Assyrian References to the Muški
Below is a list of Assyrian cuneiform texts in which the term Muški is mentioned. The earliest reference dates to the first quarter of the 12th century BCE.
The last king of the Hittite Empire, Šuppiluliuma II, ascended the throne around 1207 BCE. This leaves virtually no chronological window for the Muški to have migrated from the Balkans, crossed the entirety of Anatolia, and reached the Alzi region (near modern Sasun) before being recorded by the Assyrians.
Even if one were to ignore this chronological constraint, such a rapid, long-distance migration would be highly implausible from both economic and political perspectives.
In conclusion, even without ancient DNA evidence, the theory that the Muški originated in the Balkans was already difficult to sustain. With the advent of archaeogenetics, this hypothesis has become even less tenable.
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