Adamu ( akk, 𒀀𒁕𒈬, A-da-mu) was according to the ''

Assyrian King List The king of Assyria (Akkadian: ''Išši'ak Aššur'', later ''šar māt Aššur'') was the ruler of the ancient Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria, which was founded in the late 21st century BC and fell in the late 7th century BC. For much of its ear ...

'' (AKL) the second Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the "seventeen kings who lived in tents" within the ''Mesopotamian Chronicles''. The ''Mesopotamian Chronicles'' state that Adamu succeeded

Tudiya Tudiya or Tudia ( akk, 𒂅𒁲𒅀, Ṭu-di-ia) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the first Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the � ...

. The

Assyriologist Assyriology (from Greek , ''Assyriā''; and , ''-logia'') is the archaeological, anthropological, and linguistic study of Assyria and the rest of ancient Mesopotamia (a region that encompassed what is now modern Iraq, northeastern Syria, sout ...

Georges Roux Georges Raymond Nicolas Albert Roux (; November 16, 1914 – August 12, 1999) was a French writer, author of the popular history books about the Ancient Near East, ''Ancient Iraq'' and ''La Mésopotamie''. Son of a French Army officer, Roux m ...

stated that Tudiya would have lived in the 25th century BC. The earliest known use of the name “

Adam Adam; el, Ἀδάμ, Adám; la, Adam is the name given in Genesis 1-5 to the first human. Beyond its use as the name of the first man, ''adam'' is also used in the Bible as a pronoun, individually as "a human" and in a collective sense as " ...

” as a genuine historical name is ''Adamu''. As in his predecessor's case, Adamu's existence remains unconfirmed archaeologically and uncorroborated by any other source.

Geopolitical context

Adamu is succeeded on the Assyrian King List by

Yangi Yangi ( akk, 𒅀𒀭𒄀, Ia-an-gi) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the third Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the “seventeen ...

and then a further fourteen rulers: Suhlamu,

Harharu Harharu ( akk, 𒄯𒄩𒊒, Ḫar-ḫa-ru) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the fifth Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He was listed among the “s ...

, Mandaru,

Imsu Imsu ( akk, 𒅎𒍮, Im-ZUM) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the 7th Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the "''seventeen kings who ...

Harsu Harsu ( akk, 𒄯𒍮, Ḫar.Zum) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the 8th Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the, "''seventeen kin ...

Didanu Didanu ( akk, 𒁲𒁕𒀀𒉡, Di-da-a-nu) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the 9th Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed among the "''seven ...

, Hana, Zuabu, Nuabu, Abazu, Belu,

Azarah Azarah ( akk, 𒀀𒍝𒊏𒄴, A-za-ra-aḫ) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the 15th Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. He is listed as the fifteent ...

Ushpia Ushpia ( akk, 𒍑𒉿𒀀, Uš-pi-a) was according to the ''Assyrian King List'' (AKL) the 16th Assyrian monarch, ruling in Assyria's early period, though he is not attested in any known contemporary artefacts. The list places him as the second la ...

and Apiashal. Nothing concrete is known about these names, although it has been noted that a much later Babylonian tablet listing the ancestral lineage of

Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian: ; ) was the sixth Amorite king of the Old Babylonian Empire, reigning from to BC. He was preceded by his father, Sin-Muballit, who abdicated due to failing health. During his reign, he conquered Elam and the city-states ...

of Babylon, seems to have copied the same names from Tudiya through Nuabu, though in a heavily corrupted form. The king lists suggest that the earliest Assyrian kings, who are recorded as, “kings who lived in tents,” had at first been independent semi-nomadic pastoralist rulers, moreover; Assyria was originally an

oligarchy Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate ...

rather than a monarchy. These kings had at some point become fully urbanized and founded the city-state of

Assur Aššur (; Sumerian: AN.ŠAR2KI, Assyrian cuneiform: ''Aš-šurKI'', "City of God Aššur"; syr, ܐܫܘܪ ''Āšūr''; Old Persian ''Aθur'', fa, آشور: ''Āšūr''; he, אַשּׁוּר, ', ar, اشور), also known as Ashur and Qal'a ...

.Saggs, ''The Might'', 24.

References

{{Assyrian kings 24th-century BC Assyrian kings

Geopolitical context

See also

References