Syria's communities and civilizations – history, sites and heritage
Hittites and Syro-Hittite (Luwian-Aramean) states
الحثيون والممالك السورية الحثية
Civilizations and historical peopleshistorical
The Hittite Empire of Anatolia controlled northern Syria from the 14th century BC through vassals such as Ugarit and the viceroyalty at Carchemish. After its collapse, Luwian and Aramean 'Syro-Hittite' states, using Luwian hieroglyphs, ruled the region until the Assyrian conquest. These are historical states, not modern peoples.
The Hittite king Mursili I destroyed Ebla around 1600 BC; Suppiluliuma I installed his son at Carchemish and his forces sacked Qatna in the 1330s. In May 1274 BC Muwatalli II fought Ramesses II of Egypt at Kadesh on the Orontes; the battle ended in stalemate and a peace treaty followed in 1258 BC.
Sources and details
The Syro-Hittite states of the Iron Age continued Hittite traditions, with Luwian monumental inscriptions in Anatolian hieroglyphs often alongside Aramaic or Phoenician. In Syria they included Bit Adini (Til Barsip, Luwian Masuwari), Hatarikka-Luhuti (Tell Afis), Hamath, Bit Agusi (Arpad, later Aleppo) and the temple city of Ain Dara.
The Ain Dara temple (c. 1300–740 BC), noted for its similarities to Solomon's Temple and its carved footprints, was heavily damaged in January 2018; reports suggested at least 60 percent of the structure was reduced to rubble. Sargon II took Carchemish in 717 BC.
Sites connected with this community 7
- Ain DaraAleppo · Archaeological sites
Ain Dara, Iron Age Syro-Hittite temple damaged in 2018.
- Til BarsipAleppo · Archaeological sites
Til Barsip (Masuwari), capital of Bit Adini with Luwian stelae.
- KadeshHoms · Archaeological sites
Kadesh on the Orontes, site of the 1274 BC battle.
- QatnaHoms · Archaeological sites
Qatna, sacked by the Hittites in the 1330s BC.
- EblaIdlib · Archaeological sites
Ebla, finally destroyed by Mursili I c. 1600 BC.
- Tell AfisIdlib · Archaeological sites
Tell Afis, centre of Hatarikka-Luhuti.
- UgaritLatakia · Archaeological sites
Ugarit, a Hittite vassal under Niqmaddu II.
Further sites (not yet in the atlas)
- Carchemish (Karkemish) كركميشAleppo (border; main mound in Turkey)
Hittite viceregal city and Syro-Hittite centre on the Euphrates next to Jarabulus; the main mound lies in Turkey, so only its Syrian outskirts would qualify.
Sources (8)
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, Carchemish
- Wikipedia, Ain Dara temple (secondary pointer; cites Monson 1999, Reuters 2018)
- Wikipedia, Til Barsip (secondary pointer)
- Wikipedia, Qatna (secondary pointer)
- Wikipedia, Ebla (secondary pointer)
- Wikipedia, Ugarit (secondary pointer)
- Wikipedia, Syro-Hittite states (secondary pointer; cites Hawkins)
- Wikipedia, Battle of Kadesh (secondary pointer)
These categories describe history, language and faith – not exclusive identities. Many Syrians belong to several, and some names refer to civilizations of the past.