Puzur-Inshushinak
Puzur-Inshushinak, also sometimes thought to read Kutik-Inshushinak in Elamite, was a king of Elam, and the last from the Awan dynasty according to the Susa kinglist. He mentions his father's name as Šimpi-išhuk, which, being an Elamite name, suggests that Puzur-Inshuhinak himself was Elamite. He is also the first historical figure in Elamite history.
Early life
Elam had been a vassal of Akkad since the time of Sargon. His father was Shinpi-khish-khuk, the crown prince, and most likely a brother of Khita. Kutik-Inshushinak's first position was as governor of Susa, which he may have held from a young age. Around 2130 BC his father died, and he became crown prince in his stead.Reign
Kutik-Inshushinak accordingly campaigned in the Zagros mountains on their behalf. He was greatly successful as his conquests seem to have gone beyond the initial mission.Akkadian period
In the inscription of the "Table au Lion", he appears as "Puzur-Inshushin Ensi of Susa, Shakkanakku of the country of Elam" (, a title used by his predecessors Eshpum, Epirmupi, and Ili-ishmani as governors of Akkad for the territory of Elam. In another inscription, he calls himself the "Mighty King of Elam", suggesting an accession to independence from the weakening Kingdom of Akkad.Under King Shar-Kali-Sharri, Akkad weakened, allowing Elam to claim independence. He conquered Anshan and managed to unite most of Elam into one kingdom.
Early on his inscriptions were in Akkadian but over time they came to be also in Linear Elamite. He built extensively on the citadel at Susa, and encouraged the use of the Linear Elamite script to write the Elamite language. This may be seen as a reaction against Sargon's attempt to force the use of Akkadian. Most inscriptions in Linear Elamite date from the reign of Kutik-Inshushinak.
Ur III period
At the beginning of Ur III period, inscriptions of Ur-Nammu refer to Puzur-Inshushinak. He conquered numerous cities in central Mesopotamia, including Eshnunna and Akkad, and probably Akshak. His conquests probably encroached considerably on Gutian territory, gravely weakening them, and making them unable to withstand the Neo-Sumerian revolt of Utu-hengal.It is now known that his reign in Elam overlapped with that of Ur-Nammu of Ur-III, although the previous lengthy estimates of the duration of the intervening Gutian dynasty and rule of Utu-hengal of Uruk had not allowed for that synchronism. Ur-Nammu, who styled himself "King of Sumer and Akkad" is probably the one who, early in his reign, reconquered the northern territories that had been occupied by Puzur-Inshushinak, before going on to conquer Susa.