Pala (Anatolia)


Pala was a Bronze Age country in Northern Anatolia. Nothing more is known about Pala than its native language, which is the Palaic language, and its native religion. The only person known who is of Palaic origin is a ritual priestess Anna.

Location

The country of Pala can be located in the Black Sea region. There are two possibilities where Pala may have laid in this region. The first possibility is the country known as Paphlagonia in classical antiquity. The second possibility is the territory which was called Blaene in antiquity. Both equations are based on phonetic similarity. A country named *Bla leading to Blaene in cuneiform script only could have been written as pa-la-a.

History

In the Old Hittite period Pala was mentioned as an administrative area under Hittite jurisdiction in the Hittite laws. At the end of the Old Hittite period, contact between the Hittites and Pala ceased because of the Kaskian capture of the Black Sea region. It is likely that the Palaic peoples disappeared with the Kaskian invasion.

Mythology

The Palaic mythology is known from cuneiform ritual texts from the temple of the Palaic storm god in the Hittite capital Ḫattuša where the cult of Palaic deities continued even when contacts between Hittites and Pala had disappeared. The following deities are known:
NameGender/NumberNotesAlternative NamesHittite or Luwian equation
ZiparwagodPalaic major god, storm godZaparwa, name of Hattian originTarḫuna, Tarḫunt
Kataḫzipurigoddesswife of ZaparwaKataḫziwuri, name of Hattian originKamrušepa
Tiyazgodsun godTiyadSun God of Heaven, Tiwaz
Gulzannikešgoddessesfate goddessesGulzikannikešDaraweš Gulšeš
ḪašamiligodḪašammili, name of Hattian origin
Inargoddess
KamamagodKammamma
Hearthdeityhearth deity-
ŠaušḫalladeityŠaušḫilla
ḪilanzipadeityḪilašši
Ḫašauwanzadeity
AššanuwantdeityAššiyat
IlaliyantikešdeitiesIlaliyant
Kuwanšešdeities
UliliyantikešdeitiesUliliyašši

Literature