Information Exchange and Relations between Ahhiyawa and the Hittite Empire
2019, 80, No. 1
Publication date
Publishing model
License type
Field
Discipline
Language of publication
Downloads
PDF 263 KB
Number of views:219
Number of downloads:48
Crossref citations:0
Altmetric score:0
Abstract
The majority of scholars identify the long-disputed term Ahhiyawa found in the Hittite texts as Achaea of the Homeric epics. According to the Hittite texts, Ahhiyawa and Hittite relations can be dated from the Middle Kingdom period. The term was first used in the records of Suppiluliuma I (1380-1346). Documents discussed (the records of Mursili II and Muwatalli II) demonstrate that Ahhiyawa was a powerful country. Its influence extended to Millawanda, which evidently reached the sea. Especially interesting is the “Tawagalawa letter” dated to the 13th century BC, in which the Hittite king makes excuses for his blunder committed at an early age. The Hittite king takes a diplomatic step towards the resolution of the conflict and starts negotiations with a party (Ahhiyawa) that could act as a mediator. We can infer from the letter that Ahhiyawa had its representatives in Millawanda, while its relations with the Land of the Hatti were managed through envoys. The powerful position of Ahhiyawa is also evident from Tudhaliya IV’s letter to the ruler of Amurru, where he refers to the kings of Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, and Ahhiyawa as to his equals. Thus, Ahhiyawa of the Hittite texts fully corresponds to Homeric Achaea. The invaders have three appellations in The Iliad: the Achaeans, the Danaans, and the Argives. The Achaeans can be found in Hittite documents, while the Danaans are mentioned in the Egyptian sources. Ahhiyawa is the land of the Achaeans, which laid the foundation for the development of the Hellenic civilization in the Aegean. It can be argued that the Greeks were actively involved in the foreign policy of the ancient Near East. The information conveyed by the Greek tradition is supported by the archeological finds confirming the rise of the Hellenes in the continental Greece from the 14th century BC. According to the tradition, the Mycenaeans went far beyond the Near East, reaching Colchis (The Argonaut legend).
Keywords:
Bibliography
Boruchovič B. G., Achejcy v Maloj Azii, „BDI”, 1964, issue 3
Bryce T. R., The Kingdom of the Hittites, Oxford 1999
Forrer E. O., Vorhomerische Griechen in den Keilschrifttexten von Bogazköi, „MDOG” 1924, issue 63
Friedrich J., Staatsverträge des Hatti-Reiches in hethitischer Sprache, Vol. 2, Leipzig 1930
Garstang J., Gurney O. R., The Geography of the Hittite Empire, London 1959
Giorgadze G., Atasi ghvtaebis kveq’ana (khetebi da kheturi tsivilizatsia), Tbilisi 1988
Gordeziani R, Iliada da egeosuri mosakhleobis istoriisa da etnogenezisis sak’itkhebi, Tbilisi 1970.
Gordeziani R., Kriterien der Schriftlichkeit und Mündlichkeit im homerischen Epos, Frankfurt am Main, Bern, New york, Peter Lang Verlag 1986
Gordeziani R., Medit’eranul-kartveluri mimartebebi, ts’inaberdznuli, II, Tbilisi 2007
Haider P. W., Griechenland, Nordafrika: Ihre Beziehingen zwischen 1500 und 600 v. Chr., Darmstadt 1988
Hawkins J. D., „Karabel, „Tarkondemos” and the land of Mira. New Evidence of the Hittite Empire Period in Western Anatolia,”„Würzburger Jahrbücher für die ltertumswossenscshaft” 1999, issue 23
Korfmann M., Troia. A Residential and Trading City at the Dardanelles, 1995.
Labib P., Die Herrschaft des Hykses in Agypten und ihre Sturz, Glückstadt-Hamburg-New york 1936
Lambert M., Textes Commerciaux de Lagash, Revue d’assyriologie, Paris 1953
Latacz J., Homer. Tradition und Neuerung, Darmstadt 1979
Latacz J., Troia und Homer, Der Weg zur Lösung eines alten Rätsels, München-Berlin 2001
Latacz J., Homers Ilias. Gesamtkommentar, Band I. 1. Gesang Faszikel; 2: Kommentar; München, Leipzig, K. G. Saur 2002.
Lehmann G. A., Die politisch-historischen Beziehungen der ÄgäisWelt des 15-13, Jh.s. v. Chr. zu Ägypten und Vorderasien: einige Hinweise, (in:) J. Latacz (ed.), Zweihundert Jahre Homer-Forschung: Rückblick und Ausblick. Stuttgarart 1991
Lohmann D., Die Komposition der Reden in der Reden in der Ilias, Berlin 1970
Melikishvili G., Dzveli aghmosavletis khalkhta istoria, Tbilisi 1988
Niemeier W.-D., Mycenaeans and Hittites in War in Western Asia Minor, “Aegaeum” 1999, issue 19
Schachermeyr F., Hethiter und Achӓer, „MAOG IX”, 1935, issue 1-2
Sommer F., Die Ahhijava-Urkunden, München 1932.
Starke F., Troia im Kontext des Historisch-politischen und sprachlichen Umfeldes Kleinasiens im 2. Jahrtausend, „Studia Troica”, 1997, issue 7