Dudu ( sux, , ), was a 22nd-century BC king of the

Akkadian Empire The Akkadian Empire () was the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia after the long-lived civilization of Sumer. It was centered in the city of Akkad (city), Akkad () and its surrounding region. The empire united Akkadian language, Akkadian and ...

, who reigned for 21 years according to the ''

Sumerian king list The ''Sumerian King List'' (abbreviated ''SKL'') or ''Chronicle of the One Monarchy'' is an ancient literary composition written in Sumerian that was likely created and redacted to legitimize the claims to power of various city-states and king ...

''. He is depicted as becoming king during the time of relative anarchy that had followed the death of

Shar-Kali-Sharri Shar-Kali-Sharri (, '' DShar-ka-li-Sharri''; reigned c. 2217–2193 BC middle chronology, c. 2153–2129 BC short chronology) was a king of the Akkadian Empire. Rule Succeeding his father Naram-Sin in c. 2217 BC, he came to the throne in an age ...

. The king list mentions four other figures who had been competing for the throne during a three-year period after Sharkalisharri's death. There are no other surviving records referencing any of these competitors, but a few artifacts with inscriptions confirming Dudu's rule over an Akkadian

rump state A rump state is the remnant of a once much larger state, left with a reduced territory in the wake of secession, annexation, occupation, decolonization, or a successful coup d'état or revolution on part of its former territory. In the last case, ...

that may have included little more than the capital,

Akkad Akkad may refer to: *Akkad (city), the capital of the Akkadian Empire *Akkadian Empire, the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia *Akkad SC, Iraqi football club People with the name *Abbas el-Akkad, Egyptian writer *Abdulrahman Akkad, Syrian LGBT act ...

itself. His inscriptions present him simply as "King of Akkad": He also seems to have campaigned against former Akkadian subjects to the south, including

Girsu Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq. History Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sign ...

Umma Umma ( sux, ; in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, formerly also called Gishban) was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell J ...

and

Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

. Dudu is said to have campaigned against

(vicinity of

)."One of its kings, Dudu, campaigned against Umma and Susa, but Agade was thereafter an unimportant place, although attested into the

Achaemenid period The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...

" in One inscription relates directly to his destruction of

: Dudu may also have campaigned against

, but this depends on a dubious interpretation of one of his year names. Unlike preceding Akkadian kings, there are no certain "year names" known from this time, thus it is unlikely that Dudu could have actually reigned so long. An alabaster vase in the Louvre Museum, since the year 2000, has the following inscription: The inroads of the

Gutians The Guti () or Quti, also known by the derived exonyms Gutians or Guteans, were a nomadic people of West Asia, around the Zagros Mountains (Modern Iran) during ancient times. Their homeland was known as Gutium ( Sumerian: ,''Gu-tu-umki'' or ,'' ...

seem to have caused a fairly rapid collapse of Akkadian power during this period of instability, and it has even been suggested that one of the four named rivals for the throne,

Ilulu Ilulu or Elulu, according to the ''Sumerian King List'', was one of four rivals (the others being Igigi, Imi, and Nanum) vying to be king of the Akkadian Empire during a three-year period following the death of Shar-kali-sharri. This chaotic per ...

, was himself a Gutian ruler. After this period, it seems Agade became much less important. Dudu was succeeded by his son

Shu-turul Shu-turul (Shu-durul, , ''shu-tur2-ul3'') was the last king of the Akkadian Empire, ruling for 15 years according to the Sumerian king list. It indicates that he succeeded his father Dudu. A few artifacts, seal impressions etc. attest that he he ...

per the king list, who became the last known king of the

. File:Alabaster vase of Dudu of Akkad-AO 31549 (transcription).jpg, "Dudu, Great King of Akkad" (, ''Du-du da-num lugal a-ga-de3(ki)'') on the Dudu alabaster vase. File:King Dudu of Agade, alabaster vase inscription for Nergal.jpg, King Dudu of Agade, complete alabaster vase inscription (transcription in standard Sumero-Akkadian

cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo-syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge-sha ...

): "Dudu, the Great king of Akkad, for Nergal of Apiak has dedicated this". File:Akkadkings.jpg, Dudu in the Akkadian family tree

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dudu of Akkad 22nd-century BC kings of Akkad Sumerian rulers Akkadian kings