The chronology of the ancient Near East is a framework of dates for various events, rulers and dynasties. Historical inscriptions and texts customarily record events in terms of a succession of officials or rulers: "in the year X of king Y". Comparing many records pieces together a relative chronology relating dates in cities over a wide area.
For the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC, this correlation is less certain but the following periods can be distinguished:
Samsu-ditāna, inscribed phonetically in cuneiform sa-am-su-di-ta-na in the seals of his servants, the 11th and last king of the Amorite or First Dynasty of Babylon, reigned for 31 years, 1625 – 1595 BC (Middle Chronology), 1617-1587 BC (Low Middle Chronology), or 1562 – 1531 BC (Short Chronology). Samsu-ditāna was, apparently, the son and successor of Ammī-ṣaduqa. His reign is best known for its termination with the sudden fall of Babylon at the hands of the Hittites.
Ammī-ṣaduqa (sometimes spelled Ammisaduqa, Ammizaduga) was a king of the First Dynasty of Babylon, who ruled in 1646–1626 BC (Middle Chronology) or 1638–1618 BC (Lower Middle Chronology). He was the eldest son and successor of Ammī-ditāna, probably born of Queen Šamuḫtum.
Shulgi (𒀭𒂄𒄀 šul-gi, (died c. 2046 BC) formerly read as Dungi) of Ur was the second king of the Third Dynasty of Ur. He reigned for 48 years, from c. 2094 – c. 2046 BC (Middle Chronology). His accomplishments include the completion of construction of the Great Ziggurat of Ur, begun by his father Ur-Nammu. On his inscriptions, he took the titles "King of Ur", "King of Sumer and Akkad", adding "King of the four corners of the universe" in the second half of his reign. He used the symbol for divinity (𒀭) before his name, marking his apotheosis, from at least the 21st year of his reign and was worshipped in the Ekhursag palace he built. Shulgi was the son of Ur-Nammu king of Ur and his queen consort Watartum.
The Isin-Larsa period (c. 2025–1763 BCE, Middle Chronology, or 1961–1699 BCE, Short Chronology) is a phase in the history of ancient Mesopotamia, which extends between the end of the Third Dynasty of Ur and the conquest of Mesopotamia by King Hammurabi of Babylon leading to the creation of the First Babylonian dynasty. According to the approximate conventional dating, this period begins in 2025 BCE and ended in 1763 BCE. It constitutes the first part of the Old Babylonian period (2025–1595 BCE), the second part being the period of domination of the first dynasty of Babylon, which ends with the Sack of Babylon in 1595 BCE and the rise of the Kassites.
The Third Dynasty of Ur immediately preceded the Isin-Larsa period, and its fall was due to the combined attacks of the Amorites from the west, and the Elamites from the east. As its name suggests, the Isin-Larsa period saw successively the emergence of two great powers in Lower Mesopotamia: the kingdom of Isin, which attempts to seek the succession of the kingdom of Ur after its fall and established the Dynasty of Isin, and the kingdom of Larsa, whose fall marks the end of the period. In reality, neither of these two kingdoms exercised an undeniable hegemony in Lower Mesopotamia, and they had to coexist with other less powerful kingdoms (such as Uruk, Babylon, and Mankisum), while further north their influence was non-existent and gave way to other powerful political entities (Eshnunna, Ekallatum, Mari, Yamkhad). The dynasties of this period have in common a Semitic Amorite origin, even if they quickly acculturated to Mesopotamian traditions.
Burna-Buriaš II (
) was a Kassite king of Karduniaš (Babylon) in the Late Bronze Age, ca. 1359–1333 BC, where the Short and Middle chronologies have converged. The proverb "the time of checking the books is the shepherds' ordeal" was attributed to him in a letter to the later king Esarhaddon from his agent Mar-Issar.
Ammī-ditāna was a king of Babylon who reigned 1683–1647 BC (according to the Middle Chronology; or 1675–1639 BC according to the Lower Middle Chronology). He was the son and successor of Abī-ešuḫ.
Year-names survive for the first 37 years of his reign, plus fragments for a few possible additional years. His reign was a largely peaceful one; he was primarily engaged in enriching and enlarging the temples, and a few other building projects, although in his 37th regnal year he recorded having destroyed the city wall of Der, built earlier by King Dāmiq-ilišu of Isin.
The Venus tablet of Ammisaduqa (Enuma Anu Enlil Tablet 63) is the record of astronomical positions for Venus, as preserved in numerous cuneiform tablets dating from the first millennium BC. Scholars believe that this astronomical record was first compiled during the reign of King Ammisaduqa (or Ammizaduga), the fourth ruler after Hammurabi. Thus, the origins of this text could probably be dated to around the mid-seventeenth century BC (according to the Middle Chronology) despite allowing two possible dates.
The tablet gives the rise times of Venus and its first and last visibility on the horizon before or after sunrise and sunset (the heliacal risings and settings of Venus) in the form of lunar dates. These positions are given for a period of 21 years.