Aratta
Aratta was an ancient state formation of renown somewhere in the Middle East (or eastwards), ca. 2500-2100 BC. It is mentioned in the oldest Sumerian legends, particularly "Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta", as being a wealthy, mountainous, up-river country ruled by a king called Ensuh-keshdanna, who is engaged in competition with Enmerkar, ruler of Uruk. It was also a source of silver, gold and lapis lazuli.Elst 1999 The goddess Inanna is said to have transferred her allegiance as consort, from Aratta to Uruk, playing a role something like that of a kingmaker.There is also an Indian ArattaBSS 18:44, Bahika, SB 1.7.8.3, Mbh 8.2030 (possibly meaning "without kingdom" Elst 1999) in West Punjab. In Baudhayana Dharmasutra 1.1.2.10-15, Aratta is one of the regions that is outside the boundaries of Aryavarta.Agarwal, Vishal: Is there Vedic evidence for the Indo-Aryan Immigration to India [1]
Urartu hypothesis
Scholars do not all agree on its location, but according to many, it included the Northwest of Iran and present-day Azerbaijan(Ancient Armenian territories). Its borders were purportedly from the Caucasus mountains to the Zagros mountains, and from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea.Aratta is thought to be related to the later Urartu kingdom, because of its geographical location and name. The name also resembles Ararat, and the mountain is indeed located in the possible area of Aratta.
Aratta is often mentioned by modern historians in connection with the later regional powers of Mannai, Urartu and the Medes. Its legendary capital city may have been Phraaspa, site of a little Parthian era castle recently discovered (in April 2005) near the river Araxes (Araz river, along the Armenian- Iran-Azerbaijan border). However, the castle is firmly dated to the Atropatene (c. 300 BC) and Parthian (c. 200 BC) eras, thousands of years after the mysterious references to Aratta in Sumerian inscriptions.
Lake Van hypothesis
Another hypothesis would locate Aratta on the eastern side of Lake Van near the Turkish Iranian border. A significant population and a flourishing landscape is known to have existed there in the third millennium BC.Jiroft hypothesis
Yousef Madjidzadeh speculated in 1976 that Aratta may be identical with the Southeast Iranian city of Jiroft. Excarvations started 2001 and brought vision to pyramid with 400m edge length. Pottery with sumerian alike design was found. The depictions seemed to resemble sumerian legends. The dating of those finding was set to around 2500 BC. [2]The Jiroft hypothesis is linked to Dr. J. Derakhshani's theory that the kingdom of Aratta was located in the eastern parts of ancient Persia (modern eastern Iran and Afghanistan), pointing to the Lapis lazuli mentioned in ancient sources which is found in the Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan. In fact, Badakhshan is the oldest known source for Lapis lazuli.