Hurrian: The Language of Urartu

The Languages of Mesopotamia

In ancient times many different communities lived in Mesopotamia, many of them in mountainous areas where they were separated by formidable natural barriers. The result was that many different languages were spoken in the Near East. When trade, livestock transfer, and migration brought these communities speaking different languages into contact with one another, larger communities evolved into city states, which in turn joined in intercity leagues. Eventually, the formation of empires brought some languages to prominence and caused others to die out.

We only have extensive knowledge of the languages used in writing, although a few words from other languages also survived in records. The first piece of writing that we know is in the Sumerian language. Its script was later adopted by the Akkadian language in everyday use. This Semitic language family has always been dominant in the Near East.

In the mountains drawn out in the northestern borderlands of Mesopotamia and beyond, there lived peoples that spoke languages with different backgrounds. The same is true for Egypt and the lands of Africa beyond the deserts to the west. The languages of Dilmun and Magan to the south were never recorded. Beyond them lay Meluhha, whose tongue required the services of an interpreter.

Hurrian

Hurrian is as close as we get to the language of the Urartian people. Speakers of the Hurrian language lived north of the Diyala and east of the Euphrates. They appeared on the upper Khabur as early as the time of the Akkadian Empire and after that spread southward down the Tigris and Zagros foothills into the Diyala and west into the middle Euphrates and Cilicia.

In the mid-2nd millennium, Hurrian was the prominent language of the Mitanni Empire, but after the decline of Mitanni, it lost momentum quickly. The area in which Hurrian was spoken shrank and by the 1st millennium Hurrian speakers could only be found in the foothills of the north. If the language of Urartu was not exactly Hurrian, it was closely related, a part of the Caucasian family, whose many languages are spoken in the small area defined by the Caspian and the Black Sea. Hurrian and Urartian most likely had a common ancestor in the 3rd millennium BC.

The area of Hurrian settlement in the Middle Bronze Age

The History of the Kingdom of Urartu

Urartu began as a few city states in the North-Assyrian highlands, surrounding the lakes Van and Urmia, centering on Mount Ararat. These states were then united in a single nation in the 9th century BC. The first attempts of a certain Arame to join the city states in alliance were thwarted by Shalmaneser III of Assyria who conducted military campaigns in the region. However, soon after the fall of Arame, a new dynasty emerged - founded by Sarduri I, - and seized control of Urartu. The people who lived here might have had some relation to the Hurrians, and called their lands Biainili, the Kingdom of Van. The new king, Sarduri I conquered the region of Nairi, thus bringing his reign to the very borders of Assyria.

Since Urartu possessed resources such as metals in abundance and was also home to good horses, it was easy for the nation to develop an intimidating cavalry-focused army, posing a direct threat to Assyria. The Urartian kings exerted their will over the Aramaean and Neo-Hittite city states of Syria, and through them to as far as the Phoenician ports. To the east, their power extended beyond Mannai deeper into Iran. Due to these advances, the Kingdom of Urartu got into conflict with Assyria. Urartu reached its peak of influence under Menua (810-786 BC) and Argishti I (786-764 BC). The Urartian kings also led expeditions to the north, attempting to extend their lands more, with Argishti I reaching lake Sevan in the Caucasus, and Sarduri I (764-735 BC) hitting on Qulha (Colchis). The Urartian army also attacked the Isqiyulu, (the Urartian name for the Scythians).

Urartian spearman, 9th century BC. He wears a crested helmet. Around his waist, over his short fringed tunic, he wears a bronze bell protecting the abdomen.

However, this period of expansion was only made possible by the temporary weakness of Assyria. When Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria ascended to the throne, he quickly pulled his act together and defeated Sarduri  II and his Neo-Hittite friends in Kummuhu (Commagene). At the call of Assyria, the Gimirrai (Cimmerians) and the Scythians were mobilizing against the Kingfom of Van on the north.

When King Sargon received word from his son Scennacherib, governor of the northern frontier, that the Urartian army had suffered severe defeat in a battle with the Cimmerians, and although the Urartian king, Rusas I (735-714 BC), had found a way to escape, his commander-in-chief, Kakkadanu, had not, and 3 units had been completely wiped out, Sargon marched his army right through Mannai, Media and around lake Urmia, and annihilated the joined forces of Zirkitu and Urartu at Mount Simirra. This famous battle put an end to the Urartian threat to Assyria once and for all.

Urartian noble, wearing boots, leggings, and a short tunic with a long, fringed kilt, equipped with convex, embossed-bronze shield. Decoration consisted of concentric rows of animals. Shields with bosses like the heads of dogs, lions, griffins and bulls were also in use.

Urartu's survival as an independent state was due only to the fact that the Cimmerians didn't dare to proceed and picked their way westwards into Anatolia, while the Scythians went right east into Media. The Kingdom of Van lasted over a hundred years until it was finally occupied by the Archaemenid empire, while it was focusing on developing its natural resources to a higher level. Arme, a province of Urartu, is sometimes considered the origin of the later Armenia.

While it lasted, the Kingdom of Van was divided into provinces that were ruled by governors selected from among the royal family or high-standing nobility. The provincial capitals were fortified citadels with garrisons and storehouses. The Urartian army consisted of the troops of provincial governors complementing the king's army of about 5500 qurubuti under King Rusas II. This army was made up of cavalry, chariotry, and infantry. Each chariot was drawn by 2 horses and crewed by 2 warriors. Sargon II of Assyria was so impressed with the Urartians' skill in horsemanship that he wrote in his annals that their horse trainers were the best in the world. Horses were bred for the Urartian royal army and trained never to break rank. Horsemen were equipped with spear and shield, chariot crew with spear and bow, and infantry with spear and bow.

In addition to Urartian warriors, Cimmerians and Scythians also served in this army, hired as mercenaries. Sargon II wrote that the citadel of the wealthy province of Mount Kispal was manned by the sturdiest troops in all Urartu.

Urartian Battle Tactics

Urartian horseman, equipped with spear and shield, or bow.

Urartian battle tactics was similar to that of other mountain states, such as Mannai, Madai (Media) and less important once, such as Namri, Zikirtu, and Na'iri. Why did the Cimmerians and Scythians turn away when they had a real chance at conquering Urartu? Also, why didn't the Assyrians conquer the Kingdom of Van? The answer is simple: the Assyrians had difficulty in leading military campaigns into these parts because of the terrain. Chariots were rendered useless on a terrain that required them to be dragged up mounlain-sides by ropes or even left behind altogether in case the Assyrians didn't have time to cut roads for them. Weather conditions were also unfriendly with wild mountain torrents defying the Assyrian's ability to cross rivers, and with guerilla warfare by the inhabitants. In some regions, no real unity existed, only countless settlements and citadels in unreachable places.

In Urartian battle tactics chariotry were less important than the cavalry, which were renowned for their skill in fighting in formation. In the battle of Mount Simirra, Sargon II of Assyria went up against the Urartian army backed by their allies from Zikirtu. The army of the mountain kingdoms was deployed in a mountain pass with infantry in the fore and cavalry in a restricted position behind them. The Assyrians couldn't believe their luck that the fearful and highly respected Urartian cavalry was completely stacked up and incapable of moving around. The fact that the Zikirtians stayed separata from the Urartians enabled the Assyrians to break through their lines. When the battle ended in defeat for the Urartians, they retreated from their positions opting to hold the slopes of a high peak and forcing the enemy to fight them again in conditions to which their troops were better accustomed. But it was too late, as they were already greatly outnumbered by the Assyirians.

Urartian Warriors

Rich in metals, Urartu was a centre for the manufacture of arms. Urartian designs influenced many craftsmen even as far as in Greece. Urartian items were spread by trade, among the loot of Cimmerians and Scythians, and as tribute paid to Assyria. Bronze was used for weapons, scale corslets, helmets, shields, chariot fittings and horse trappings, belts, and quivers. Iron was used for tools, weapons, and armour. The amount of metal used by the Urartians is impressive. Sarduri II once received a tribute of over 2000 copper shields from Kushtashpi of Kummuhu, and when Sargon II razed Musasir, bronze crests, scale corslets, helmets and over 25,000 copper shields were his prize.

The knowledge we have of the design of Urartian arms comes from representations of Urartian troops in Assyrian reliefs, as well as Urartian embossed bronze belts, quivers and armour.

Uranian chariot, lighter than Assyrian designs, crewed by 2 men and drawn by 2 horses. The chariot and harness feature bronze fittings, such as the bosses decororating the cab, the bells around the horses' necks and frontlets protecting their foreheads. Armament comprises the bow and spear, the latter fixed at the rear of the cab. Urartian engraved seals depict the king in his chariot accompanied by an umbrella-bearer.