The Amorites and the Bronze Age Near East
The Making of a Regional Identity

A diachronic, yet nuanced study of Amorite identity from Mesopotamia to Egypt over a millennium of Bronze Age history.

Aaron A. Burke (Author)

9781108811361, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 11 May 2023

456 pages
25.4 x 17.8 x 2.4 cm, 0.634 kg

In this book, Aaron A. Burke explores the evolution of Amorite identity in the Near East from ca. 2500–1500 BC. He sets the emergence of a collective identity for the Amorites, one of the most famous groups in Ancient Near Eastern history, against the backdrop of both Akkadian imperial intervention and declining environmental conditions during this period. Tracing the migration of Amorite refugees from agropastoral communities into nearby regions, he shows how mercenarism in both Mesopotamia and Egypt played a central role in the acquisition of economic and political power between 2100 and 1900 BC. Burke also examines how the establishment of Amorite kingdoms throughout the Near East relied on traditional means of legitimation, and how trade, warfare, and the exchange of personnel contributed to the establishment of an Amorite koiné. Offering a fresh approach to identity at different levels of social hierarchy over time and space, this volume contributes to broader questions related to identity for other ancient societies.

1. Introduction: Amorites, their legacy, and the study of identity
2. Communities at the margins: the origins of Amorite identity, 2500–2200 B.C.
3. Beyond pastoralism: diaspora and opportunity, 2200–2000 B.C.
4. Mercenaries and merchants: networks of political and economic power, 2000–1800 B.C.
5. Competition and emulation: the Amorite Koiné from Dilmun to Avaris, 1800–1500 B.C. 6. Conclusion: Amorite identity in the long durée.

Subject Areas: Egyptian archaeology / Egyptology [HDDG], Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], Middle Eastern history [HBJF1], European history [HBJD]