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The Sumerian king list is an ancient text in the Sumerian language that lists kings of Sumer from Sumerian and foreign dynasties. It records the location of "official" kingship, along with the rulers and the lengths of their rule. Kingship was believed to have been handed down by the gods, and could be passed from one city to another, reflecting perceived hegemony in the region. ^[1] The King List as it was passed down was also a political tool — its final (and single attested) version, dating to the "Isin-Larsa" period, aimed to legitimize Isin's claims to hegemony when Isin was vying with Larsa and other city-states for dominance in southern Mesopotamia. ^[1]

Composition

The list blends earlier, possibly mythical kings with impossibly long reigns, with later, more plausibly historical dynasties. It cannot be ruled out that earlier names in the list correspond to historic rulers who later became legendary figures, and some Assyriologists view the pre-dynastic kings as a later fictional addition. ^{[2] [1]} Only one ruler on this list is known to be female: Kug-Bau "the (female) tavern-keeper", who alone accounts for the Third Dynasty of Kish.

The earliest name on the list whose existence has been authenticated through recent archaeological discoveries is that of En-me-barage-si of Kish (ca. 2600 BC). The fact that his name is also mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh has led to speculation that Gilgamesh himself might be historical.

Three dynasties are notably not included in this list: the Larsa dynasty, which vied for power with the (included) Isin dynasty during the Isin-Larsa period; and the two dynasties of Lagash, from before and after the Akkadian Empire, when Lagash exerted considerable influence in the region. Lagash in particular is known directly from archeological artifacts beginning ca. 2500 BC.

For lack of a more accurate source, the list is central to the chronology of the 3rd millennium BC. However, the fact that a number of the dynasties in the list probably reigned simultaneously in different cities makes it difficult to produce a strict chronology. ^[1]

The earliest known inscriptions containing the list, such as the Weld-Blundell Prism, ^{[3] [4]} date from the early 2nd millennium BC. ^[1] The later Babylonian and Assyrian king lists that were based on it still preserved the earliest portions of the list well into the 3rd century BC, when Berossus popularised the list in the Hellenic world.

The list

The spelling follows the Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature^[5] Early dates are approximate, and based on available archaeological context; for most early kings we have no information other than the King List itself. Beginning with the Lugal-zage-si and the Third Dynasty of Uruk (which was defeated by the well-documented Sargon of Akkad) we have a better idea of how given rulers fit into the chronology of the ancient Near East. The short (or low) chronology is used here.

Early Bronze Age I

It is unknown whether any of these Pre-dynastic rulers were historical. They may or may not correspond to the Jemdet Nasr period (in the Early Bronze Age), which ended by 2900 BC, immediately preceding the dynasts.^[6][7] These reigns were measured in sars — periods of 3600 years, the next unit up after 60 in Sumerian counting (3600 = 60x60) — and in ners — periods of 600 years.

Early Bronze Age II

Early Dynastic I and II periods

First Dynasty of Kish

First Dynasty of Uruk

Early Bronze Age III

Early Dynastic IIIa period

First dynasty of Ur

Dynasty of Awan

Second Dynasty of Kish

Early Dynastic IIIb period

(ca. 2500 – ca. 2271 BC)

The First Dynasty of Lagash (also ca. 2500 – ca. 2271 BC) is not mentioned in the King List, though it is well known from inscriptions

Dynasty of Hamazi

Second Dynasty of Uruk

Second Dynasty of Ur

Dynasty of Adab

Dynasty of Mari

Third Dynasty of Kish

Dynasty of Akshak

Fourth Dynasty of Kish

Third Dynasty of Uruk

Lugal-zage-si's Uruk

Akkadian Empire

Akkadian Empire

Akkadian ruler (National Museum of Iraq)

Victory stele of Naram-Suen (Louvre)

Dynasty of Akkad

Fourth Dynasty of Uruk

(Possibly rulers of lower Mesopotamia contemporary with the Dynasty of Akkad)

Early Bronze Age IV

Gutian period

The 2nd Dynasty of Lagash (before ca. 2093 – 2046 BC (short)) is not mentioned in the King List, though it is well known from inscriptions.

Gutian Rule

Fifth Dynasty of Uruk

Ur III period

"Sumerian Renaissance"

(ca. 2047 – 1940 BC (short))

Third Dynasty of Ur

Great Ziggurat of Ur

Middle Bronze Age I

Isin-Larsa period

Independent Amorite states in lower Mesopotamia.

The Dynasty of Larsa (ca. 1961 – 1674 BC (short)) from this period is not mentioned in the King List.

Dynasty of Isin

* These epithets or names are not included in all versions of the king list.

See also

Ancient Near East portal

• History of Sumer
• Kings of Assyria
• Chronology of the Ancient Near East
• Palermo stone

Notes

References

• Black, J.A., Cunningham, G., Flückiger-Hawker, E., Robson, E., Taylor, J., and Zólyomi, G. (1998) Translation of the Sumerian King List (alternate site), The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature (http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/), Oxford.
• Vincente, Claudine-Adrienne, "The Tall Leilan Recension of the Sumerian King List", Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 50 (1995), 234–270

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