Nomads, Tribes, and the State in the Ancient Near East

Nomads, Tribes, and the State in the Ancient Near East PDF Author: University of Chicago. Oriental Institute
Publisher: Oriental Inst Publications Sales
ISBN: 9781885923615
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
For decades, scholars have struggled to understand the complex relationship between pastoral nomadic tribes and sedentary peoples of the Near East. The Oriental Institute's fourth annual post-doc seminar (March 7-8, 2008), Nomads, Tribes, and the State in the Ancient Near East, brought together archaeologists, historians, and anthropologists to discuss new approaches to enduring questions in the study of nomadic peoples, tribes, and states of the past: What social or political bonds link tribes and states? Could nomadic tribes exhibit elements of urbanism or social hierarchies? How can the tools of historical, archaeological, and ethnographic research be integrated to build a dynamic picture of the social landscape of the Near East? This volume presents a range of data and theoretical perspectives from a variety of regions and periods, including prehistoric Iran, ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt, seventh-century Arabia, and nineteenth-century Jordan.

The Development of Pre-State Communities in the Ancient Near East

The Development of Pre-State Communities in the Ancient Near East PDF Author: Diane Bolger
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1842178377
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 293

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Book Description
This book explores the dynamics of small-scale societies in the ancient Near East by examining the ways in which particular communities functioned and interacted and by moving beyond the broad neo-evolutionary models of social change which have characterised many earlier approaches. By focusing on issues of diversity, scale, and context, it considers the ways in which economy, crafts, technology, and ritual were organised; the roles played by mortuary practices and households in the structure and development of ancient societies; and the importance of agency, identity, ethnicity, gender, community and cultural interaction for the rise of socio-economic complexity. The contributors to this volume are well-known archaeologists in the field of Near Eastern studies; all are currently engaged in fieldwork or research in Cyprus, the Levant, or Turkey. The variety and depth of the research they present here reflect the richness of the archaeological record in the 'cradle of civilisation' and convey the vibrancy of current interpretive approaches within the field of Near Eastern prehistory today.

Nomads in the Middle East

Nomads in the Middle East PDF Author:
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521816297
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 297

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Book Description


Archaeozoology of the Near East

Archaeozoology of the Near East PDF Author: Marjan Mashkour
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 178297847X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 501

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Book Description
This two part volume brings together over 60 specialists to present 31 papers on the latest research into archaeozoology of the Near East. The papers are wide-ranging in terms of period and geographical coverage: from Palaeolithic rock shelter assemblages in Syria to Byzantine remains in Palestine and from the Caucasus to Cyprus. Papers are grouped into thematic sections examining patterns of Palaeolithic and Neolithic subsistence in northern Mesopotamia, Anatolia and the Iranian plateau; Palaeolithic to Neolithic faunal remains from Armenia; animal exploitation in Bronze Age urban sites; new evidence concerning pastoralism, nomadism and mobility; aspects of domestication and animal exploitation in the Arabian peninsula; several case studies on ritual animal deposits; and specific analyses of patterns of animal exploitation at urban sites in Turkey, Palestine and Jordan. This important collection of significant new work builds on the well-established foundation of previous ICAZ publications to present the very latest results of archaeozoological research in the prehistory of this formative region in the development of animal exploitation.

Mobile Pastoralism and the Formation of Near Eastern Civilizations

Mobile Pastoralism and the Formation of Near Eastern Civilizations PDF Author: Anne Porter
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521764432
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 401

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Book Description
This book explores the roles of mobile and sedentary members of the ancient world in ancient Mesopotamia.

Near Eastern Tribal Societies During the Nineteenth Century

Near Eastern Tribal Societies During the Nineteenth Century PDF Author: Eveline van der Steen
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317543475
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description
This volume provides an in-depth study of tribal life in the Near East in the 19th century, exploring how tribes shaped society, economy and politics in the desert, as well as in villages and towns. Until the First World War Near Eastern society was tribally organized. Particularly in the Levant and the Arabian peninsula, where the Ottoman empire was weak, large and powerful tribes such as Anaze, Beni Sakhr and Shammar interacted and competed for control of the land, the people and the economy. The main sources for this study are travel accounts of 19th century adventurers and explorers. Their travels, on horseback, on camel or on foot opened a fascinating window on a world with an ideology that was fundamentally different from their own, often Victorian background. One chapter is dedicated to oral traditions in the region, from heroic epics to short poems, which lets the tribes and tribe members themselves speak, giving a voice to the tribal frame of mind. Evidence of tribal organization as a driving force in society can be found in documents and sometimes in the archaeological record from the Bronze Age onwards. While a straight comparison between ancient and subrecent tribal communities is fraught with difficulties and must be treated with caution, a better understanding of 19th century tribal ethics and customs provides useful insights into the history and the power relations of a more distant past. At the same time it may help us understand some of the underlying causes for the present conflicts afflicting the region.

Society and the Individual in Ancient Mesopotamia

Society and the Individual in Ancient Mesopotamia PDF Author: Laura Culbertson
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 1501517651
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
This book provides an overview of social life in ancient Mesopotamia, bringing together leading experts to survey key social domains of daily life as well as major non-dominant social groups. It serves as a point of entry to the current research in this field.

The Queens of the Arabs During the Neo-Assyrian Period

The Queens of the Arabs During the Neo-Assyrian Period PDF Author: Ellie Bennett
Publisher: PSU Department of English
ISBN: 1646023099
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 213

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Book Description
The title “Queen of the Arabs” is applied in Neo-Assyrian texts to five women from the Arabian Peninsula. These women led armies, offered tribute, and held religious roles in their communities from 738 to approximately 651 BCE. This book discusses what the title meant to the women who carried it and to the Assyrians who wrote about them. Whereas previous scholarship has considered the Queens of the Arabs in relation to the military and economic history of the Neo-Assyrian empire, Eleanor Bennett focuses on identity, using gender theory to locate points of the women’s alterity in Assyrian sources and to analyze how Assyrian cultural norms influenced the treatment of the “Queens of the Arabs.” This kind of analysis shows how Assyrian perceptions of the Queens of the Arabs, and of Arabian populations more generally, changed over time. As the Queens of the Arabs were located on the periphery of the Assyrian Empire, Bennett incorporates data from the Arabian Peninsula. The shift from an Assyrian lens to an Arabian one highlights inaccuracies in the Assyrian material, which brings into focus Assyrian misunderstandings of the region. The Arabian Peninsula also offers comparative models for the Queens of the Arabs based on Arabian cultures.

Between Empires

Between Empires PDF Author: Greg Fisher
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199599270
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
An examination of the complex inter-relationships between the Roman and Sasanid Empires, and some of their Arab allies and neighbours, during the last century before the emergence of Islam. Greg Fisher stresses the importance of a Near East dominated by Rome and Iran for the formation of early concepts of Arab identity.

Constituent, Confederate, and Conquered Space

Constituent, Confederate, and Conquered Space PDF Author: Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110370298
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 426

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Book Description
The Mittani empire is one of the most enigmatic political structures in Mesopotamian history. Reconstructing the emergence and the organisation of this state, whose territory encompassed Upper Mesopotamia touching the Levant and the piedmont plains of the Zagros in the East at the height of its power, is exceedingly difficult. Cuneiform specialists, archeologists and historians discuss the Mittani state with regard to modes of spatial organisation co- and preexisting in the region.