Urartians
Urartu was an Iron Age kingdom centered around the Armenian highlands between Lake Van, Lake Urmia, and Lake Sevan. The territory of the ancient kingdom of Urartu extended over the modern frontiers of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Armenia.Kleiss, Wolfram (2008). "URARTU IN IRAN". ''Encyclopædia Iranica''. Its kings left behind cuneiform inscriptions in the Urartian language, a member of the Hurro-Urartian language family. Urartu extended from the Euphrates in the west to the region west of Ardabil in Iran, and from Lake Çıldır near Ardahan in Turkey to the region of Rawandiz in Iraqi Kurdistan. The kingdom emerged in the mid-9th century BC and dominated the Armenian Highlands in the 8th and 7th centuries BC. Urartu frequently warred with Assyria and became, for a time, the most powerful state in the Near East. Weakened by constant conflict, it was eventually conquered, either by the Iranian Medes in the early 6th century BC or by Cyrus the Great in the middle of the 6th cen ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Urartu Religion
Urartian religion is a belief system adopted in the ancient state of Urartu, which existed from the 8th to 6th centuries BC. It was typical of despotic states from the Near East. The Urartian religion was polytheistic in nature and derived from the earlier beliefs of Mesopotamia and Anatolia. As in other beliefs of the ancient Near East, Urartu had a , patronizing various phenomena. The main deity was Haldi. The worlds of humans and gods were united through ritual sacrifices. The Urartian religion absorbed the motifs of the tree of life, the serpent and the winged solar disk characteristic of the ancient Near East. Against the background of Mesopotamian beliefs, Urartu was distinguished by a high level of religious tolerance, which was conditioned by the multinationality of the state. Sources for the study of Urartian religion Sources for the study of the Urartian religion are scarce. Scholars have a limited number of documents that describe the rituals and belief system o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Urartian Language
Urartian or Vannic is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language which was spoken by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom of Urartu (''Biaini'' or ''Biainili'' in Urartian), which was centered on the region around Lake Van and had its capital, Tushpa, near the site of the modern town of Van in the Armenian highlands, now in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. Its past prevalence is unknown. While some believe it was probably dominant around Lake Van and in the areas along the upper Zab valley, others believe it was spoken by a relatively small population who comprised a ruling class. First attested in the 9th century BCE, Urartian ceased to be written after the fall of the Urartian state in 585 BCE and presumably became extinct due to the fall of Urartu. It must have had long contact with, and been gradually totally replaced by, an early form of Armenian, although it is only in the 5th century CE that the first written examples of Armenian appear. Classification Urartian is ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran to the east; Iraq, Syria, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south; and the Aegean Sea, Greece, and Bulgaria to the west. Turkey is home to over 85 million people; most are ethnic Turkish people, Turks, while ethnic Kurds in Turkey, Kurds are the Minorities in Turkey, largest ethnic minority. Officially Secularism in Turkey, a secular state, Turkey has Islam in Turkey, a Muslim-majority population. Ankara is Turkey's capital and second-largest city. Istanbul is its largest city and economic center. Other major cities include İzmir, Bursa, and Antalya. First inhabited by modern humans during the Late Paleolithic, present-day Turkey was home to List of ancient peoples of Anatolia, various ancient peoples. The Hattians ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Argishti I
Argishti I, was the sixth known king of Urartu, reigning from 786 BC to 764 BC. He founded the citadel of Erebuni in 782 BC, which is the present capital of Armenia, Yerevan. Alternate transliterations of the name include ''Argishtis'', ''Argisti'', ''Argišti'', and ''Argishtish''. Although the name is usually rendered as ''Argišti'' (read: ''Argishti''), some scholars argue that ''Argisti'' is the most likely pronunciation. This is due to the belief that the Urartians used the cuneiform symbol ''š'' to voice an ''s''-sound, as opposed to representing the digraph ''sh''. A son and the successor of Menua, he continued the series of conquests initiated by his predecessors, apparently campaigning every year of his reign. He was involved in a number of inconclusive conflicts with the Assyrian king Shalmaneser IV. He conquered the northern part of Syria and made Urartu the most powerful state in post- Hittite Asia Minor. He also expanded his kingdom north to Lake Sevan, conquering ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Proto-Armenian Language
Proto-Armenian is the earlier, unattested stage of the Armenian language which has been reconstructed by linguists. As Armenian is the only known language of its branch of the Indo-European languages, the comparative method cannot be used to reconstruct its earlier stages. Instead, a combination of internal and external reconstruction, by reconstructions of Proto-Indo-European and other branches, has allowed linguists to piece together the earlier history of Armenian. Definition Proto-Armenian, as the ancestor of only one living language, has no clear definition of the term. It is generally held to include a variety of ancestral stages of Armenian between Proto-Indo-European and the earliest attestations of Classical Armenian. It is thus not a proto-language in the strict sense, but "Proto-Armenian" is a term that has become common in the field. The earliest attestation of Armenian is the 5th-century Bible translation of Mesrop Mashtots. The earlier history of the language i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sarduri III
Sarduri III was a king of Urartu between 639 BC and 635 BC. Urartian King Argishti II left a record of fourteen years of his reign on the walls of chambers hewn in the Rock of Van, while Sarduri III's victories are inscribed on a monument erected on a spot called "the Treasury Gate" in the fortress of Van. The Urartians had in the east as neighbours the Minni or Manni, in the southerly portion of the Urmiah basin. Records of victories are also found inscribed further north, on the shores of Lake Sevan, at Gyumri and Erzurum. See also * List of kings of Urartu This article lists the kings of Urartu (Ararat or Kingdom of Van), an Iron Age kingdom centered on Lake Van in eastern Asia Minor. Kings See also *List of Mesopotamian dynasties References *Boris Piotrovskii, ''The Ancient Civilization of Ura ... References * Kings of Urartu 7th-century BC monarchs in Asia {{ANE-bio-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rusa I
Rusa I (ruled: 735–714 BC) was a King of Urartu. He succeeded his father, king Sarduri II. His name is sometimes transliterated as ''Rusas'' or ''Rusha''. He was known to Assyrians as ''Ursa'' (which scholars have speculated is likely a more accurate pronunciation of the name) and possibly ''Urzana''. His birth name may have been ''Uedipri''. Rusa I built the fortress of Rusahinili (''Rusa-hinili'', city of Rusa), modern ''Toprakkale'', located near the modern city of Van in eastern Turkey. Background Before Rusa's reign had begun, his father, King Sarduri II, had already expanded the kingdom to southeastern Anatolia, and had managed to retake various Anatolian territories from Assyria during a brief period of weakness in the Assyrian Empire. The succession from Sarduri II is not entirely clear. There's also attested a king Sarduri III, so Rusa may have been his son. When Rusa I inherited the throne, the Assyrians continued campaigns against him. The Assyrian king ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Menua
Menua ( ariations exist, also rendered Meinua or Minua, was the fifth known king of Urartu from c. 810 BC to approximately 786 BC. In Armenian, Menua is rendered as ''Menua''. The name Menua may be connected etymologically to the Ancient Greek names Minos and Minyas. A younger son of the preceding Urartian King, Ishpuini, Menua was adopted as co-ruler by his father in the last years of his reign. Menua enlarged the kingdom through numerous wars against the neighbouring countries and left many inscriptions across the region, by far the most of any Urartian ruler. He organized a centralised administrative structure, fortified a number of towns and constructed fortresses. Amongst these was Menuakhinili located near Mount Ararat (its exact location is uncertain, perhaps at Bulakbaşı, east of modern-day Iğdır). He briefly co-ruled with his son, Inushpua, but was succeeded by another son, Argishti I. Menua also had a daughter named Tariria, after whom a certain vineyard was n ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sugunia
Sugunia was the first capital of Arame of Urartu. The city was mentioned in an inscription by the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III, who destroyed it in 858 BC. The Monolith Inscription of Shalmaneser III: Although its exact location is unknown, Shalamaneser III's placement of Sugunia near "the sea of Nairi" has led some scholars to place it near Lake Van or near Lake Urmia. After Sugunia was sacked and burnt by Shalmaneser III, Arame moved his capital to Arzashkun Arzashkun or Arṣashkun was the capital of the early kingdom of Urartu in the 9th century BC, before Sarduri I moved it to Tushpa in 832 BC. Arzashkun had double walls and towers, but was captured by Shalmaneser III in the 850s BC. Name Arz ..., which was subsequently attacked by the Assyrians in 856 BC. References Urartian cities Former populated places in Turkey Archaeological sites in Eastern Anatolia {{Armenia-hist-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sarduri II
Sarduri II (ruled: 764–735 BC) was a King of Urartu, succeeding his father Argishti I to the throne. The Urartian Kingdom was at its peak during his reign, campaigning successfully against several neighbouring powers, including Assyria. Reign The succession from Sarduri II is not entirely clear. There's also attested a king Sarduri III, so Rusa may also have been his son. Sarduri II notably expanded Urartian territory by conquering the northern region of Colchis, as well as Melid and Kummuh in the Euphrates valley. Urartian sources refer to campaigns of Sarduri II against a place called "Babilu", which has sometimes been identified with Kassite regions that were formerly part of Babylonian Empire In 743 BC, at a battle located somewhere in Kummuh, the Assyrians, under Tiglath-pileser III, defeated Sarduri and his anti-Assyrian coalition, forcing the Urartians back across the Euphrates. Sarduri II was so confident in his power that he erected a massive wall at Tushpa (m ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Akkadian Language
Akkadian ( ; )John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages''. Ed. Roger D. Woodard (2004, Cambridge) Pages 218–280 was an East Semitic language that is attested in ancient Mesopotamia ( Akkad, Assyria, Isin, Larsa, Babylonia and perhaps Dilmun) from the mid- third millennium BC until its gradual replacement in common use by Old Aramaic among Assyrians and Babylonians from the 8th century BC. Akkadian, which is the earliest documented Semitic language, is named after the city of Akkad, a major centre of Mesopotamian civilization during the Akkadian Empire (–2154 BC). It was written using the cuneiform script, originally used for Sumerian, but also used to write multiple languages in the region including Eblaite, Hurrian, Elamite, Old Persian and Hittite. The influence of Sumerian on Akkadian went beyond just the cuneiform script; owing to their close proximity, a lengthy span of con ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lake Sevan
Lake Sevan () is the largest body of water in both Armenia and the Caucasus region. It is one of the largest freshwater Alpine lake, high-altitude (alpine) lakes in Eurasia. The lake is situated in Gegharkunik Province, at an altitude of above sea level. The total surface area of its basin is about , which makes up of Armenia's territory. The lake itself is , and the volume is . It is fed by 28 rivers and streams. Only 10% of the incoming water is drained by the Hrazdan River, while the remaining 90% evaporates. Sevan has significant economic, cultural, and recreational value. Its sole major island (now a peninsula) is home to a Sevanavank, medieval monastery. The lake provides some 90% of the fish and 80% of the crayfish catch of Armenia. Sevan was heavily exploited for irrigation of the Ararat plain and hydroelectric power generation during the Soviet period. Consequently, its water level decreased by around and its volume reduced by more than 40%. Later, two Water tunne ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |