Hanun-Dagan (meaning " Dagan is merciful"), was the

Shakkanakku Shakkanakku ( Sumerian: , GIR.NITA or ''šagina'', , ''Shakkanakku''), was an Akkadian language title designating a military governor. Mari was ruled by a dynasty of hereditary Shakkanakkus which was originally set by the Akkadian Empire and gain ...

and king (

Lugal Lugal ( Sumerian: ) is the Sumerian term for "king, ruler". Literally, the term means "big man." In Sumerian, ''lu'' "𒇽" is "man" and ''gal'' " 𒃲" is "great," or "big." It was one of several Sumerian titles that a ruler of a city-state coul ...

) of Mari reigning c. 2016-2008 BC. He was the brother of his predecessor Hitlal-Erra, and is recorded as the son of Shakkanakku

Puzur-Ishtar Puzur-Ishtar (, ''Puzur4-Eš4-tár'', c. 2050–2025 BCE) was a ruler of the city of Mari, northern Mesopotamia, after the fall of the Akkadian Empire. He was contemporary of the Third Dynasty of Ur, and probably their vassal. He had several so ...

on a seal discovered in the city. Although the title of Shakkanakku designated a military governor, the title holders in Mari were independent monarchs, and nominally under the vassalage of the

Ur III The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century BC ( middle chronology) Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians consider t ...

dynasty. Some Shakkanakkus used the royal title

in their votive inscriptions, while using the title of Shakkanakku in their correspondence with the Ur's court, and it is certain that Hanun-Dagan used the royal title. Hanun-Dagan was a contemporary of

Ibbi-Sin Ibbi-Sin ( sux, , ), son of Shu-Sin, was king of Sumer and Akkad and last king of the Ur III dynasty, and reigned c. 2028–2004 BCE ( Middle chronology) or possibly c. 1964–1940 BCE (Short chronology). During his rei ...

of Ur, and is credited with renovating the

Royal Palace of Mari The Royal Palace of Mari was the royal residence of the rulers of the ancient kingdom of Mari in eastern Syria. Situated centrally amidst Palestine, Syria, Babylon, Levant, and other Mesopotamian city-states, Mari acted as the “middle-man� ...

. Unlike most of their predecessors who bore

Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to: * Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire * Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language * Akkadian literature, literature in this language * Akkadian cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo- syllabi ...

names, both Hanun-Dagan and his brother Hitlal-Erra bore

Amorite The Amorites (; sux, 𒈥𒌅, MAR.TU; Akkadian: 𒀀𒈬𒊒𒌝 or 𒋾𒀉𒉡𒌝/𒊎 ; he, אֱמוֹרִי, 'Ĕmōrī; grc, Ἀμορραῖοι) were an ancient Northwest Semitic-speaking people from the Levant who also occupied la ...

names, and seals in Mari records Hitlal-Erra as a military official under Puzur-Ishtar, leading Piotr Michalowski to suspect a coup that deposed the family of Puzur-Ishtar and replaced it with Hanun-Dagan's family. The succession of Shakkanakkus following Hanun-Dagan's reign is difficult to determine as the lists are full of gaps.

Citations

{{Early Rulers of Mesopotamia 21st-century BC rulers Kings of Mari 21st-century BC people