Nabopolassar (; Akkadian: Nabû-apal-uṣur; 658 BC – 605 BC) was a king of Babylonia and a central figure in the fall of the Assyrian Empire. The death of Assyrian king Ashurbanipal around 627 BC resulted in political instability. In 626 BC, a native dynasty arose under Nabopolassar, a former Assyrian official. Nabopolassar made Babylon his capital and ruled over Babylonia for a period of about twenty years (626–605 BC). He is credited with founding the Neo-Babylonian Empire. By 616 BC, Nabopolassar had united the entire area under his rule.