IRON AGE ASIRETS (TRIBES) IN EASTERN ANATOLIA

An overall assessment of both the archaeological evidence and as well the written documents indicate tribal organizations, not unlike present-day "asiret"s had already emerged in Eastern Anatolia by the beginning of the Iron Ages. This paper discusses the existence of semi-nomadic asirets/tribes in the Early Iron Age and their continuation into the Urartian period. In visualizing the active role played by the asirets/tribes during the Urartian state system, comparisons with the status of asirets/tribes within the Ottoman Empire sets an excellent analogy, as the tribes of eastern Anatolia, as the tribes constituted a major component of the Ottoman state system. The present day asirets in Eastern Turkey were also considered in reviewing the modalities of asiret and state relations during the Iron Ages.