Idrimi
Encyclopedia
Idrimi was the king of Alalakh
in the 15th century BC.
Idrimi was a Hurrianised Semitic son of the king of Aleppo
who had been deposed by the new regional master, Barattarna, king of the Mitanni
. Nevertheless he succeeded in regaining his seat and was recognized as a vassal by Barattarna. Idrimi founded the kingdom of Mushki
, and ruled from Alalakh
as a vassal to the Mitanni. He also invaded the Hittite
territories to the north, resulting in a treaty with the country Kizzuwatna
.
An inscription on a statue base found at Alalakh records Idrimi's vicissitudes. After his family had been forced to flee to Emar
, with his mother's people, he left them and joined the "Hapiru people
" in "Ammija in the land of Canaan", where other refugees from Aleppo recognized him as the "son of their overlord" and "gathered around him;" after living among them for seven years, he led his new friends and Habiru allies in a successful attack by sea on Alalakh, where he became king.
Alalakh
Alalakh is the name of an ancient city-state near modern Antakya in the Amuq River valley of Turkey's Hatay Province.Now represented by an extensive mound, the name of the modern archaeological site is Tell Atchana.-History:...
in the 15th century BC.
Idrimi was a Hurrianised Semitic son of the king of Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
who had been deposed by the new regional master, Barattarna, king of the Mitanni
Mitanni
Mitanni or Hanigalbat was a loosely organized Hurrian-speaking state in northern Syria and south-east Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC–1300 BC...
. Nevertheless he succeeded in regaining his seat and was recognized as a vassal by Barattarna. Idrimi founded the kingdom of Mushki
Mushki
The Mushki were an Iron Age people of Anatolia, known from Assyrian sources. They do not appear in Hittite records. Several authors have connected them with the Moschoi of Greek sources and the Georgian tribe of the Meskhi. Josephus Flavius identified the Moschoi with the Biblical Meshech...
, and ruled from Alalakh
Alalakh
Alalakh is the name of an ancient city-state near modern Antakya in the Amuq River valley of Turkey's Hatay Province.Now represented by an extensive mound, the name of the modern archaeological site is Tell Atchana.-History:...
as a vassal to the Mitanni. He also invaded the Hittite
Hittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
territories to the north, resulting in a treaty with the country Kizzuwatna
Kizzuwatna
Kizzuwatna , is the name of an ancient Anatolian kingdom in the second millennium BC. It was situated in the highlands of southeastern Anatolia, near the Gulf of İskenderun in modern-day Turkey. It encircled the Taurus Mountains and the Ceyhan river. The center of the kingdom was the city of...
.
An inscription on a statue base found at Alalakh records Idrimi's vicissitudes. After his family had been forced to flee to Emar
Emar
Emar was an ancient Amorite city on the great bend in the mid-Euphrates in northeastern Syria, now on the shoreline of the man-made Lake Assad. It has been the source of many cuneiform tablets, making it rank with Ugarit, Mari and Ebla among the most important archeological sites of Syria...
, with his mother's people, he left them and joined the "Hapiru people
Habiru
Habiru or Apiru or ˁpr.w was the name given by various Sumerian, Egyptian, Akkadian, Hittite, Mitanni, and Ugaritic sources to a group of people living as nomadic invaders in areas of the Fertile Crescent from Northeastern Mesopotamia and Iran to the borders of Egypt in Canaan...
" in "Ammija in the land of Canaan", where other refugees from Aleppo recognized him as the "son of their overlord" and "gathered around him;" after living among them for seven years, he led his new friends and Habiru allies in a successful attack by sea on Alalakh, where he became king.
See also
- AlalakhAlalakhAlalakh is the name of an ancient city-state near modern Antakya in the Amuq River valley of Turkey's Hatay Province.Now represented by an extensive mound, the name of the modern archaeological site is Tell Atchana.-History:...
- HabiruHabiruHabiru or Apiru or ˁpr.w was the name given by various Sumerian, Egyptian, Akkadian, Hittite, Mitanni, and Ugaritic sources to a group of people living as nomadic invaders in areas of the Fertile Crescent from Northeastern Mesopotamia and Iran to the borders of Egypt in Canaan...
- KizzuwatnaKizzuwatnaKizzuwatna , is the name of an ancient Anatolian kingdom in the second millennium BC. It was situated in the highlands of southeastern Anatolia, near the Gulf of İskenderun in modern-day Turkey. It encircled the Taurus Mountains and the Ceyhan river. The center of the kingdom was the city of...
- MitanniMitanniMitanni or Hanigalbat was a loosely organized Hurrian-speaking state in northern Syria and south-east Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC–1300 BC...
- Niqmepa, King of AlalakhNiqmepa, King of AlalakhNiqmepa, son of Idrimi, was King of Alalakh in the first half of 15th century BC.-Contemporary documents:Evidence for the reign of King Niqmepa is based on clay cuneiform tablets excavated at Tell Atchana by Charles Leonard Woolley....
(Son of Idrimi)