Awan

Awan is an old city or area of the Élam, whose kings constitute the first historical dynasty. It was a notable political power in the area of the south-east of Iran and had relations sometimes run up against with the kingdoms of Mésopotamie.

Awan was not localized. One often locates it at the north of the Susiane, even in the south of the Luristan, close to Dezful.

According to the royal List sumérienne, text of the historiographic tradition mésopotamienne, a dynasty coming from Awan would have exerted the royalty in Mésopotamie at a given time. It auraity be made up of three successive sovereigns having reigned in all 356 years. This information is not undoubtedly to take for true, but it shows that Awan had a great political importance in thousand-year-old IIIè.

A royal list found in Élam provides the names of the kings who would have constituted the dynasty of Awan. In fact, as one has very few textual sources for this period, these names for the majority are not associated with precise events. One knows nevertheless that kings d' Awan carried out incursions in Mésopotamie, where they ran up against most powerful the city-state of this period, Kish and Lagash.

The events become a little clearer at the period of Akkad (C. 2340-2200), when historical texts mésopotamiens inform us on the campaigns carried out by the sovereigns of Akkad in the Iranian plate. Sargon d' Akkad, Rimush and Naram-Sin successivivement beats Luhi-ishshan and Hishep-ratep d' Awan. The latter always appear at the sides of their traditional allies, the kings of Marhashi, a kingdom located more at the east in the Iranian plate. After these defeats, Awan becomes vassal kings d' Akkad. This is confirmed by a document of a great historical value, a peace treaty signed between Naram-Sin and a sovereign of Awan, undoubtedly Khita. It is one of the oldest documents of the kind, and in more the oldest document in élamite which was found.

After these defeats, the dynasty of Awan weakens and périclite. When the kingdom of Akkad starts to crumble, it is Puzur-Inshushinak, the governor of Suse for the account of Akkad, which émancipe, and goes up on the throne of Awan and Élam. It establishes a kingdom which was undoubtedly rather powerful, but which lasts only little of time, undoubtedly cut down by the tribes Gutis or Lullubi which then sowed the disorder in Mésopotamie and in Zagros.

List kings of the dynasty of Awan

Peli (towards -2400)
Târî
Ukku-tahish
Hishur
Shushun-tarana
Napil-hush
Kukku-sime-temti
Luhî-Ishshan
Hishep-Ratep
Hielu
Khita (towards -2250)
Puzur-Inshushinak

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