'City of Tarhunt') was a Bronze Age city in south-central Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) mentioned in contemporary documents.
[2][3] Previously proposed locations include Konya, Sirkeli Höyük in Cilicia, the vicinity of Kayseri, and Kilise Tepe (formerly known as Maltepe).
[5] In the early 13th century BC, Muwatalli II moved the Hittite capital from Hattusa to Tarhuntassa.
Official records postdating Muwatalli II's death state that he moved the capital as the result of an omen.
Generally, archaeologists explain the move as a military strategy, in order to be closer to the Syrian region in preparation for battle with Ramses II at Kadesh.
[7] A third explanation is that at this point in time, Tarhuntassa was more centrally located within the network of overland and sea routes connecting the Hittite empire and beyond, making it an ideal capital for managing trade and communication throughout the territory.
[citation needed] Toward the end of the Hittite empire, Suppiluliuma II recorded in a Hieroglyphic Luwian inscription that Hatti had attacked and sacked the city of Tarhuntassa.
The inscription detailed a ruler named Harapu's victory over Muska, which the epigraphers propose is Phrygia but which is still unresolved.