Azatiwada, Awariku from the House of Mopsos, and Assyria. On the Dating of Karatepe in Cilicia

Several inscriptions from the 8th century BCE shed some light on the history of the “Neo-Hittite” kingdom of Hiyawa/Qawa/Que, located in Plain Cilicia. They mention the kings Awariku and Warika and a de facto ruler named Azatiwada, the latter famous through his foundation of Ka-ratepe. So far, the chronological relationship between these persons as well as an accurate da-ting of the related sculptures and stelae could not be determined. Even the question of wheth-er Awariku and Warika are one or two kings is unclear. Superimposed on these problems, fur-ther peculiarities of Hiyawa within the Neo-Hittite culture, such as a strong Cypriot influence in the ceramic production or the frequent use of the Phoenician language and script, have re-mained largely unanswered. A first step in clarifying these problems is the exact dating of the people involved and also of the foundation of Azatiwadaya (Karatepe). In the following essay, all relevant historical and archaeological evidence is re-evaluated to clarify the dating of Karatepe, and the identity of Awariku. The result places Azatiwada and Karatepe either before 755 BCE, if one accepts that Awariku and Warika are identical, or in the time between 755 and 740, in case of different persons, which seems by far more likely. Furthermore, a connection is established between Cypriot influence on the one hand and the use of the Phoenician script and language in Cilicia on the other.