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Urkesh and Nagar: Urkesh is considered the oldest Hurrian Kingdom in the plain area, and it was home to the Hurrian pantheon, and home to Kumarbi, the king of Hurrian gods. It was mentioned in many texts, such as the bronze plaque of king Atal-shen written in Akkadian, and stating that he is the king of Urkesh and Nawar. It is probable that this king ruled in the time of Gutians and until the first centuries of Ur III dynasty (2015-1998 B.C.). With the end of the reign of Ur III dynasty kings over north of Tigris, in the time Ibbi-sin in late third millennium B.C., it is believed that king Tish-atal expanded the Kingdom of Urkesh. There is a bronze lion statue protecting a stone foundation plaque inscribed in Hurrian: ”Tish-atal, king of Urkesh, the temple of Nergal he built, the temple, this aforementioned one, Lubadag let him protect! Who destroys (it), him, let Lubadag destroy, his god, his prayer, let him not hear”. The American expedition working in Tell Mozan (8km south east Amouda in the Syrian Jazira) under the direction of Giorgio Buccellati, was able to verify the identity of the Tell as ancient Urkesh. And they were able to find out the names of the earliest king and queen of Urkesh, which are Tupkish and Uqnitum. This discovery was done by studying the seal impression with the cuneiform writing, used to seal jars and other containers in the royal store house, to ensure its contents. In Tell Brak (40km south Qamishli on the road between Qamishli and Hassak) the British expedition was able to verify the identity of the tell as Nagar. Researchers believe that Tell Brak is Nawar, for the name Nagar is the Hurrian name for Nawar in Semitic languages. And the origin of both names is Nagwar. Texts from Tell Leilan (Subat-Enlil/Sehna, 25 away from Qamishli) mentioned Nagar in a treaty between its king and the king of Kaht (Tell Bari, near Tell Brak) and it describe areas in Kaht Kingdom as extending from Nawar to Nawar. E. Aydem managed to match Nawar with Tell Brak, and matched the second Nawar with Gir Nawas near Nuseibin city, where Turkish excavations are conducted, and the expedition found out that the site was called Nawal in the second millennium B.C., and that it is possible that the name transformed from Nawar to Nawal. Nagar was also mentioned in Ebla texts, where it described a commercial relations with it, as it was on the commercial road linking the (Kurdistan) mountains and southern Iraq. In Nabada texts (Tell beydar, 30km from Hassaka) it is clear that the king of Nagar visited Nabada, which was the main economic center in Nagar kingdom. Small Hurrian kingdoms: In addition to the Hurrian Kingdoms mentioned, there were other Hurrian cities that could be described as small kingdoms in different areas of Subartu. the most important is Simiru on the upper stream of lower Zab, or maybe in Seirawan castle on Diyala river and Azuhinu, where researchers believe that it could be Tell al hawa west of Mosul and Tigris, or Hamoukar in Syria south west Tell Kojek, and it probably extended to include the areas around the upper stream of Sevan valley all the way to the foothill of Tur Abdin. and Ilhat in Tur Abdin east of Mardin, and Turkish south of Ourmia lake, and it is believed that it is located in Loristan or Kurdistan region in Iran. Kimash north Hemrin mountain all the way to lower Zab river, and Hurti in the areas around Kirkuk, and Karahar in Diyala region or one of its contributories, and could be Shirin palace, Ashalka in the area known as the Khabour triangle, and Ursu in north Syria to the west of the Euphrates, and Hassu that is believed to be modern Mar’ash. Mittani Empire: Around the middle of third millennium B.C., the Hurrians managed to establish a powerful empire known as the Hurro-Mittani empire and its capital was Waššukkanni, for which the location is still unknown, even though it is believed to be Tell Fekheriyeh, 2km from Ras al-Ain near the road leading to Hassaka. The site was excavated by an American expedition under the direction of McEwan. It was conformed that the tell is Sikani, and could be Waššukkanni, and it turned later to Sikkani. The name Mittani was first mentioned in a text that dates back to time of Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose I (1528-1510 B.C.) as "Mayttani." The meaning of the name is still unknown. It is difficult to know the borders of Mittani state. It is possible to recognize the areas under their control. Mittani reached the Mediterranean in the west, and excavations in Alalah (Tell Atchana, on the Assi River in Lewaa Iskandaron) Confirms that the king of the Alalah, Idrimi, was under the Mittani control, and it shows in the writing on his statue. Mittani also spread in Ugarit (Ras Shamra, 11km north of Lattakia) most likely through trading. There were many Mittani in Ugarit and there were many trace of them found, such as 2 small statues and a dagger. Mittani managed to control Aleppo. A writing of Telipinu, one of the Hittite king, is a confession that Aleppo became under the control of Mittani. Karkemish (Jarablus, on the Euphrates) was one of the main centers for Mittani rulers in northern Syria and it was ruled directly by the Mittani king. the Mittani influence spread to the north all the way to Wan, and in the south to Qatna (Tell Misherfeh, 18km north east of Homs), and in the east to Zagros after the defeat of Assyrians around 1450 B.C. at the hands of the Mittani king Šauštatar. Nuzi (Yourkan Tepe, 20km south west Kirkuk) is one of the most important political center for Mittani with Arrabha Kingdom (Kirkuk). The archaeological excavations in Tell Brak confirmed that the site was one of the main cities for the Mittani Empire. Excavations in different areas in the Syrian Jazira confirms the submission of the entire area to Mittani power, and the results came from different areas and sites. The end of Hurrians: Mittani fought many wars against Egyptians, Assyrians and Hittites. Later, they established diplomatic relations and marriage ties with Egyptian Pharaohs, that was strengthened more in the reign of Amenhotep III (1405-1367 B.C.). One of the most famous Mittani princesses who married an Egyptian pharaoh is Taduhepa, known by her Egyptian name Nefertiti. She is the daughter of king Tušratta who ruled around 1350 B.C. At that time, Egyptians knew Subartu by the name Naharyna, and they knew Syrian and the areas under Mittani control as Hurrian land, due to the Hurrian control in that region. This term is known in the famous el-Amarna letter (EA 24) known as the Mittani letter sent from Tušratta king of Mittani to Amenhotep III the Egyptian pharaoh. The Hurrian language was known to Egyptians as "Huruh." It was also mentioned in the Hittite text using a different term ("Hurlili") that derives from "Hurla" which means Hurrians. As of the reign of Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) (1364-1367 B.C.), the relations between Mittani and Egypt started to deteriorate, because Akhenaten was busy with his religious reforms, and Mittani Kingdom became weak due to internal struggles caused by the rising power of the Hittites. Hence, Egypt wanted to win over the Hittite power as a new ally instead of weak Mittani. The Hittites took many areas that were under Mittani control. The Assyrians took advantage of the situation and allied with the Hittites, and together they attacked the Mittani king Artatama II, defeated him and destroyed Waššukkanni. Mittani retrieved to Taidu area (Tell Hamidiah, 20 km south Qamishli) where they were raided by the Assyrian king Adad-Nirari I (1307-1275 B.C.) who chased them to Diarbakir and eliminated them, ending the Mittani kingdom. |