Early Dynastic I & II Periods (c.3000-2440)


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The rulers of Mesopotamia for most of the third millennium were the Sumerians. I will not go into the debate over their origins here, but they were firmly established in southern Iraq by at least 3500 BC, if not considerably earlier. The Sumerians called their country Kengi or Kengir which means "civilized land", their language Emegir and themselves the Saggiga, i.e. "the black-headed ones". The name Sumer is derived from the Babylonian name for southern Mesopotamia: "Mat Umeri" (the land of Sumer), the meaning of which is unknown. The Sumerian language is not Semitic and it has no known relation to any other language.
The Early Dynastic is sub-divided into two periods, I (3000-2800) and II (2800-2440). Period I includes the beginnings of Sumerian culture and the rise of the city-states. Some scholars believe that the Sumerian cities were at first a kind of rudimentary "democracy" with all of the citizenry able to vote. They could even vote on whether they should go to war or not. They think that kings (Lugals) were at first elected by councils of citizens only in times of war. There is numerous anecdotal evidence for this hypothesis, but no clear cut evidence. Period II is distinct from period I by the fact that many of its kings have been proven historical. Even so, all of the dates and other data are uncertain and open to controversy. This is the period of the "Kings of Kish".
The term "Dynasty" in Sumer does not mean a family, but instead a succession of kings ruling one city. The titles that the rulers used were variously Ensi (Governor), Lugal (King) or En (Lord, with religious implications). Eventually Lugal came to be used by rulers who controlled more than one city-state, and Ensi by those who ruled one city, either as a vassal or as independent. En was used in very early times and then later was applied to the high priests of the cities.

Map of Early Dynastic Sumer

Kish:
Kish was the first city to gain control "after the deluge" gaining overlordship over all of Sumer. Sumer was unified in name, with all the city-states recognizing Kish as their overlord, in words if not in deeds. In fact, each city was independent and usually merely paid Kish lip service and the occasional tribute. Later kings used the title "King of Kish" to legitimize their rule. King of Kish came to mean imperial control or overlordship. Sort of like the later German Emperors or Saxon Bretwaldas. The King of Kish seems to have been given the control of Nippur by default. Nippur was the religious capital of Sumer, being the home of the supreme god Enlil. Some of the believers in an archaic democracy think that Nippur was a sort of "federal capital" with delegates from every city going there to elect a king in times of war. The first dynasty has some kings with Semitic names, and since Kish is in territory with a large (if not majority) Semitic population, this is not surprising. The tutelary deity of Kish was Zababa, the warrior god, perhaps another name for Ninurta.
1st Dynasty
Etana (early third millennium)-The first recorded deeds of a King, although not from his reign, were those of Etana. He supposedly ruled all of Sumer as well as some surrounding lands. He was called "He who stabilized all the Lands". Was he the first Empire builder? Was he Nimrod of the Bible? According to legend, he was a pious, god-fearing man. The Kings List calls him "the shepard" and says that he reigned 1560 years.
Balih-Son of Etana.
Enmenunna
Melam-Kish-Son of Enmenunna.
Barsainunna-Son of Enmenunna.
Meszamug-Son of Barsainunna.
Tizkar-Son of Meszamug.
Ilku
Iltasadum
Enmebareggesi (c.2700)-Two inscriptions with his name have been found. He is the oldest king to be proven historical. Since he has been proven historical and is said to have fought Gilgamesh of Uruk, Gilgamesh is also considered to be proven historical. He built (or rebuilt) the house of Enlil in Nippur. The Kings List calls him "he who smote the weapons of the land of Elam", so he must have defeated Elam in battle.
Agga (c.2680)-Son of Enmebareggesi. Laid siege to Gilgamesh's Uruk but was forced to lift it. He was in turn defeated by Uruk and the Kish overlordship ended.


ancient king This is one of the earliest images of a ruler from Mesopotamia. From the late 4th millennium, it depicts an early En (priest-king) of Uruk on the hunt.

Uruk:
It originally was named Eanna, which was the later name for the temple of An in Uruk. The second king of Uruk is called the builder of the city. What he actually did was build a wall around the neighboring towns of Eanna and Kullaba. That is why Uruk had two patron deities, the heaven god An and the fertility goddess Inanna (Semitic Ishtar). The oldest known writing was found in the temples at Uruk, dating to at least c.3300 BC. The city is called Erech in the Bible. They eventually overthrow Kish and take the title of King of Kish, the first non-Kishites to do so.
1st Dynasty
Meskiaggasher (c.2800?)-He founded the 1st Dynasty of Uruk not long after the time of Etana. In the Kings List he is called the "Son of Utu". He and his immediate successors went by the title En, which means Lord, but implies both secular and religious functions. The Kings List says that he "entered the seas and ascended the mountains". This may mean that he tried to conquer foreign lands or led expeditions to secure trade routes. It may even mean that he ascended to heaven and was deified. Enmerkar-Son of Meskiaggasher. He is also called the "Son of Utu". Enmerkar is called the builder of Uruk (see above). According to legend, he subjugated the land of Aratta, which may have been near the Caspian Sea.
Lugalbanda-Companion in arms of Enmerkar. The Kings List calls him "the shepard". He was deified by c.2400.
Dumuzi-The Dumuzi of myth. Called "the fisherman, whose city was Kua" by the Kings List. No historical information has been found of him, so we do not know why he became associated with the "dying god" myth.
Gilgamesh (c.2680)-The hero of mythology. The greatest hero of antiquity. The Kings List says that his father was a nomad, Gilgamesh and Enkidu slaying Humbaba while legend says that he is the son of the goddess Ninsun and a high priest of Kullaba. He seems to have conquered Nippur in his old age.
Urnungal-Son of Gilgamesh. Either he or Gilgamesh conquered Kish. The Uruk kings are called Kings of Kish from here to the end. The rest of the dynasty continued to rule Nippur and Kish outright until its fall.

Udulkalamma-Son of Urnungal.
Labasher
Ennundaranna
Meshede
Melamanna
Lugalkidul (c.2560)-Last king of the 1st Dynasty. He lost Kish and the overlordship to Mesilim of Kish and then was overthrown by Mesannapadda of Ur.

Kish
2nd Dynasty
Uhub (c.2570)-A vassal of Uruk.
Mesilim (c.2550)-He gained independence from Uruk and briefly took the title of King of Kish and ruled over Sumer. He was in turn defeated by Mesannapadda of Ur.

Ur:
The tutelary deity of Ur was Nanna, the moon god. It was also the city of Abraham. Cylinder seals from the "Royal" Cemetery of Ur with the inscriptions "Meskalamdug, King " and one with "Akalamdug, King of Ur" have been found. Neither name is in the Sumerian Kings List. Since seal impressions with the inscription "Mesannapadda" were recovered above the area, it is probable, but not certain, that they preceded him. Their rule has been called Dynasty 0. The Cemetery dates from before Mesannapadda and was so lavish that it must have been for royalty. There were at least 17 tombs and 15 of them were found with between 3 and 74 attendants, mostly female, buried with them. No where else in Mesopotamia has human sacrifice in tombs been found and there is no mention of it in any text, but it must have been an important rite in archaic Ur. The practice was probably similar to Egyptian rites where the kings were considered gods or at least earthly representations of them, and as such were entitled to take their servants with them. No proof has been found that any other city had such a dominant and powerful conception of kings, and in fact the kings of 1st Dynasty did not.
"Dynasty 0"
Meskalamdug-See above.
Akalamdug (c.2600)-See above.
1st Dynasty
Mesannapadda (c.2560-2525)-Founder of the 1st Dynasty. According to a bead inscription found at Mari, he was the son of Meskalamdug. He overthrew Uruk and defeated Mesilim of Kish, ending his overlordship and gaining the title "King of Kish". He probably was an old man by the time he conquered Kish and Nippur.
A-annepadda (c.2525-2485)-Son of Mesannapadda.
Meskiagnunna (c.2485-2450)-Son of A-annepadda. A dedication tablet of his wife's is the oldest Akkadian (Semitic) royal inscription from Sumer.
Elulu (Elili) (c.2445)-Some translations spell his name Elili.
Balulu (Balili) (c.2440)-Some translations spell his name Balili. The power of his kingdom crumbled with Uruk and Lagash conquering territory and then he was defeated by the Elamite state of Awan.


Early Dynastic III