Tabarna Explained

Tabarna or labarna was a royal title used by the Hittites. It was used from at least the 17th century BC until the end of the Hittite empire, except for the brief period from Suppiluliuma I to Muwatalli II. It was in origin possibly a personal name, borne by the first two Hittite kings, Labarna I and Labarna II. In that regard, it is comparable to the Latin title caesar. Its etymology, however, is uncertain.^{[1] [2]} Ilya Yakubovich calls it "the single most discussed word of the Hittite lexicon".^[3]

Notes and References

1. Oğuz Soysal, "On the Origin of the Royal Title Tabarna / Labarna", Anatolica 31 (2005): 189–209.
2. Miguel Valério, "Linear A du-pu2-re, Hittite tabarna and Their Alleged Relatives Revisited", Journal of Language Relationship 13.3–4 (2016): 329–354.
3. Ilya Yakubovich, "Labyrinth for Tyrants", in A. S. Kassian and A. V. Sidel'tsev (eds.), Studia Linguarum, Vol. 3 (Moscow: Languages of Slavonic Culture, 2002): 93–116.