The Hittites and Bronze Age Anatolia

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

As many of you know I have a deep interest in the Bronze Age Anatolian empire of the Hittites. Seeing as I have posted some of this information across various threads I figure that it makes more sense to start a definitive thread on the topic. I will collect some of the posts I've made in other places, clean them up and post them here. However the main purpose of this thread is to go over topics regarding Bronze Age Anatolia. In addition to this I will also include information regarding the history of the Hittites.

Topics which will be covered:
-Pre-Hittite History
-Early Kingdom History
-Middle Kingdom History
-New Kingdom/Imperial History
-The Collapse of the Empire
-The "Neo-Hittite" states

A slideshow of material remains from Central Anatolia (Hattic and Hittite):
https://www.slideshare.net/ibrahimda...olia-corum-i-i

In depth map of the Hittite Empire and Anatolia.
Not quite as in depth as I would like but it is still good. Note that some of the places marked on the map have not been confirmed, this is maybe the best reconstruction possible.
https://i.imgur.com/jwK34xp.jpg

A less detailed map of the Hittites and Egyptians in 13th century BC, for reference:


Another map of the Near East during the Bronze Age:
https://www.themaparchive.com/media/.../x/Ax01092.jpg

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

History of Central Anatolia in the Early Bronze Age

The Hattic People
Before the domination of Anatolia by the Hittites, Anatolia was inhabited by other groups of people. In Central Anatolia there lived a peoples called the Hatti (or Hattians) who controlled the mountainous and heavily forested areas in north-central Anatolia. Their land was called Hatti. They built their cities (organized as city-states) within the boundaries of the Marassantiya River (modern Kizilirmak River; which the Greeks called Halys). These Hattians spoke a non-Indo European language, as can be seen from fragments recorded by the Hittites. In the past it was believed that Hattic was an indigenous Anatolian language. However Charles Burney argues that the Hattians spoke a language similar to those of the Northwest Caucasian group. Due to this it is safe assume that the Hattians arrived in Anatolia after Indo-Europeans had migrated there first.

Pottery finds in Central Anatolia show a homogeneous culture throughout that region. From about 2200 BC to 1700 BC the Hattians made their living by raising livestock and agriculture which required the removal of wooded areas. In sites near modern Bogazkale many traces of farmlands and hamlets have been discovered, which supports a reliance on agriculture at some point in the Early Bronze Age (roughly 2500 BC-2000 BC). Early in their history they began to trade wool, timber and metals with the Tigris and Euphrates city-states. The development of larger settlements, warfare and construction of defensive structures can also be seen near Bogazkale in the late 2000's BC. This settlement has a rock outcrop to one side (likely for defense) and a terrace at the foot of the slope near a spring of water. By the end of the 2000's BC Hattusa was also inhabited and contained relatively large houses.

The Akkadians Invade Anatolia
The first mentions of Anatolia come from the Mesopotamian epic "King of Battle". In this text the conqueror Sharrukinu of Akkad (reigned 2300's or 2200's BC) marched through the mountainous terrain against the city of Purushanda (or Purushkanda). Purushanda was a city-state in central Anatolia, just to the south of the Halys River (Marassantiya) and Lake Tuz. As the text states the merchants of Sharrukinu's empire have been oppressed by the city's King Nur-Dagan. From what can be gathered Sharrukinu besieged the city with difficulty and destroyed its gates using a battering ram. A popular tale in the mid to late Bronze Age as far as the Neo-Assyrian period. Fragments and manuscripts have been discovered in Amarna, Hattusa, Babylon, Assur and Nineveh. Judging from the existence of these manuscripts the epic could be dated to the 1400's-1300's BC, but may originate from an earlier tradition. The details regarding the merchants seem consistent with Assyrian tablets from the Akkadian period which mentions the difficulties of Assyrian merchants and refers to the "Land of Hatti". If the King of Battle epic is correct then Purushanda may have been a powerful city in Anatolia.