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Akkad was the capital of the Akkadian Empire, which was the dominant political force in Mesopotamia. LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ] Relate in general terms what is known about Akkad KEY POINTS [ edit ] The existence of Akkad is only known from textual sources: it has not yet been found in archaeological excavations (although scholars have proposed different locations, with most recent proposals pointing to a location east of the Tigris). Before Akkad was identified in Mesopotamian cuneiform texts, the city was only known from a single reference in Genesis 10:10. However, the city of Akkad is mentioned more than 160 times in cuneiform sources ranging in date from the Akkadian period to the sixth century BCE. The location of Akkad is unknown, but throughout the years scholars have made several proposals. Whereas many older proposals put Akkad on the Euphrates, more recent discussions conclude that a location on the Tigris is more likely. TERMS [ edit ] Cuneiform Cuneiform is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. Emerging in Sumer around the 30th century BC, with predecessors reaching into the late 4th millennium (the Uruk IV period), cuneiform writing began as a system of pictographs. Ishtar A goddess of fertility, love, sex, and war; in the Babylonian pantheon, the divine personification of the planet Venus. Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [edit ] Akkad was the capital of the Akkadian Empire, which was the dominant political force inMesopotamiaat the end of the third millennium BCE . The existence of Akkad is only known from textual sources: it has not yet been found in archaeological excavations (although scholars have proposed different locations, with most recent proposals pointing to a location east of the Tigris). Register for FREE to stop seeing ads Eup Ebla te hra re Tig Tell Tell Mozan Tell Leilan Beydar Tell Brak Ninive Tuttul SUBARTU Assur Gasur Mari Eshnunna AWAN Sippar Akkad ? Kish AKKAD Suse Nippur ELAM Umma Girsu Lagash Uruk SUMER Ur Eridu Anshan Golfe MARHASHI ? MAGAN Akkadian Empire Map of the Near East showing the geographical extent of the Akkadian Empire. Before Akkad was identified in Mesopotamian cuneiform texts, the city was only known from a single reference in Genesis 10:10. However, the city of Akkad is mentioned more than 160 times in cuneiform sources ranging in date from the Akkadian period itself (2350–2170 or 2230–2050 BCE, according to respectively the Middle or Short Chronology) to the sixth century BCE. The name of the city is spelled as a-ga-dèKI or URIKI, which is variously transcribed into English as Akkad, Akkade, or Agade. The etymology of a-ga-dè is unclear, but not of Akkadian origin. Sumerian, Hurrian, and Lullubean etymologies have been proposed instead. The non-Akkadian origin of the city's name suggests that the site may have already been occupied in pre-Sargonic times, as also suggested by the mentioning of the city in one pre-Sargonic year-name. Cuneiform sources also suggest that the Akkadians worshippedIshtar. The location of Akkad is unknown, but throughout the years scholars have made several proposals. Whereas many older proposals put Akkad on the Euphrates, more recent discussions conclude that a location on the Tigris is more likely. A combined analysis of cuneiform and topographical/archaeological field survey data led archaeologist Harvey Weiss to suggest that Akkad is modern Ishan Mizyad, a large site approximately 3.1 miles northwest from Kish. However, excavations have shown that the remains at Ishan Mizyad date to the Ur III period and not to the Akkadian period. More recent discussions have focused on a location along, or east of, the Tigris. Assyriologist Julian Reade suggested that Akkad may have been located at Qadisiyeh, further north along the Tigris. At this site, north of Samarra and south of where the Adheim River joins the Tigris, a fragment of an Old Akkadian statue— now in the British Museum—has been found that, if complete, would be the largest of its kind.