Near East Kingdoms

Gutians / Gutium (Southern Mesopotamia) (Indo-Europeans?)

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The Gutians (Guti, or sometimes Quti) were one of a number of people who formed the population of ancient Mesopotamia. They occupied the central Zagros Mountain range from the last few centuries of the third millennium BC onwards, but nothing concrete is known about their origins. They were not a tribe, as is often stated, simply a collection of nomads who settled together and were later branded under a single name.

For around a generation they appeared in increasing numbers in Sumer and Akkad as settlers, to the extent that they required the royal appointment of an interpreter in Adab. The general region into which they settled became known as Gutium (although there was no single, fixed location by that name), but the settlers themselves came to be referred to as the 'Guti Hordes', as they remained anything but settled and productive new neighbours.

Shortly after about 2200 BC they swept down in force into southern and central Mesopotamia, destroying the Akkadian empire at Agade, and subjugating much of Sumer either directly or indirectly. Their numbers by this stage must have been impressive, as the city states of Mesopotamia were long used to fighting tooth-and-nail for regional domination, and Akkad had become the biggest and strongest of them all.

The Gutians based themselves near the ruins of Agade at the northern edges of Sumer and pretty much due west of their Zagros Mountain settlements. The cities in the south were able to enjoy a certain level of freedom, and were able to manage their own affairs to an extent.

The Gutians proved to be very poor rulers of Sumer, however. They were crude administrators, clearly not at all used to the complexities of managing an urban society. Prosperity declined alongside proper organisation, particularly in connection with the canal network. This was allowed to sink into disrepair, with famine and death resulting as crops failed. A short dark age swept over Mesopotamia as a result of their arrival and dominance. It was inevitable that they would be ejected.

(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information by Edward Dawson, from The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character, Samuel Noah Kramer (List 1 of Sumerian rulers, Phoenix Books, 1971), from The Horse, the Wheel, and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World, David W Anthony, from Historical Atlas of the Ancient World, 4,000,000 to 500 BC, John Haywood (Barnes & Noble, 2000), from Mesopotamia: Assyrians, Sumerians, Babylonians (Dictionaries of Civilizations 1), Enrico Ascalone (University of California Press, 2007), from The First Empires, J N Postgate (Oxford, 1977), from A History of the Ancient Near East c.3000-323 BC, Marc van der Mieroop (Blackwell Publishing, 2004, 2007), from The Sumerian Kings List: Translation, J A Black, G Cunningham, E Fluckiger-Hawker, E Robson, and G Zólyomi (List 2 of Sumerian rulers, via The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, Oxford, 1998), from Earth's Ancient History: A Theory About Ancient Times, L C Gerts (List 4 of Sumerian rulers, Chapter 12: The Sumerian king list, 2002), from Indo-European Etymological Dictionary, J Pokorny (online database which updates Pokorny's Indogermanisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch), and from External Links: Ancient Worlds, and Ancient History, Anthony Michael Love (List 3 of Sumerian rulers at Sarissa.org (dead link), and Peering at the Tocharians through Language (Borderless Blogger), and The United Sites of Indo-Europeans, and Linguistics Research Center (University of Texas at Austin), and Indo-European Chronology - Countries and Peoples, and Indo-European Etymological Dictionary, and Encyclopaedia Iranica.)

c.2350 BC

The short-lived empire of Lugalannemundu of Adab subjects the Gutians. The latter can only recently have arrived in the Zagros Mountains and have been settling the less hostile areas, probably in a series of small, interconnected settlements which nevertheless would seem to be able to muster enough of a military threat that the more established city states feel they need to impose control over them.

The Sumer into which the Gutians gatecrashed was formed by a complex network of city states and canals (click or tap on map to view full sized)

It is probably not coincidental that Anatolia is suffering from an intense dry spell. It is these very conditions which would appear to trigger the westwards migration of South Indo-Europeans who create a Luwian state by the name of Kizzuwatna.

fl c.2300 BC

Ruled in the Gutian mountain homelands.

Sargon of the Akkadian empire claims to be the first king to unite Mesopotamia (Sumer and Akkad), although Enshakushanna of Uruk has already achieved that. However, his many campaigns include one feat not achieved before, mounting seemingly successful attacks against the Gutians who are being lead by their ruler, Sarlak.

Sargon 'the Great', the warrior king of apparently humble origins, unified Sumer for the first time in recorded history through a series of campaigns and the defeat of the current holder of Sumer's equivalent of a high kingship

fl c.2254? BC

Not on the king list. Led the 'Great Revolt'.

c.2254? BC

Kish leads a 'Great Revolt' against the Akkadian empire, rallying the northern Sumerian cities of Apiak (location unknown, but close to the Tigris, to the east of Nippur), Borsippa, Dilbat, Eresh, Kazallu, Kiritab, Kutha, Sippar, and Tiwa, and placing a well-organised army in the field which is then defeated. The trigger seems to be a dispute between Agade and Gula-AN of the Gutians.

fl c.2220 - 2211 BC

Not on the king list. Claimed inheritance of Akkadian titles.

c.2210 BC

Marhashi overruns Elam for a time, and unites eastern efforts in fighting against the Akkadian empire. A battle is fought near Akshak, at the confluence of the Diyala and Tigris rivers between the two states. One of the Marhashi ruler's daughters is married to Sharkalisharri of Agade or his son, perhaps as a consequence of the battle, and as a sign of renewed ties of peace.

Proto-Elamite inscriptions from the site at Jiroft (possible capital of Marhashi) have fairly recently been found at the Konar-Sandal subsection of the site, dating to somewhere between 3000-2500 BC

The episode, though, may be a sign of growing Akkadian weakness, although the Gutians are not yet in a position to take advantage. Instead, Eridu-pizir is shown on inscriptions as the Gutian who loses domination over the Lullubi of northern Mesopotamia.

In Sumer itself the Akkadian king, Shar-kali-sharri, is required to appoint a Gutian interpreter in Adab, such is the increase in the number of Gutian settlers in that region. While Gutians primarily enter Sumer in the process of a peaceful migration, their arrival is not always peaceful.

Shar-kali-sharri fights them at an unknown location, and at least one clay tablet letter survives which accuses them of cattle-rustling. Eridu-pizir survives for long enough to set up statues in Nippur in imitation of Akkadian kings, adding their titles to his as 'king of Gutium'.

Cuneiform tablets rarely survive intact, so this Akkadian example which translates a hymn to the goddess Ishtar from Sumerian is especially valuable

fl c.2216/15 BC

Ruled for ?/3/5/4 years. Possible division or obscurity?

fl c.2211 BC

Ruled for 3 years.

fl c.2208 BC

Ruled for 6/7 years.

The name Inkishush has the appearance of being of Indo-Aryan origin. The first part, 'ink-', may be cognate with 'ang-', and therefore with the Norse name, Ingo, via the early Germanic links with satem-speaking East Indo-Europeans. Those same satem-speaking Indo-Europeans may be having a minor impact here, although specifics are unavailable.

fl c.2202 BC

Ruled for 6 years.

fl c.2196 BC

Ruled for 6 years.

c.2193 BC

The Gutians overthrow Elam and sweep through Sumer, effectively destroying the Akkadian empire, and ending Sumerian/Akkadian domination of the region. They also defeat Uruk, with Sumerian records stating that they carry off the kingship (in other words, that they are the dominant force). Sumerians view them as being uncouth foreign barbarians.

This map attempts to illustrate in basic terms the separate paths taken by the Luwians, Hittites, and Pala during their westwards migration and their progress from proto-Anatolians to kingdom-builders (click or tap on map to view full sized)

Both Sumer and Egypt endure a short dark age at this time which would seem to be climate-induced, indicating that the city states are weak anyway. This does in fact coincide with other climatic changes which are taking place around the world, including a mega-drought in the Far East's Longshan culture and in the Near East.

The Longshan cultural items shown here come from what is now known as Longshan Town, Jinan, in Shandong Province, which itself is around two thousand years old and is famed for its numerous relics

The latter sees the decline of Sumerian civilisation, the weakening Akkadian empire, and the Egyptian Old Kingdom, the start of Egypt's 'First Intermediate' period, and flooding in Bronze Age Britain.

Very little is known about Akkad until around 2100 BC, although it is from this point that the Gutian kings are recorded in more detail (with some lists placing Shulme after Imta, and missing out Inkishush and Sarlagab).

The king list now states: 'Who was king? Who was not king? Igigi the king; Nanum, the king; Imi the king; Elulu, the king - the four of them were kings but reigned only three years' (see the rump post-imperial state of Agade, as these all rule briefly there while civil war apparently grips the city).

In the north the Hurrians arise as a notably separate group which begins to dominate the upper Tigris Valley and the upper Euphrates (close to the Assyrians). They have probably filtered down from Caucasus mountains to the north.

The Zagros Mountain range provided the Gutians with their home, from their assumed arrival in the region around the period between 2450-2350 BC onwards, as it did the later Medes and Persians

fl c.2190 BC

Ruled for 6/7 years.

fl c.2184 BC

Ruled for 5/6 years.

fl c.2179 BC

Ruled for 6 (or 3) years.

fl c.2173 BC

Ruled for 15/5 years.

fl c.2158 BC

Ruled for 3 years.

fl c.2155 BC

Ruled for 3 years.

fl c.2152 BC

Ruled for 1/3 years.

fl c.2151 BC

Ruled for 3 years.

fl c.2148 BC

Ruled for 2 years.

fl c.2146 BC

Ruled for 2 years.

fl c.2144 BC

Ruled for 1 year.

fl c.2143 BC

Ruled for 2 years.

fl c.2141 BC

Son. Ruled for 7 years.

c.2138 BC

The city of Kissura (the modern archaeological site of Tell Abu Hatab) establishes its own kingship for the first time, after around six hundred years of occupation of the site and dominance by larger cities around it. This break from its traditional position may be a result of weakening Gutian influence in the region.

Gudea of Lagash (an interesting figure with the 'gut-' of Gutian in his name) also rises to prominence in the south, but he is probably still subject to Gutian influence.

A figurine of Gudea of Lagash, who came to prominence in southern Mesopotamia, for the most part outside of direct Gutian rule but still subject to their influence

fl c.2134 BC

Ruled for 7 years. Indo-Aryan name influences?

fl c.2127 BC

Ruled for 7 years. Name found on inscription.

fl c.2120 BC

Ruled for 40 days. Gutians ejected from Sumer.

Utuhegal, king of Erech (Uruk) throws out the Gutians once and for all, claiming the kingship. Seemingly unable to retaliate or so broken that they have been destroyed as a fighting force, they retreat back into the mountains where they remain a more distant menace for quite some time.

c.1764 BC

A major invasion of southern Mesopotamia by a coalition army of Elamites, Assyrians, Gutians and Eshnunnians is defeated and crushed. The region sinks into historical obscurity for many centuries, but later provides a home to new arrivals such as the Mannaeans, Medes, and Parsua.

During the seventh century BC, it is conquered by the Cimmerians, who are acclaimed by Assyria as rulers of 'Qutium' (Gutium - same name, perhaps slightly different pronunciation or writing style).

This fragment of Early Bronze Age pottery was produced in Mesopotamia around 3000 BC, as the early city-building movement there began to accelerate towards large-scale city states and a recorded history

During the sixth century BC Gutium it appears to be a district or province of the Babylonian empire, and following conquest by the Persians in 539 BC it seems briefly to be governed by the aged General Ugbaru, following his part in turning Babylonia into the Persian satrapy of Babirush (it has been the case in the past that this Ugbaru has been identified as the first satrap there, but see Satrap Gaubaruva for an examination of this).

The Gutians survive as a recognisable group - despite the term evolving into a more generalised branding for any group of hostile barbarian - but they never again amount to anything of consequence. If they are indeed Indo-Europeans, even only in part, then the next such group to arise is the potentially-related Mitanni.

Mitanni warriors are shown here dressed in a typical northern Mesopotamian costume which they most likely picked up following their arrival in the region in the 1600s BC