Lehmann, G. 2017, The Late Bronze – Iron Age Transition and the Problem of the Sea Peoples Phenomenon in Cilicia. in P.M. Fischer and T. Bürge (eds.), 'Sea Peoples' Up-to-Date. Wien: Verlag der Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, pp. 229-256. (original) (raw)

Sirkeli Höyük is one of the largest Bronze and Iron Age sites in Plain Cilicia (Greek Kilikia Pedias, Latin Cilicia Campestris), a fertile, water-rich, alluvial landscape in the south of present-day Turkey. The region was known under various names during the Bronze and Iron Ages: Kawa, Kizzuwatna, Hiyawa, Qawa, Que. Situated at the interface of larger neighbouring regions like Anatolia, Syro-Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Cyprus, its status changed several times. At different times, it represented either an independent principality, a vassal state, or an integral part of great empires like those of the Hittites, the Mittani, the Assyrians, or the Babylonians. As one of the key sites in Cilicia, the research at Sirkeli Höyük aims at shedding light on the colourful cultural history and material expressions of this region.