ميتاني

مملكة ميتاني
ح. 1600 ق.م.– ح. 1260 ق.م.
مملكة ميتاني في أقصى اتساعها، بعهد Parshatatar ح. القرن 15 ق.م.
العاصمة	واشوكاني
اللغات المشتركة	اللغة الحورية
الدين	Ancient Hinduism (royalty) Hurrian religion Ancient Mesopotamian religion
الحكومة	ملكية
ملك
• ح. 1540 ق.م.	كيرتا (أول ملك معروف)
• ح. 1300 ق.م.	شطوارا الثاني (الأخير)
الحقبة التاريخية	العصر البرونزي
• تأسست	ح. 1600 ق.م.
• انحلت	ح. 1260 ق.م.
سبقها تلاها الامبراطورية الآشورية القديمة يمحاض الامبراطورية الآشورية الوسطى

ميتانـّي (Mitanni ؛ /mɪˈtæni/ ؛ مسمارية حيثية 𒆳𒌷𒈪𒋫𒀭𒉌 KUR ^URUMi-ta-an-ni؛ Mittani 𒈪𒀉𒋫𒉌 Mi-it-ta-ni)، كما كانت تُدعى هانيگـلبات أو هاني-ربـّات (Hanikalbat أو هانيگـلبات مسمارية هانيگـلبات 𒄩𒉌𒃲𒁁 Ḫa-ni-gal-bat, Ḫa-ni-rab-bat) في النصوص الآشورية أو نهارين في النصوص المصرية، كانت أهم مملكة حورية تابعة للحيثيين في شمال سوريا، حوالي سنة 1500 ق.م. في شمال الهلال الخصيب عند منابع الخابور. with Indo-Aryan linguistic and political influences. Since no histories, royal annals or chronicles have yet been found in its excavated sites, knowledge about Mitanni is sparse compared to the other powers in the area, and dependent on what its neighbours commented in their texts.

The Hurrians were in the region as of the late 3rd millennium BC. A king of Urkesh with a Hurrian name, Tupkish, was found on a clay sealing dated 2300 BCح. 2300 BC at Tell Mozan. The first recorded inscription of their language was of Tish-atal (21st century BCح. 21st century BC), king of Urkesh. Later on, Hurrians made up the main population of Mitanni, which was firstly known as Ḫabigalbat, at Babylonia, in two texts of the late Old Babylonian period, during the reign of Ammi-Saduqa, (1638ح. 1638–1618 BC), in low middle chronology.

The Mitanni Empire was a strong regional power limited by the Hittites to the north, Egyptians to the west, Kassites to the south, and later by the Assyrians to the east. At its maximum extent Mitanni ranged as far west as Kizzuwatna by the Taurus Mountains, Tunip in the south, Arraphe in the east, and north to Lake Van. Their sphere of influence is shown in Hurrian place names, personal names and the spread through Syria and the Levant of a distinct pottery type, Nuzi ware.

 أصل الاسم

 ميتاني

mꜥṯn(j) بالهيروغليفية

The earliest recorded form of the name of this state is Maitanni, composed of a Hurrian suffix -nni added to the Indo-Aryan stem maita-, meaning "to unite" and comparable with the Sanskrit verb mith (मिथ्; حرفياً 'to unite, pair, couple, meet'). The name Maitanni thus meant the "united kingdom."

Paralleling the evolution of Proto-Indo-Aryan máytʰati, meaning حرفياً 'he unites', into Sanskrit méthati (मेथति), the name Maitanni evolved into the later form Mitanni, where the stem maita- had given way to mita-.

Andrea Trameri (15 October 2024), along with Gernot Wilhelm (1997: 290), regards that Maitani means "of M(a)itta," the name of "an individual leader (or clan), and not a territory or population."

 Ḫani-Rabbat

The Mitanni kingdom was firstly known as Ḫabingalbat before 1600 BC in Babylonia, during the reign of Ammi-Saduqa, attested as ḫa-bi-in-gal-ba-ti-i, and ḫa-bi-in-ga-al-ba-at, in two texts of the late Old Babylonian period. Egyptians referred to it as Naharin and Mitanni, it was Ḫurri to the Hittites, and Ḫanigalbat or Ḫani-Rabbat to the Assyrians. These names seem to have referred to the same kingdom and were often used interchangeably, according to Michael C. Astour. Hittite annals mention a people called Hurri (Ḫu-ur-ri), located in northeastern Syria. A Hittite fragment, probably from the time of Mursili I, mentions a "King of the Hurri," and the Assyro-Akkadian version of the text renders "Hurri" as Hanigalbat. Tushratta, who styles himself "king of Mitanni" in his Akkadian Amarna letters, refers to his kingdom as Hanigalbat.

The earliest attestation of the term Ḫanigalbat can be read in Akkadian, along with the Hittite version mentioning "the Hurrian enemy," in a copy from the 13th century BC of the "Annals of Ḫattušili I," who possibly reigned after 1630 BC.

The reading of the Assyrian term Ḫanigalbat has a history of multiple renderings. The first portion has been connected to, "𒄩𒉡 Ḫa-nu," "Hanu" or "Hana," first attested in Mari to describe nomadic inhabitants along the southern shore of the northern Euphrates region, near the vicinity of Terqa (capital of the Kingdom of Hana) and the Khabur River. The term developed into more than just a designation for a people group, but also took on a topographic aspect as well. In the Middle Assyrian period, a phrase "𒌷𒆳𒄩𒉡𒀭𒋫" "^URUKUR Ḫa-nu AN.TA," "cities of the Upper Hanu" has suggested that there was a distinction between two different Hanu's, likely across each side of the river. This northern side designation spans much of the core territory of Mitanni state.

The two signs that have led to variant readings are "𒃲 gal" and its alternative form "𒆗 gal₉". The first attempts at decipherment in the late 19th century rendered forms interpreting "gal," meaning "great" in Sumerian, as a logogram for Akkadian "rab" having the same meaning; "Ḫani-Rabbat" denoting "the Great Hani". J. A. Knudtzon, and E. A. Speiser after him, supported instead the reading of "gal" on the basis of its alternative spelling with "gal₉", which has since become the majority view.

There is still a difficulty to explain the suffix "-bat" if the first sign did not end in "b," or the apparent similarity to the Semitic feminine ending "-at," if derived from a Hurrian word. More recently, in 2011, scholar Miguel Valério, then at the New University of Lisbon provided detailed support in favor of the older reading Hani-Rabbat. The re-reading makes an argument on the basis of frequency, where "gal" not "gal₉," is far more numerous; the later being the deviation found in six documents, all from the periphery of the Akkadian sphere of influence. It is additionally argued that although they are graphically distinct, there is a high degree of overlap between the two signs, as "gal₉" denotes "dannum" or ""strong"" opposed to "great", easily being used as synonyms. Both signs also represent correlative readings; alternative readings of "gal₉" include "rib" and "rip," just like "gal" being read as "rab."

The situation is complicated by there being, according to linguists, three separate dialects of Hurrian, central-western, northern, and eastern.

The Egyptians considered the Euphrates River to form the boundary between Syria and Naharain.

 الامتداد

بلغت رقعة المملكة الميتانية في أوج توسعها من نوزي شرقاً، (قيليقيا) كلها، وصولاً إلى حلب غرباً،ومازالت اثار اميتانيين ماثلة في اللاذقية وحمص ، وكانت مركز المملكة عند منابع الخابور، حيث كانت إحدى عواصم المملكة (واشوكانو/واشوكاني) التي تدل على انها تل الفخيرية في سوريا ويلاحظ ان امتداد هذه الرقعة في منطقة الجزيرة السورية وجنوب شرق تركيا و شمال شرق سوريا محيطة بالعاصمة واشوكاني.

 الاقتصاد

مكنت طبيعة الأراضي الخصبة والهطولات المطرية العالية، سكان المنطقة من إنتاج زراعي جيد وكذلك نربية للأبقار الخراف والماعز، كذلك مارس السكان التجارة، وبالنظر إلى أن المعلموات المباشرة عن المملكة قليلة، فإن الاعتماد على المصادر المحيطة، كأرشيف نوزي من مملكة عرفة والنصوص من ألالاخ تمكن من تحديد السوية الإقتصادية الجيدة للمملكة الميتانية.

 اللغة والسكان

الشواهد اللغوية المعروفة في المملكة الميتانية هي بشكل أساسي الحورية والأكادية والأناضولية القديمة، كذالك بعض الكلمات والأسماء الهندوآرية مثل بعض أسماء الأشخاص واللواحق الاسمية وأسماء بعض الآلهة، وكانت المملكة الميتانية كبقية ممالك الشرق القديم عبارة عن خليط من مجموعات لغوية متعددة، وإن يكن بشكل أساسي من الحوريين والأموريين والآشوريين وأراميون ومجموعات هندوآرية.

 التاريخ

No native sources for the history of Mitanni have been found so far. The account is mainly based on Assyrian, Hittite, and Egyptian sources, as well as inscriptions from nearby places in Syria. Often it is not even possible to establish synchronicity between the rulers of different countries and cities, let alone give uncontested absolute dates. The definition and history of Mitanni is further beset by a lack of differentiation between linguistic, ethnic and political groups.

 ملخص

Cylinder seal and modern impression: nude male, griffins, monkey, lion, goat, c. 15th/14th century BC, Mitanni

It is believed that the warring Hurrian tribes and city states became united under one dynasty after the collapse of Babylon due to its sacking by Hittite king Mursili I, and the Kassite invasion. The Hittite conquest of Aleppo (Yamhad), the weak middle Assyrian kings who succeeded Puzur-Ashur III, and the internal strife of the Hittites had created a power vacuum in upper Mesopotamia. This led to the formation of the kingdom of Mitanni.

The first known use (by now) of Indo-Aryan names for Mitanni rulers begins with Shuttarna I who succeeded his father Kirta on the throne. King Barattarna of Mitanni expanded the kingdom west to Aleppo and made the Amorite king Idrimi of Alalakh his vassal, and five generations seems to separate this king (also known as Parattarna) from the rise of Mitanni kingdom. The state of Kizzuwatna in the west also shifted its allegiance to Mitanni, and Assyria in the east had become largely a Mitannian vassal state by the mid-15th century BC. The nation grew stronger during the reign of Shaushtatar, but the Hurrians were keen to keep the Hittites inside the Anatolian highland. Kizzuwatna in the west and Ishuwa in the north were important allies against the hostile Hittites.

After a few successful clashes with the Egyptians over the control of Syria, Mitanni sought peace with them, and an alliance was formed. During the reign of Shuttarna II, in the early 14th century BC, the relationship was very amicable, and he sent his daughter Gilu-Hepa to Egypt for a marriage with Pharaoh Amenhotep III. Mitanni was now at its peak of power.

However, by the reign of Eriba-Adad I (1390–1366 BC) Mitanni influence over Assyria was on the wane. Eriba-Adad I became involved in a dynastic battle between Tushratta and his brother Artatama II and after this his son Shuttarna II, who called himself king of the Hurri while seeking support from the Assyrians. A pro-Hurri/Assyria faction appeared at the royal Mitanni court. Eriba-Adad I had thus loosened Mitanni influence over Assyria, and in turn had now made Assyria an influence over Mitanni affairs. King Ashur-Uballit I (1365–1330 BC) of Assyria attacked Shuttarna and annexed Mitanni territory in the middle of the 14th century BC, making Assyria once more a great power.

At the death of Shuttarna, Mitanni was ravaged by a war of succession. Eventually Tushratta, a son of Shuttarna, ascended the throne, but the kingdom had been weakened considerably and both the Hittite and Assyrian threats increased. At the same time, the diplomatic relationship with Egypt went cold, the Egyptians fearing the growing power of the Hittites and Assyrians. The Hittite king Suppiluliuma I invaded the Mitanni vassal states in northern Syria and replaced them with loyal subjects.

In the capital Washukanni, a new power struggle broke out. The Hittites and the Assyrians supported different pretenders to the throne. Finally a Hittite army conquered the capital Washukanni and installed Shattiwaza, the son of Tushratta, as their vassal king of Mitanni in the late 14th century BC. The kingdom had by now been reduced to the Khabur Valley. The Assyrians had not given up their claim on Mitanni, and in the 13th century BC, Shalmaneser I annexed the kingdom.

The following is a tentative correlation of Mitanni with nearby kingdoms until the reign of Tusratta by Stefano de Martino:

Mitanni	Egypt	Hatti	Alalah	Kizzuwatna	Terqa
Principate of Mittani		Hattušili I
Rise of the kingdom of Mittani		Muršili I
First attestation of Mittani	Tuthmosis I
Kirta (?)
Šuttarna I (?)					? Qiš-Addu
Parattarna I	? Tuthmosis III ?	Zidanza II	Idrimi	Pilliya	Qiš-Addu
Sausadat (??)
Parsatatar
Sauštatar	? Tuthmosis III ?	Tuthaliya I/II	Niqmepa	Šunaššura	? Qiš-Addu
Parattarna II (??)
Artatama I	Tuthmosis IV
Šuttarna II	Amenophis III
Artašumara (Uthi)
Tušratta	Amenophis IV	Šuppiluliuma I

 المملكة المبكرة

منذ نهاية الألفية الثالثة ق.م. تشكلت في مناطق الجزيرة الفراتية ومحيطها إمارات صغيرة، أخذت بالنمو تدرجياً، يذكر منها أوركيش، والتي ضمت إليها مواقع ومستوطنات أصغر، كانت قد نشأت في مناطق تواجد حوريي اللغة من زاغروس إلى منابع الخابور، إلا أن انتشار حوريي اللغة يمكن تتبعه حتى حوض العاصي وفي شرق الهلال الخصيب حتى ماري وبابل حيث شكلوا نسبة من العمال والعبيد، أما في يمحاض (حلب) فقد أصبحوا من علية القوم، ومن النقش على تمثال إدريمي ملك ألالاخ (1470 ق.م) نقرأ لأول مرة عن مملكة حورية-ميتانية، التي يفترض بها قد نشأت في نهاية القرن السادس عشر ق.م. وامتدت حتى شواطئ البحر الأبيض المتوسط في سورية.

بدايات المملكة الميتانية لازالت غامضة، وليس معروفاً كيف أزداد دور اللغة الهندوآرية فيها،أكان ذلك عن طريق دخول مجموعات هندوآرية اللغة، أم أن الحوريون نفسهم تبنوا هذه اللغة، مع أن قلّة من الملوك كانوا يحملون أسماء حورية.

 فترة القوة

الختم الملكي للمكل شاوشتتر (آخر القرن 15 ق.م.)

يمكن الاسنتاج من أن حملة تحتمس الأول (1492- 1504 ق.م.) على سوريا، على أنها بداية المواجهة بين مصر الفرعونية والمملكة الميتانية، حتى أنه نصب تذكاراً له غرب الفرات في الجزيرة السورية، وما تابعه تحتمس الثالث (1479- 1425 ق.م) من حملات.

 أرتاشومارا و توشراتا

لوح بالكتابة المسمارية يحوي رسالة من توشراتـّا من ميتاني إلى أمنحوتپ الثالث (من 13 رسالة للملك توشراتـّا).

إلا أنه ليس واضحاً الدور الذي لعبته ميتاني في التحالف السوري الذي قاده مللك قادش في معركة مجدو(1456 ق.م) ضد الملك المصري تحتمس الثالث، لكن الواضح أن المواجهات المصرية الميتانية السورية القديمة كانت في العام (1446 ق.م) حيث تقابل الجيشان إلى الغرب من حلب . لم يكن سهلاً على الجيش المصري التحكم في كامل غرب وشمال الهلال الخصيب وإن كان قد وضع حاميات عسكرية في بعض المدن كما في جبيل، إلا أن ذلك لم يحد من ثورة بعض مدن الساحل الكنعاني، وكذلك شهدت هذه الفترة زيادة نفوذ ميتاني في كامل شمال الهلال الخصيب، حتى أن أوغاريت كانت إحدى الدويلات التابعة لميتاني في بعض الفترات، كما أن بعض الدويلات التابعة سابقاَ للممكة الحيثية أنضمت إلى ميتاني مع نهاية القرت الخامس عشر ق.ميتاني كانت قد أخضعت آشور وعقد تحالفات مع الدولة البابلية.

لاحقاً بدأت العلاقات الميتانية المصرية بالتحسن، ويشهد على ذلك الزيجات المتبادلة بين الملوك والرسائل المتبادلة بين طيبة و واشوكانو/ واشوكاني (سوريا) في رسائل تل العمارنة، كما في رسالة من المللك الحوري شوتارنا الثاني (Shuttarna II) مللك ميتاني إلى الملك المصري أمنحوتب الثالث (Amenophis III).

ثم تلى ذلك صراعات على العرش بين أمراء المملكة أدى إلى فترة ضعف. لاحقاً قام الملك الآشوري آشور أوبليط الأول( 1363- 1328 ق.م) باستعادة الدور الآشوري في المنطقة مسبباً تشظي المملكة الميتانية في وحدات صغيرة.

 ميتاني بين آشور وحاثي

عقد الأمير شاتيوازا (Shattiwaza)، حكم أقليم هانيلجابات 1335- 1320 ق.م معاهدة تبعية مع ملك الحيثيين شوبيلوليوما الأول (Suppiluliuma I) وأصبحت المنطقة متنازع عليها من القوتين الآشورية والحيثية، وتزايدة الهجمات الآشورية علة المنطقة في عهد آداد نيراري الأول (1305- 1275 ق.م) حتى أنه بنى قصراُ له في إحدى عواصم المنطقة، كما رحل مجموعات من السكان نحو مدينة آشور.

أما من الجانب الحيثي فقد شاركت القوات الميتانية مع ضمن القوات الحيثية في معركة قادش (1285 ق.م) وسط سوريا ضد القوات المصرية، وعادت المناوشات والسيطرة الآشورية على المنطقة، حتى زمن الملك الآشوري توكولتي نينورتا الأول (1243- 1207 ق.م.) والذي بسط نفوذ المملكة الآشورية من بابل وحتى نياري (ڤان حالياً)، إلا أن المنطقة بقيت منطقة نزاع بين الآشوريين والحيثيين، حتى نهاية الألف الثاني ق.م و ظهور الممالك الآرامية كقوة جديدة سيطرت على المنطقة .

 التأثير الهندو-آري

•  مقالة مفصلة: الركيزة اللغوية الهندوآرية في ميتاني

انظر أيضاً: Maryannu

A number of theonyms, proper names and glosses (technical terminology) of the Mitanni are of Indo-Aryan or Proto-Indo-Aryan origins. Starting from Shuttarna I who is the first Mitanni ruler historically attested to have existed, the Mitanni had Indo-Aryan throne names. The Kikkuli's horse training text includes technical terms of Indo-Aryan origin, and the Indo-Aryan deities Mitra, Varuna, Indra, and Nasatya (Ashvins) are listed and invoked in two treaties found in Hattusa, between the kings Sattiwaza of Mitanni and Šuppiluliuma I the Hittite: (treaty KBo I 3) and (treaty KBo I 1 and its duplicates). The toponym of the Mitanni capital of Washukanni is also "unanimously accepted" to have been derived from an Indo-Aryan dialect. Annelies Kammenhuber (1968) suggested that this vocabulary was derived from the still undivided Indo-Iranian language, but Mayrhofer has shown that specifically Indo-Aryan features are present.

It is generally believed that Indo-Aryan peoples settled in Upper Mesopotamia and northern Syria, and established the Kingdom of Mitanni following a period of political vacuum, while also adopting Hurrian. This is considered a part of the Indo-Aryan migrations. Since the late 20th century, the view that the Mitanni kingdom was ruled by royal house and aristocracy of Indo-Aryan origin has been prevalent among the scholars; accordingly, a branch of Indo-Aryans separated from the other Indo-Iranians around the turn of second millennium BCE and migrated into West Asia, hence giving rise to the Mitanni kingdom, while also adopting Hurrian language. Some of the recent studies such as those by Eva von Dassow (2022) and Cotticelli-Kurras and Pisaniello (2023), while noting the modern identification of Mittani as Indo-Aryan and the role of Indo-Aryan speakers in establishing its dynasty, have disputed the significance of Indo-Aryan vocabulary in an otherwise Hurrian-speaking state stating that it does not indicate any Indo-Aryan origins for Mitanni kings. According to Alexander Lubotsky (2023), however, the military elite of the Mitanni kingdom (see Maryannu) was of Aryan descent and their language displays a clear Indo-Aryan character.

Jasper Eidem in 2014 reported on Farouk Ismail's earlier study, in reference to the word marijannu that was found in a letter from Tell Leilan in northeastern Syria dating to a period slightly before 1761 BC, which is the time when the reign of Zimri-Lim ended in the region of Mari. Kroonen et al. (2018) consider this as an early Indo-Aryan linguistic presence in Syria two centuries prior to the formation of the Mitanni realm, as mariannu is generally seen as a Hurrianized form of the Indo-Aryan *marya, which means 'man' or 'youth', associated to military affairs and chariots.

 الآثار

A concept known as "Dark Age" was applied, until recently, to the archaeological gap between the Middle and Late Bronze Age on Northern Mesopotamian sites, but Costanza Coppini considers it a "transition" instead, which can be called "Late Bronze Age 0," attested from the Tell Leilan's end caused by Samsu-iluna during his 23rd year of reign, c. 1728 BCE [Middle Chronology], to Mitanni's predominance (c. 1600-1550 BCE). These are the first traces of what, in the Late Bronze Age I, was Mitanni in historical terms, at the emergence of the third phase of Khabur ware.

The archaeological core zone of Mitanni is Upper Mesopotamia and the Trans-Tigridian region (Northeastern Iraq).

 أعالي الرافدين

تم العثور على المواقع التي تحتوي على بقايا ميتانية بشكل رئيسي في ثلاث مناطق بأعالي الرافدين: شمال شرق سوريا منطقة الجزيرة، شمال سوريا، وجنوب شرق تركيا (أعالي دجلة).

 شمال شرق سوريا (منطقة الجزيرة)

Jazira region in light green, Northeastern Syria.

Mitanni's first phase in Jazira Region features Late Khabur Ware from around 1600 to 1550 BC; this pottery was a continuity from the previous non-Mitannian Old Babylonian period. From around 1550 to 1270 BC, Painted Nuzi Ware (the most characteristic pottery in Mitanni times) developed as a contemporary to Younger Khabur Ware.

Mitanni had outposts centred on its capital, Washukanni, whose location has been determined by archaeologists to be on the headwaters of the Khabur River, most likely at the site of Tell Fekheriye as recent German archaeological excavations suggest. The city of Taite was also known to be a Mitanni "royal city" whose current location is unknown.

The major 3rd millennium urban center of Tell Brak which had dwindled to a minor settlement in Old Babylonian times, saw major development 1600ح. 1600 by the Mitanni. Monumental buildings including a palace and temple were constructed on the high ground and a 40 hectare lower town developed. The Mitanni occupation lasted until the site was destroyed (in two phases) between 1300ح. 1300 and 1275 BC, presumably by the Assyrians. Two Mitanni-era tablets were found during the modern excavation. One (TB 6002) mentioned "Artassumara the king, son of Shuttarna the king". Seventeen late period Mitanni tablets were found at Tall Al-Hamidiya.

 شمال سوريا

The oldest tablet issued by an unknown Mitannian king was found in the site of تل حمام التركمان، dated to c. 1500 BCE. Mitanni period occupation, between 1400 and 1200 BC (radiocarbon) was found at the site of Tell Bazi. Finds included a Mitanni cylinder seal and several ritual bowls. Two cuneiform tablets of the Mitanni period sealed by Mitanni ruler Saushtatar, one by Artatama I were also found. There is also a record of Mitanni governance at Tell Hadidi (Azu).

 جنوب شرق تركيا (أعالي دجلة)

The (2017) salvage excavations at the Ilısu Dam in the right bank of upper Tigris, southern Turkey, have shown a very early beginning of Mitanni period, as in the ruins of a temple in Müslümantepe, ritual artefacts and a Mitannian cylinder seal were found, radiocarbon-dated to 1760–1610 BC. Archaeologist Eyyüp Ay, in his (2021) paper, describes the second phase of the temple as an "administrative center, which had craftsmen working in its workshops as well as farmers, gardeners and shepherds, [that] might have been ruled by a priest bound to a powerful Mitannian leader."

 منطقة عبر دجلة (شمال شرق العراق)

To the east of upper Tigris river, Trans-Tigridian region in northern Iraq, a site now called Bassetki was excavated, which in all likelihood was the ancient town of Mardama with Mitanni layers from 1550 to 1300 BC, as its Phase A9 (in trench T2) may alternatively represent a Middle Bronze/Late Bronze transitional, or Proto-Mitanni occupation within 16th century BC. In a subsequent excavation season, the deeper Phase A10 was identified as having a mix of Middle Bronze and Mitanni potteries, considered to be in the turn of the Middle to the Late Bronze Age transitional period (late 17th – early 16th century BC).

In 2010, the 3,400-year-old ruins of Kemune, a Bronze Age Mitanni palace on the banks of the Tigris in modern-day Iraqi Kurdistan, were discovered. It became possible to excavate the ruins in 2018 and again in 2022 when a drought caused water levels to drop considerably. In the 1st excavation 10 Mitanni-era tablets were found, in Babylonian cuneiform written in Akkadian, bearing Hurrian names, dating to the Middle-Trans-Tigridian IA and IB periods. Middle Trans-Tigridian IA and IB are dated to (1550ح. 1550-1350 BC) and (1350ح. 1350-1270 BC) respectively by Peter Pfälzner (2007). In the 2nd excavation the entire city was mapped and 100 Middle Assyrian tablets were discovered. They were dated to after the city's destruction by earthquake and have not yet been published.

The three phases of Mitanni at Kurd Qaburstan, were obtained as c. 1538–1505 BC for Phase three, with Phase two beginning c. 1512–1491 BC and ending c. 1501–1479 BC, and with Phase One beginning c. 1489–1463 BC and ending c. 1475–1435 BC. The data suggests a two century abandonment between the MBA destruction and the Mitanni re-occupation.

 الخزف والسمات الأخرى

At least since around 1550 BC, at the beginning of Late Bronze Age, Painted Nuzi Ware was identified as a characteristic pottery in Mitanni sites. The origin of this decorated pottery is an unsolved question, but a possible previous development as Aegean Kamares Ware has been suggested by Pecorelia (2000); S. Soldi claims that Tell Brak was one of the first centers specializing in the production of this Painted Nuzi Ware, and analyses on samples support the assumption that it was produced locally in various centers throughout the Mitanni kingdom. It was particularly appreciated in Upper Mesopotamia, but appears only sporadically in western Syrian cities such as Alalakh and Ugarit.

At the height of its power, during the 15th and the first half of 14th century BC, a large region from North-West Syria to the Eastern Tigris was under Mitanni's control.

 حكام ميتاني

(تأريخ قصير)

الحاكم	فترة الحكم	ملاحظات
كيرتا	ح. 1500 ق.م. (موجز)
شوتارنا الأول		ابن كيرتا
بارشاتتار أو بارتارانا		ابن كيرتا
شوشتتار		عاصر إدريمي من ألالاخ، يجتاح آشور
أرتاتاما الأول		معاهدة مع الفرعون تحتمس الرابع من مصر، معاصر للفرعون أمنحوتپ الثاني من مصر
شوتارنا الثاني		ابنته تزوجت فرعون أمنحوتپ الثالث من مصر في السنة العاشرة من حكمه
أرتاشومارا		ابن شوتارنا الثاني الثاني، حكم لفترة وجيزة
توشراتا	ح. 1350 ق.م. (موجز)	عاصر شوپ‌پيلوليئوما الأول من الحيثيين والفراعنة أمنحوتپ الثالث وأمنحوتپ الرابع من مصر، رسائل العمارنة
أرتاتاما الثاني		معاهدة مع شوپ‌پيلوليئوما الأول من الحيثيين، حكم في نفس وقت توشراتا
شوتارنا الثالث		عاصر شوپ‌پيلوليئوما الأول من الحيثيين
شاتيوازا أو كورتيوازا		ميتاني تصبح دولة تابعة للامبراطورية الحيثية
شاتوارا الأول		ميتاني تصبح دولة تابعة لآشور في عهد عضد-نيراري الأول
واساشاتا		ابن شاتوارا الأول
شاتوارا الثاني		آخر ملوك ميتاني قبل الغزو الآشوري

يجب أن تؤخذ جميع التواريخ بحذر حيث تُحسب فقط من خلال المقارنة مع تأريخ الأمم الأخرى في الشرق الأدنى القديم.

 الفن الميتاني

•  مقالة مفصلة: الفن الميتاني

 انظر أيضاً

• تل براك
• تاريخ الحيثيين
• Nagar, Syria
• Seven-dots glyph
• Short chronology timeline
• Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni

 المراجع

 ببليوگرافيا

• Gaal, E. "The economic role of Hanilgalbat at the beginning of the Neo-Assyrian expansion." In: Hans-Jörg Nissen/Johannes Renger (eds.), Mesopotamien und seine Nachbarn. Politische und kulturelle Wechselbeziehungen im Alten Orient vom 4. bis 1. Jahrtausend v. Chr. Berliner Beiträge zum Vorderen Orient 1 (Berlin, Reimer 1982), 349–354.
• Harrak, Amir "Assyria and Hanilgalbat. A historical reconstruction of the bilateral relations from the middle of the 14th to the end of the 12th centuries BC." Studien zur Orientalistik (Hildesheim, Olms 1987).
• Kühne, Cord "Politische Szenerie und internationale Beziehungen Vorderasiens um die Mitte des 2. Jahrtausends vor Chr. (zugleich ein Konzept der Kurzchronologie). Mit einer Zeittafel." In: Hans-Jörg Nissen/Johannes Renger (eds.), Mesopotamien und seine Nachbarn. Politische und kulturelle Wechselbeziehungen im Alten Orient vom 4. bis 1. Jahrtausend v. Chr. Berliner Beiträge zum Vorderen Orient 1 (Berlin, Reimer 1982), 203–264.
• Novák, Mirko: "Mittani Empire and the Question of Absolute Chronology: Some Archaeological Considerations." In: Manfred Bietak/Ernst Czerny (eds.): "The Synchronisation of Civilisations in the Eastern Mediterranean in the Second Millennium BC III"; Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften Denkschrift Band XXXVII; Wien, 2007; ISBN 978-3-7001-3527-2; pp. 389–401.
• Starr, R. F. S. Nuzi (London 1938).
• Thieme, Paul (1960). "The 'Aryan' Gods of the Mitanni Treaties". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 80 (4): 301–317. doi:10.2307/595878. ISSN 0003-0279. JSTOR 595878.
• Von Dassow, Eva Melita. Social Stratification of Alalah Under the Mittani Empire. [S.l: s.n.], 1997.
• Weidner, "Assyrien und Hanilgalbat." Ugaritica 6 (1969)
• Wilhelm, Gernot: The Hurrians, Aris & Philips Warminster 1989.

 وصلات خارجية

• Mitanni (livius.org)
• Dutch excavations at Tell Sabi Abyad
• Excerpts from the text of the Shuppililiuma-Shattiwazza treaty
• Iraq's drought unveils 3,400-year-old palace of mysterious empire