Gutian dynasty of Sumer

The Gutian dynasty came to power in Mesopotamia around 2150 BC (short chronology), by destabilising Akkad, according to the Sumerian kinglist at the end of the reign of king Ur-Utu (or Lugal-melem) of Uruk. They reigned for perhaps around one century (copies of the kinglist vary between 25 and 124 years; 91 years is often quoted as probable). The dynasty was succeeded by the 3rd dynasty of Ur. The Gutian people (Guti) were native to Gutium, presumably in the central Zagros Mountains; almost nothing is known about their origins.

History

The Gutians practiced hit-and-run tactics, and would be long gone by the time regular troops could arrive to deal with the situation. Their raids crippled the economy of Sumer. Travel became unsafe, as did work in the fields, resulting in famine.

The Sumerian king list indicates that king Ur-Utu of Uruk was defeated by the barbarian Guti, perhaps around 2150 BC. The Guti swept down, defeated the demoralized Akkadian army, took Akkad, and destroyed it around 2115 BC. However, they did not supplant all of Akkad, as several independent city states remained alongside them, including Lagash, where a local dynasty still thrived and left numerous textual and archaeological remains.^[1]

Ultimately Akkad was so thoroughly destroyed that its site is still not known. The Guti proved to be poor rulers. Under their crude rule, prosperity declined. They were too unaccustomed to the complexities of civilization to organize matters properly, particularly in connection with the canal network. This was allowed to sink into disrepair, with famine and death resulting. Thus, a short "dark age" swept over Mesopotamia.

Akkad bore the brunt of this as the center of the Empire, so that it was in Akkad that the Guti established their own center in place of the destroyed Akkad. Some of the Sumerian cities in the south took advantage of the distance and purchased a certain amount of self-government by paying tribute to the new rulers.

Uruk was thus able to develop a 5th dynasty. Even in the city of Akkad itself, a local dynasty was said to have ruled.^[2] The best known Sumerian ruler of the Gutian period was the ensi of Lagash, Gudea. Under him, ca. 2075 BC (short), Lagash had a golden age.

After a few kings, the Gutian rulers became more cultured. Guti rule lasted only about a century - around 2050 BC, they were expelled from Mesopotamia by the rulers of Uruk and Ur, when Utu-hengal of Uruk defeated Gutian king Tirigan. Utu-hengal's victory revived the political and economic life of southern Sumer.

Weidner Chronicle

1500 years later, the Weidner Chronicle (ABC 19) accounts for the Gutian period as follows:

"Naram-Sin destroyed the people of Babylon, so twice Marduk summoned the forces of Gutium against him. Marduk gave his kingship to the Gutian force. The Gutians were unhappy people unaware how to revere the gods, ignorant of the right cultic practices.

Utu-hengal, the fisherman, caught a fish at the edge of the sea for an offering. That fish should not be offered to another god until it had been offered to Marduk, but the Gutians took the boiled fish from his hand before it was offered, so by his august command, Marduk removed the Gutian force from the rule of his land and gave it to Utu-hengal."

List of the Gutian kings

According to the Sumerian kings list, "In the army of Gutium, at first no king was famous; they were their own kings and ruled thus for 3 years." The listed reign durations through much of the Gutian period are comparatively short and uniform (6,6,6,6,5,6,3,3,3,1,3,2,2,1,2,7,7, and 7 years, from Inkishush to Si-um).

Ruler	Proposed reign (short chronology)	Notes
Erridupizir	ca. 2141–2138 BC	Royal inscription at Nippur
Imta or Nibia	ca. 2138–2135 BC
Inkishush	ca. 2135–2129 BC	First Gutian ruler on the Sumerian king list
Zarlagab	ca. 2129–2126 BC
Shulme	ca. 2126–2120 BC
Silulumesh or Elulmesh	ca. 2120–2114 BC
Inimabakesh	ca. 2114–2109 BC
Igeshaush	ca. 2109–2103 BC
Yarlagab	ca. 2103–2088 BC
Ibate	ca. 2088–2085 BC
Yarla or Yarlangab	ca. 2085–2082 BC
Kurum	ca. 2082–2081 BC
Apilkin	ca. 2081–2078 BC
La-erabum	ca. 2078–2076 BC	Mace head inscription
Irarum	ca. 2076–2074 BC
Ibranum	ca. 2074–2073 BC
Hablum	ca. 2073–2071 BC
Puzur-Suen	ca. 2071–2064 BC	Son of Hablum
Yarlaganda	ca. 2064–2057 BC	Foundation inscription at Umma
Si'um or Si'u	ca. 2057–2050 BC	Foundation inscription at Umma
Tirigan	ca. 2050–2050 BC	Defeated by Utu-hengal of Uruk

Notes and references

1. ^ De Mieroop, Marc Van. (2004). A History of the Ancient Near East: ca. 3000-323 BC. (pp.67) Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
2. ^ De Mieroop, Marc Van. (2004). A History of the Ancient Near East: ca. 3000-323 BC. (p.67) Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.

• Howorth 1901: "The Early History of Babylonia", Henry H. Howorth, The English Historical Review, Vol. 16, No. 61 (Jan. 1901), p. 1-34

Ancient Near East portal