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| year_end =  {{circa}} 1260 BC
| s1 = Middle Assyrian Empire
| flag_s1 = 14 Century BC Middle East - en.svg
| image_flag =
| image_coat =
| image_map = Carte_du_MitanniCarte du Mitanni-en.pngsvg
| image_map_caption = Kingdom of Mitanni at its greatest extent under [[Baratarna|Barattarna]] {{Circa|1490 BC}}
| capital = [[Washukanni]]
| common_languages = [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]]<br />[[Akkadian language|Akkadian]]<br />[[Amorite language|Amorite]]
| religion = {{plainlist|
*[[Historical Vedic religion]]<ref>Fournet, Arnaud, (2010). [https://www.academia.edu/642020/Journal_of_Indo-European_Studies._2010._About_the_Mitanni_Aryan_gods._1-2_26-40_ "About the Mitanni Aryan Gods"], in Journal of Indo-European Studies 38 (1-2), pp. 26-40. See [in this pdf version] pp. 3, 5, and 10.</ref><ref>Devecchi, Elena, (2018). [https://ur.booksc.eu/book/72917351/aa1fc4 “Details That Make the Difference: The Akkadian Manuscripts of the ‘Šattiwaza Treaties.’”], in: Die Welt Des Orients, vol. 48, no. 1, 2018, pp. 72–95. See '''p. 72:''' "...The so-called 'Šattiwaza treaties' are a set of two documents (CTH 51 and CTH 52) ratifying the subjugation of Šattiwaza of Mittani to the Hittite king
Šuppiluliuma I, an event dated to the 2nd half of the 14th century BCE..."</ref>
*[[Hurrian religion]]
*[[Ancient Mesopotamian religion]]}}
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| currency =
}}
'''Mitanni''' ({{Circa|1550}}–1260 BC),{{efn|{{IPAc-en|m|ɪ|ˈ|t|æ|n|i}}
'''Mitanni''' ({{IPAc-en|m|ɪ|ˈ|t|æ|n|i}}; *{{lang-hit|𒆳𒌷𒈪𒋫𒀭𒉌|[[KUR]] <sup>[[Cities of the ancient Near East|URU]]</sup>Mi-ta-an-ni; Mittani}} or {{lang-hit|𒈪𒀉𒋫𒉌|Mi-it-ta-ni|links=no}}), {{Circa|1550}}–1260 BC, earlier called '''Ḫabigalbat''' in old Babylonian texts, {{Circa|1600 BC}};<ref name="van Koppen, Frans, (2004)"/> '''Hanigalbat''' or '''Hani-Rabbat''' (in [[Assyria]]n records,{{efn|{{lang|akk|Hanikalbat, Khanigalbat}}, {{lang-akk|𒄩𒉌𒃲𒁁|Ḫa-ni-gal-bat, Ḫa-ni-rab-bat}}) in [[Assyria]]n records,}} or {{lang|egy|[[Naharin]]}} in [[Ancient Egypt|Egyptian]] texts, was a [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]]-speaking state in northern [[Syria (region)|Syria]] and southeast [[Anatolia]] (modern-day [[Turkey]])<ref>{{Cite book |lastlast1=Shaw |firstfirst1=Ian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8HKDtlPuM2oC&pg=PA402&dq=&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjznaTa3cmEAxUlVPEDHT5kAVYQ6AF6BAgKEAM |title=A Dictionary of Archaeology |last2=Jameson |first2=Robert |date=2008-04-15 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-470-75196-1 |pages=402 |language=en}}</ref> with [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]] [[Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni|linguistic and political influences]].{{efn|See the{{section [[Mitanni#link||Indo-Aryan influences|section below]]}} for the debate regarding the extent of Indo-Aryan influence over Mitanni.}} Since no histories, royal annals or chronicles have yet been found in its excavated sites, knowledge about Mitanni is sparse compared to the other powers in the area, and dependent on what its neighbours commented in their texts.
 
The [[Hurrians]] were in the region as of the late 3rd millennium BC.<ref>Buccellati, Giorgio, and Marilyn Kelly-Buccellati, (1997). [https://ixtheo.de/Record/1787586049/Description "Urkesh: The First Hurrian Capital"], The Biblical Archaeologist, vol. 60, no. 2, 1997, pp. 77–96. '''Abstract:''' "...the sealings provided satisfying proof that Tell Mozan was the site of the third-millennium Hurrian capital city Urkesh..."</ref> A king of [[Urkesh]] with a Hurrian name, Tupkish, was found on a clay sealing dated {{Circa|2300 BC}} at Tell Mozan.<ref name="Salvini" >Salvini, Mirjo. "The earliest evidences of the Hurrians before the formation of the reign of Mittanni." Urkesh and the Hurrians Studies in Honor of Lloyd Cotsen. Urkesh/Mozan Studies Bibliotheca Mesopotamica. Malibu: Undena Publications (1998): 99-115</ref><ref>Lawler, Andrew. “Who"Who Were the Hurrians?" Archaeology, vol. 61, no. 4, 2008, pp. 46–52</ref> The first recorded inscription of their language was of [[Tish-atal]] ({{Circa|21st century BC}}), king of [[Urkesh]].<ref>Yakubovich, I. (2011). [Review of Einführung in die hurritsche Sprache, by I. Wegner]. Journal of Near Eastern Studies, 70(2), 337–339</ref> Later on, Hurrians made up the main population of Mitanni, thatwhich was firstly known as ''Ḫabigalbat'', at Babylonia, in two texts of the late [[Old Babylonian Empire|Old Babylonian period]],<ref name="van Koppen, Frans, (2004)"/><ref name="von Dassow, Eva, (2022)"/> during the reign of [[Ammi-Saduqa]], ({{Circa|1638}}–1618 BC), in low middle chronology.
 
The Mitanni Empire was a strong regional power limited by the Hittites to the north, Egyptians to the west, Kassites to the south, and later by the Assyrians to the east. At its maximum extent Mitanni ranged as far west as [[Kizzuwatna]] by the [[Taurus Mountains]], [[Tunip]] in the south, [[Arraphe]] in the east, and north to [[Lake Van]].<ref name="Dassow2014">von Dassow, Eva, (2014). "[https://www.academia.edu/7479998/Levantine_Polities_under_Mittanian_Hegemony Levantine Polities under Mittanian Hegemony]". In: Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum, Nicole Brisch and Jesper Eidem (eds.). ''Constituent, Confederate, and Conquered Space: The Emergence of the Mittani State''. pp. 11-32. </ref> Their sphere of influence is shown in Hurrian place names, personal names and the spread through Syria and the [[Levant]] of a distinct pottery type, [[Nuzi ware]].<ref>Diana L. Stein: Khabur Ware and Nuzi Ware: Their Origin, Relationship, and Significance. Malibu 1984</ref>
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==Etymology==
===Mitanni===
{{hiero|1=mꜥṯn(j)<ref name = Gauthier25/><ref name = Budge999/> |2=<hiero>G17-D38:V13:N35-N25</hiero>|era=nk|align=right}}
The earliest recorded form of the name of this state is {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|Maitanni}}, composed of a Hurrian suffix {{transliteration|xhu|-nni}} added to the Indo-Aryan stem {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|maita-}}, meaning "to unite" and comparable with the [[Sanskrit]] verb {{transliteration|sa|mith}} ({{lang|sa|मिथ्}}; {{lit|to unite, pair, couple, meet}}). The name {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|Maitanni}} thus meant the "united kingdom."{{sfn|Fournet|2010|p=11}}
 
Paralleling the evolution of Proto-Indo-Aryan {{transliteration|inc-x-proto|máytʰati}}, meaning {{lit|he unites}}, into Sanskrit {{transliteration|sa|méthati}} ({{lang|sa|मेथति}}), the name {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|Maitanni}} evolved into the later form {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|Mitanni}}, where the stem {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|maita-}} had given way to {{transliteration|inc-x-mitanni|mita-}}.{{sfn|Fournet|2010|p=11}}
 
===Ḫani-Rabbat===
The Mitanni kingdom was firstly known as ''ḪabigalbatḪabingalbat'' before 1600 BC atin Babylonia, during the reign of [[Ammi-Saduqa]], attested as ''ḫa-bi-in-gal-ba-ti-i'', and ''ḫa-bi-in-ga-al-ba-at'', in two texts of the late [[Old Babylonian Empire|Old Babylonian period]].<ref name="van Koppen, Frans, (2004)">van Koppen, Frans, (2004). [https://www.academia.edu/2462202/_The_Geography_of_the_Slave_Trade_and_Northern_Mesopotamia_in_the_Late_Old_Babylonian_Period_in_H_Hunger_and_R_Pruzsinszky_ed_Mesopotamian_Dark_Age_Revisited_Vienna_%C3%96sterreichische_Akademie_der_Wissenschaften_2004_9_3 "The Geography of the Slave Trade and Northern Mesopotamia in the Late Old Babylonian Period"], in: H. Hunger and R. Pruzsinszky (eds.), ''Mesopotamian Dark Age Revisited'', Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna, p. 21, and '''footnote 65:''' "An unpublished Old Babylonian text dated to [[Ammi-Saduqa|Ammi-saduqa]] (circa 1600 B.C.), the knowledge of which I owe to the kindness of Mr. Douglas Kennedy of the Centre National de Recherches de Paris, deals with the issue of beer to the tu-ur-gu-ma-an-ni ša éren ḫa-bi-in-gal-ba-ti-i ‘the dragomans of the Hanigalbatian soldiers/workers’"[quoting Gelb 1968: 97], and "...A personnel register, probably also from the reign of Ammisaduqa, mentions the person ib-ba-tum éren ḫa-bi-in-ga-al-ba-at (BM96955 iii 9)..."</ref><ref name="von Dassow, Eva, (2022)"/> Egyptians referred to it as ''[[Naharin]]'' and ''Mitanni'',<ref name = Gauthier25>{{cite book |last1=Gauthier |first1=Henri |title=Dictionnaire des Noms Géographiques Contenus dans les Textes Hiéroglyphiques Vol. 3 |date=1926 |page=25 |url=https://archive.org/details/Gauthier1926/page/n15}}</ref><ref name = Budge999>{{cite book |last1=Wallis Budge |first1=E. A. |title=An Egyptian hieroglyphic dictionary: with an index of English words, king list and geological list with indexes, list of hieroglyphic characters, Coptic and Semitic alphabets, etc. Vol II |date=1920 |publisher=[[John Murray (publishing house)|John Murray]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/egyptianhierogly02budguoft/page/999 999] |url=https://archive.org/details/egyptianhierogly02budguoft}}</ref> it was ''Ḫurri'' to the Hittites, and ''Ḫanigalbat'' or ''Ḫani-Rabbat'' to the Assyrians. These names seem to have referred to the same kingdom and were often used interchangeably, according to Michael C. Astour.<ref>Astour, "Ḫattusilis̆, Ḫalab, and Ḫanigalbat" ''Journal of Near Eastern Studies'' '''31'''.2 (April 1972:102&ndash;109) p 103.</ref> Hittite annals mention a people called ''Hurri'' (''{{transliteration|hit|Ḫu-ur-ri}}''), located in northeastern Syria. A Hittite fragment, probably from the time of [[Mursili I]], mentions a "King of the Hurri," and the [[Akkadian language|Assyro-Akkadian]] version of the text renders "Hurri" as ''Hanigalbat''. Tushratta, who styles himself "king of Mitanni" in his [[Amarna letters|Akkadian Amarna letters]], refers to his kingdom as Hanigalbat.<ref>Astour 1972:103, noting Amarna letters 18:9; 20:17;29:49.</ref>
{{hiero|1=mꜥṯn(j)<ref name = Gauthier25/><ref name = Budge999/> |2=<hiero>G17-D38:V13:N35-N25</hiero>|era=nk|align=right}}
The Mitanni kingdom was firstly known as ''Ḫabigalbat'' before 1600 BC at Babylonia, during the reign of [[Ammi-Saduqa]], attested as ''ḫa-bi-in-gal-ba-ti-i'', and ''ḫa-bi-in-ga-al-ba-at'', in two texts of the late [[Old Babylonian Empire|Old Babylonian period]].<ref name="van Koppen, Frans, (2004)">van Koppen, Frans, (2004). [https://www.academia.edu/2462202/_The_Geography_of_the_Slave_Trade_and_Northern_Mesopotamia_in_the_Late_Old_Babylonian_Period_in_H_Hunger_and_R_Pruzsinszky_ed_Mesopotamian_Dark_Age_Revisited_Vienna_%C3%96sterreichische_Akademie_der_Wissenschaften_2004_9_3 "The Geography of the Slave Trade and Northern Mesopotamia in the Late Old Babylonian Period"], in: H. Hunger and R. Pruzsinszky (eds.), ''Mesopotamian Dark Age Revisited'', Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna, p. 21, and '''footnote 65:''' "An unpublished Old Babylonian text dated to [[Ammi-Saduqa|Ammi-saduqa]] (circa 1600 B.C.), the knowledge of which I owe to the kindness of Mr. Douglas Kennedy of the Centre National de Recherches de Paris, deals with the issue of beer to the tu-ur-gu-ma-an-ni ša éren ḫa-bi-in-gal-ba-ti-i ‘the dragomans of the Hanigalbatian soldiers/workers’"[quoting Gelb 1968: 97], and "...A personnel register, probably also from the reign of Ammisaduqa, mentions the person ib-ba-tum éren ḫa-bi-in-ga-al-ba-at (BM96955 iii 9)..."</ref><ref name="von Dassow, Eva, (2022)"/> Egyptians referred to it as ''[[Naharin]]'' and ''Mitanni'',<ref name = Gauthier25>{{cite book |last1=Gauthier |first1=Henri |title=Dictionnaire des Noms Géographiques Contenus dans les Textes Hiéroglyphiques Vol. 3 |date=1926 |page=25 |url=https://archive.org/details/Gauthier1926/page/n15}}</ref><ref name = Budge999>{{cite book |last1=Wallis Budge |first1=E. A. |title=An Egyptian hieroglyphic dictionary: with an index of English words, king list and geological list with indexes, list of hieroglyphic characters, Coptic and Semitic alphabets, etc. Vol II |date=1920 |publisher=[[John Murray (publishing house)|John Murray]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/egyptianhierogly02budguoft/page/999 999] |url=https://archive.org/details/egyptianhierogly02budguoft}}</ref> it was ''Ḫurri'' to the Hittites, and ''Ḫanigalbat'' or ''Ḫani-Rabbat'' to the Assyrians. These names seem to have referred to the same kingdom and were often used interchangeably, according to Michael C. Astour.<ref>Astour, "Ḫattusilis̆, Ḫalab, and Ḫanigalbat" ''Journal of Near Eastern Studies'' '''31'''.2 (April 1972:102&ndash;109) p 103.</ref> Hittite annals mention a people called ''Hurri'' (''{{transliteration|hit|Ḫu-ur-ri}}''), located in northeastern Syria. A Hittite fragment, probably from the time of [[Mursili I]], mentions a "King of the Hurri," and the [[Akkadian language|Assyro-Akkadian]] version of the text renders "Hurri" as ''Hanigalbat''. Tushratta, who styles himself "king of Mitanni" in his [[Amarna letters|Akkadian Amarna letters]], refers to his kingdom as Hanigalbat.<ref>Astour 1972:103, noting Amarna letters 18:9; 20:17;29:49.</ref>
 
The earliest attestation of the term ''Ḫanigalbat'' can be read in [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]], along with the [[Hittite language|Hittite]] version mentioning "the Hurrian enemy,"<ref>De Martino, Stefano, (2018). [https://iris.unito.it/handle/2318/1685098#.X1BUcIvB_IU "Political and Cultural Relations between the Kingdom of Mittani and its Subordinated Polities in Syria and Southeast Anatolia"], in Changing Faces of Kingship in Syria-Palestine 1500–500 BCE, Alter Orient und Testament 459, Ugarit Verlag, '''p. 37''': "...The term Ḫanigalbat first occurs in the Akkadian version of the Annals of Ḫattušili I... whereas the Hittite version uses the generic expression 'the Hurrian enemy,' as do two old Babylonian texts... perhaps this term refers to the Hurrian "progenitor" of Mittani..."</ref> in a copy from the 13th century BC of the "Annals of [[Ḫattušili I]],"<ref name="Bryce">Bryce, Trevor R., (2018). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338001738_The_Annals_and_Lost_Golden_Statue_of_the_Hittite_King_Hattusili_I "The Annals and Lost Golden Statue of the Hittite King Hattusili I"], in Gephyra 16, November 2018, '''p. 3:''' "Like most other Hittite documents, the Annals have survived only in a late 13th century copy, the last in a line of copies made over several centuries. There are generally only minor variations between the Hittite and Akkadian versions of the text. Consistent with van den Hout's proposals, I have suggested that the document was first composed in Akkadian and later translated into Hittite – contra the suggestions that both versions were composed at the same time or that the Akkadian version was translated from an original Hittite one."</ref> who possibly reigned sinceafter 1630 BC.<ref>Yener, Aslihan K., (2021). [https://www.academia.edu/61046107/Some_Thoughts_about_Middle_Bronze_Age_Alalakh_and_Ugarit_Reassessing_an_Alalakh_Wall_Painting_with_Archival_Data "Some Thoughts about Middle Bronze Age Alalakh and Ugarit: Reassessing an Alalakh Wall Painting with Archival Data"], in: Ougarit, un anniversaire, Bilans et recherches en cours, Peeters, Leuven-Paris-Bristol, '''p. 579''': "...the Level VII Palace [was destroyed] by Hattusili I in his second year, 1628 BC (middle chronology)..."</ref>
 
The reading of the Assyrian term ''Ḫanigalbat'' has a history of multiple renderings. The first portion has been connected to, "{{cuneiform|𒄩𒉡}} ''{{transliteration|akk|Ḫa-nu}}''," "Hanu" or "Hana," first attested in [[Mari, Syria|Mari]] to describe nomadic inhabitants along the southern shore of the northern [[Euphrates]] region, near the vicinity of [[Terqa]] (capital of the [[Kingdom of Khana|Kingdom of Hana]]) and the [[Khabur (Euphrates)|Khabur]] River. The term developed into more than just a designation for a people group, but also took on a topographic aspect as well. In the [[Middle Assyrian Empire|Middle Assyrian period]], a phrase "{{cuneiform|𒌷𒆳𒄩𒉡𒀭𒋫}}" "''{{transliteration|akk|<sup>URU</sup>KUR Ḫa-nu AN.TA}}''," "cities of the Upper Hanu" has suggested that there was a distinction between two different Hanu's, likely across each side of the river. This northern side designation spans much of the core territory of Mitanni state.
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The two signs that have led to variant readings are "{{cuneiform|𒃲}} ''{{transliteration|akk|gal}}''" and its alternative form "{{cuneiform|𒆗}} ''{{transliteration|akk|gal<sub>9</sub>}}''". The first attempts at decipherment in the late 19th century rendered forms interpreting "''gal''," meaning "great" in Sumerian, as a logogram for Akkadian "''rab''" having the same meaning; "Ḫani-Rabbat" denoting "the Great Hani". [[Jørgen Alexander Knudtzon|J. A. Knudtzon]], and [[E. A. Speiser]] after him, supported instead the reading of "''gal''" on the basis of its alternative spelling with "''gal<sub>9</sub>''", which has since become the majority view.
 
There is still a difficulty to explain the suffix "''-bat''" if the first sign did not end in "''b''," or the apparent similarity to the Semitic feminine ending "''-at''," if derived from a Hurrian word. More recently, in 2011, scholar Miguel Valério,<ref>[https://unibo.academia.edu/MiguelVal%C3%A9rio Miguel Valério], Università di Bologna, Dipartimento di Filologia classica e Italianistica (FICLIT).</ref> then at the [[New University of Lisbon]] provided detailed support in favor toof the older reading ''Hani-Rabbat''.<ref>Valério, Miguel, (2011). [https://www.academia.edu/670734/2011_Hani_Rabbat_as_the_Semitic_Name_of_Mitanni "Hani-Rabbat as the Semitic Name of Mitanni"], in Journal of Language Relationship, International Scientific Periodical Nº6 (2011), Russian State University for the Humanities, Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, '''p. 174''': "...The present essay intends to rehabilitate Hani-Rabbat as the accurate normalization of the Assyrian name of Mitanni, by showing the unmotivated nature of the alternative Hanigalbat as opposed to the more substantiated reading of GAL as rab in the spelling of this toponym..."</ref> The re-reading makes an argument on the basis of frequency, where "''gal''" not "''gal<sub>9</sub>''," is far more numerous; the later being the deviation found in six documents, all from the periphery of the Akkadian sphere of influence. Additionally argued, although graphically distinct, there is a high degree of overlap between the two signs, as "''gal<sub>9</sub>''" denotes "''dannum''" or ""strong"" opposed to "great", easily being used as synonyms. Both signs also represent correlative readings; alternative readings of "''gal<sub>9</sub>''" include "''rib''" and "''rip''," just like "''gal''" being read as "''rab''."
 
The situation is complicated by there being, according to linguists, three separate dialects of Hurrian, central-western, northern, and eastern.<ref>Astour, Michael C.. "A Reconstruction of the History of Ebla (Part 2)". Eblaitica: Essays on the Ebla Archives and Eblaite Language, Volume 4, edited by Cyrus H. Gordon and Gary A. Rendsburg, University Park, USA: Penn State University Press, 2021, pp. 57-196</ref>
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===After the fall of Mitanni===
With the final decline of the Mitanni Empire the western portions of its territory came upunder direct control of the Hittites and the eastern portions came under direct control of the Assyrians. The middle part continued on as the [[rump state]] of Hanigalbat. Eventually, under Shalmaneser I, that remaining part of the former Mitanni territory came under direct Assyrian control. This continued until the decline of Middle Assyrian power after the death of Tukulti-Ninurta I.<ref>[https://scholarlypublications.universiteitleiden.nl/access/item%3A2722770/view] Akkermans, Peter MMG, José Limpens, and Richard H. Spoor. "On the frontier of Assyria: excavations at Tell Sabi Abyad, 1991.", Akkadica, vol. 84-85, pp. 1-52 (1993).</ref><ref>Devecchi, Elena. "6 The Governance of the Subordinated Countries". Handbook Hittite Empire: Power Structures, edited by Stefano de Martino, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Oldenbourg, 2022, pp. 271-312</ref>
 
While under direct Assyrian control Hanigalbat was ruled by appointed governors such as the Assyrian grand-vizier [[Ilī-padâ]], father of [[Ninurta-apal-Ekur]] (1191–1179), who took the title of [[King of Hanigalbat]].<ref>Hagens, Graham. “The Assyrian King List and Chronology: A Critique.” Orientalia, vol. 74, no. 1, 2005, pp. 23–41</ref> He resided in the newly built (over an existing Mitanni tower and residence) Assyrian administrative centre at [[Tell Sabi Abyad]].<ref>[https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Bleda-During/publication/311509524_During_BS_Visser_E_and_Akkermans_PMMG_2015_Skeletons_in_the_Fortress_The_Late_Bronze_Age_Burials_of_Tell_Sabi_Abyad_Syria_Levant_4730-50/links/5b61804baca272a2d6791b6d/Duering-BS-Visser-E-and-Akkermans-PMMG-2015-Skeletons-in-the-Fortress-The-Late-Bronze-Age-Burials-of-Tell-Sabi-Abyad-Syria-Levant-4730-50.pdf] Düring, Bleda S., Eva Visser, and Peter MMG Akkermans. "Skeletons in the Fortress: The Late Bronze Age Burials of Tell Sabi Abyad, Syria." Levant 47.1 (2015): 30-50</ref>
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Šuppiluliuma I, an event dated to the 2nd half of the 14th century BCE..."</ref> The toponym of the Mitanni capital of [[Washukanni]] is also "unanimously accepted" to have been derived from an Indo-Aryan dialect.<ref name=Cotticelli/> Annelies Kammenhuber (1968) suggested that this vocabulary was derived from the still undivided [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]] language,<ref>Kammenhuber, Annelies (1968). Die Arier im vorderen Orient. Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag. p. 238. On p. 238 she indicates they spoke a "noch ungeteiltes Indo-Iranisch".</ref><ref name=Drews>{{cite book |first=Robert |last=Drews |title=The Coming of the Greeks: Indo-European Conquests in the Aegean and the Near East |publisher=[[Princeton University Press]] |year=1989 |isbn=0-691-02951-2 |chapter=Chariot Warfare |page=[https://archive.org/details/comingofgreeksin00drew/page/61 61] |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LxCnDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA61 |url=https://archive.org/details/comingofgreeksin00drew/page/61 }}</ref> but [[Manfred Mayrhofer|Mayrhofer]] has shown that specifically Indo-Aryan features are present.<ref>{{cite journal |first=M. |last=Mayrhofer |title=Die Arier im Vorderen Orient &ndash; ein Mythos? |journal=Sitzungsberichte der Oesterreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften |volume=294 |issue=3 |location=Vienna |year=1974 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=M. |last=Mayrhofer |title=Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen |location=Heidelberg |year=1986–2000 |volume=IV }}</ref>
 
It is generally believed that [[Indo-Aryan peoples]] settled in [[Upper Mesopotamia]] and northern [[Syria (region)|Syria]], and established the Kingdom of Mitanni following a period of political vacuum, while also adopting Hurrian. This is considered a part of the [[Indo-Aryan migrations]].{{sfn|Sigfried J. de Laet|1996|p=562}}{{sfn|Beckwith|2009|pages=39–41}}{{sfn|Bryce|2005|p=55}} Since the late 20th century, the view that the Mitanni kingdom was ruled by royal house and aristocracy of Indo-Aryan origin has been prevalent among the scholars.;{{efn|Including [[Christopher I. Beckwith]] (2009),<ref>{{Cite book|author-link= Christopher I. Beckwith|last=Beckwith |first=Christopher I. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5jG1eHe3y4EC&printsec=frontcover&dq= |title=Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present |date=2009 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-13589-2 |language=en|pages=39–41}}</ref> Pita Kelekna (2009),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kelekna |first=Pita |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m09_uTLuz3UC&pg=PA95&dq=&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjTl9Sci8eEAxVZBNsEHZnRDyE4KBDoAXoECAkQAw |title=The Horse in Human History |date=2009 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-51659-4 |language=en|ppage=95}}</ref> [[Asko Parpola]] (2015),<ref>{{Citation |last=Parpola |first=Asko |title=The BMAC of Central Asia and the Mitanni of Syria |date=2015 |work=The Roots of Hinduism |pages=69–91 |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190226909.003.0008|publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190226909.003.0008|isbn=978-0-19-022690-9 }}</ref> [[Elena Efimovna Kuzmina]] (2007),<ref>{{Citation |lastlast1=Kuz’Mina |firstfirst1=E. E. |title=THEChapter GENESISTwenty-Five. OFThe THEgenesis of the INDOindo-ARYANSaryans |date=2007 |work=The Origin of the Indo-Iranians |pages=321–346 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/edcoll/9789047420712/Bej.9789004160545.i-763_026.xml |access-date= |publisher=Brill |language=en |doi=10.1163/ej.9789004160545.i-763.91 |isbn=978-90-474-2071-2 |last2=Mallory |first2=J. P.}}</ref> [[Alexander Lubotsky]] (2023),<ref name="Lubotsky, Alexander 2023 p. 260">{{Citation |last=Lubotsky |first=Alexander |title=Indo-European and Indo-Iranian Wagon Terminology and the Date of the Indo-Iranian Split |date=2023 |work=The Indo-European Puzzle Revisited: Integrating Archaeology, Genetics, and Linguistics |pages=257–262 |editor-last=Willerslev |editor-first=Eske |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/indoeuropean-puzzle-revisited/indoeuropean-and-indoiranian-wagon-terminology-and-the-date-of-the-indoiranian-split/ADBF07BCD6447A00E1B5E3EE4E128FA7 |access-date= |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |doi=10.1017/9781009261753.021 |isbn=978-1-009-26175-3 |editor2-last=Kroonen |editor2-first=Guus |editor3-last=Kristiansen |editor3-first=Kristian}}</ref> Frans van Koppen (2017)<ref>{{Citation |last=Koppen |first=Frans van |title=The Early Kassite Period |date=2017 |work=Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites |pages=45–92 |url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781501503566-002/html |access-date= |publisher=De Gruyter |language=en |doi=10.1515/9781501503566-002 |isbn=978-1-5015-0356-6}}</ref> and others}} Accordinglyaccordingly, a branch of Indo-Aryans separated from the other Indo-Iranians around the turn of second millennium BCE and migrated into [[West Asia]], hence giving rise to the Mitanni kingdom, while also adopting Hurrian language.{{sfn|Lubotsky|2023}}{{sfn|Parpola|2015|p=69–91}}{{sfn|Beckwith|2009|ppages=39–41}} Some of the recent studies such as those by Eva von Dassow (2022) and Cotticelli-Kurras and Pisaniello (2023), while noting the modern identification of Mittani as Indo-Aryan and the role of Indo-Aryan speakers in establishing its dynasty, have disputed the significance of Indo-Aryan vocabulary in an otherwise Hurrian-speaking state stating that it does not indicate any Indo-Aryan origins for Mitanni kings.<ref name="von Dassow, Eva, (2022)">{{Citation |last=von Dassow |first=Eva |title=Mittani and Its Empire |date=2022 |work=The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume III |pages=455–528 |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190687601.003.0029 |access-date= |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/oso/9780190687601.003.0029|isbn=978-0-19-068760-1 }}</ref><ref name=Cotticelli>{{Citation |last1=Cotticelli-Kurras |first1=P. |title=Indo-Aryans in the Ancient Near East |date=2023 |work=Contacts of Languages and Peoples in the Hittite and Post-Hittite World |pages=332–345 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/9789004548633/BP000013.xml |publisher=Brill |language=en |doi=10.1163/9789004548633_014 |isbn=978-90-04-54863-3 |last2=Pisaniello |first2=V.|doi-access=free }}</ref> According to [[Alexander Lubotsky]] (2023), however, the military elite of Mitanni kingdom (see [[Maryannu]]) was of Aryan descent and their language displays a clear Indo-Aryan character.<ref name="Lubotsky, Alexander 2023 p. 260"/>
Some of the recent studies such as those by Eva von Dassow (2022) and Cotticelli-Kurras and Pisaniello (2023), while noting the modern identification of Mittani as Indo-Aryan and the role of Indo-Aryan speakers in establishing its dynasty, have disputed the significance of Indo-Aryan vocabulary in an otherwise Hurrian-speaking state stating that it does not indicate any Indo-Aryan origins for Mitanni kings.<ref name="von Dassow, Eva, (2022)">{{Citation |last=von Dassow |first=Eva |title=Mittani and Its Empire |date=2022 |work=The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East: Volume III |pages=455–528 |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190687601.003.0029 |access-date= |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/oso/9780190687601.003.0029}}</ref><ref name=Cotticelli>{{Citation |last=Cotticelli-Kurras |first=P. |title=Indo-Aryans in the Ancient Near East |date=2023 |work=Contacts of Languages and Peoples in the Hittite and Post-Hittite World |pages=332–345 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/9789004548633/BP000013.xml |publisher=Brill |language=en |doi=10.1163/9789004548633_014 |isbn=978-90-04-54863-3 |last2=Pisaniello |first2=V.}}</ref> According to [[Alexander Lubotsky]] (2023), however, the military elite of Mitanni kingdom (see [[Maryannu]]) was of Aryan descent and that their language displays a clear Indo-Aryan character.<ref name="Lubotsky, Alexander 2023 p. 260"/>
 
Jasper Eidem in 2014 reported on Farouk Ismail's earlier study,<ref name="Eidem">Eidem, Jasper, (2014). [https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110266412.137/html "The Kingdom of Šamšī-Adad and its Legacies"], in Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum, Nicole Brisch and Jesper Eidem (eds.), ''Constituent, Confederate, and Conquered Space: The Emergence of the Mittani State'', p. 142, and footnote 16.</ref> in reference to the word ''marijannu'' that was found in a letter from [[Tell Leilan]] in northeastern Syria dating to a period slightly before 1761 BC, which is the time when the reign of [[Zimri-Lim]] ended in the region of [[Mari, Syria|Mari]]. Kroonen et al. (2018) consider this as an early Indo-Aryan linguistic presence in Syria two centuries prior to the formation of the Mitanni realm, as ''[[Maryannu|mariannu]]'' is generally seen as a Hurrianized form of the Indo-Aryan ''*marya'', which means 'man' or 'youth', associated to military affairs and chariots.<ref>Kroonen, Guus, Gojko Barjamovic, and Michaël Peyrot, (2018). [https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/87765/Kroonen_et_al_2018.pdf "Linguistic supplement to Damgaard et al. 2018: Early Indo-European languages, Anatolian, Tocharian and Indo-Iranian"], in Zenodo 2018, p. 11.</ref>
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====Northern Syria====
The oldest tablet issued by an unknown Mitannian king was found in the site of [[Tell Hammam et-Turkman]], dated to c. 1500 BCE.<ref>de Martino, Stefano, (2024). [https://iris.unito.it/bitstream/2318/1957170/1/MittaniCuneiformDocuments.pdf "The Mittanian Cuneiform Documents"], in: The Ancient World Revisited, Studies in Manuscript Cultures, Vol. 37, De Gruyter, pp. 207- 219.</ref>
Mitanni period occupation, between 1400 and 1200 BC (radiocarbon) was found at the site of [[Tell Bazi]].<ref>A. Otto, "The Late Bronze Age Pottery of the Weststadt of Tall Bazi (North Syria)", in: M. Luciani, A. Hausleitner (Eds.), Recent Trends in the Study of Late Bronze Age Ceramics in Syro-Mesopotamia and Neighbouring Regions. Proceedings of the International Workshop in Berlin, 2 – 5 November 2006, OrA 32, Rahden/Westf., pp. 85-117, 2014</ref><ref>[https://www.vorderas-archaeologie.uni-muenchen.de/forschung/projekt_syrien/literatur_bazi/2018c_einwott_maao-bazipottery.pdf] B. Einwag and A. Otto, "The Late Bronze Age at Tall Bazi: The Evidence of the Pottery and the Challenges of Radiocarbon Dating", in: From Pottery to Chronology: The Middle Euphrates Region in Late Bronze Age Syria. Proceedings of a Workshop in Mainz (Germany), May 5–7, 2012. MAAO 1, Gladbeck, pp. 149–176, 2018</ref> Finds included a Mitanni cylinder seal and several ritual bowls. Two cuneiform tablets of the Mitanni period sealed by Mitanni ruler [[Saushtatar]], one by [[Artatama I]] were also found.<ref>[https://www.vorderas-archaeologie.uni-muenchen.de/personen/professoren/otto/publikationen/ii-83_otto-einwag_fs_autorski.pdf] Otto, Adelheid and Berthold Einwag. “Three ritual vessels from the Mittani-period temple at Tell Bazi.” Stories told around the fountain. Papers offered to Piotr Bieliński on the occasion of his 70th birthday (2019): pp. 503-518</ref> There is also a record of Mitanni governance at [[Tell Hadidi]] (Azu).<ref>[https://www.cairn.info/revue-d-assyriologie-2018-1-page-149.htm] Torrecilla, Eduardo, and Yoram Cohen. "A Mittani letter order from Azu (Had 8) and its implications for the chronology and history of the Middle Euphrates region in the Late Bronze Age." Revue d'assyriologie et d'archeologie orientale 112.1 (2018): 149-158</ref>
 
Line 166 ⟶ 169:
| Parattarna II || {{Circa|1435 BC}} || Contemporary of Qis-Addu in Terqa
|-
| Shaitarna || {{Circa|1425 BC}} || ContemporayContemporary of Qis-Addu in Terqa
|-
| [[Artatama I]] || {{Circa|1400 BC}} || Treaty with [[pharaoh]] [[Thutmose IV]], contemporary of pharaoh [[Amenhotep II]]
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==Sources==
* Bryce, Trevor, ''Letters of the Great Kings of the Ancient Near East'', Routledge, 2003, {{ISBN|0-415-25857-X}}
* {{Cite book|author-link=Trevor Bryce |last=Bryce |first=Trevor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HMHmCwAAQBAJ |title=The Kingdom of the Hittites |date=2005 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-927908-1 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book|editor=Sigfried J. de Laet |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BnY0KYbJC6wC |title=History of Humanity: From the Third Millennium to the Seventh Century B.C. |date=1996 |publisher=UNESCO Publishing |isbn=978-92-3-102811-3 |language=en}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Fournet |first1=Arnaud |date=2010 |title=About the Mitanni-Aryan Gods |url=https://www.academia.edu/642020 |journal=[[Journal of Indo-European Studies]] |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=26–40 |access-date=27 September 2023}}
* Gaal, E. "The economic role of Hanilgalbat at the beginning of the Neo-Assyrian expansion." In: Hans-Jörg Nissen/Johannes Renger (eds.), ''Mesopotamien und seine Nachbarn. Politische und kulturelle Wechselbeziehungen im Alten Orient vom 4. bis 1. Jahrtausend v. Chr.'' Berliner Beiträge zum Vorderen Orient 1 (Berlin, Reimer 1982), 349–354.
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== Further reading ==
* {{cite book |last=Martino |first=Stefano de |chapter=The Mittanian Cuneiform Documents: The Interplay between Content, Language, Material, Format, and Sealing Practices |title=The Ancient World Revisited: Material Dimensions of Written Artefacts |editor1=Marilina Betrò |editor2=Michael Friedrich |editor3=Cécile Michel |location=Berlin, Boston |publisher=De Gruyter |date=2024 |pages=207-220207–220 |doi=10.1515/9783111360805-007|isbn=978-3-11-136080-5 }}
 
==External links==