Sargon of Akkad (; akk, , Šarrugi), also known as Sargon the Great, was the first ruler 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 () and its surrounding region. The empire united Akkadian and Sumerian speakers under one ...

, known for his conquests of the Sumerian

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

s in the 24th to 23rd centuries BC.The date of the reign of Sargon is highly uncertain, depending entirely on the (conflicting) regnal years given in the various copies of the Sumerian King List, specifically the uncertain duration of the

Gutian dynasty 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 ...

. The added regnal years of the Sargonic and the Gutian dynasties have to be subtracted from the accession of

Ur-Nammu Ur-Nammu (or Ur-Namma, Ur-Engur, Ur-Gur, Sumerian: , ruled c. 2112 BC – 2094 BC middle chronology, or possibly c. 2048–2030 BC short chronology) founded the Sumerian Third Dynasty of Ur, in southern Mesopotamia, following several centuries ...

of the

Third Dynasty of Ur 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 ...

, which is variously dated to either 2047 BC ( Short Chronology) or 2112 BC (

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 ...

). An accession date of Sargon of 2334 BC assumes: (1) a Sargonic dynasty of 180 years (fall of Akkad 2154 BC), (2) a Gutian interregnum of 42 years and (3) the Middle Chronology accession year of Ur-Nammu (2112 BC). He is sometimes identified as the first person in

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...

to rule over an

empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

. He was the founder of the "Sargonic" or "Old Akkadian" dynasty, which ruled for about a century after his death until the Gutian conquest of Sumer. The Sumerian King List makes him the

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person must have been regarded as ...

to King

Ur-Zababa Ur-Zababa is listed on the '' Sumerian King List'' as the second king of the 4th Dynasty of Kish. This text also records that Ur-Zababa had appointed Sargon of Akkad as his cup-bearer. Sargon was later the ruler of the Akkadian Empire. Family ...

Kish Kish may refer to: Geography * Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish * Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish * Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf * Kish, Iran, ...

. His empire is thought to have included most of

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

, parts of the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is ...

, besides incursions into

Hurrian 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 ...

and Elamite territory, ruling from his (archaeologically as yet unidentified) capital, Akkad. Sargon appears as a legendary figure in

Neo-Assyrian The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew t ...

literature of the 8th to 7th centuries BC. Tablets with fragments of a ''Sargon Birth Legend'' were found in the Library of Ashurbanipal.

Name

The Akkadian name is normalized as either ''Šarru-ukīn'' or ''Šarru-kēn''. The name's cuneiform spelling is variously

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 ...

-''ú-kin'', ''šar-ru-gen''₆, ''šar-ru-ki-in'', ''šar-ru-um-ki-in''. In

Old Babylonian Old Babylonian may refer to: *the period of the First Babylonian dynasty (20th to 16th centuries BC) *the historical stage of the Akkadian language Akkadian (, Akkadian: )John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Camb ...

tablets relating the legends of Sargon, his name is transcribed as (''Šar-ru-um-ki-in'').Cooper, Jerrold S. and Wolfgang Heimpel, "The Sumerian Sargon Legend", Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 103, no. 1, pp. 67–82, January–March 1983 In Late Assyrian references, the name is mostly spelled as LUGAL-GI.NA or LUGAL-GIN, i.e. identical to the name of the Neo-Assyrian king Sargon II.Eckart Frahm
"Observations on the Name and Age of Sargon II and on Some Patterns of Assyrian Royal Onomastics"
''NABU'' 2005.2, 46–50. The spelling ''Sargon'' is derived from the single mention of the name (in reference to Sargon II) in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Isaiah 20:1. The first element in the name is '' šarru'', the Akkadian (East Semitic) for "king" (c.f. Hebrew ''śar'' ). The second element is derived from the verb ''kīnum'' "to confirm, establish" (related to Hebrew ''kūn'' ). A possible interpretation of the reading ''Šarru-ukīn'' is "the king has established (stability)" or "he he godhas established the king". Such a name would however be unusual; other names in ''-ukīn'' always include both a subject and an object, as in ''Šamaš-šuma-ukīn'' " Shamash has established an heir". There is some debate over whether the name was an adopted regnal name or a birth name. The reading ''Šarru-kēn'' has been interpreted adjectivally, as "the king is established; legitimate", expanded as a phrase ''šarrum ki(e)num''. The terms "Pre-Sargonic" and "Post-Sargonic" were used in Assyriology based on the chronologies of Nabonidus before the historical existence of Sargon of Akkad was confirmed. The form ''Šarru-ukīn'' was known from the Assyrian Sargon Legend discovered in 1867 in Library of Ashurbanipal at Nineveh. A contemporary reference to Sargon thought to have been found on the cylinder seal of Ibni-sharru, a high-ranking official serving under Sargon.

Joachim Menant Joachim Menant (16 April 1820 – 30 August 1899) was a French magistrate and orientalist. He was born in Cherbourg. He studied law and became vice-president of the tribunal civil of Rouen in 1878, and a member of the court of appeal three ye ...

published a description of this seal in 1877, reading the king's name as ''Shegani-shar-lukh'', and did not yet identify it with "Sargon the Elder" (who was identified with the Old Assyrian king

Sargon I Sargon I (also transcribed as Šarru-kīn I and Sharru-ken I) was the king (Išši’ak Aššur, "Steward of Assur") during the Old Assyrian period from 1920 BC to 1881 BC. On the Assyrian King List, Sargon appears as the son and successor of Ik ...

). In 1883, the British Museum acquired the "mace-head of Shar-Gani-sharri", a votive gift deposited at the temple of Shamash in

Sippar Sippar ( Sumerian: , Zimbir) was an ancient Near Eastern Sumerian and later Babylonian city on the east bank of the Euphrates river. Its '' tell'' is located at the site of modern Tell Abu Habbah near Yusufiyah in Iraq's Baghdad Governorate, som ...

. This "Shar-Gani" was identified with the Sargon of Agade of Assyrian legend. The identification of "Shar-Gani-sharri" with Sargon was recognised as mistaken in the 1910s. Shar-Gani-sharri (

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 ...

) is, in fact, Sargon's great-grandson, the successor of Naram-Sin. It is not entirely clear whether the Neo-Assyrian king Sargon II was directly named for Sargon of Akkad, as there is some uncertainty whether his name should be rendered ''Šarru-ukīn'' or as ''Šarru-kēn(u)''.

Chronology

Primary sources pertaining to Sargon are sparse; the main near-contemporary reference is that in the various versions of the '' Sumerian King List''. Here, Sargon is mentioned as the son of a gardener, former cup-bearer of

. He usurped the kingship from

Lugal-zage-si Lugal-Zage-Si ( ; frequently spelled ''Lugalzaggesi'', sometimes ''Lugalzagesi'' or "Lugal-Zaggisi") of Umma (reigned c. 2358 - 2334 BCE middle chronology) was the last Sumerian king before the conquest of Sumer by Sargon of Akkad and the rise o ...

Uruk Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...

and took it to his own city of Akkad. The later (early 2nd millennium BC) Weidner chronicle has Sargon ruling directly after Ur-Zababa and does not mention Lugal-zage-si. Various copies of the king list give the duration of his reign as either 40 or 54–56 years. Only a few contemporary inscriptions relating to Sargon exist, though there are a number of Old Babylonian period texts that purport to be copies of earlier inscriptions of Sargon. In absolute years, his reign would correspond to c. 2334–2279 BC in the

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 ...

. His successors until the Gutian conquest of Sumer are also known as the "Sargonic Dynasty" and their rule as the "Sargonic Period" of Mesopotamian history. Foster (1982) argued that the reading of 55 years as the duration of Sargon's reign was, in fact, a corruption of an original interpretation of 37 years. An older version of the king list gives Sargon's reign as lasting for 40 years.

Thorkild Jacobsen Thorkild Peter Rudolph Jacobsen (; 7 June 1904 – 2 May 1993) was a renowned Danish historian specializing in Assyriology and Sumerian literature. He was one of the foremost scholars on the ancient Near East. Biography Thorkild Peter Rudolph Ja ...

marked the clause about Sargon's father being a gardener as a

lacuna Lacuna (plural lacunas or lacunae) may refer to: Related to the meaning "gap" * Lacuna (manuscripts), a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or musical work ** Great Lacuna, a lacuna of eight leaves where there was heroic Old Norse p ...

, indicating his uncertainty about its meaning. The claim that Sargon was the original founder of Akkad has been called into question with the discovery of an inscription mentioning the place and dated to the first year of

Enshakushanna Enshakushanna ( sux, , ), or Enshagsagana, En-shag-kush-ana, Enukduanna, En-Shakansha-Ana, En-šakušuana was a king of Uruk around the mid-3rd millennium BC who is named on the '' Sumerian King List'', which states his reign to have been 60 year ...

, who almost certainly preceded him. The ''Weidner Chronicle'' (

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

19:51) states that it was Sargon who "built Babylon in front of Akkad". The ''

Chronicle of Early Kings The Chronicle of Early Kings, Chronicle 20 in Grayson’s ''Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles'' and Mesopotamian Chronicle 40 in Glassner’s ''Chroniques mésopotamiennes'' is preserved on two tablets, tablet ABM 26472 (98-5-14, 290) tablet A. ...

'' (ABC 20:18–19) likewise states that late in his reign, Sargon "dug up the soil of the pit of Babylon, and made a counterpart of Babylon next to Agade". Van de Mieroop suggested that those two chronicles may refer to the much later Assyrian king, Sargon II of the

Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history and the final and greatest phase of Assyria as an independent state. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew t ...

, rather than to Sargon of Akkad.

Year names

While various copies of the Sumerian king list and later Babylonian chronicles credit Sargon with a reign length ranging from 34 to 56 years, dated documents have been found for only four different year-names of his actual reign. The names of these four years describe his campaigns against Elam, Mari,

Simurrum The Simurrum Kingdom ( akk, 𒋛𒈬𒌨𒊑𒅎: ''Si-mu-ur-ri-im'') was an important city state of the Mesopotamian area from around 2000 BCE to 1500 BCE, during the period of the Akkadian Empire down to Ur III. The Simurrum Kingdom disappears fr ...

, and Uru'a/Arawa (in western Elam).

Historiography

''Šar-ru-gi lugal'' "King Sargon") appears faintly in front of his face. Clothing is comparable to those seen on the cylinder seal of Kalki, in which appears the likely brother of Sargon. Circa 2300 BC.

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 ...

. Numerous other inscriptions related to Sargon are known.

Nippur inscription

Prisoners on the victory stele of an Akkadian king circa 2300 BCE Louvre Museum Sb 3

Among the most important sources for Sargon's reign is a tablet, in two fragments, of the

period recovered at Nippur in the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

expedition in the 1890s. The tablet is a copy of the inscriptions on the pedestal of a statue erected by Sargon in the temple of Enlil. Fragment one (CBS 13972) was edited by

Arno Poebel Arno Poebel (1881–1958) was a German Assyriologist. He studied theology and classical philology in Heidelberg, Marburg, Zürich and Jena. In 1905/6, he worked with Sumerian documents at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology an ...

and fragment two (Ni 3200) by Leon Legrain.

Conquest of Sumer

In the inscription, Sargon styles himself "Sargon, king of Akkad, overseer (''mashkim'') of Inanna, king of Kish, anointed (''guda'') of Anu, king of the land esopotamia governor (''ensi'') of Enlil". It celebrates the conquest of

and the defeat of

Lugalzagesi Lugal-Zage-Si ( ; frequently spelled ''Lugalzaggesi'', sometimes ''Lugalzagesi'' or "Lugal-Zaggisi") of Umma (reigned c. 2358 - 2334 BCE middle chronology) was the last Sumerian king before the conquest of Sumer by Sargon of Akkad and the rise o ...

, whom Sargon brought "in a collar to the gate of Enlil":Mario Liverani, "The Ancient Near East: History", Routledge (2013)
p. 143
/ref> Sargon then conquered Ur and E-Ninmar and "laid waste" the territory from

Lagash Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...

to the sea, and from there went on to conquer and destroy

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 ...

Conquest of Upper Mesopotamia, as far as the Mediterranean Sea

Submitting himself to the (Levantine god) Dagan, Sargon conquered territories of

Upper Mesopotamia Upper Mesopotamia is the name used for the uplands and great outwash plain of northwestern Iraq, northeastern Syria and southeastern Turkey, in the northern Middle East. Since the early Muslim conquests of the mid-7th century, the region has been ...

and the

, including Mari, Yarmuti (

Jarmuth Jarmuth, Hebrew: Yarmut (יַרְמוּת), was the name of two cities in the land of Canaan.Lemche (2010), p160 The Douai-Rheims version of the Bible has an alternative spelling, Jaramoth. Jarmuth near Beit Shemesh Jarmuth was an Amorite ci ...

?) and

Ibla Ragusa (; scn, Rausa ; la, Ragusia) is a city and ''comune'' in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Ragusa, on the island of Sicily, with 73,288 inhabitants in 2016. It is built on a wide limestone hill between two deep valley ...

"up to the Cedar Forest (the

Amanus The Nur Mountains ( tr, Nur Dağları, "Mountains of Holy Light"), formerly known as Alma-Dağ, the ancient Amanus ( grc, Ἁμανός), medieval Black Mountain, or Jabal al-Lukkam in Arabic, is a mountain range in the Hatay Province of south ...

) and up to the Silver Mountain ( Aladagh?)", ruling from the "upper sea" (Mediterranean) to the "lower sea" (Persian Gulf).

Conquests of Elam and Marhashi

Sargon also claims in his inscriptions that he is "Sargon, king of the world, conqueror of Elam and

Parahshum Marhaši ( Sumerian: ''Mar-ḫa-šiKI'' , ''Marhashi'', ''Marhasi'', ''Parhasi'', ''Barhasi''; in earlier sources Waraḫše. Akkadian: "Parahshum" ''pa2-ra-ah-shum2-ki'') was a 3rd millennium BC polity situated east of Elam, on the Iranian platea ...

", the two major polities to the east of Sumer. He also names various rulers of the east whom he vanquished, such as " Luh-uh-ish-an, son of Hishibrasini, king of Elam, king of Elam" or "Sidga'u, general of Parahshum", who later also appears in an inscription by

Rimush Rimush (or Rimuš, ''Ri-mu-uš'') was the second king of the Akkadian Empire. He was the son of Sargon of Akkad and Queen Tashlultum. He was succeeded by his brother Manishtushu, and was an uncle of Naram-Sin of Akkad. Rimush reported having a s ...

. Sargon triumphed over 34 cities in total. Ships from

Meluhha or ( sux, ) is the Sumerian language, Sumerian name of a prominent trading partner of Sumer during the Middle Bronze Age. Its identification remains an open question, but most scholars associate it with the Indus Valley civilisation. Etymolo ...

Magan Magan may refer to: Places *Magan (civilization), also written Makan or Makkan, an ancient region referred to in Sumerian texts *Magan, Russia, a rural locality (a ''selo'') in the Sakha Republic, Russia *Magan Airport, an airport in the Sakha Re ...

and

Dilmun Dilmun, or Telmun, ( Sumerian: , later 𒉌𒌇(𒆠), ni.tukki = DILMUNki; ar, دلمون) was an ancient East Semitic-speaking civilization in Eastern Arabia mentioned from the 3rd millennium BC onwards. Based on contextual evidence, it was ...

, rode at anchor in his capital of Akkad. He entertained a court or standing army of 5,400 men who "ate bread daily before him".

Later literary composition on Sargon

Sargon Epos

Cylinder seal of the scribe Kalki (photograph)

A group of four Babylonian texts, summarized as "Sargon Epos" or ''Res Gestae Sargonis'', shows Sargon as a military commander asking the advice of many subordinates before going on campaigns. The narrative of ''Sargon, the Conquering Hero,'' is set at Sargon's court, in a situation of crisis. Sargon addresses his warriors, praising the virtue of heroism, and a lecture by a courtier on the glory achieved by a champion of the army, a narrative relating a campaign of Sargon's into the far land of ''Uta-raspashtim'', including an account of a "darkening of the Sun" and the conquest of the land of ''Simurrum'', and a concluding oration by Sargon listing his conquests. Akkadian official in the retinue of Sargon of Akkad, holding an axe

Akkadian official in the retinue of Sargon of Akkad, holding an axe

The narrative of ''

King of Battle The King of Battle, or šar tamḫāri, is an ancient Mesopotamian epic tale of Sargon of Akkad and his campaign against the city of Purušḫanda in the Anatolian highlands and its king, Nur-DaggalWhere the Hittite version, l''Nu-úr-da-aḫ-ḫ ...

'' relates Sargon's campaign against the Anatolian city of Purushanda in order to protect his merchants. Versions of this narrative in both Hittite and Akkadian have been found. The Hittite version is extant in six fragments, the Akkadian version is known from several manuscripts found at Amarna, Assur, and Nineveh.
Joan Goodnick Westenholz, "Legends of the Kings of Akkade: The Texts", Eisenbrauns, 1997 The narrative is anachronistic, portraying Sargon in a 19th-century milieu. The same text mentions that Sargon crossed the Sea of the West (

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

) and ended up in Kuppara, which some authors have interpreted as the Akkadian word for

Keftiu Caphtor ( he, ''Kaftōr'') is a locality mentioned in the Bible, in which its people are called Caphtorites or Caphtorim and are named as a division of the ancient Egyptians. Caphtor is also mentioned in ancient inscriptions from Egypt, Mari, a ...

, an ancient locale usually associated with

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

. Famine and war threatened Sargon's empire during the latter years of his reign. The ''Chronicle of Early Kings'' reports that revolts broke out throughout the area under the last years of his overlordship:

A. Leo Oppenheim Adolf Leo Oppenheim (7 June 1904 – 21 July 1974), one of the most distinguished Assyriologists of his generation was editor-in-charge of the ''Chicago Assyrian Dictionary'' of the Oriental Institute from 1955 to 1974 and John A. Wilson Profe ...

translates the last sentence as "From the East to the West he .e. Mardukalienated (them) from him and inflicted upon (him as punishment) that he could not rest (in his grave)."

''Chronicle of Early Kings''

Prisoner exiting a cage, on an Akkadian Empire victory stele circa 2300 BCE, Louvre Museum

Shortly after securing Sumer, Sargon embarked on a series of campaigns to subjugate the entire

Fertile Crescent The Fertile Crescent ( ar, الهلال الخصيب) is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan, together with the northern region of Kuwait, southeastern region of ...

. According to the ''

'', a later Babylonian historiographical text: In the east, Sargon defeated four leaders of Elam, led by the king of

Awan Awan may refer to: Places * Awan (ancient city), a city-state in Elam in the 3rd millennium BCE * Awan (region), a town in Guna district, Madhya Pradesh, India * Awan, Bhulath, a village in Kapurthala district, Punjab, India, Punjab, Pakistan * ...

. Their cities were sacked; the governors, viceroys, and kings of Susa, Waraḫše, and neighboring districts became vassals of Akkad.

Origin legends

Sargon became the subject of legendary narratives describing his rise to power from humble origins and his conquest of Mesopotamia in later Assyrian and Babylonian literature. Apart from these secondary, and partly legendary, accounts, there are many inscriptions due to Sargon himself, although the majority of these are known only from much later copies. The

Louvre 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 ...

has fragments of two Sargonic victory steles recovered from Susa (where they were presumably transported from Mesopotamia in the 12th century BC).

Sumerian legend

The Sumerian-language ''Sargon legend'' contains a legendary account of Sargon's rise to power. It is an older version of the previously known Assyrian legend, discovered in 1974 in Nippur and first edited in 1983. Subsequent scholoarship questioned if the two fragments were actually a join, or were even from two different texts. The initial translation has also been questioned. The extant versions are incomplete, but the surviving two fragments name Sargon's father as La'ibum. After a

, the text skips to

, king of

, who awakens after a dream, the contents of which are not revealed on the surviving portion of the tablet. For unknown reasons, Ur-Zababa appoints Sargon as his

. Soon after this, Ur-Zababa invites Sargon to his chambers to discuss a dream of Sargon's, involving the favor of the goddess Inanna and the drowning of Ur-Zababa by the goddess in a river of blood. Deeply frightened, Ur-Zababa orders Sargon murdered by the hands of Beliš-tikal, the chief smith, but Inanna prevents it, demanding that Sargon stop at the gates because of his being "polluted with blood". When Sargon returns to Ur-Zababa, the king becomes frightened again and decides to send Sargon to king

with a message on a clay tablet asking him to slay Sargon. The legend breaks off at this point; presumably, the missing sections described how Sargon becomes king. 2015-12 Birth Sargon of Akkad Louvre-AO 7673

2015-12 Birth Sargon of Akkad Louvre-AO 7673

The part of the interpretation of the king's dream has parallels to the biblical story of

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

, the part about the letter with the carrier's death sentence has similarities to the Greek story of Bellerophon and the biblical story of Uriah.

Birth legend

A Neo-Assyrian text from the 7th century BC purporting to be Sargon's autobiography asserts that the great king was the illegitimate son of a priestess. Only the beginning of the text (the first two columns) is known, from the fragments of three manuscripts. The first fragments were discovered as early as 1850. Sargon's birth and his early childhood are described thus: Similarities between the Sargon Birth Legend and other infant birth exposures in ancient literature, including Moses,

Karna Karna (Sanskrit: कर्ण, IAST: ''Karṇa''), also known as Vasusena, Anga-raja, and Radheya, is one of the main protagonists of the Hindu epic '' Mahābhārata''. He is the son of the sun god Surya and princess Kunti (mother of the ...

, and Oedipus, were noted by psychoanalyst

Otto Rank Otto Rank (; ; né Rosenfeld; 22 April 1884 – 31 October 1939) was an Austrian psychoanalyst, writer, and philosopher. Born in Vienna, he was one of Sigmund Freud's closest colleagues for 20 years, a prolific writer on psychoanalytic themes, ...

in his 1909 book ''

The Myth of the Birth of the Hero ''The Myth of the Birth of the Hero'' (german: Der Mythus von der Geburt des Helden) is a book by German psychoanalyst Otto Rank in which the author puts forth a psychoanalytical interpretation of mythological heroes, specifically with regard to ...

''. The legend was also studied in detail by Brian Lewis, and compared with many different examples of the infant birth exposure motif found in Eurasian folktales. He discusses a possible archetype form, giving particular attention to the Sargon legend and the account of the birth of Moses. Joseph Campbell has also made such comparisons. Sargon is also one of the many suggestions for the identity or inspiration for the biblical

Nimrod Nimrod (; ; arc, ܢܡܪܘܕ; ar, نُمْرُود, Numrūd) is a biblical figure mentioned in the Book of Genesis and Books of Chronicles. The son of Cush and therefore a great-grandson of Noah, Nimrod was described as a king in the land of ...

. Ewing William (1910) suggested Sargon based on his unification of the Babylonians and the Neo-Assyrian birth legend. Yigal Levin (2002) suggested that Nimrod was a recollection of Sargon and his grandson Naram-Sin, with the name "Nimrod" derived from the latter.

Family

The name of Sargon's main wife, Queen Tashlultum, and those of a number of his children are known to us. His daughter

Enheduanna Enheduanna ( sux, , also transliterated as , , or variants) was the priestess of the moon god Nanna (Sīn) in the Sumerian city-state of Ur in the reign of her father, Sargon of Akkad. She was likely appointed by her father as the leader of t ...

was a high priestess of the moon God in Ur who composed ritual hymns. Many of her works, including her ''Exaltation of Inanna'', were in use for centuries thereafter. Sargon was succeeded by his son

; after Rimush's death another son,

Manishtushu Manishtushu (, ''Ma-an-ish-tu-su'') was the third king of the Akkadian Empire, reigning from c. 2270 BC until his assassination in 2255 BC (Middle Chronology). He was the son of Sargon the Great, the founder of the Akkadian Empire, and he was su ...

, became king. Manishtushu would be succeeded by his own son, Naram-Sin. Two other sons, Shu-Enlil (Ibarum) and Ilaba'is-takal (Abaish-Takal), are known. Sargon of Akkad is sometimes identified as the first person in

to rule over an

(in the sense of the central government of a multi-ethnic territory), although earlier Sumerian rulers such as

might have a similar claim. His rule also heralds the history of Semitic empires in the Ancient Near East, which, following the

Neo-Sumerian 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 to ...

interruption (21st/20th centuries BC), lasted for close to fifteen centuries until the

Achaemenid 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 ...

conquest following the 539 BC

Battle of Opis The Battle of Opis was the last major military engagement between the Achaemenid Persian Empire and the Neo-Babylonian Empire, which took place in September 539 BC, during the Persian invasion of Mesopotamia. At the time, Babylonia was the l ...

. Sargon was regarded as a model by Mesopotamian kings for some two millennia after his death. The Assyrian and Babylonian kings who based their empires in Mesopotamia saw themselves as the heirs of Sargon's empire. Sargon may indeed have introduced the notion of "empire" as understood in the later Assyrian period; the Neo-Assyrian ''Sargon Text'', written in the first person, has Sargon challenging later rulers to "govern the black-headed people" (i.e. the

indigenous population Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

of Mesopotamia) as he did. An important source for "Sargonic heroes" in oral tradition in the later Bronze Age is a Middle Hittite (15th century BC) record of a Hurro-Hittite song, which calls upon Sargon and his immediate successors as "deified kings" (^d''šarrena''). Sargon shared his name with two later Mesopotamian kings.

was a king of the

Old Assyrian period The Old Assyrian period was the second stage of Assyrian history, covering the history of the city of Assur from its rise as an independent city-state under Puzur-Ashur I 2025 BC to the foundation of a larger Assyrian territorial state after th ...

presumably named after Sargon of Akkad. Sargon II was a Neo-Assyrian king named after Sargon of Akkad; it is this king whose name was rendered ''Sargon'' () in the Hebrew Bible (

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

20:1). Neo-Babylonian king Nabonidus showed great interest in the history of the Sargonid dynasty and even conducted excavations of Sargon's palaces and those of his successors.Oates, John. ''Babylon''. London: Thames and Hudson, 1979, p. 162.

In popular culture

Battle between the Sumerians and Semites

The fanciful adventure film '' The Scorpion King: Rise of a Warrior'' (2008) imagines Sargon of Akkad as a murderous army commander wielding

black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...

. He is the film's main villain, portrayed by

Randy Couture Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American actor, former U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial artist and former collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestler. During his tenures in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), he becam ...

. The twentieth episode of the second season of ''

Star Trek: The Original Series ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry that follows the adventures of the starship and its crew. It later acquired the retronym of ''Star Trek: The Original Series'' (''TOS'') to distinguis ...

'', "

Return to Tomorrow "Return to Tomorrow" is the twentieth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek''. Written by John T. Dugan (under the pen-name "John Kingsbridge") and directed by Ralph Senensky, it was first ...

", features an ancient, telepathic alien named Sargon who once ruled a mighty empire. American Rock Group

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a ...

refer to Sargon of Akkad in the track "The Mesopotamians" on their 2007 album

The Else ''The Else'' is the twelfth studio album by rock group They Might Be Giants, released by Idlewild Records in 2007. The album was produced in part by The Dust Brothers, along with Pat Dillett and the band. ''The Else'' was first available for ...

, along with

Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian: ; ) was the sixth Amorite king of the Old Babylonian Empire, reigning from to BC. He was preceded by his father, Sin-Muballit, who abdicated due to failing health. During his reign, he conquered Elam and the city-states ...

, Ashurbanipal and

Gilgamesh sux, , label=none , image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg , alt = , caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assy ...

Carl Benjamin Carl Benjamin (born 1979), also known by his online pseudonym Sargon of Akkad, is a British far-right anti-feminist YouTuber and political commentator. A former member of the Eurosceptic right-wing UK Independence Party (UKIP), he was one o ...

, British right-wing YouTuber and political commentator, goes by the online pseudonym "Sargon of Akkad" on his YouTube channel. The ''Return of Rome'' expansion pack for the video game '' Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition'' features a campaign called "Sargon of Akkad", which depicts his conquest of Sumer and the rise of the Akkadian Empire. Sargon of Akkad (1936)

Notes

References

*Albright, W. F., "A Babylonian Geographical Treatise on Sargon of Akkad's Empire", Journal of the American Oriental Society, pp. 193–245, 1925 *Bachvarova, Mary R., "Sargon the Great: from history to myth", in From Hittite to Homer: The Anatolian Background of Ancient Greek Epic, pp. 166–198, Cambridge University Press, 2016 * Beaulieu, Paul-Alain, et al., "A Companion to the Ancient near East", Blackwell, 2005 *Botsforth, George W., "The Reign of Sargon", "A Source-Book of Ancient History", New York: Macmillan, 1912 *Foster, Benjamin R., "The Age of Agade. Inventing Empire in Ancient Mesopotamia", Routledge, 2016 *Glassner, Jean-Jacques, "Mesopotamian Chronicles", Society of Biblical Literature, 2004 *Grayson, Albert Kirk, "Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles", J. J. Augustin, 1975; Eisenbrauns, 2000

horkild Jacobsen, Jacobsen, Thorkild, "The Sumerian King List", Assyriological Studies, AS 11, Chicago: Oriental Institute, 1939

eonard William King, King, L. W., "Chronicles Concerning Early Babylonian Kings", II, London, pp. 87–96, 1907 * Kramer, S. Noah, "The Sumerians: Their History, Culture and Character", Chicago, 1963 *Kramer, S. Noah, "History Begins at Sumer: Thirty-Nine "Firsts" in Recorded History", Univ. of Pennsylvania Press, 1981 *Lewis, Brian, "The Sargon Legend: A Study of the Akkadian Text and the Tale of the Hero Who Was Exposed at Birth", American Schools of Oriental Research Dissertation Series, no. 4, Cambridge, MA: American Schools of Oriental Research, 1984 *Luckenbill, D. D., "On the Opening Lines of the Legend of Sargon", The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, pp. 145–46, 1917 *Postgate, Nicholas. "Early Mesopotamia: Society and Economy at the Dawn of History", Routledge, 1994 *Roux, G., "Ancient Iraq", London, 1980 *Sallaberger, Walter, "Mesopotamien. Akkade-Zeit und Ur III-Zeit", Annäherungen 3. OBO 160/3. Freiburg, Schweiz/Göttingen, 1999 *Schomp, Virginia, "Ancient Mesopotamia", Franklin Watts, 2005 * Van de Mieroop, Marc, "A History of the Ancient Near East: ca. 3000–323 BC", Blackwell, 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sargon of Akkad 24th-century BC kings of Akkad 23rd-century BC kings of Akkad Founding monarchs 24th-century BC births 23rd-century BC deaths Nimrod Kings of the Universe Cup-bearers