Shalmaneser V
The name Shalmaneser, rendered by contemporaries as in Assyria and in Babylonia, was only ever borne by Assyrian monarchs and never given to anyone other than the king. This suggests that it was exclusively a regnal name, assumed by Shalmaneser V, and the four previous kings to use the name, probably upon their accession to the position of crown prince and then more publicly after they rose to the throne itself. The name means "Salmānu is foremost", Salmānu (literally "friendly one") being a deity popular in the Middle Assyrian period and exclusively worshipped within Assyrian territory, possibly being a friendly manifestation of the Assyrian national deity Ashur. Other interpretations of the meaning of also exist, it could alternatively mean "likeness of Anu" or possibly "worshipper of fire". Shalmaneser V is unlikely to have taken the regnal name due to its actual etymological meaning, but rather due to its association with his glorious ancestors and distant predecessors Shalmaneser I (1274–1245 BC) and Shalmaneser III (859–824 BC), well-known for their conquests in the lands west of the Assyrian heartland.