Ancient inscriptions link Albanian heritage to Urartian state
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Ramin Alizada, a historian at the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, examined 2700-year-old Urartian cuneiform inscriptions and found evidence supporting the long history of Albanian heritage.
Alizada determined that the inscriptions, discovered near Lake Van in modern-day Turkey, contain one of the earliest known references to Caucasian Albania as “Ku-Alban.” These inscriptions date to the late 8th century BC, recording a campaign led by Urartian ruler Sarduri II to the shores of Lake Goycha.
The Urartian state, which existed from the 9th to 7th centuries BC in Eastern Anatolia, formed as a confederation of tribes with Caucasian origins. According to Alizada, the inscriptions reveal that the territory of Alban lay south of Lake Goycha. He also noted that the Urartian texts do not mention any Armenian communities.
Alizada further observed that many toponyms, names of places, from the South Caucasus appear in the Urartian inscriptions with only slight variations, and are still recognizable in the Azerbaijani Turkic language today. He cited examples like Loru mahal appearing as “Lueru” and Uti as “Etiu.” The historian believes this continuity in place names demonstrates a lasting cultural connection.
