Piyama-Radu
Encyclopedia
Piyamaradu was a warlike aristocratic personage whose name figures prominently in the Hittite
archives of the middle and late 13th century BC
in western Anatolia
. His history is of particular interest because it appears to intertwine with that of the Trojan War
. Some scholars assume that his name lives forth in that of King Priam of Troy
.
piyama "gift" as its first part. Other Luwian names containing the same word are attested, such as Piyama-Kurunta
.
The second part of the word was earlier believed to be an unknown theonym *Radu, but since Luwian words do not start with an r, it must be aradu, which may be a noun meaning "devotee", derived "from *arada- 'religious community (vel sim.)', itself a derivative of *ara- 'associate' (cf. Hitt. ara- 'id.')
, a previous king of Arzawa
who was dethroned by the Hittite king Mursili II
, and probably the son of his son Piyama-Kurunta
. He tried to reassert his own dynastic claim by attacking the Hittite empire in Arzawa
, Seha, Lazpa (Lesbos
) and Wilusa
(Troy
). This he probably did in concert with an application to the Great King
of Hatti to be accepted into Hittite
vassal status as a sub-king.
When his application was deprecated, he rebelled, wishing to assert his putative dynastic rights. The Great King of Hatti suppressed him through the agency of a certain other trusted vassal, Manapa-Tarhunta
. Piyamaradu, on the other hand, allied with the Great King of Ahhiyawa (Achaea
, i.e Mycenean Greece
), and married his daughter to Atpa, the vassal ruler of Millawanda (Miletus
).
Because he had asserted himself against the Great King
of Hatti, and allied himself his characterization in the Hittite archives is that of "troublemaker", "adventurer", "freebooter", or "mercenary"; from his own point of view he may have considered himself merely to be asserting his own rightful (hereditary?) status. The salience of his exploits in the record, together with his name and claim, render dynastic parameters plausible.
of Troy
in the Iliad
. The epic Priam's son Paris/Alexandros
, identified with Alaksandu
, a Wilusan king known to have made a treaty with the Hittite monarch Muwatalli II
, has a less speculative identification.
Piyamaradu is often designated as a "king" of Wilusa in a number of modern sources.
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...
archives of the middle and late 13th century BC
13th century BC
The 13th century BC was the period from 1300 to 1201 BC.-Events:*1300 BC: Cemetery H culture comes to an end.*1292 BC: End of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt, start of the Nineteenth Dynasty....
in western Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
. His history is of particular interest because it appears to intertwine with that of the Trojan War
Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad...
. Some scholars assume that his name lives forth in that of King Priam of Troy
Priam
Priam was the king of Troy during the Trojan War and youngest son of Laomedon. Modern scholars derive his name from the Luwian compound Priimuua, which means "exceptionally courageous".- Marriage and issue :...
.
Meaning of the name
The name appears to be a compound with LuwianLuwian language
Luwian is an extinct language of the Anatolian branch of the Indo-European language family. Luwian is closely related to Hittite, and was among the languages spoken during the second and first millennia BC by population groups in central and western Anatolia and northern Syria...
piyama "gift" as its first part. Other Luwian names containing the same word are attested, such as Piyama-Kurunta
Piyama-Kurunta
Piyama-Kurunta was a prince and regent for the last independent king of Arzawa, a Bronze Age kingdom of western Anatolia. The king of Arzawa Uhha-Ziti named his son "Gift of the god Kurunta", after a god whose name had featured in the names of previous Arzawan kings.In c...
.
The second part of the word was earlier believed to be an unknown theonym *Radu, but since Luwian words do not start with an r, it must be aradu, which may be a noun meaning "devotee", derived "from *arada- 'religious community (vel sim.)', itself a derivative of *ara- 'associate' (cf. Hitt. ara- 'id.')
The Exploits of Piyamaradu
It is believed that Piyamaradu was the legitimate heir of Uhha-ZitiUhha-Ziti
Uhha-Ziti was the last independent king of Arzawa, a Bronze Age kingdom of western Anatolia.Uhha-Ziti had two recorded children, Piyama-Kurunta and Tapalazunauli, who were of fighting age as of 1322 BC....
, a previous king of Arzawa
Arzawa
Arzawa in the second half of the second millennium BC was the name of a region and a political entity in Western Anatolia, the core area of which was centered on the Hermos and Maeander river valleys, corresponding with the Late Bronze Age kingdoms of the...
who was dethroned by the Hittite king Mursili II
Mursili II
Mursili II was a king of the Hittite Empire ca. 1321–1295 BC .-Family:Mursili II was the younger son of Suppiluliuma I, one of the most powerful rulers of the Hittite Empire...
, and probably the son of his son Piyama-Kurunta
Piyama-Kurunta
Piyama-Kurunta was a prince and regent for the last independent king of Arzawa, a Bronze Age kingdom of western Anatolia. The king of Arzawa Uhha-Ziti named his son "Gift of the god Kurunta", after a god whose name had featured in the names of previous Arzawan kings.In c...
. He tried to reassert his own dynastic claim by attacking the Hittite empire in Arzawa
Arzawa
Arzawa in the second half of the second millennium BC was the name of a region and a political entity in Western Anatolia, the core area of which was centered on the Hermos and Maeander river valleys, corresponding with the Late Bronze Age kingdoms of the...
, Seha, Lazpa (Lesbos
Lesbos Island
Lesbos is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with 320 kilometres of coastline, making it the third largest Greek island. It is separated from Turkey by the narrow Mytilini Strait....
) and Wilusa
Wilusa
Wilusa was a city of the late Bronze Age Assuwa confederation of western Anatolia.It is known from six references in 13th century BC Hittite sources, including...
(Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
). This he probably did in concert with an application to the Great King
Great King
Great King and the equivalent in many languages is a semantic title for historical titles of Monarchs, suggesting an elevated status among the host of Kings and Princes...
of Hatti to be accepted into 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...
vassal status as a sub-king.
When his application was deprecated, he rebelled, wishing to assert his putative dynastic rights. The Great King of Hatti suppressed him through the agency of a certain other trusted vassal, Manapa-Tarhunta
Manapa-Tarhunta
Manapa-Tarhunta was a king in western Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age. Manapa-Tarhunta is known through the archives of the kings of Hattusas.He was a younger son of King Muwa-Walwis of the Seha River Land, born ca. the 1330s BC....
. Piyamaradu, on the other hand, allied with the Great King of Ahhiyawa (Achaea
Achaea
Achaea is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Greece. It is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The capital is Patras. The population exceeds 300,000 since 2001.-Geography:...
, i.e Mycenean Greece
Mycenae
Mycenae is an archaeological site in Greece, located about 90 km south-west of Athens, in the north-eastern Peloponnese. Argos is 11 km to the south; Corinth, 48 km to the north...
), and married his daughter to Atpa, the vassal ruler of Millawanda (Miletus
Miletus
Miletus was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia , near the mouth of the Maeander River in ancient Caria...
).
Because he had asserted himself against the Great King
Great King
Great King and the equivalent in many languages is a semantic title for historical titles of Monarchs, suggesting an elevated status among the host of Kings and Princes...
of Hatti, and allied himself his characterization in the Hittite archives is that of "troublemaker", "adventurer", "freebooter", or "mercenary"; from his own point of view he may have considered himself merely to be asserting his own rightful (hereditary?) status. The salience of his exploits in the record, together with his name and claim, render dynastic parameters plausible.
Identification with Homeric personages
Piyamaradu has been conjectured to correspond to the archetype embodied in the epic/legendary PriamPriam
Priam was the king of Troy during the Trojan War and youngest son of Laomedon. Modern scholars derive his name from the Luwian compound Priimuua, which means "exceptionally courageous".- Marriage and issue :...
of Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
in the Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
. The epic Priam's son Paris/Alexandros
Paris (mythology)
Paris , the son of Priam, king of Troy, appears in a number of Greek legends. Probably the best-known was his elopement with Helen, queen of Sparta, this being one of the immediate causes of the Trojan War...
, identified with Alaksandu
Alaksandu
Alaksandu was a king of Wilusa who sealed a treaty with Muwatalli II ca. 1280 BC. This treaty implies that Alaksandu had previously secured a treaty with Muwatalli's father, Mursili II, as well....
, a Wilusan king known to have made a treaty with the Hittite monarch Muwatalli II
Muwatalli II
Muwatalli II was a king of the New kingdom of the Hittite empire .- Biography :He was the eldest son of Mursili II and Queen Gassulawiya, and he had several siblings....
, has a less speculative identification.
Piyamaradu is often designated as a "king" of Wilusa in a number of modern sources.
Hittite archives
The relevant Hittite archival correspondence referring to him include:- Manapa-Tarhunta letterManapa-Tarhunta letterThe Manapa-Tarhunta letter is a Hittite letter discovered in the 1980s. It was written by a client king called Manapa-Tarhunta to an unnamed Hittite king around 1295 BCE....
"...a notorious local troublemaker called Piyamaradu is harrying Wilusiya, a land of the Assuwa federation loosely allied with the Hittite Empire. The Hittite king has apparently ordered Manapa-Tarhunda to drive out Piyamaradu himself, but Manapa-Tarhunda's attempt has failed, so that the a Hittite force is now sent out to deal with the problem."
- Tawagalawa letterTawagalawa letterThe Tawagalawa letter was written by a Hittite king to a king of Ahhiyawa around 1250 BC. This letter, of which only the third tablet has been preserved, concerns the activities of an adventurer Piyama-Radu against the Hittites, and requests his extradition to Hatti under assurances of safe conduct...
"The letter would be more appropriately known as the 'Piyama-Radu letter'".
- Milawata letterMilawata letterThe Milawata letter is a diplomatic correspondence from a Hittite king at Hattusa to a client king in western Anatolia around 1240 BCE...
"Like the Tawagalawa letter and also the Manapa-Tarhunta letter, the Milawata letter mentions the infamous adventurer Piyama-Radu; but as a figure of the past."