Antik Mezopotamya’da Özel Mülkiyet

The temple economy model, which assumes the absence of private property in ancient Mesopotamia, was advocated by Deimel and Falkenstein and was widely accepted in early studies. However, after the works of researchers such as Diakonoff and Gelb, the view that public and private property coexisted in ancient Mesopotamia has been considerably strengthened. Nevertheless, as a remnant of 19th century orientalism, the claim of the absence of private property in ancient Mesopotamia is sometimes expressed both in Turkey and in the West. In this paper, it is argued that the institution of private property, that is, the right to use, dispose of and exclude others from property, existed in ancient Mesopotamia in all its dimensions. This claim also means that the institution of private property did not begin with ancient Rome. In this study, the institutionalist approach is utilised and private property is evaluated as an institution. In addition, the comparative historical method has been followed. According to this method, the understanding of any phenomenon is based on a comparative analysis of time and space. In this paper, first of all, conceptual explanations on the right to private property and the relevant literature on the subject were mentioned. In addition, the historical development, boundaries and scope of this institution were determined based on the records containing laws, administrative letters and instructions, and sale and lease agreements regarding the existence of private property right in ancient Mesopotamia. The period analysed includes the Early Dynasties of the third millennium BC, Akkad, Ur III and the Old Babylonia at the beginning of the second millennium BC.