Abba-El I (reigned -

Middle chronology The chronology of the ancient Near East is a framework of dates for various events, rulers and dynasties. Historical inscriptions and texts customarily record events in terms of a succession of officials or rulers: "in the year X of king Y". Com ...

) was the king of

Yamhad Yamhad was an ancient Semitic kingdom centered on Ḥalab (Aleppo), Syria. The kingdom emerged at the end of the 19th century BC, and was ruled by the Yamhadite dynasty kings, who counted on both military and diplomacy to expand their realm. ...

(

Halab )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

), succeeding his father

Hammurabi I Hammurabi I (reigned - Middle chronology) is the third attested king of Yamhad (Halab). Early life Hammurabi was the son of Yarim-Lim I, and his mother was Queen Gashera. His private secretary as a crown prince was Sin-Abushu and is known from t ...

Reign

Hammurabi I left Yamhad a prosperous country, and Abba-El's reign was relatively peaceful. He maintained good commercial relations with

Babylon ''Bābili(m)'' * sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 * arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel'' * syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel'' * grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn'' * he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel'' * peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru'' * elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...

. The main event of his reign was the rebellion of Zitraddu, governor of the city

Irridu Irridu (Irrite) was a city in northwestern Mesopotamia, likely located between Harran and Carchemish. It flourished in the middle and late Bronze Age before being destroyed by Assyria. History The city was first mentioned in a letter from the king ...

which belonged along with its district to Abba-El's brother Yarim-Lim A tablet discovered at

Alalakh Alalakh (''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 A ...

explains the circumstances which led to the forming of the kingdom of Alalakh; it revealed that Abba-El destroyed Irridu and compensated his brother by giving him Alalakh as a hereditary kingdom for his dynasty under the suzerainty of

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

but that it should be forfeited if Yarim-Lim or his descendants committed treason against Yamhad. Abba-El took an oath upon himself not to confiscate his brother's new kingdom and that he might be cursed if he ever did. In return Yarim-Lim took an oath of loyalty to his brother, specifying that if he or his descendants ever committed treason or spilled Abba-El's secrets to another king, their lands would be forfeited. The

Hurrians The Hurrians (; cuneiform: ; transliteration: ''Ḫu-ur-ri''; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri or Hurriter) were a people of the Bronze Age Near East. They spoke a Hurrian language and lived in Anatolia, Syria and Northern Mes ...

's influence seems clear during Abba-El's reign, as he recalls the help given to him by the Hurrian Goddess Hebat.

Death and Ancestors

Abba-El died in ca. 1720 BC and was succeeded by

Yarim-Lim II Yarim-Lim II (reigned - Middle chronology ) was the king of Yamhad (Halab, Aleppo) succeeding his father Abba-El I. Reign Little of Aleppo has been excavated by archaeologists and knowledge about Yamhad and its kings mainly comes from tablets di ...

, who most probably was his son; however, Moshe Weinfeld believes that Yarim-Lim II was the same as Yarim-Lim of Alalakh.

References

Citations

{{reflist, 2 18th-century BC rulers Kings of Yamhad People from Aleppo Amorite kings Yamhad dynasty 18th-century people