THE HISTORY OF SEVERAL CITIES OF THE WESTERN PART OF THE ARMENIAN HIGHLAND ACCORDING TO HITTITE SOURCES
From ancient times the peoples and states of the Armenian Highland and Asia Minor were in cultural and political relations with one another. With the emergence of the Hittite state (18th-13th centuries BC) those relations became more active. The Hittite state took under its control the western parts of the Armenian Highland as well and tried to have more influence in the east. Geographically several Hittite lands were in the contact zone between the Armenian Highland and Asia Minor. In this contact zone there were also several cities that played a significant role in the political, cultural and economic life of the region. Those cities were Sarissa, Kussara, Samuha and Mal(i)tiya.
The Upper Euphrates and Halys vallies are perfect for analyzing and understanding the nature of the contact between Asia Minor and the Armenian Highland especially during the Late Bronze and Iron Age periods. Over the centuries the region was influenced by the cultures of several Near Eastern territories, many of whose elements merged with local traditions. These lands and cities (for example Upper Land, Tegarama, Sarissa, Kussar, Samuha and Mal(i)tiya) formed a sort of cultural and political border between Hittite territories and the countries of the Armenian Highland (Hayasa, Isuwa, etc.) during the Late Bronze Age.
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