THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HITTITE SOURCES OF THE PERIOD OF MURSILI II FOR ANCIENT HISTORY OF ARMENIA
The period of the reign of Mursili II (1321-1295 BC), one of the most prominent kings of Ancient Orient, is full of events that shed light on the history not only of the Hittite state, but also other countries of Western Asia. The sources created during his reign allow forming almost a complete picture of the years of his reign. His period is of special interest also for those studying ancient history of Armenia, particularly, of the western part of the Armenian Highland. We should especially point out two versions of the Annals of Mursili II -The “Ten Year” Annals and the “Extended” Annals. The “Ten Year” Annals represent the events of the first ten years of the king’s reign and the “Extended” Annals include almost the whole period of his reign. In numerous sources of the time of Mursili II there is a lot of information on the toponyms of the Armenian Highland (the information has wide geographical coverage - from the western districts of the Armenian Highland to Lake Van and the territory of Aghdznik), which is important for the elucidation of the history of Armenia of the 14th-13th centuries BC. A considerable part of the toponyms were mentioned only in the above-mentioned sources. In this respect, they are of great value.
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