A Mesopotamian Pantheon, Nations, and Peoples
The people of the two rivers
are responsible for the worlds oldest civilization, if writing is taken as the measure of culture: that
art first appears here around 3200 BCE or a little earlier. Mesopotamia has been the homeland for a bewildering variety of peoples and
nations, more then you could even count with a barcode scanner and the following archive reflects that.
It should be kept in mind that
the various divinities mentioned below came not only from different City-States,
but even different ethnic groups: a brief reference to the various ethnic
groups and city-states follows the main section.
This page is intended as a reference guide for students of
Mesopotamian mythology.
It is an ongoing work which is incomplete. Constructive comments and contributions are always welcome.
If you have additional information, we ask only that you try to supply documentation in support
of what you have to say. Contact the maintainers of this page
here.
The information here is necessarily brief;
a full accounting of all these entities across all of the Pantheons would be a massive book in its
own right. What is included here is information that expands our knowledge beyond the bare name.
A description might include areas of authority, attributes, images, appearance, and selected comments or
stories which might help characterize the
"divinity" better.
Nations and Peoples
-
SUMERIANS
(< 3500-2100 BCE)
A people of unknown
ethnic affiliation, not the aboriginal folk of the region (the Ubaid culture
is evidently that folk), but migrating into the region from the east at
an early date. Their language is the oldest written speech in existence.
Important Sumerian city-states were:
- Akshak
- Eshnunna
- Kish
- Lagash
- Umma
- Ur
- Uruk The city of Gilgamesh
-
ELAMITES
(2500-640 BCE)
A matrilineal people of unknown
ethnic affiliation, they lived in southwestern Iran, along the coast and
some ways into the interior.
-
ARABS
(380 CE-present)
A Semitic people originating within the Arabian Peninsula, and migrating out of the south in successive waves for ages. They have been predominant in Mesopotamia since 636, and have held recognizable states in this particular area for some centuries previous.
-
ROMANS
(100 BCE-242 CE)
The Romans themselves were an Aryan (Italic) people, though their influence in the region came largely through Hellenized Semitic subjects.
-
HELLENES
(400 BCE-636 CE)
Aryan people, under whose aegis several empires were established:
- Macedonian (331-312 BCE)
- Seleucid (312-141 BCE)
- Byzantine (395-636 CE) The Byzantines never ruled in Mesopotamia proper, aside from ephemeral military expeditions, but their influence was significant.
KURDS
c.500 BCE-present
An Aryan folk related to the Persians, occupying northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey. They comprise the largest (approx. 17 to 25 million) ethnic group in the world without a state.
PERSIANS
539 BCE-636 CE
An Aryan (Irani) people whose descendents still live adjacent to Mesopotamia.
-
KASSITES
(1700-1200 BCE)
A people of unknown ethnic affiliation, originating in the highlands of western Iran but extending themselves throughout the region thereafter.
HITTITES
1850-1200 BCE
An Aryan people dwelling in central Anatolia. They established the first Aryan civilization, and were among the first folk to extensively work iron. They never held Mesopotamian territory to any significant degree, but were a major power in the region in their era.
-
BABYLONIANS
(1900-539 BCE)
A Semitic (Amorite) people who achieved a long-standing pre-emminence in Mesopotamia.
-
HURRIANS
(2100-1250 BCE)
A people of unknown ethnic affiliation, whose only known relatives (based on linguistic studies) were the later Urartians of eastern Anatolia. The most significant Hurrian states were:
- Mitanni (1600-1270 BCE)
- Urartu (900-600 BCE) In eastern Anatolia, and called Van by it's inhabitants, "Urartu" was the Assyrian name for them. The Hebrew transliteration of the name was Ararat.
-
ASSYRIANS
(< 2100-609 BCE)
A Semitic (Amorite) people whose homeland was in northern Iraq and southeastern Anatolia. Originally a tent-dwelling nomadic folk, they succeeded in establishing an extensive empire. As a recognizable ethnic group, they endured the loss of the Empire, and in fact exist today around the world in respectable numbers.
GUTIANS
2300-2100 BCE
A people of unknown ethnic affiliation whose homeland was the Zagros Mountains of western Iran.
-
AKKADIANS
(2400-2000 BCE)
A Semitic people living in what is now northern Iraq. Also included here are other proto-Semitic peoples dwelling alongside the Fertile Crescent, or within Arabia itself.
- AkkadOr, Agade. The capitol of the Akkadian state, located in the north.
- Dilmun - The island of Bahrain, and the adjacent coast.