GUTIAN
DYNASTY OF SUMER
Gutian
Dynasty of Sumer :
circa 2199 – 2119 BC (middle)
Capital
: Akkad
Common languages
: Gutian language and Sumerian language
Government
: Monarchy
énsí
:
•
fl. c. 2135—2129 BC (Short) : Inkishush (first)
•
fl. c. 2055—2055 BC (short) : Tirigan (last)
Historical
era : Bronze Age
•
Established : circa 2199
•
Disestablished : 2119 BC (middle)
Preceded
by : Akkadian Empire
Succeeded
by : Third Dynasty of Ur
Today
part of : Iraq
![](441px-The_Gutians_capturing_a_Babylonian_city.jpg)
The
Gutians attacking a Babylonian city, as Akkadians are making a
stand outside their city. 19th century illustration
The
Gutian dynasty, also Kuti or Kutians (Sumerian: gu-ti-um) was
a dynasty that came to power in Mesopotamia c. 2199 - 2119 BC
(middle), or possibly c. 2135-2055 BC (short), after displacing
the Akkadian Empire. It ruled for roughly one century; however,
some copies of the Sumerian King List (SKL) vary between 4 and
25 years. The end of the Gutian dynasty is marked by the accession
of Ur-Nammu (founder of the Third Dynasty of Ur, which fl. c.
2112 BC (middle) or 2055 BC (short)).
The
Gutian people (Guti) were native to Gutium, presumably in the
central Zagros Mountains.
History
:
The Gutians were described as part of the horde that toppled the
kingdom of Akkad (or Agade). It was a conglomeration (mixture)
of tribes that descended from the Zagros Mountains, possibly drawn
to the plains for its prosperity. The ancient Mesopotamians treated
them as subnormal beings for their unwillingness to conform to
customs and laws of civilization. Chronicles written around the
end of the third millennium BC, for instance, described the Gutians
as barbarians, having the intelligence of dogs and the appearance
of monkeys while speaking a language similar to a confused babble.
The
Gutians practiced hit-and-run tactics, and would be long gone
by the time regular troops could arrive to deal with the situation.
Their raids crippled the economy of Sumer. Travel became unsafe,
as did work in the fields, resulting in famine.
The
Sumerian king list indicates that king Ur-Utu of Uruk was defeated
by the barbarian Guti, perhaps around 2150 BC. The Guti swept
down, defeated the demoralized Akkadian army, took Akkad, and
destroyed it around 2115 BC. However, they did not supplant all
of Akkad, as several independent city-states remained alongside
them, including Lagash, where a local dynasty still thrived and
left numerous textual and archaeological remains. The first Guti
ruler was a nameless king.[citation needed]
Gutium
in inscriptions :
![](640px-Gutian_inscription-AO_4783-gradient.jpg)
Tablet
of Lugalanatum
![](353px-Gutium_(name).jpg)
Gutium
An
inscription dated c. 2130 BC, mentioning the Gutians: "Lugalanatum,
prince of Umma ... built the E.GIDRU [Sceptre] Temple at Umma,
buried his foundation deposit [and] regulated the orders. At that
time, Siium was king of Gutium." The name gu-ti-um appears
in the last column. Louvre Museum.
![](iraq.jpg)
Map
of Iraq showing important archaeological sites that were occupied
by the Gutians
Ultimately
Akkad was so thoroughly destroyed that its site is still not known.
The Guti proved to be poor rulers. Under their crude rule, prosperity
declined. They were too unaccustomed to the complexities of civilization
to organize matters properly, particularly in connection with
the canal network. This was allowed to sink into disrepair, with
famine and death resulting. Thus, a short "dark age"
swept over Mesopotamia.
Akkad
bore the brunt of this as the center of the Empire, so that it
was in Akkad that the Guti established their own center in place
of the destroyed Akkad. Some of the Sumerian cities in the south
took advantage of the distance and purchased a certain amount
of self-government by paying tribute to the new rulers.
Uruk
was thus able to develop a fifth dynasty. Even in the city of
Akkad itself, a local dynasty was said to have ruled. The best
known Sumerian ruler of the Gutian period was the ensi of Lagash,
Gudea.
Under him, c. 2075 BC (short), Lagash had a golden age, and seemed
to enjoy a high level of independence from the Gutians.
After
a few kings, the Gutian rulers became more cultured. Guti rule
lasted only about a century — around 2050 BC, they were
expelled from Mesopotamia by a coalition of rulers of Uruk and
Ur, when Utu-hengal of Uruk defeated Gutian king Tirigan :
"By
the envoys of Utu-hengal, Tirigan and his wife and children in
Dabrum were captured. They placed fetters (a chain or manacle
used to restrain a prisoner) on his hands and put a cloth (blindfold)
over his eyes. Utuhegal before Utu made him lie at his (Utu’s)
feet, and on his neck he set his foot. Gutium, the fanged snake
of the mountain ranges, he made drink from the cracks in the earth."
-
Victory Stele of Utu-Hengal
La-erabum, "Great King of Gutiim" :
![](623px-Votive_mace_head_mentioning_the_name_of_La-arab,_king_of_Gutium,_c._2150_BCE,_from_Sippar,_Iraq._British_Museum.jpg)
![](Laerabum_mace_inscription_(name).jpg)
Votive
macehead of Gutian king La-erabum, circa 2150 BC, and its inscription
"La-eraab, great King of Gutiim" (la-e-ra-ab da-num
lugal gutiim). The name is quite damaged, and was initially read
"Lasiraab". British Museum (BM 90852)
Utu-hengal's victory revived the political and economic life of
southern Sumer. The year 11 of king Ur-Nammu also mentions "Year
Gutium was destroyed".
Weidner
Chronicle :
1,500 years later, the Weidner Chronicle (ABC 19) accounts
for the Gutian period as follows :
Naram-Sin
destroyed the people of Babylon, so twice Marduk summoned the
forces of Gutium against him. Marduk gave his kingship to the
Gutian force. The Gutians were unhappy people unaware how to revere
the gods, ignorant of the right cultic practices. Utu-hengal,
the fisherman, caught a fish at the edge of the sea for an offering.
That fish should not be offered to another god until it had been
offered to Marduk, but the Gutians took the boiled fish from his
hand before it was offered, so by his august command, Marduk removed
the Gutian force from the rule of his land and gave it to Utu-hengal.
There
are scholars who state that the description of the Gutian rule
over parts of Mesopotamia was fiction or that it at least gave
undue importance to the Guti horde. This is believed to be perpetuated
by the chroniclers of Uruk to turn Utu-hegal's minor victory into
an event of universal significance for the purpose of solidifying
support for his emergent regime. This view is based on the varying
accounts of the surviving manuscripts, with many of them in total
disagreement as to the length of the king's reign and even the
identities of the Guti kings.
List
of Gutian kings :
According to the SKL :
In
the army of Gutium, at first no king was famous; they were their
own kings and ruled thus for 3 years.
Gutian
kings not on the SKL :
Ruler |
Particulars |
Erridupizir
|
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2141 - 2138 BC
Comments
:
Known from
a royal inscription at Nippur.
|
Imta
or Nibia |
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2138 - 2135 BC
Comments
:
Nothing is
known about the ruler.
|
|
Gutian
kings on the SKL :
The listed reign lengths throughout much of the Gutian period
are comparatively short and uniform :
Ruler |
Particulars |
Inkishush
or Inkicuc |
Length of reign
: 6 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2135 - 2129 BC
Comments
:
First
Gutian ruler named on the SKL.
|
Sarlagab
or Zarlagab |
Length of reign
:
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2129 - 2123 BC
Comments
:
Possibly
the same person as the Gutian king Sharlag (who was captured
by the Akkadian king Shar-kali-sharri).
|
Shulme
|
Length of reign
: 6 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2123 - 2117 BC
Comments
: |
Elulmesh
or Elulumesh |
Length of reign
: 6 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2117 - 2111 BC
Comments
:
Possibly
the same person as Elulu (who contended for power following
the Akkadian king Shar-kali-sharri's death).
|
Inimabakesh
|
Length of reign
: 5 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2111 - 2106 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Igeshaush
|
Length of reign
: 6
years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2106 - 2100 BC
Comments
: --- |
Yarlagab
|
Length of reign
: 5 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2100 - 2095 BC
Comments
: --- |
Ibate
|
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2095 - 2092 BC
Comments
: --- |
Yarla
or Yarlangab |
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2092 - 2089 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Kurum
|
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2089 - 2086 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Apilkin
|
Length of reign
: 3 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2086 - 2083 BC
Comments
: ---
|
La-erabum
or Lasirab |
Length of reign
: 2 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2083 - 2081 BC
Comments
:
Known
from a mace head inscription.
|
Irarum
|
Length of reign
: 2
years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2081 - 2079 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Ibranum
|
Length of reign
: 1 year
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2079 - 2078 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Hablum
|
Length of reign
: 2 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2078 - 2076 BC
Comments
: ---
|
Puzur-Suen
|
Length of reign
: 7 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2076 - 2069 BC
Comments
:
The
son of Hablum
|
Yarlaganda
|
Length of reign
: 7
years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2069 - 2062 BC
Comments
:
Known
from a foundation inscription at Umma.[citation
needed]
|
Si'um
or Si'u |
Length of reign
: 7 years
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2062 - 2055 BC
Comments
:
Known from a foundation inscription of Lugalannatum
at Umma.
|
Tirigan
|
Length of reign
: 40 days
Approx. dates
(short) : fl. c. 2055 - 2055 BC
Comments
:
Defeated
by the Uruk king Utu-hengal.
|
|
Modern
connection theories: Kurds and Gutian dynasty :
The historical Guti have been regarded by many scholars as having
contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Kurds.
In
the abstract, Kurdish highland split up between today’s
Iran and Iraq is considered as the original settlement area of
Guteans. Some sources even mention Gutium and Kurdistan interchangeably.
For instance: “Under Cyrus the Great of Persia Gobryas I
is counted as governor of Kurdistan (Kutium)”.
According
to Tamaz V. Gamkrelidze and Vyacheslav V. Ivanov, the Gutian language
was close to the Tocharian languages of the Indo-European family.
Source
:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Gutian_dynasty_of_Sumer