Lugalannatum (, ''lu-gal-an-na-tum'') was a ruler ("
patesi
Ensi (cuneiform: , "lord of the plowland"; Emesal dialect: ''umunsik''; akk, iššakkum, script=Latn, italic=yes) was a Sumerian title designating the ruler or prince of a city-state. Originally it may have designated an independent ruler, b ...
") of the city-state of
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 ...
, circa 2130 BCE.
Lugalannatum is known from a deposit tablet, now in the
Louvre Museum
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
, in which he mentions the rule of
Si'um
Si'um, also Siium, or Sium (, ''si-u-um'', ''fl.'' late 3rd millennium BCE) was the 18th Gutian ruler of the Gutian Dynasty of Sumer mentioned on the "''Sumerian King List''" (''SKL''). According to the ''SKL'': Si'um was the successor of Yarlaga ...
, king 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 ,'' ...
.
The tablet was first published in 1911, and first revealed the existence of a
Gutian dynasty of Sumer
The Gutian dynasty, also Kuti or Kutians ( Sumerian: , gu-ti-umKI) was a dynasty, originating among the Gutian people, that came to power in Mesopotamia ''c.'' 2199—2119 BC ( middle), or possibly ''c.'' 2135—2055 BC (short), after displacing t ...
.
The tablet is written in the
Akkadian language
Akkadian (, Akkadian: )John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages''. Ed. Roger D. Woodard (2004, Cambridge) Pages 218-280 is an extinct East Semitic language th ...
following the influence of the former
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 ...
, and uses
Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. It is one of the cradles of c ...
ian
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 ...
characters for their phonetical value.
It reads:
The name of the Temple, previously thought to be "Ê PA Temple", is now understood as being "Scepter Temple", and read ''E.GIDRU''.
The text shows the allegiance of Lugalannatum, as simple Governor of Umma, towards the Gutian king of Sumer.
["From a text recently found at Jokha we also know that ]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 could ...
-annatum, patesi of Umma, Lugalannatum patesi of Umma, owed allegiance to Sium, King of Guti"
There is also an inscription by Lugalannatum, dedicated to the life of Urgigir.
Gutium
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 ,''G ...
in the tablet (last column: , gu-ti-umKI)
References
{{Rulers of Sumer
Kings of Umma
22nd-century BC Sumerian kings