Sea Peoples

The Sea Peoples were a group of tribes that attacked Egypt and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean around 1200 BC during a time called the Late Bronze Age. People first thought about this idea in the 1800s after seeing pictures in a big temple built for a king named Ramesses III. Later, they looked at other signs from that time, like people moving around, pirates, and cities being destroyed.

At first, many people thought the Sea Peoples were a big reason why many places stopped working well around that time. But now, most think they were more of a sign that things were already having problems before they attacked. The Sea Peoples included groups with known names like the Lukka and Peleset, as well as others like the Weshesh whose homes we still don’t know. Some of these groups may have come from places around the Aegean Sea, while others might have been from Sicily, Sardinia, Crete, Southern Italy, Cyprus, or Western Anatolia.

History of the concept

Early drawings from a place called Medinet Habu were made by a traveler named Jean-François Champollion. They showed pictures of people from faraway lands who were captured in battles.

Later, a scholar named Emmanuel de Rougé looked at these drawings. He thought they told the story of battles led by a pharaoh named Ramesses III. He called these fighters the "peoples of the sea." Another scholar, Gaston Maspero, continued this work and explained the idea to more people.

Many other scholars agreed with this idea for a long time. But in recent years, some have started to question whether this is the whole story. We know about these events mostly from ancient Egyptian writings. They mention nine different groups of people.

Primary documentary records

The Medinet Habu inscriptions are the main source for learning about the Sea Peoples. They give us the best information we have on these groups.

There are six Egyptian records that talk about more than one of the nine Sea Peoples groups. A later list from around the same time mentions 610 different names, but it is not a story like the other records.

Ramesses II narrative

Ramesses II, a powerful pharaoh, fought battles against many enemies. In one battle, he defeated a group called the Sherden who attacked Egypt by sea. Later, some of these Sherden fought for Egypt in another big battle.

Merneptah narrative

The pharaoh Merneptah fought a big battle against a group of invaders called the Nine Bows. These invaders came from places like Libya and other nearby areas. Merneptah won the battle and celebrated his victory.

Ramesses III narrative

Further information: Battle of the Delta, Battle of Djahy, and Late Bronze Age collapse

Ramesses III, another pharaoh, also fought against the Sea Peoples. His battles were recorded in inscriptions at his temple at Medinet Habu. These battles happened around the same time that many other ancient civilizations were falling apart.

Onomasticon of Amenope

The Onomasticon of Amenope is a list of names from around 1100 BC. It includes names of some Sea Peoples groups, suggesting where they might have lived after their battles. The Story of Wenamun also places some of these groups in certain cities.

Other documentary records

Egyptian single-name sources

Other Egyptian writings talk about some of these groups by themselves, not all together.

The Amarna letters, from around the middle of the 14th century BC, include four letters about the Sea Peoples:

• EA 151 talks about the Denyen, mentioning the death of their king.
• EA 38 talks about the Lukka, who were accused of attacking the Egyptians together with the Alashiyans (Cypriotes). The Alashiyans said the Lukka were taking their villages.
• EA 81, EA 122, and EA 123 talk about the Sherden. These letters mention a Sherden man who seemed to have turned against the Egyptians and three Sherden who were killed by an Egyptian leader.

Other Egyptian writings mention the Peleset on Padiiset's Statue, the Shekelesh on the Cairo Column, the Tjekker in the Story of Wenamun, and the Sherden in thirteen more places.

Byblos

The earliest group thought to be part of the Sea Peoples appears in Egyptian writings on the Abishemu obelisk found in the Temple of the Obelisks at Byblos. The writing talks about someone named Kukunnis, son of Lukka, called “the Lycian.” The writing is dated to either 2000 or 1700 BC.

Ugarit

Some Sea Peoples show up in four writings from Ugarit, with the last three seeming to warn about the city's destruction around 1180 BC. These letters are from the early 12th century. The last king of Ugarit was Ammurapi, who was very young during this time.

• RS 34.129 is the oldest letter, from the south side of the city, from the Great King, thought to be Suppiluliuma II of the Hittites, to the city's leader. He asked the king of Ugarit to send a man named Ibnadushu for questioning but said the king was too young, so he wanted the city's leader to send the man instead, promising to bring him back. The letter talks about the man being held by a group called Shikala, probably the Shekelesh, who lived on ships.
• RS L 1, RS 20.238, and RS 20.18 are letters from the Rap'anu Archive between Ammurapi, now handling his own affairs, and Eshuwara, the main supervisor of Alasiya. Ammurapi told Eshuwara that an enemy group of 20 ships had been seen at sea. Eshuwara asked where Ammurapi's own forces were and where the enemy ships were now. Sadly, neither Ugarit nor Alasiya could stop the Sea Peoples, and both cities were destroyed. Ammurapi also wrote to the king of Alasiya asking for help, and he wrote to the leader of Carchemish for advice, but only received some words of support.

Groups

The list of Sea Peoples groups includes some that are well-known and others that are not.

Lukka

Main article: Lukka

The Lukka people are known from old records from the Hittite and ancient Egyptian empires. They lived in areas that later became Lycia. The Lukka people moved around a lot and were not one big kingdom but many small groups. They were known for being tough fighters, often raiding and rebelling. They fought against the Hittites in one group and later helped the Hittites in a big battle called the Battle of Kadesh.

Karkiya

Main article: Karkiya

Karkiya was a place in western Anatolia mentioned in old Hittite and Egyptian records. It was led by a group of leaders instead of one king. The people of Karkiya had changing relationships with the Hittite Empire, sometimes fighting with them and sometimes helping them, like in the Battle of Kadesh. Some think the name Karkiya might be linked to a later group called the Caria, but this is not certain.

Peleset

Main article: Peleset

Most historians think the Peleset were the same as the later Philistines. They probably came from the Aegean area. Clues come from old stories and objects like special Philistine Bichrome ware, as well as studies showing people from far away lived in places like Ashkalon when a new time, called the Iron Age, began. These new people mixed with local groups quickly.

Shekelesh

Main article: Shekelesh

The Shekelesh are mentioned in an old story from the Libyan ruler Meryey, where they were soldiers helping the Libyan. The Egyptian ruler Merneptah said he fought them and won. Some think they might be linked to Sicily, but there isn’t much proof, and ideas about where they came from differ.

Sherden

Main article: Sherden

The Sherden were mentioned in records of Ramesses II, who said he defeated them when they tried to attack Egypt’s coast in 1278 BC. After that, the pharaoh used many of them in his guard. Some think they might be the same as people from the Nuragic civilization in Sardinia, based on similar tools, where they lived, and other clues.

Weshesh

Main article: Weshesh

The Weshesh are the least known of the Sea Peoples. They are only mentioned in documents from the time of Ramesses III, and we don’t have any pictures or images of them.

Ekwesh and Denyen

Main articles: Denyen and Ekwesh

The Ekwesh and Denyen might be linked to old names for the Ancient Greek people, found in old stories called the Homeric epics.

Tjeker

Main article: Tjeker

The Tjeker are known from an old story about a person named Wenamun and also fought in battles against the Egyptians, like the Battle of Perire and the Battle of the Delta during the time of Ramesses III. They probably lived along the coasts of early Palestine and helped turn a small town called Tel Dor into a bigger city. Where they originally came from is unknown, with some ideas pointing to Crete or a group called the Teucri, though these ideas are not proven.