The Ancient City of Erbil

"The oldest Sumerian tablets gave the city the name of Obilm, while in both Babylonian and
Assyrian eras the city was called Erba-Elo, which means "the city of the four gods." It had
been a religious centre visited by people for its Ishtar temple.

It was mentioned as Arba-Arla in the Old Testament, Arbira in the ancient Perisan writings;
the Ottomans in most cases called it Arbl and some inhabitants of neighbouring cities and
territories pronounced it Arobl.

In the Kurdish language it was knownas Huer. Some Kurdish historians say that this ancient
nomenclature developed from Khorler which means "the Temple of Sun," as this was the
used for the Ishtar temple which was once in Arbil."

Certainly the fact that it's name is found in many neighboring cultures is a testament to the city's
centrality in the ancient world. In upcoming weeks, we will survey Erbil's history, from Paleolithic
eras to the present century.



Exerpted from "The Historical Heritage of Erbil," by Hadi Al Chawishli, translated by
Rawand Abdulakadir. Published 1998, The Ministry of Municipalities and Tourism.