Ancient regions of Anatolia

The following is a list of regions of Ancient Anatolia, also known as "Asia Minor," in the present day Anatolia region of Turkey in Western Asia.

Ancient Regions of Anatolia

Regions of ancient Anatolia. Borders drawn along the Euphrates and Armenian Highlands in the east, Taurus Mountains, Amanus Mountains (today's Nur Mountains) and Mediterranean Sea in the south and south-east, Pontus Euxinus (Black Sea) to the north, and Aegean Sea, Propontis (Marmara sea), Bosphorus and Thrace in the west. Also can include nearby offshore islands like Cyprus, Lesbos, Chios, Icaria, Samos and Rhodes.

Location Northwestern Middle East

Late Bronze Age regions (circa 1200 BC)
Late Bronze Age regions of Anatolia/Asia Minor (circa 1200 BC) with main settlements.
  • Alasiya / Alashiya (later Cyprus in the Classical Age, to the south of mainland Anatolia or Asia Minor)
  • Assuwa, roughly most part of West Asia Minor / Anatolia, it was a confederation (or league) of 22 ancient Anatolian states that formed some time before 1400 BC (may have been the origin of the name Asia)
    • Adadura
    • Alatra
    • Assuwa Proper
    • Dura
    • Dunda
    • Ḥalluwa
    • Ḥuwallušiya
    • Karakisa / Karkiya (later Caria in the Classical Age)
    • Kispuwa
    • Kuruppiya
    • Land of Mount Pahurina
    • Luissa, a name ending in -luišša (or the whole name Luišša)
    • Lukka / Lugga (later Lycia in the Classical Age)
    • Parista
    • Pasuhalta
    • Taruisa (later Troas / Troad? in the Classical Age) (Wilusa / Wilusiya was the capital, has been identified with the city called Ilion / Troy by the Greeks)
    • Unaliya
    • Waršiya / Waršiyalla (Warsiya / Warsiyalla)
    • a name probably ending in -wwa,
    • Unknown (an obliterated name)
    • Unknown (an obliterated name)
    • Unknown (an obliterated name)
    • Arzawa, roughly part of West Asia Minor / Anatolia, it was formed in the second half of the 2nd millennium BC (roughly from the late 15th century BC until the beginning of the 12th century BC). Successor to Assuwa in Western Anatolia (capital was known as Apasa by the Hittites, later called Ephesos by the Greeks).
    • Known western Anatolian late-Bronze Age regions and/or political entities which, to date, have not been cited as having been part of the Arzawa complex are:
    • Hittite Arzawa / Hittite Assuwa, formed by three western provinces (after Hittite Empire conquest), roughly most of Asia Minor / Anatolia, it was almost identical to the "Assuwa League" lands or regions, more than to Arzawa, that seems to have been smaller and less powerful.
  • Azzi-Hayasa / Hayasa-Azzi (later Lesser Armenia / Armenia Minor? in the Classical Age)
  • Hatti / Land of Hatti (Broad Sense - Central Anatolia including the lands that were Hittite or Nesite speaking at the height of the Hittite Empire and was also used as synonym of Hittite Empire and countries and regions, lands, ruled by it)
    • Hatti / Land of Hatti (Narrow Sense - Ancient country or land of Central Anatolia defined by the Halys river bend, called Marassanta or Marassantiya by the Hittites) (it was the core land of the Hittite empire and was also used as synonym of Hittite Empire and countries and regions ruled by it) (later it was part of Cappadocia and West Pontus)
      • Hattusa (capital of the Hittite Empire for longest time)
    • Katerra Udnē ("Lowland" in Hittite) (Plateau of Central Anatolia) (later mostly part of Cappadocia and may have included some parts of Lycaonia or not, Lycaonia was mostly Luwian speaking or to a more closely related language and not Hittite / Nesite speaking) (German name on the map: Unteres Land) (Katerra Udnē was possibly related to the name Katta Peda - "Place Below" or "Place Down", from katta - "below" or "down", and peda - "place", that originated the name Cappadocia through the possible phonetic change - Katt(a)-peda > *Kat-peda > *Kat-pata > *Kat-patu + ka > Kat-patuka > *Kappaduka, borrowed to Greek as Kappadokía)
      • Purushanda (an important city in Katerra Udnē - Lowland)
    • Kussara / Kusshara country in East Anatolia, south of the Marassantiya / Halys river, to the east of Nesa region or country.
    • Nesa, original land of the Hittites / Nesites who called themselves by the name Nesumines - "(people) from Nesa" and their language Nesili - "(language) from Nesa". "Nesa" was the name not only of a city but also of a region or country south of the middle Marassantiya / Halys river course.
      • Nesa city / Kanesh city, first capital of the Hittites and Hittite Empire, was the capital of the region of the same name.
    • Sarazzi Udnē ("Highland" in Hittite) (Mountains of East Anatolia, especially the upper Marassantiya / Halys basin) (later part of Cappadocia, West Pontus and Lesser Armenia / Armenia Minor) (German name on the map: Oberes Land)
    • Zalpa / Zalpuwa / "Land of Zalpa", region, country, on the Anatolian (Asia Minor) Black Sea / Pontus Euxinos coast (part of south coast of the Black Sea). Hittites called the Black Sea - "Zalpa Sea" or "Sea of Zalpa".
      • Zalpa / Zalpuwa city, a yet undiscovered Bronze Age Anatolian city that was the capital of the region of the same name.
  • Kaska / Kaska Land (East Pontus in the Classical Age) (country or region of the Kaska people, they could be descendants or related to the Hattians)
  • Luwiya / Luwa (seems to have included most part of Southern and Southeastern Anatolia that was Luwian speaking) (it was related but not identical to Assuwa and its successor Arzawa in Western Anatolia)
  • Pala (for the Hittites seems to have included most part of Northern Asia Minor / Anatolia between rivers Marassantiya to the east, Sahiriya to the west and Zalpa Sea / Sea of Zalpa to the north, that was Palaic speaking) (later Paphlagonia in the Classical Age)
    • Arawana
    • Kalasma
    • Kassiya
    • Kasula
    • Pala proper (later Paphlagonia in the Classical Age)
    • Tumanna (later Domanitis? in the Classical Age)

Classical Age regions (circa 200 BC)
Anatolia/Asia Minor in the Greco-Roman period. The classical regions and their main settlements (circa 200 BC).

Note: Over time the regions did not always were the same and had the same size or the same borders and sometimes included different subregions, districts, divisions or parts or were united with others.

The names of many regions ended in "e" [e] that was the Eastern Greek (Attic Ionic Ancient Greek) equivalent to the Western Greek (Doric Greek) "a" [a] and also to the Latin "a" [a]. In Ancient Greek the "ph" represented the consonants p [p] and h [h] pronounced closely and not the f [f] consonant. In Ancient Greek the "y" represented the vowel [y] (ü) and not the semivowel [j] or the vowels [i] or [I].


Byzantine Anatolian Themes (circa 1000 AD)
Byzantine Anatolian Themata circa 950 A.D

The Themata were combined Military and Administrative divisions of the Byzantine empire which replaced the Roman provincial system in the 7th-8th century and reached their height in the 9th and 10th centuries.


See also
  • Historical regions of Anatolia
  • Geography of ancient Anatolia
  • Neo-Hittite kingdoms
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