Wikipedia Details

Wiki Details

Elam () was an ancient civilization in southwestern Asia, located in what is now Khuzestan and adjacent regions of modern Iran, between the Zagros highlands and the Mesopotamian lowlands. The name "Elam" is an exonym derived from Akkadian and Sumerian sources; the inhabitants referred to their land as Haltamti. Elam was not always a unified state; it often consisted of multiple regional centers such as Susa, Anshan, and Shimashki. The Elamites were culturally and linguistically distinct from neighboring civilizations. Elamite states were among the leading political forces of the Ancient Near East. In classical literature, Elam was also known as Susiana (US: UK: ; Ancient Greek: Σουσιανή Sousiānḗ), a name derived from its capital Susa.
Elam was part of the early urbanization of the Near East during the Chalcolithic period (Copper Age). The emergence of written records from around 3000 BC also parallels Sumerian history, where slightly earlier records have been found. In the Old Elamite period (Middle Bronze Age), Elam consisted of kingdoms in the highlands and lowlands east of the Tigris–Euphrates plain, centered in Anshan in the highlands, and from the mid-2nd millennium BC, centered in Susa in the lowlands of Susiana. Its culture influenced the later Persian Achaemenid dynasty, during which the Elamite language remained in official use. Elamite is generally considered a language isolate.

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