Abstract
After the revolts of 8 and 9, Samsu-iluna's reconquest of the South was short-lived. By the end of 11 at the latest, written documentation in the regions of Ur, Uruk and Larsa came to a halt, and remained so for several centuries : archaeological evidence has been found to show that these sites were abandoned for a long period, well into the Kassite period, in the 14th century. The reasons for this are still obscure. Some have put forward politico-military causes, such as an Elamite raid : but this does not explain why these cities were not reoccupied. Others have emphasized the ecological dimension of the transformations that took place : a significant shift in the Euphrates's lecture would have had dramatic consequences on local irrigation possibilities. This could explain the rise to power of the " Sea Dynasty " from the marshlands. While the reasons and conditions of their departure remain unclear, the fate of the inhabitants of southern Sumeria is increasingly well known : it seems that a mass exodus to northern Babylonia took place.
A large number of Uruk's inhabitants took refuge in Kiš. Their displacement has been documented in a number of ways. Firstly, it was found that in the city of Kiš, under the last kings of the 1st Babylonian Dynasty, alongside the traditional local deities, there were deities characteristic of the city of Uruk, such as Ištar-d'Uruk, Nanaya and Kanisurra, as well as the clergy responsible for their worship. Subsequently, traces of the presence in the North of refugees from Uruk have been found as early as the reign of Samsu-iluna. A letter recently published by A. George provides further evidence of this : " Tell the Urukeans : thus (speaks) Etel-pi-Nabium. I have just sent Samsu-iluna-kima-ilim to collect the grain destined for sale that falls to you. Deliver the grain to him according to the contents of your sealed documents : a single liter of grain must not be missing ! " (CUSAS 36 107). Not all the exiled Urukeans ended up in Kiš : the earliest traces concern people from Uruk who worked as gardeners in the palm groves of the "lower Yahrurum " region from the year 11 of Samsu-iluna.
