Dilmun

A region and island situated in the Gulf, probably Bahrain, the western shore of the Gulf and the island of Failaka in Kuwait, that was an important trading center during the 3rd millennium BC. The name appeared in Mesopotamian texts of the Early Dynastic, Akkadian, and Ur III periods; the epic hero Gilgamesh visited Dilmun in his search for immortality. The name Dilmun appears in economic documents with which the cities of Magan and Meluhha traded. From the Mesopotamian documents it seems that Dilmun served mainly as an entrepot for trade between the Indus Valley civilization and Mesopotamia, but it is also recorded as exporting dates and pearls of its own.

A name appearing in Mesopotamian texts of the Early Dynastic, Akkadian and Ur III periods. It seems to be used in two ways, referring sometimes to a mythical land, a sort of Paradise; the epic hero Gilgamesh visited Dilmun in his search for immortality. On other occasions, however, the name Dilmun appears in economic documents and clearly refers to a real land, with which the cities of Mesopotamia traded. In recent years it has been identified with the island of Bahrain, or, perhaps more probably, with a larger area including the Arabian coast from the head of the Gulf to Bahrain. From the Mesopotamian documents it seems that Dilmun served mainly as an entrepôt for trade between the Indus Valley civilization and Mesopotamia, but it is also recorded as exporting dates and pearls of its own.