Sanatruq I (also spelled Sanatruk I; Hatran Aramaic: 𐣮𐣭𐣨𐣣𐣥𐣲) was the first king of

Hatra Hatra (; (); ) was an ancient Arab city in Upper Mesopotamia located in present-day eastern Nineveh Governorate in northern Iraq. The ruins of the city lie northwest of Baghdad and southwest of Mosul. It is considered the richest archaeologi ...

, an ancient city in northern

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

(present-day

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 ...

). He is known from more than 20 inscriptions found at Hatra and reigned from about 140 to 180. Only one of his inscriptions is dated (year 176/177). He was the son of Naṣru who governed Hatra from about 128 to 140. Sanatruq I was one of the first rulers of Hatra calling himself 𐣬𐣫𐣪 ''malka'' ("king"), but he bears also the title 𐣬𐣣𐣩𐣠 ''mry' '' (''administrator''). He was granted the title of king by his Parthian overlord

Vologases IV Vologases IV ( ''Walagash'') was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 147 to 191. He was the son of Mithridates V (). Vologases spent the early years of his reign re-asserting Parthian control over the Kingdom of Characene. From 161 to 166 ...

(), due to the increasing strategic importance of the city during that period. Indeed, during the 2nd-century Hatra blossomed, serving as an important religious and commercial centre. The city was well fortified, previously successfully containing the attacks of the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

emperor

Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier ...

() thrice. Hatra would remain a dependency of the Parthians until the emergence of the

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

in 224. Both of Sanatruq I's titles are also attested for his brother Wolgash. It is unclear whether they both reigned together and took of the title ''king'' of Arabs. Sanatruq I's name (meaning "he who defeats enemies") is of

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

origin, a typical name used by the royal Parthian family, and a testament to the strong Parthian influence in Hatra. It was most likely under Sanatruq I that the Square Building of Hatra was constructed. The building bears many similarities to the later Sasanian fire temples. Sanatruq I was succeeded by Abdsamiya. The relation between the two rulers are uncertain; there is no evidence of them being from the same dynasty. Abdsamiya never used the name of his father. However, the name of Abdsamiya's successor was Sanatruq II, which may suggest a continuation of Sanatruq I's line. The Hatran statues commemorating Sanatruq I and his dynasty were not removed, which indicates if a change of dynasty occurred, it was non-violent.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * {{cite book, last=Sartre, first=Maurice, title=The Middle East Under Rome, date=2005, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=9780674016835, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9y7nTpFcN3AC&dq= 2nd-century Arab people Hatra 2nd-century monarchs in the Middle East Vassal rulers of the Parthian Empire