hammurabi (akkadian from amorite "ˤammurāpi", meaning "the kinsman is a healer," from "ˤammu", meaning "paternal kinsman", and "rāpi", meaning "healer"), was the sixth king of babylon from 1792 bc to 1750 bc. he became king after his father abdicated, and was the first ruler of babylonia. by winning wars against other kingdoms in mesopotamia, hammurabi created a large babylonian empire. however, his son samsu-iluna and later babylonian rulers lost much of the land he had gained.