The Early Assyrian period^[34] (before 2025 BCE) marks the beginning of Assyrian history, preceding the Old Assyrian period. It focuses on Assur's history, its people, and culture before it became an independent city-state under Puzur-Ashur I around 2025 BCE. Limited evidence exists from this era. Archaeological findings at Assur date back to c. 2600 BCE, during the Early Dynastic Period, but the city's foundation might be older, as the region had long been inhabited and nearby cities like Nineveh are much older.

Initially, Hurrians likely inhabited Assur, and it was a center for a fertility cult dedicated to goddess Ishtar.^[35] The name "Assur" is first recorded in the Akkadian Empire era (24th century BCE). Previously, the city might have been known as Baltil.^[36] Before the Akkadian Empire's rise, Semitic-speaking ancestors of the Assyrians settled in Assur, possibly displacing or assimilating the original population. Assur gradually became a deified city and later personified as the god Ashur, the Assyrian national deity by Puzur-Ashur I's time.

Throughout the Early Assyrian period, Assur wasn't independent but was controlled by various states and empires from southern Mesopotamia. During the Early Dynastic Period, it was under significant Sumerian influence and even fell under Kish's hegemony. Between the 24th and 22nd centuries BCE, it was part of the Akkadian Empire, serving as a northern administrative outpost. This era was later viewed by Assyrian kings as a golden age. Before gaining independence, Assur was a peripheral city within the Third Dynasty of Ur's Sumerian empire (c. 2112–2004 BCE).