Configuring Mesopotamia : Regional signifiers and the many locations of the 'land between the rivers'
Rattenborg, Rune LU
(2018)
In Berlin Studies of the Ancient World
55.
p.147-166
- Abstract
- It seems a travesty to reiterate exactly what we mean by ‘Mesopotamia’. The tautological qualities of Greek mésos (‘middle’, ‘in between’) and potamós (‘stream’, ‘river’) often rule out further elaboration of its origins and the assumed self-evident nature of its current application. Yet regional concepts are not stable. Their delineation may be defined according to a complex set of attributes not related to physical borders alone. I consider here the changing meanings of ‘Mesopotamia’ as a name for the drainage of the Euphrates and Tigris from the 2nd millennium BCE until the present day. In conclusion, I argue that current notions of ‘Mesopotamia’ are a product of the First World War, and hence far from unproblematic references to a... (More)
- It seems a travesty to reiterate exactly what we mean by ‘Mesopotamia’. The tautological qualities of Greek mésos (‘middle’, ‘in between’) and potamós (‘stream’, ‘river’) often rule out further elaboration of its origins and the assumed self-evident nature of its current application. Yet regional concepts are not stable. Their delineation may be defined according to a complex set of attributes not related to physical borders alone. I consider here the changing meanings of ‘Mesopotamia’ as a name for the drainage of the Euphrates and Tigris from the 2nd millennium BCE until the present day. In conclusion, I argue that current notions of ‘Mesopotamia’ are a product of the First World War, and hence far from unproblematic references to a distant historical past to which they bear no inherent relation. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/29e205f2-b32e-4219-a870-4004a2ec77c6
- author
- Rattenborg, Rune
LU
- publishing date
- 2018
- type
- Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
- publication status
- published
- host publication
- Mapping Ancient Identities : Methodisch-kritische Reflexionen zu Kartierungspraktiken - Methodisch-kritische Reflexionen zu Kartierungspraktiken
- series title
- Berlin Studies of the Ancient World
- editor
- Grunwald, Susanne ; Hoffmann, Kerstin P. ; Werning, Daniel A. and Wiedemann, Felix
- volume
- 55
- pages
- 147 - 166
- publisher
- Edition Topoi
- DOI
- 10.17171/3-55-9
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 29e205f2-b32e-4219-a870-4004a2ec77c6
- alternative location
- https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/fub188/23880/bsa_055_09.pdf
- https://edition-topoi.org/article/1491-configuring-mesopotamia
- date added to LUP
- 2025-04-14 13:01:02
- date last changed
- 2025-05-09 14:13:36
@inbook{29e205f2-b32e-4219-a870-4004a2ec77c6,
abstract = {{It seems a travesty to reiterate exactly what we mean by ‘Mesopotamia’. The tautological qualities of Greek mésos (‘middle’, ‘in between’) and potamós (‘stream’, ‘river’) often rule out further elaboration of its origins and the assumed self-evident nature of its current application. Yet regional concepts are not stable. Their delineation may be defined according to a complex set of attributes not related to physical borders alone. I consider here the changing meanings of ‘Mesopotamia’ as a name for the drainage of the Euphrates and Tigris from the 2nd millennium BCE until the present day. In conclusion, I argue that current notions of ‘Mesopotamia’ are a product of the First World War, and hence far from unproblematic references to a distant historical past to which they bear no inherent relation.}},
author = {{Rattenborg, Rune}},
booktitle = {{Mapping Ancient Identities : Methodisch-kritische Reflexionen zu Kartierungspraktiken}},
editor = {{Grunwald, Susanne and Hoffmann, Kerstin P. and Werning, Daniel A. and Wiedemann, Felix}},
language = {{eng}},
pages = {{147--166}},
publisher = {{Edition Topoi}},
series = {{Berlin Studies of the Ancient World}},
title = {{Configuring Mesopotamia : Regional signifiers and the many locations of the 'land between the rivers'}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.17171/3-55-9}},
doi = {{10.17171/3-55-9}},
volume = {{55}},
year = {{2018}},
}