Possibly one of the many naturalized foreigners in Egyptian bureaucratic service, Addaya was a commissioner in southern Palestine. Although few details are known of the Egyptian government of subject territories, it seems that the King's Asiatic vassals ("hazannu") took their orders from these commissioners ("rabisu"). As the most important intermediary figures between the King and his vassals they were the highest Egyptian authorities in the Syro-Palestinian region, playing a central role in the negotiations with local rulers. These agents of the King were responsible for transmitting and implementing his orders, and as such they traveled back and forth between the few Egyptian garrison cities and the seats of vassal rulers. Commissioner Addaya is only known from the Amarna Letters: EA 254, 285, 287 and 289 to be exact. As all four letters originated in either Urusalim (Jerusalem) or Shachmu (Schechem/Nablus), it seems reasonable to state that Addaya only acted as commissioner in the southern part of Palestine. He was a contemporary of Abdi-Kheba of Urusalim and the troublesome Labayu of Shachmu. In EA 254 the latter stated: "Moreover, the king wrote for my son. I did not know that my son was consorting with the Apiru. I herewith hand him over to Addaya." (which was much less likely an actual deed than a mere gesture of Labayu's goodwill). Abdi-Kheba on the other hand was not as (superficially) kind or patient. In EA 285, 287 and 289 he made several comments on his troubled relations with the local Egyptian commissioners, namely Addaya, as well as Pawura and Yanhamu. The center of Abdi-Kheba's problem with the King's agents appears to have been their part in the removal, reduction or lack of an Egyptian garrison in his city. The ruler of Urusalim further claimed getting slandered and denounced before the King and in EA 286 (without literally mentioning Addaya) he yelled out "to the commissioner of the King" : "Why do you love the Apiru but hate the mayors?" As in the words of Nadav Na'aman : "The commissioners were caught in the middle of many local and external powers, and there was no likelihood that their decisions would be accepted by all parties to the conflicts." (quotation from "The Egyptian-Canaanite Correspondence" in "Amarna Diplomacy", The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000)
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