crown prince of Babylon, son of Esarhaddon and brother of Ashurbanipal, the last of the great kings of Assyria. He led a coalition of Arabic tribes against Ashurbanipal, but, after being starved out by his brother's siege of Babylon (684 BC), he capitulated. According to tradition, Shamash-shum-ukin committed suicide by making a pyre of his palace, treasury, and concubines.