The Zagros-culture in historical time ( 3000 - 330 B.C. )

Article by Sonny Berntsson

The Zagros-culture is known back to 3000 B.C. by archeologic materials and because they are mentioned in Summeric, Akkadic and Babylonian cuneiform characters.
These people lived in the mountains and their neigbours was the high culture in Mesopotania, the area between the rivers Euphrat and Tigris, and they had a great exchange in culture with Mesopotania.
Even a lot of wars took place from time to time.

The southern Zagros-culture was called "Elam" and had the very old city Susa as a centre.
The cheramics from Elam are known from 3000 B.C.

From the north, to today´s Kurdish area , arrived a mystical people called Kassites 2100 B.C. They captured Babylon 1750 B.C. and ruled the power for 577 years.

The Zagros-culture learned the cuneiform characters from the low-lands in Mesopotania, but they were pioneers in metals and working with cupper and bronze even from circa 2300 B.C. Today we call these things for the Loristan bronzes.
The people in the mountains had a great access to cupper in their area and by archeological search a lot of things are found. Even statuettes showing a Godess with arms shaped as animals are found. And at her shoulders and hips are bird-heads.
She was probably the mistress of the animals and had probably a connection to Anahita, the Mother of God.
A lot of bronzes with shapes of animals and humans were found. They were probably used as horse-decorations because horses were very important for these people.

The people who is settled in this mountainous area are indo-europeian ( by language ).
Besides there are no indications that any semitic tribes have been settled in the Zagros-mountains.

The economic base is animals like goats, sheeps and horses in a semi-nomadic form.
In the valleys can be seen small agricultural villages.

Not much have been changed for the last 2000 years. But the magnificent cities, like Susa where the rich and powerful people lived, are replaced with many small cities and villages.
But even the culture of today is formed by federations ( ashirets ), tribe- and clan-systems.

Most of the villages are placed along the old trading-roads. Small villages with the same kind of life can still be seen, and they are still using their old roads to their old pastures.

The Zagros-culture 1100 - 330 B.C.
The Meds were the first indo-europeian tribes who arrived to the highland circa 1100 B.C; to the area near today´s Azerbedjan.
They started to live in cities around 800 B.C. It was also the Meds who founded the city Ekbatana ( later named Hamadan ).
In 612 B.C. the Meds, together with the Babylons, captured the great Assyria. That was the beginning of the new Babylonian empire and east from Zagros-highland were from now a large Median empire.

In 549 B.C. the Persian-tribes captured the area and king Kyros II ruled the power from the Meds.

Both Lors and Kurds demands to be descendants from the Meds but they didn´t succeed in getting their own country. But they have allways defended and kept their culture and identity as mountain-nomads and mountain-people with a small part of independens and their own rules. They succeeded as long as they not rised in rebellion to their ruler.