الخباطوم Habbatum في العصر البابلي القديم

Abstract EN

The present study deals with the elements of the Ḫabbātum, one of the groups that spread across Mesopotamia during the Old Babylonian Period (2003–1595 B.

C.

).

The significance of this study reflects the fact that Ḫabbātum has received little attention from scholars who have been interested in elements that function outside of organised society's legal structures, such as other elements that have spread in Mesopotamia.

Moreover, the present study aims to shed light on the existence of these elements and to investigate the reasons for the major changes in their function within the community in the regions that have appeared during the Old Babylonian Period.

In the early texts of the Old Babylonian Period, the nature of the interpretation of ḫabbātum's function differed from the late Babylonian texts; thus, their social function is discussed.

The article tries to examine the reasons for these shifts from outlaw elements to working for the official authority.