Nidin-Bel

Nidin-Bel
The reverse side of the Uruk King List (IM 65066). The first line on this side of the tablet is the fragmentary line which references Nidin-Bel.[1]
King of Babylon
Reign	Autumn 336 BC and/or winter 336–335 BC
Predecessor	Artaxerxes IV (Achaemenid Empire)
Successor	Darius III (Achaemenid Empire)
Akkadian	Nidin-Bêl

Nidin-Bel (Babylonian cuneiform: Nidin-Bêl)^[1][a] might have been a rebel king of Babylon who in the autumn of 336 BC and/or the winter of 336–335 BC attempted to restore Babylonia as an independent kingdom and end the rule of the Persian Achaemenid Empire in the region. The only known surviving reference which points to there being a ruler by this name in Babylon is the Uruk King List, which records rulers of Babylon from the 7th to 3rd centuries BC. In this list, the rule of Darius III (r. 336–330 BC), the last Achaemenid king, is immediately preceded by a fragmentary reference to Nidin-Bel.

Scholars are divided in how the reference is best interpreted. Several researchers do consider it possible that Nidin-Bel was a historical Babylonian rebel, revolting against Darius III in the chaotic aftermath of Artaxerxes IV's (Darius III's predecessor) fall from power and assassination. If he was a real king, the Uruk King List indicates that Nidin-Bel was a regnal name, possibly assumed by the king to honour the preceding Nebuchadnezzar III, a Babylonian rebel who revolted against the Persians in the 6th century BC. Before assuming the regnal name Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar III's original name was Nidintu-Bêl. The lack of references to Nidin-Bel outside of the Uruk King List might be due to his revolt being defeated quickly by Darius III.

Some researchers dispute the existence of a Babylonian rebel in the 4th century BC. It has been suggested that Nidin-Bel was the regnal name of Artaxerxes IV in Babylonia but this seems unlikely as no other Mesopotamian documents refer to Artaxerxes by that name and due to the name being similar to Nidintu-Bêl, the name of a rebel and pretender. It is also possible that the name is a scribal error, intended to refer to Nebuchadnezzar III but misplaced in the chronology of kings by the scribes that made the list. It is possible that another tablet, the Alexander Chronicle, also references Nidin-Bel, but the relevant line of text is badly damaged.

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