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Around 1290 BCE, the political landscape of the Armenian Highlands underwent a significant shift as the once-powerful Hayasa-Azzi confederation was supplanted by the emerging kingdom of Arme-Shupria. This transition marked a crucial moment in the history of the region, reflecting broader geopolitical changes in the Near East during the Late Bronze Age.
Hayasa-Azzi was a tribal confederation that flourished in the Armenian Highlands (modern-day eastern Turkey and Armenia) during the 15th-13th centuries BCE. It frequently clashed with the Hittite Empire, particularly under King Tudhaliya I/II and Suppiluliuma I. The Hittites recorded Hayasa-Azzi as a formidable adversary, though internal strife and external pressures eventually weakened the confederation.
Arme (or Arme-Shupria) was a neighboring kingdom that gradually gained prominence in the region. Shupria (later known as Subartu in some Assyrian texts) was situated in the upper Tigris valley and the surrounding highlands. By the late 13th century BCE, Arme-Shupria had absorbed or displaced Hayasa-Azzi, possibly due to:
- Hittite Pressure: The Hittites, under Mursili II and later kings, may have weakened Hayasa-Azzi through military campaigns, allowing Shupria to rise.
- Internal Fragmentation: Hayasa-Azzi's loose tribal structure may have made it vulnerable to disintegration.
- Shifting Alliances: Arme-Shupria may have aligned with emerging powers like Assyria or Urartu (though Urartu's rise came later).
Our knowledge of this transition is fragmentary, derived mainly from Hittite and Assyrian texts:
- Hittite records mention conflicts with Hayasa-Azzi but grow silent about it by the late 13th century BCE.
- Assyrian inscriptions from the 9th century BCE refer to Shupria as an established kingdom, suggesting its earlier consolidation.
- The exact nature of the transition remains unclear—whether it was a conquest, a peaceful merger, or a gradual assimilation.
The decline of Hayasa-Azzi and the rise of Arme-Shupria set the stage for later kingdoms in the region, including Urartu (9th-6th centuries BCE). Some scholars suggest that Hayasa-Azzi may have contributed ethnolinguistically to the formation of the Armenian people, though this remains debated.
The supplanting of Hayasa-Azzi by Arme-Shupria around 1290 BCE reflects the dynamic and often turbulent nature of Bronze Age Anatolia and the Armenian Highlands. While details are scarce, this transition underscores the region's importance as a crossroads of empires and cultures.
Note: Historical records from this period are limited, and much of our understanding relies on later Assyrian and Urartian sources, as well as interpretations of Hittite texts. Further archaeological discoveries may shed more light on this pivotal moment.
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