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Kingdom of Aksum

From Wikipedia
Kingdom of Aksum
historical country
Year dem found am4. century BCE Edit
DemonymAksumite, Axumite Edit
CapitalAxum Edit
Coordinate location14°7′42″N 38°43′2″E Edit
Government ein basic formfeudal monarchy, monarchy Edit
CurrencyAksumite currency Edit
Language dem useHimyaritic, Ge'ez Edit
Date dem dissolve, abolish anaa demolish960 Edit
Official religionEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Islam, Judaism Edit
Map

De Kingdom of Aksum, anaa de Aksumite Empire, na e be a kingdom insyd East Africa den South Arabia from classical antiquity to de Middle Ages, wey na e base insyd wat now be northern Ethiopia den Eritrea, den dey span present-day Djibouti den Sudan. Emerging from de earlier Dʿmt civilization, na dem found de kingdom insyd de first century.[1][2] Na de city of Axum serve as de kingdom ein capital for chaw centuries til na e relocate to Kubar[3] insyd de ninth century secof declining trade connections den recurring invasions.[4][5]

Na dem consider de Kingdom of Aksum one of de four great powers of de third century by de Persian prophet Mani, alongside Persia, Rome, den China.[6] Na Aksum continue to expand under de reign of Gedara (c. 200–230), wey be de first king make he be involved insyd South Arabian affairs. Na ein reign result insyd de control of much of western Yemen, such as de Tihama, Najran, al-Ma'afir, Zafar (til c. 230), den parts of Hashid territory around Hamir insyd de northern highlands til na a joint Himyarite-Sabean alliance push dem out. Na Aksum-Himyar conflicts persist thru out de third century. During de reign of Endubis (270–310), na Aksum begin dey mint coins wey na e be excavated as far away as Caesarea den southern India.[7]

As de kingdom cam be a major power on de trade route between Rome den India wey na e gain a monopoly of Indian Ocean trade, na e enter de Greco-Roman cultural sphere. Secof ein ties plus de Greco-Roman world, na Aksum adopt Christianity as ein state religion insyd de mid-fourth century under Ezana (320s - c. 360).[8] Dey follow dema Christianization, na de Aksumites cease construction of steles.[4] Na de kingdom continue to expand thru out late antiquity, wey dem conquer Kush under Ezana insyd 330 for a short period of time wey dey inherit from am de Greek exonym "Ethiopia".[9]

Na Aksumite dominance insyd de Red Sea culminate during de reign of Kaleb of Axum (514–542), wey, at de behest of de Byzantine emperor Justin I, invade de Himyarite Kingdom insyd Yemen so say dem go end de persecution of Christians wey be perpetrated by de Jewish king Dhu Nuwas. Plus de annexation of Himyar, na de Kingdom of Aksum reach ein largest territorial extent, wey dey span around 2,500,000 km2 (970,000 sq mi). However, na de territory be lost insyd de Aksumite–Persian wars.[10] Na Aksum hold on to Southern Arabia from 520 til 525 wen na Abraha depose Sumyafa Ashwa.

Na de kingdom ein slow decline begin by de seventh century, at wich point na currency ceased to be minted. De Persian (den later Muslim) presence insyd de Red Sea cause Aksum to suffer economically, wey na de population of de city of Axum shrink. Alongside environmental den internal factors, na dem suggest dis as de reason for ein decline. Na Aksum ein final three centuries be considered a dark age, wey na de kingdom collapse under uncertain circumstances around 960.[8] Despite ein position as one of de foremost empires of late antiquity, na de Kingdom of Aksum fall into obscurity as na Ethiopia remain isolated thru out de Late Middle Ages.[11]

Etymology

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Na Carlo Conti Rossini believe dat de word Aksum derive from a Semitic root, den dey mean 'a green den dense garden' anaa 'full of grass'.[12]

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References

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  1. The Cultural Heritage of Aksum., UNESCO Archived 2023-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Munro-Hay, Stuart (1991). Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 69. ISBN 0748601066.
  3. Burstein, Stanley (2015). "Africa: states, empires, and connections". In Benjamin, Craig (ed.). The Cambridge World History: Volume 4: A World with States, Empires and Networks 1200 BCE–900 CE. The Cambridge World History. Vol. 4. Cambridge University Press. pp. 631–661. doi:10.1017/cbo9781139059251.025. ISBN 978-1-139-05925-1.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Phillipson, David W. (2012). Foundations of an African Civilisation: Aksum & the Northern Horn, 1000 BC - AD 1300. Woodbridge: James Currey. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-84701-041-4.
  5. Butzer, Karl W. (1981). "Rise and Fall of Axum, Ethiopia: A Geo-Archaeological Interpretation". American Antiquity. 46 (3). Cambridge University Press: 471–495. JSTOR 280596. S2CID 162374800.
  6. Munro-Hay, Stuart (1991). Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 17. ISBN 0748601066.
  7. Hahn, Wolfgang (2000). "Askumite Numismatics - A critical survey of recent Research". Revue Numismatique. 6 (155): 281–311. doi:10.3406/numi.2000.2289. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Derat, Marie-Laure (2020). "Before the Solomonids: Crisis, Renaissance and the Emergence of the Zagwe Dynasty (Seventh–Thirteenth Centuries)". In Kelly, Samantha (ed.). A Companion to Medieval Ethiopia and Eritrea. Leiden: Brill. p. 34. ISBN 978-90-04-41958-2.
  9. Munro-Hay, Stuart (1991). Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 15–16. ISBN 0748601066.
  10. Munro-Hay, Stuart (1991). Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 55. ISBN 0748601066.
  11. Fritsch, Emmanuel; Kidane, Habtemichael (2020). "The Medieval Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Its Liturgy". In Kelly, Samantha (ed.). A Companion to Medieval Ethiopia and Eritrea. Leiden: Brill. p. 169. ISBN 978-90-04-41958-2.
  12. Selassie, Sergew Hable (1972). Ancient and Medieval Ethiopian History to 1270. p. 68.

Read further

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  • Bausi, Alessandro (2018). "Translations in Late Antique Ethiopia" (PDF). Egitto Crocevia di Traduzioni. 1. EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste: 69–100. ISBN 978-88-8303-937-9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  • Phillipson, David W. (1998). Ancient Ethiopia. Aksum: Its Antecedents and Successors. The British Museum Press. ISBN 978-0-7141-2763-7.
  • Phillipson, David W. (2012). Foundations of an African civilization: Aksum & the Northern Horn, 1000 BC - AD 1300. Woodbridge, Suffolk: James Currey. ISBN 978-1-84701-088-9.
  • Yule, Paul A., ed. (2013). Late Antique Arabia Ẓafār, Capital of Ḥimyar, Rehabilitation of a 'Decadent' Society, Excavations of the Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg 1998–2010 in the Highlands of the Yemen. Abhandlungen Deutsche Orient-Gesellschaft, vol. 29, Wiesbaden, pp. 251–54. ISBN 978-3-447-06935-9.
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