AmoritesThe Amorites (ˈæməˌraɪts; MAR.TU; Amurrūm or 𒋾𒀉𒉡𒌝/𒊎 Tidnum; ʾĔmōrī; Ἀμορραῖοι) were an ancient Northwest Semitic-speaking Bronze Age people from the Levant. Initially appearing in Sumerian records c. 2500 BC, they expanded and ruled most of the Levant, Mesopotamia and parts of Egypt from the 21st century BC to the late 17th century BC. They established several prominent city-states in existing locations, such as Isin, Larsa, Mari and Ebla, and later founded Babylon and the Old Babylonian Empire.
El (deity)(also Il, 𐎛𐎍 ʾīlu; 𐤀𐤋 ʾīl; אֵל ʾēl; ܐܺܝܠ ʾīyl; إل or إله ; cognate to ilu) is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "god" or "deity", or referring (as a proper name) to any one of multiple major ancient Near Eastern deities. A rarer form, ila, represents the predicate form in Old Akkadian and in Amorite. The word is derived from the Proto-Semitic *ʔil-, meaning "god". Specific deities known as El, Al or Il include the supreme god of the ancient Canaanite religion and the supreme god of East Semitic speakers in Mesopotamia's Early Dynastic Period.
Amarna lettersThe Amarna letters (əˈmɑrnə; sometimes referred to as the Amarna correspondence or Amarna tablets, and cited with the abbreviation EA, for "El Amarna") are an archive, written on clay tablets, primarily consisting of diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru, or neighboring kingdom leaders, during the New Kingdom, spanning a period of no more than thirty years between 1360–1332 BC (see here for dates).
Canaanite religionThe Canaanite religion was the group of ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries AD. Canaanite religion was polytheistic and, in some cases, monolatristic. A group of deities in a four-tier hierarchy headed by El and Asherah were worshiped by the followers of the Canaanite religion; this is a detailed listing: Aglibol, god of the moon and brother of Malakbel. Part of a trio of gods of Palmyra, Syria, along with Bel and Yarhibol.
Aegean civilizationAegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece around the Aegean Sea. There are three distinct but communicating and interacting geographic regions covered by this term: Crete, the Cyclades and the Greek mainland. Crete is associated with the Minoan civilization from the Early Bronze Age. The Cycladic civilization converges with the mainland during the Early Helladic ("Minyan") period and with Crete in the Middle Minoan period.
Ancient Near EastThe ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran and northeastern Syria), ancient Egypt, ancient Persia (Elam, Media, Parthia and Persis), Anatolia/Asia Minor and the Armenian highlands (Turkey's Eastern Anatolia Region, Armenia, northwestern Iran, southern Georgia, and western Azerbaijan), the Levant (modern Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan), Cyprus and the Arabi
AlalakhAlalakh (Tell Atchana; Hittite: Alalaḫ) is an ancient archaeological site approximately northeast of Antakya (historic Antioch) in what is now Turkey's Hatay Province. It flourished, as an urban settlement, in the Middle and Late Bronze Age, c. 2000-1200 BC. The city contained palaces, temples, private houses and fortifications. The remains of Alalakh have formed an extensive mound covering around 22 hectares. In Late Bronze Age, Alalakh was the capital of the local kingdom of Mukiš.
AlashiyaAlashiya (𒀀𒆷𒅆𒅀 Alašiya [a-la-ši-ia]; 𐎀𐎍𐎘𐎊 ẢLṮY; Linear B: 𐀀𐀨𐀯𐀍 Alasios [a-ra-si-jo]), also spelled Alasiya, also known as the Kingdom of Alashiya, was a state which existed in the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, and was situated somewhere in the Eastern Mediterranean. It was a major source of goods, especially copper, for ancient Egypt and other states in the Ancient Near East. It is referred to in a number of the surviving texts and is now thought to be the ancient name of Cyprus, or an area of Cyprus.
Amurru kingdomAmurru (Sumerian: 𒈥𒌅𒆠 MAR.TUKI; Akkadian: 𒀀𒈬𒌨𒊏 Amûrra, 𒀀𒈬𒊑 Amuri, 𒀀𒄯𒊑 Amurri) was an Amorite kingdom established c. 2000 BC, in a region spanning present-day western and north-western Syria and northern Lebanon. The inhabitants spoke the Amorite language, an extinct early Northwest Semitic language classified as a westernmost or Amorite-specific dialect of Ugaritic. The kingdom shares a name with the eponymous god Amurru.
AmmurapiAmmurapi (Hittite: 𒄠𒈬𒊏𒁉 am-mu-ra-pí) was the last Bronze Age ruler and king (c. 1215 to 1180 BC) of the ancient Syrian city of Ugarit. Ammurapi was a contemporary of the Hittite King Suppiluliuma II. He wrote a preserved vivid letter RS 18.147 (Nougayrol et al. (1968 Ugaritica V): 87-9 no. 24) in response to a plea for assistance from the king of Alashiya. Ammurapi wrote: My father behold, the enemy's ships came (here); my cities(?) were burned, and they did evil things in my country.
