Lullubi, Lulubi (: ''Lu-lu-bi'', : ''Lu-lu-bi^ki'' "Country of the Lullubi"), more commonly known as Lullu, were a group of

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

tribes of

Hurrian The Hurrians (; ; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri) were a people who inhabited the Ancient Near East during the Bronze Age. They spoke the Hurro-Urartian language, Hurrian language, and lived throughout northern Syria (region) ...

and Semitic origin who existed and disappeared during the 3rd millennium BC, from a region known as ''Lulubum'', now the

Sharazor Shahrizor or Shahrezur () is a fertile plain in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, situated in the Silêmanî Governorate and west of Hewraman. Shahrizor plain is watered by the tributaries of Tandjaro river which flows to Diyala and Tigris river ...

plain of the

Zagros Mountains The Zagros Mountains are a mountain range in Iran, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. The mountain range has a total length of . The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of s ...

of modern-day

Sulaymaniyah Governorate Sulaymaniyah Governorate (; ; ) or Sulaymaniyah Province is a Governorates of Iraq, governorate in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Its largest city is Sulaymaniyah. Halabja Governorate was formerly the Halabja District, Sulaymaniyah Governorate, Hal ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. Lullubi was a neighbour and sometimes ally with the

Simurrum kingdom and came into conflict with the Semitic

Akkadian Empire The Akkadian Empire () was the first known empire, succeeding the long-lived city-states of Sumer. Centered on the city of Akkad (city), Akkad ( or ) and its surrounding region, the empire united Akkadian language, Akkadian and Sumerian languag ...

and

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC t ...

. Frayne (1990) identified their city ''Lulubuna'' or ''Luluban'' with the region's modern town of

Halabja Halabja (, ) is a city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the capital of Halabja Governorate, located about northeast of Baghdad and from the Iranian border. The city lies at the base of what is often referred to as the greater Hewraman re ...

Historical references

Legends

The early Sumerian legend "''

Lugalbanda and the Anzud Bird ''Lugalbanda and the Anzu Bird'' (or ''Lugalbanda II'', ''The Return of Lugalbanda'', ''Lugalbanda and the Anzu Bird'') is a Sumerian mythological account. The story is the second of two about the hero Lugalbanda. The first story is known as ''L ...

''", set in the reign of

Enmerkar Enmerkar () was an ancient Sumerian ruler to whom the construction of the city of Uruk and a 420-year reign was attributed. According to literary sources, he led various campaigns against the land of Aratta. He is credited in Sumerian legend as ...

Uruk Uruk, the archeological site known today as Warka, was an ancient city in the Near East, located east of the current bed of the Euphrates River, on an ancient, now-dried channel of the river in Muthanna Governorate, Iraq. The site lies 93 kilo ...

, alludes to the "mountains of Lulubi" as being where the character of

Lugalbanda Lugalbanda was a deified Sumerian king of Uruk who, according to various sources of Mesopotamian literature, was the father of Gilgamesh. Early sources mention his consort Ninsun and his heroic deeds in an expedition to Aratta by King Enmerkar ...

encounters the gigantic ''

Anzû Anzû, also known as dZû and Imdugud ( Sumerian: '' ''), is a demon in several Mesopotamian religions. He was conceived by the cosmic freshwater ocean '' Abzu'' and mother Earth ''Mami'', or as son of Siris. In Babylonian myths Anzû was depi ...

'' bird while searching for the rest of Enmerkar's army ''en route'' to siege

Aratta Aratta is a land that appears in Sumerian myths surrounding Enmerkar and Lugalbanda, two early and possibly mythical kings of Uruk also mentioned on the Sumerian king list. Role in Sumerian literature Aratta is described as follows in Sumer ...

Akkadian empire and Gutian dynasty

Lullubum appears in historical times as one of the lands

Sargon the Great Sargon of Akkad (; ; died 2279 BC), also known as Sargon the Great, was the first ruler of the Akkadian Empire, known for his conquests of the Sumerian city-states in the 24th to 23rd centuries BC.The date of the reign of Sargon is highly unc ...

subjugated within his

, along with the neighboring province of

Gutium The Guti (), also known by the derived exonyms Gutians or Guteans, were a people of the ancient Near East who both appeared and disappeared during the Bronze Age. Their homeland was known as Gutium ( Sumerian: , ''GutūmKI'' or , ''GutiumKI''). ...

, which was possibly of the same

origin as the Lullubi. Sargon's grandson Naram Sin defeated the Lullubi and their king

Satuni Satuni, or Sutuni (: ''Sa-tu-ni''), was a king or prince of the kingdom of Lullubi Lullubi, Lulubi (: ''Lu-lu-bi'', : ''Lu-lu-biki'' "Country of the Lullubi"), more commonly known as Lullu, were a group of Bronze Age tribes of Hurrian and Semit ...

, and had his famous victory

stele A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

made in commemoration: After the Akkadian Empire fell to the

Gutians The Guti (), also known by the derived exonyms Gutians or Guteans, were a people of the ancient Near East who both appeared and disappeared during the Bronze Age. Their homeland was known as Gutium (Sumerian language, Sumerian: , ''GutūmKI'' o ...

, the Lullubians rebelled against the Gutian king

Erridupizir Erridupizir (Erridu-pizir) ('' fl.'' 2141–2138 BC (Short chronology)) was a Gutian ruler in Sumer. His reign was attested by a royal inscription at the archaeological site for the ancient city-state of Nippur where he called himself: "'' King ...

, according to Mesopotamian inscriptions:

Neo-Sumerian Empire

Following the short lived Gutian period, the

Neo-Sumerian Empire The Third Dynasty of Ur or Ur III was a Sumerian dynasty based in the city of Ur in the 22nd and 21st centuries BC (middle chronology). For a short period they were the preeminent power in Mesopotamia and their realm is sometimes referred to by ...

(Ur-III) ruler

Shulgi Shulgi ( dšul-gi,(died c. 2046 BC) formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from (Middle Chronology). His accomplishments include the completion of construction of the Great ...

is said to have raided Lullubi at least 9 times; by the time of

Amar-Sin Amar-Sin (: '' DAmar D Sîn'', "calf of Sîn", the "𒀭" being a silent honorific for "Divine"),(died c. 2037 BC) initially misread as Bur-Sin (c. 2046–2037 BC) middle chronology, was the third ruler of the Ur III Dynasty. He succeeded his fa ...

, Lullubians formed a contingent in the military of Ur, suggesting that the region was then under Neo-

Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...

ian control. Lullubi-ki on the Anubanini Rock Relief

Another famous

rock relief A rock relief or rock-cut relief is a relief, relief sculpture carved on solid or "living rock" such as a cliff, rather than a detached piece of stone. They are a category of rock art, and sometimes found as part of, or in conjunction ...

depicting the Lullubian king

Anubanini Anubanini, also Anobanini (: ''An-nu-ba-ni-ni''), was a king (Lugal, 𒈗 ''Šàr'', pronounced ''Shar'') of the pre-Iranian peoples, Iranian tribal kingdom of Lullubi in the Zagros Mountains circa 2300 BCE, or relatively later during the Isin-La ...

with the Assyrian-Babylonian goddess

Ishtar Inanna is the List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of war, love, and fertility. She is also associated with political power, divine law, sensuality, and procreation. Originally worshipped in Sumer, she was known by the Akk ...

, captives in tow, is now thought to date to the Ur-III period; however, a later Assyrian- Babylonian legendary retelling of the exploits of Sargon the Great mentions Anubanini as one of his opponents.

Babylonian and Assyrian interactions

In the following (second) millennium BC, the term "''Lullubi''" or "''Lullu''" seems to have become a generic Babylonian/

n term for "highlander" without reference ro any single ethnic group, while the original region of Lullubi became the

inhabited

Zamua Zamua (also Mazamua) was an ancient Iron Age Pre-Iran, Iranian kingdom, corresponding with the earlier kingdom of Lullubi,''The Cambridge History of Iran'', Volume 2, (1985) Cambridge University Press, p. 59Direct link Last retrieved 11.12.2013 whi ...

. However, the "land of Lullubi" makes a reappearance in the late 12th century BC, when both

Nebuchadnezzar I Nebuchadnezzar I ( ; Babylonian: md''Nabû-kudurrī-úṣur'' ()''Babylonian King List C'', 4 or md''Nábû-ku-dúr-uṣur'',''Synchronistic King List'', tablet excavation number Ass. 14616c (KAV 216), ii 15. meaning " Nabû, protect my eldest s ...

of Babylon (in c. 1120 BC) and

Tiglath-Pileser I Tiglath-Pileser I (; from the Hebraic form of , "my trust is in the son of Ešarra") was a king of Assyria during the Middle Assyrian period (1114–1076 BC). According to Georges Roux, Tiglath-Pileser was "one of the two or three great Assyri ...

of Assyria (in 1113 BC) subdued it. Neo-Assyrian kings of the following centuries also recorded campaigns and conquests in the area of Lullubum /

. Most notably,

Ashur-nasir-pal II Ashur-nasir-pal II (transliteration: ''Aššur-nāṣir-apli'', meaning " Ashur is guardian of the heir") was the third king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 883 to 859 BC. Ashurnasirpal II succeeded his father, Tukulti-Ninurta II. His son and s ...

had to suppress a revolt among the Zamuan chiefs in 881 BC, during which they constructed a wall in the Bazian pass between modern

Kirkuk Kirkuk (; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate. The city is home to a diverse population of Kurds, Iraqi Turkmen, Iraqi Turkmens and Arabs. Kirkuk sits on the ruins of the original Kirkuk Cit ...

(the Assyrian city of

Arrapha Arrapha or Arrapkha ( Akkadian: ''Arrapḫa''; ) was an ancient city in what today is northeastern Iraq, thought to be located at city of Kirkuk. In 1948, ''Arrapha'' became the name of the residential area in Kirkuk which was built by the Nort ...

) and

Sulaymaniyah Sulaymaniyah or Slemani (; ), is a city in the east of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and is the capital of the Sulaymaniyah Governorate. It is surrounded by the Azmar (Ezmer), Goizha (Goyje) and Qaiwan (Qeywan) Mountains in the northeast, Bara ...

in a failed attempt to keep the Assyrians out. They were said to have had 19 walled cities in their land, as well as a large supply of horses, cattle, metals, textiles and wine, which were carried off by Ashur-nasir-pal. Local chiefs or governors of the Zamua region continued to be mentioned down to the end of

Esarhaddon Esarhaddon, also spelled Essarhaddon, Assarhaddon and Ashurhaddon (, also , meaning " Ashur has given me a brother"; Biblical Hebrew: ''ʾĒsar-Ḥaddōn'') was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 681 to 669 BC. The third king of the S ...

's reign (669 BC) after which they disappear from history.

Representations

In depictions of them, the Lullubi are represented as warlike mountain people. The Lullubi are often shown bare-chested and wearing animal skins. They have short beards, their hair is long and worn in a thick braid, as can be seen on the

Victory Stele of Naram-Sin The Victory Stele of Naram-Sin is a stele that dates to approximately 2254–2218 BC, in the time of the Akkadian Empire, and is now at the Louvre in Paris. The relief measures 2 meters in height (6' 7") and was carved in pinkish sandstone, with ...

."The hair of the Lullubi is long and worn in a thick braid. They wear animal skins, while the Akkadian soldiers wear the proper attire for battle, helmets and military tunics." in

Rulers

Rulers of the Lullubi kingdom:Qashqai, 2011.Legrain, 1922; Cameron, 1936; D’yakonov, 1956; The Cambridge History of Iran; Hinz, 1972; The Cambridge Ancient History; Majidzadeh, 1991; Majidzadeh, 1997. # Immashkush (c. 2400 BC) #

(c. 2350 BC) he ordered to make an inscription on the rock nea
Sar-e Pol-e Zahab
#

(c. 2270 BC contemporary with Naram-Sin king of Akkad and

Khita Khita, sometimes Hita in Elamite ( ''hi-ta-a''; ), was governor of Elam and the 11th king of the Awan Dynasty of Elam, around 2250 BC. He was most likely the grandfather of the famous Elamite ruler Kutik-Inshushinak, who succeeded him on the thr ...

king of

Awan Awan may refer to: * Awan (surname), including a list of people with the name *Awana, also known as Awan is a clan of Gujjars in South Asia * Awan (tribe), a social group of Pakistan * Awan dynasty, an Elamite dynasty of Iran * Awan languages, ...

) # Irib (c. 2037 BC) # Darianam (c. 2000 BC) #

Ikki Ikki may refer to: *''Ikki'', revolts against samurai rule in 15th and 16th century Japan **''Ikkō-ikki'', ''ikki'' revolts organized by Jōdo Shinshū Buddhists *** Kaga ''ikki'', an ''Ikkō-ikki'' break-away warrior and peasant confederacy base ...

(precise dates unknown) # Tar ... duni (precise dates unknown) son of Ikki. His inscription is found not far from the inscription of Anubanini. # Nur-Adad (c. 881 – 880 BC) # Zabini (c. 881 BC) # Hubaia (c. 830 BC) vassal of Assyrians # Dada (c. 715 BC) # Larkutla (c. 675 BC)

Lullubi rock reliefs

Various Lullubian reliefs can be seen in the area of Sar-e Pol-e Zohab, the best preserved of which is the

Anubanini rock relief The Anubanini petroglyph, also called Sar-e Pol-e Zohab II or Sarpol-i Zohab relief, is a rock relief from the Akkadian Empire period (circa 2300 BC) or the Isin-Larsa period (early second millennium BC) and is located in Kermanshah Province, Ira ...

. They all show a ruler trampling an enemy, and most also show a deity facing the ruler. Another relief can be found about 200 meters away, in a style similar to the Anubanini relief, but this time with a beardless ruler. The attribution to a specific ruler remains uncertain.

Anubanini rock relief

File:Anubanini Rock Relief 2.jpg, The relief is located on the top of a cliff towering over the village of

Sarpol-e Zahab Sarpol-e Zahab () is a city in the Central District of Sarpol-e Zahab County, Kermanshah province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. The town is close to Qasr-e Shirin and the Iraqi border. Demographics Langu ...

. A second relief (

Parthian Empire The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power centered in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe ...

period) appears below. File:Anubanini_Rock_Relief_1.jpg,

, also called Sarpol-e Zahab II. Anubanini relief constituents King Anubanini.jpg, King

. Anubanini relief constituents Ishtar.jpg, Goddess

. Anubanini relief constituents prisoners.jpg, Prisoners of the Lullubis (detail). Anubanini relief constituents group of prisoners and king.jpg, Prisoners of the Lullubis and their king (detail). Anubanini relief constituents prisoner king.jpg, Prisoner king (detail). He appears to be wearing a crown. Anubanini relief constituents Akkadian inscription.jpg, Anubanini rock relief Akkadian inscription.

Other Lullubi reliefs

File:Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief IV.jpg, Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief I. Beardless warrior with axe, trampling a foe. Sundisk above. A name "Zaba(zuna), son of ..." can be read. This is possibly the son of

Iddin-Sin Iddi(n)-Sin (: ''Iddî-Sîn'') was a King ( 𒈗 ''Šàr'', pronounced ''Shar'') of the Kingdom of Simurrum around 2000 to 1900 BCE. Simurrum was an important city state of the Mesopotamian area, during the period of the Akkadian Empire down to ...

, a ruler of the Kingdom of

Simurrum Simurrum (: ''Si-mu-ur-ri-im'') was an important city state of the Mesopotamian area from around 2000 BCE to 1500 BCE, during the period of the Akkadian Empire down to Ur III. The Simurrum Kingdom disappears from records after the Old Babylonian ...

. File:Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief II.jpg, Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief III. Beardless warrior trampling a foe, facing a goddess. File:Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief III.jpg, Sar-e Pol-e Zahab, relief IV. Beardless warrior trampling a foe, facing a goddess. File:Belula_Pass_Rock_Relief.jpg, Relief of Tardunni, a possible Lullubi ruler, also holding weapons and trampling foes, with an inscription in Akkadian. File:Detail, a dead or dying Lullubian warrior. Darband-i Gawr rock-relief, Mt. Qaradagh, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, 2200-2000 BCE.jpg, Detail, a dead or dying Lullubian warrior. Darband-i Gawr rock-relief, Mt. Qaradagh, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, 2200-2000 BCE File:Detail, a dead or dying Lullubian warrior, Darband-i Gawr rock-relief, Mt. Qaradagh, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, 2200-2000 BCE.jpg, Detail, a dead or dying Lullubian warrior, Darband-i Gawr rock-relief, Mt. Qaradagh, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, 2200-2000 BCE

Language

The language of the Lullubi is regarded as an

unclassified language An unclassified language is a language whose genetic affiliation to other languages has not been established. Languages can be unclassified for a variety of reasons, mostly due to a lack of reliable data but sometimes due to the confounding inf ...

because it is unattested in written record. Significantly, the term ''Lullubi'' though, appears to be of

origin rather than Semitic or the yet to arrive in the region

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...

, and the names of its known rulers have Hurrian or more rarely Semitic influence, with no trace of Indo-European influence such as Iranic or Indo-Aryan.Tischler 1977–2001: vol. 5/6: 70–71. On the Lullubeans in general, see Klengel 1987–1990; Eidem 1992: 50–4.

References

Sources

Sar-e Pol-e Zahab

Lullubi
* Qashqai, Hamidreza, Chronicle of early Iran history, Tehran, Avegan press, 2011 (in Persian: گاهنمای سپیده دم تاریخ در ایران ) * Cameron, George, "History of Early Iran", Chicago, 1936 (repr., Chicago, 1969; tr. E.-J. Levin, L’histoire de l’Iran antique, Paris, 1937; tr. H. Anusheh, ایران در سپیده دم تاریخ, Tehran, 1993) * D’yakonov, I. M., "Istoriya Midii ot drevenĭshikh vremen do kontsa IV beka de e.E" (The history of Media from ancient times to the end of the 4th century BCE), Moscow and Leningrad, 1956; tr. Karim Kešāvarz as Tāriḵ-e Mād, Tehran, 1966. * The Cambridge History of Iran * Hinz, W., "The Lost World of Elam", London, 1972 (tr. F. Firuznia, دنیای گمشده ایلام, Tehran, 1992) * The Cambridge Ancient History * Majidzadeh, Yusef, "History and civilization of Elam", Tehran, Iran University Press, 1991. * Majidzadeh, Yusef, "History and civilization of Mesopotamia", Tehran, Iran University Press, 1997, vol.1.
Legrain, Leon, "Historical Fragments", Philadelphia, The University of Pennsylvania Museum Publications of the Babylonian Section, vol. XIII, 1922.

Vallat, Francois. Elam: The History of Elam. Encyclopaedia Iranica, vol. VIII pp. 301-313. London/New York, 1998.
{{Iran topics Akkadian Empire Ancient history of Iran History of Lorestan province