Historical Dictionary of the Hittites (Historical Dictionaries of Ancient Civilizations and Historical Eras) PDF
Preview Historical Dictionary of the Hittites (Historical Dictionaries of Ancient Civilizations and Historical Eras)
Historical Dictionary of the Hittites Charles Burney The Scarecrow Press Dedicated to Brigit, for three Hittite years “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills” Psalm 121 Contents Editor’s Foreword: Jon Woronoff ix Preface xi Maps and Plans xiii Chronological Table xviii Introduction xxi THE DICTIONARY 1 Appendix: Hittite Collections 327 Bibliography 329 About the Author 365 Editor’s Foreword Less well known than civilizations in Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Hittites nonetheless created one of the great civilizations of the ancient world. It was no mean feat to rule a vast empire, establish important cities, preside over a conglomerate of peoples, encourage a flowering of culture and religion and, yes, engage in incessant warfare. Some of this was against attacking enemies, some against relative innocents who happened to be in the way, and part within the royal families. This impressive history spanned nearly five centuries during the second millennium BC, although predecessors and successors stretch over a much longer period. Yet despite the mark they made on ancient history, the Hittites were largely forgotten until curious travelers and then professional archaeologists had excavated important sites, verified some of the crucial events, and deciphered the languages. This Historical Dictionary of the Hittites therefore consists of two stories, that of the Hittites themselves and that of the rediscovery of the Hittites. This volume, like others in the series, provides most of the basic information in a dictionary section with hundreds of entries on important persons (kings, queens and archaeologists), places (temples, palaces and excavations), essential institutions (kingship and cults) and significant aspects of the society, economy, material culture and, inevitably, warfare. These numerous detailed studies are integrated in a broader overview in the introduction, while the time sequences are sorted in chronological charts. The bibliography offers the basis for further reading on related topics. The contribution of photographs is not only to show what has been described but to remind us what the Hittites could accomplish in art and architecture. This volume was written by Charles Burney, whose interests cover much of the Near East and Caucasus, but focus especially on Eastern Turkey. There he has worked on and directed excavations at Kayalıdere (Urartu) and carried out extensive archaeological surveys. He has written several books on the ancient Near East including From Village to Empire: An Introduction to Near Eastern Archaeology and many articles for journals such as Anatolian Studies and Iran. He also collaborated with the late David Lang, and is the author of the greater part of Peoples of the Hills: Ancient Ararat and Caucasus.
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