to magnify Niniveh as his royal capital. However, the city of Ashur remained the religious center of the empire and continued to be revered as the holy crown of the empire, due to its temple of the national god Ashur. In the reign of Sennacherib (705–682 BC), the House of the New Year, Akitu, was built, and the festivities celebrated in the city. Many of the kings were also buried beneath the Old Palace while some queens were buried in the other capitals such as the wife of Sargon, Ataliya. The city was sacked and largely destroyed during the decisive battle of Assur, a major confrontation between the Assyrian and Median armies. Achaemenid Empire After the Medes were overthrown by the Persians as the dominant force in ancient Iran, Assyria was ruled by the Persian Achaemenid Empire (as Athura) from 549 BC to 330 BC (see Achaemenid Assyria). The Assyrians of Mada (Media) and Athura (Assyria) had been responsible for gold and glazing works of the palace and for providing Lebanese cedar timber, respectively. The city and region of Ashur had once more gained a degree of militaristic and economic strength. Along with the Assyrians in Mada, a revolt took place in 520 BC but ultimately failed. Assyria seems to have recovered dramatically, and flourished during this period. It became a major agricultural and administrative center of the Achaemenid Empire, and its soldiers were a mainstay of the Persian Army. Parthian Empire The city revived during the Parthian Empire period, particularly between 150 BC and 270 AD, being resettled and becoming an administrative centre of Parthian-ruled Assuristan. Assyriologists Simo Parpola and Patricia Crone suggest Assur may have had outright independence in this period. Other polities such as Beth Garmai, Beth Nuhadra and Adiabene also flourished due to the fact that the Parthians exercised only loose or intermittent control of Assyria. New administrative buildings were erected to the north of the old city, and a palace to the south. The old temple dedicated to the national god of the Assyrians Assur (Ashur) was rebuilt, as were temples to other Assyrian gods. Assyrian Eastern Aramaic inscriptions from the remains of Ashur have yielded insight into the Parthian-era city with Assyria having its own Aramaic Syriac script, which was the same in terms of grammar and syntax as that found at Edessa and elsewhere in the state of Osroene. German archaeologist Klaus Beyer published over 600 inscriptions from Mesopotamian towns and cities including Ashur, Dura-Europos, Hatra, Gaddala, Tikrit and Tur Abdin. Given that Christianity had begun to spread amongst the Assyrians throughout the Parthian era, the original Assyrian culture and religion persisted for some time, as proven by the inscriptions that include invocations to the gods Ashur, Nergal, Sin, Ishtar an..
    
17. Title: Wikiwand: Assyria
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Assyria;
    Note: Assyria (/əˈsɪəriə/), also called the Assyrian Empire, was a Mesopotamian kingdom and empire of the ancient Near East and the Levant that existed as a state from perhaps as early as the 25th century BC (in the form of the Assur city-state) until its collapse between 612 BC and 609 BC – spanning the periods of the Early to Middle Bronze Age through to the late Iron Age. From the end of the seventh century BC (when the Neo-Assyrian state fell) to the mid-seventh century AD, it survived as a geopolitical entity, for the most part ruled by foreign powers such as the Parthian and early Sasanian Empires between the mid-second century BC and late third century AD, the final part of which period saw Mesopotamia become a major center of Syriac Christianity and the birthplace of the Church of the East. A largely Semitic-speaking realm, Assyria was centered on the Tigris in Upper Mesopotamia. The Assyrians came to rule powerful empires in several periods. Making up a substantial part of the greater Mesopotamian "cradle of civilization," which included Sumer, the Akkadian Empire, and Babylonia, Assyria reached the height of technological, scientific and cultural achievements for its time. At its peak, the Neo-Assyrian Empire of 911 to 609 BC stretched from eastern Libya and Cyprus in the East Mediterranean to Iran, and from present-day Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Transcaucasia to the Arabian Peninsula. The name "Assyria" originates with the Assyrian state's original capital, the ancient city of Aššur, which dates to c. 2600 BC – originally one of a number of Akkadian-speaking city-states in Mesopotamia. In the 25th and 24th centuries BC, Assyrian kings were pastoral leaders. From the late 24th century BC, the Assyrians became subject to Sargon of Akkad, who united all the Akkadian- and Sumerian-speaking peoples of Mesopotamia under the Akkadian Empire, which lasted from c. 2334 BC to 2154 BC. After the Assyrian Empire fell from power, the greater remaining part of Assyria formed a geopolitical region and province of other empires, although between the mid-2nd century BC and late 3rd century AD a patchwork of small independent Assyrian kingdoms arose in the form of Assur, Adiabene, Osroene, Beth Nuhadra, Beth Garmai and Hatra. The region of Assyria fell under the successive control of the Median Empire of 678 to 549 BC, the Achaemenid Empire of 550 to 330 BC, the Macedonian Empire (late 4th century BC), the Seleucid Empire of 312 to 63 BC, the Parthian Empire of 247 BC to 224 AD, the Roman Empire (from 116 to 118 AD) and the Sasanian Empire of 224 to 651 AD. The Arab Islamic conquest of the area in the mid-seventh century finally dissolved Assyria (Assuristan) as a single entity, after which the remnants of the Assyrian people (by now Christians) gradually became an ethnic, linguistic, cultural and religious minority in the Assyrian homeland, surviving there to this day as an indigenous people of the region. Etymology Assyria was also sometimes known as Subartu and "Azuhinum" prior to the rise of the city-state of Ashur, after which it was Aššūrāyu, and after its fall, from 605 BC through to the late seventh century AD variously as Achaemenid Assyria, and also referenced as Atouria, Ator, Athor, and sometimes as "Syria," which etymologically derives from Assyria according to Strabo, "Syria"(Greek), "Assyria" (Latin) and Asōristān (Middle Persian). "Assyria" also can refer to the geographic region or heartland where Assyria, its empires and the Assyrian people were (and still are) centered. The indigenous modern Eastern Aramaic-speaking Assyrian Christian ethnic minority in northern Iraq, north east Syria, southeast Turkey and northwest Iran are the descendants of the ancient Assyrians (see Assyrian continuity). As Babylonia is called after the city of Babylon, Assyria means "land of Asshur." Etymologically, "Assyria" is connected to the name of "Syria,"with both being ultimately derived from the Akkadian "Aššur." Theodor Nöldeke in 1881 was the first to give philological support to the assumption that Syria and Assyria have the same etymology, a suggestion going back to John Selden (1617). A 21st-century discovery of the Çineköy inscription also confirmed that Syria, being a Greek corruption of the name Assyria, is ultimately derived from the Assyrian term "Aššūrāyu." Pre-history In prehistoric times, the region that was to become known as Assyria (and Subartu) was home to a Neanderthal culture such as has been found at the Shanidar Cave. The earliest Neolithic sites in what will be Assyria were the Jarmo culture c. 7100 BC, the Halaf culture c. 6100 BC, and the Hassuna culture c. 6000 BC. The Akkadian-speaking people (the earliest historically-attested Semitic-speaking people) who would eventually found Assyria appear to have entered Mesopotamia at some point during the latter 4th millennium BC (c. 3500–3000 BC), eventually intermingling with the earlier Sumerian-speaking population, who came from northern Mesopotamia, with Akkadian names appearing in written record from as early as the 29th century BC. During the 3rd millennium BC, a very intimate cultural symbiosis developed between the Sumerians and the Akkadians throughout Mesopotamia, which included widespread bilingualism. The influence of Sumerian (a language isolate) on Akkadian, and vice versa, is evident in all areas, from lexical borrowing on a massive scale, to syntactic, morphological, and phonological convergence. This has prompted scholars to refer to Sumerian and Akkadian in the third millennium BC as a "sprachbund." Akkadian gradually replaced Sumerian as the spoken language of Mesopotamia somewhere after the turn of the 3rd and the 2nd millennium BC (the exact dating being a matter of debate), although Sumerian continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the 1st century AD, as did use of the Akkadian cuneiform. The cities of Assur, Nineveh, Gasur and Arbela together with a number of other towns and cities, existed since at least before the middle of the 3rd millennium BC (c. 2600 BC), although they appear to have been Sumerian-ruled administrative centers at this time, rather than independent states. Greco-Roman classical writers such as Julius Africanus, Marcus Velleius Paterculus and Diodorus Siculus dated the founding of Assyria to various dates between 2284 BC and 2057 BC, listing the earliest king as Belus or Ninus. According to the Biblical generations of Noah, which appears to have been largely compiled between the 7th and 5th centuries BC, the city of Aššur was allegedly founded by a biblical Ashur the son of Shem, who was deified by later generations as the city's patron god. However, the much older attested Assyrian tradition itself lists the first king of Assyria as the 25th century BC Tudiya, and an early urbanized Assyrian king named Ushpia (c. 2050 BC) as having dedicated the first temple to the god Ashur in the city in the mid-21st century BC. It is highly likely that the city was named in honor of its patron Assyrian god with the same name. History Further information: Timeline of the Assyrian Empire Early Period, 2600–2025 BC Main article: Early Period (Assyria) The city of Aššur, together with a number of other Assyrian cities, seem to have been established by 2600 BC. However it is likely that they were initially Sumerian-dominated administrative centers. In the late 26th century BC, Eannatum of Lagash, then the dominant Sumerian ruler in Mesopotamia, mentions "smiting Subartu" (Subartu being the Sumerian name for Assyria). Similarly, in c. the early 25th century BC, Lugal-Anne-Mundu the king of the Sumerian state of Adab lists Subartu as paying tribute to him. Of the early history of the kingdom of Assyria, little is known. In the Assyrian King List, the earliest king recorded was Tudiya. According to Georges Roux he would have lived in the mid-25th century BC, i.e., c. 2450 BC. In archaeological reports from Ebla, it appeared that Tudiya's activities were confirmed with the discovery of a tablet where he concluded a treaty for the operation of a "karum" (trading colony) in Eblaite territory, with "king" Ibrium of Ebla (who now is known to have been the vizier of Ebla for king Ishar-Damu). Tudiya was succeeded on the list by Adamu, the first known reference to the Semitic name "Adam," and then a further thirteen rulers (Yangi, Suhlamu, Harharu, Mandaru, Imsu, Harsu, Didanu, Hanu, Zuabu, Nuabu, Abazu, Belus and Azarah). Nothing concrete is yet known about these names, although it has been noted that a much later Babylonian tablet listing the ancestral lineage of Hammurabi, the Amorite king of Babylon, seems to have copied the same names from Tudiya through Nuabu, though in a heavily corrupted form. The earliest kings, such as Tudiya, who are recorded as "kings who lived in tents," were independent semi-nomadic pastoralist rulers. These kings at some point became fully urbanised and founded the city state of Aššur in the mid 21st-century BC. Akkadian Empire and Neo-Sumerian Empires, 2334–2050 BC Further information: Akkadian Empire and Neo-Sumerian Empire During the Akkadian Empire (2334–2154 BC), the Assyrians, like all the Akkadian-speaking Mesopotamians (and also the Sumerians), became subject to the dynasty of the city-state of Akkad, centered in central Mesopotamia. The Akkadian Empire founded by Sargon the Great claimed to encompass the surrounding "four quarters." The region of Assyria, north of the seat of the empire in central Mesopotamia, had also been known as Subartu by the Sumerians, and the name Azuhinum in Akkadian records also seems to refer to Assyria proper. The Sumerians were eventually absorbed into the Akkadian (Assyro-Babylonian) population. Assyrian rulers were subject to Sargon and his successors, and the city of Ashur became a regional administrative center of the Empire, implicated by the Nuzi tablets. During this period, the Akka..
    
18. Title: Wikiwand: Burnaburiash I
    Author: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    Publication: Name: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Burnaburiash_I;
    Note: Burna-Buriyåš I, meaning "servant of the Lord of the lands," was the first Kassite who really ruled over Babylonia, possibly the first to occupy the city of Babylon proper around 1500 BC, culminating a century of creeping encroachment by the Kassite tribes. He was the 10th king of this dynasty to be listed on the Assyrian "Synchronistic Kinglist." Biography At about 1500 BC, Burna-Buriyåš concluded a treaty with Puzur-Aššur III of Assyria, then a small vassal to the Mitanni, taking an oath (or "itmûma") to delineate the border between their kingdoms. The "Synchronistic Chronicle" places this episode after the treaty between Karaindaš and Assyrian king Aššur-bêl-nišešu, but there is no known Puzur-Aššur after him on any of the copies of the "Assyrian Kinglist," which led Röllig to conclude that a later scribe had confused Burna-Buriyåš with his name-sake, Burna-Buriaš II. The "Synchronistic Kinglist" names one Burna-Buriyåš as the 10th Kassite ruler and a contemporary of Išme-Dagan II, who is separated from Puzur-Aššur III by 42 regnal years. This might suggest that there were two early Burna-Buriyaš’, one contemporary with Puzur-Aššur III and one roughly contemporary with Išme-Dagan II, if this late Assyrian tablet were to be considered a reliable source in this respect. It does, however, take some significant liberties with chronology in other places. A fragmentary clay cone or cylinder apparently recording a land grant, recovered from excavation in Nippur during the 1949–50 season, may date to his reign based upon the reconstruction of his name on line 5 and the paleography of the cuneiform. If correctly identified, it would make this "kudurru" or "narû ša ḫaṣbi," "memorial clay-stele," the oldest exemplar of this genre of public memorial. Burna-Buriyåš may have been succeeded by his son Kaštiliašu III, but the evidence supporting this son's kingship is rather circumstantial. He was also father of Ulam-Buriyåš, as commemorated on an onyx weight, in the shape of a frog, with a cuneiform inscription, "1 shekel, Ulam Buriaš, son of 'Burna Buriaš,'" which was found in a large burial, during excavations of the site of the ancient city of Metsamor. It was this son who apparently led a successful invasion of the Sealand, a region of Southern Mesopotamia synonymous with Sumer, and made himself "master of the land." Also, a serpentine or diorite mace head or possibly door knob found in Babylon, is engraved with a votive inscription of Ulaburariaš, "son of Burna-Buriaš," "King of Sealand." Inscriptions 1. ^ a b A neo-Assyrian "Synchronistic Kinglist," A.117, excavation reference Assur 14616c, in the Assur collection of the İstanbul Arkeoloji Műzeleri. 2. ^ "Synchronistic Chronicle" (ABC 21), tablet K4401a, column 1, lines 5 - 7. 3. ^ Clay cone/cylinder UM 55-21-62 (2 NT 356) 4. ^ "Chronicle of Early Kings" (ABC 20) BM 96152, tablet B, reverse, lines 12 through 14. 5. ^ Blackish-green knob BE 6405.
    
19. Title: "Who's Who in the Ancient Near East," by Gwendolyn Leick
    Author: Routledge, Jan 31, 2002
    Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=nAGFAgAAQBAJ&dq=Ashur-nirari+I&q=Ashur-Nirari+I#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
    Note: What do we know of the real Nebuchadnezzar? Was there an historical precedent for the mythical Gilgamesh? Who were the Hittites? When did Isaiah preach? How did Jezebel get her reputation? These and many more questions are answered in this fascinating survey of the people who inhabited the Near East between the twenty-fifth and the second centuries BC. From Palestine to Iran and from Alexander the Great to Zechariah, Who's Who in the Ancient Near East presents a unique and comprehensive reference guide for all those with an interest in the ancient history of the area. A comprehensive glossary, chronological charts, maps and bibliographical information complement the biographical entries.
    
20. Title: "Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament with Supplement," edited by James B. Pritchard
    Author: Princeton University Press, Mar 30, 2016
    Publication: Name: https://books.google.com/books?id=UEWWCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA565#v=snippet&q=Puzur-Ashur%20III&f=false;
    Note: This anthology brought together the most important historical, legal, mythological, liturgical, and secular texts of the ancient Near East, with the purpose of providing a rich contextual base for understanding the people, cultures, and literature of the Old Testament. A scholar of religious thought and biblical archaeology, James Pritchard recruited the foremost linguists, historians, and archaeologists to select and translate the texts. The goal, in his words, was "a better understanding of the likenesses and differences which existed between Israel and the surrounding cultures." Before the publication of these volumes, students of the Old Testament found themselves having to search out scattered books and journals in various languages. This anthology brought these invaluable documents together, in one place and in one language, thereby expanding the meaning and significance of the Bible for generations of students and readers. As one reviewer put it, "This great volume is one of the most notable to have appeared in the field of Old Testament scholarship this century." Princeton published a follow-up companion volume, "The Ancient Near East in Pictures Relating to the Old Testament" (1954), and later a one-volume abridgment of the two, "The Ancient Near East: An Anthology of Texts and Pictures" (1958). The continued popularity of this work in its various forms demonstrates that anthologies have a very important role to play in education--and in the mission of a university press.