Kingdom of Simien ממלכת סאמיאן | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Map ofJewish settlements in Ethiopia | |||||||||
| Status | According to legends: Sovereign Jewish kingdom (350-351) Axumite Territory (351-960) Reestablished (960-1329) Vassal State of theEthiopian Empire 1329-1625 | ||||||||
| Location | Semien Mountains andSemien ProvinceTzelmet province,wegera province | ||||||||
| Capital | Amba Yehouda[1] | ||||||||
| Common languages | Geʽez,Kayla,Qwara,Amharic | ||||||||
| Demonym(s) | Ethiopian Beta Israel | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | LEGEND: 350 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | LEGEND: 351 (re-established in 960 until invaded again in 1329 byEthiopia and annexed in 1625) | ||||||||
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| Today part of | Ethiopia | ||||||||
TheKingdom of Simien (Hebrew:ממלכת סאמיאן), also known as theKingdom of Beta Israel (ממלכת ביתא ישראל), also referred to as "Land of the Gideons" by RabbiAbraham ben Eliezer Halevi in the 14th century named after the dynasty's first ruler. This kingdom refers to aJewish kingdom said to have been located in the northwestern part of theEthiopian Empire. The existence of such a kingdom somewhere in theHorn of Africa was first mentioned by the travellerBenjamin of Tudela in the 12th century CE.[2]
A lateEthiopian-Jewish legend dates the establishment of a Kingdom of Simien to the 4th century CE, right after theKingdom of Aksum turned toChristianity during the reign ofEzana.[3][4] Local history holds that, around 960, a Jewish Queen namedGudit defeated the empire and burned its churches and literature. While there is evidence of churches being burned and an invasion around this time, her existence has been questioned by some western authors, and it is unclear whether Aksum continued to exist. According to tradition, she reigned for forty years and herdynasty lasted until 1137 AD, when it was either overthrown or conquered byMara Takla Haymanot, resulting in the inception of theAgaw-ledZagwe dynasty.[5] In 1329, duringAmda Seyon I's conquests, he campaigned in the northern provinces ofSemien,Wegera,Tselemt, andTsegede, in which many had been converting toJudaism and where theBeta Israel had been gaining prominence.[6]
The existence of such a nation plays a significant role in the modern traditions of theBeta Israel.
According to modern Beta Israel tradition, their forefathers' land was called the "Kingdom of the Gideons", after the name of a putative dynasty of Jewish kings that are said to have ruled it.[7]Eldad ha-Dani mentioned that theTribe of Dan exiled voluntarily and established an independent kingdom. Between the 15th century and the early 17th century the Ethiopian Empire referred to the kingdom as "Falasha". Another name which was very common in the 16th and 17th centuries was the "Kingdom of Semien"[citation needed]– given to the kingdom after the area which it dominated after it lost control over the regions ofDembiya andWegera.
AnIsraelite self-identity andOld Testament practices and culture have permeated Ethiopian civilization, and its Jewish and Christian populations, since very early times.[a]
The beginning of a conversion process of theKingdom of Axum to Christianity is thought to have occurred with the arrival of two Syrian brothersFrumentius and Aedesius, sometime in the reign ofEzana.[9] The conversion, bringing with it Hebraizing elements, was partial, initially was limited to the court and probably affected only the caravan trading route areas between Axum andAdulis. Neither Judaizing nor Christianizing local populations would have fitted into what we later define as normative Judaism or Christianity, but were syncretic mixtures of local faiths and new beliefs from forebears of these respective religions.[10] Later legend speaks of a revolt by Jews taking place at this period but there is no evidence that directly support this story, and its historicity is considered unlikely.[11] A strong possibility exists that the ChristianKaleb of Axum, who had dispatched military contingents to fight against the JudaizingDhu Nuwas of the Arabian peninsulakingdom of Himyar banished opponents to theSimien Mountains, which later emerged as a Beta Israel stronghold. Nothing in the historical record from the 6th to the 13th centuries, however, has allowed scholars to make anything more than very tentative hypotheses concerning the Jewish communities of that time. Legends surrounding a Jewish queen called Judith (Gudit) have been dismissed byEthiopian specialists likeEdward Ullendorff as without foundation in any historical facts.[11]
The Golden Age of this putative Beta Israel kingdom would have taken place, according to the Ethiopian tradition, between the years 858–1270.[citation needed] The stories ofEldad ha-Dani spread the notion of just such an entity, though scholarly confidence in the veracity of many elements in his book is deeply divided: the majority of scholars dismiss its pretensions to conserve authentic history, but a small number consider that his narrative is the earlier to refer to the people much later known asFalasha.[12] According toSteve Kaplan, neither Eldad norBenjamin of Tudela -who hypothesized the existence of a Jewish polity there,[2]- seem to have had any direct first-hand knowledge of Ethiopia.[11] By the 16th century,David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra accepted the Jewishness of the Beta Israel but knew they were wholly unfamiliar with the Talmud.[13]
In 1270 the ChristianSolomonic dynasty was established and set out to consolidate its hegemony by subjugating the independent highlands. The drive towards religious and political unification took on momentum afterAmda Seyon (1314–1344) came to power, and thereafter a succession of leaders campaigned in the north-west provinces ofSimien,Wegera,Tselemt andTsegede where the Judaized population were concentrated.[11][14] There is no evidence for a unified Beta Israel dominion at this time other than oral tradition. Judaized groups were dispersed, politically divided,- some being allied to the Emperor - and were referred to as "like Jews" (Ge'ez ከመ:አይሁድkama ayhūd),[15] or the "sons of Jews".[16]
Emperor Yeshaq (1414–1429), who had allies among the Beta Israel, conquered Simien and Dambiya, whose governors were Jewish.[17] Fiefs (gult) were distributed to secure loyalty and reward supporters, and Yesheq assigned suchgult land to his allies. These owners (bala-gult) could tax the peasants, who nonetheless in the Ethiopian tenure system still remained the hereditary proprietors. He introduced one innovation, however, regarding this hereditary property (rist). It could be retained by those willing to convert to Christianity and as a consequence, a portion of the Judaized community (ayhud) lost their land.[18] Yeshaq decreed, "He who is baptized in the Christian religion may inherit the land of his father, otherwise let him be aFalāsī." This may have been the origin for the term "Falasha" (falāšā, "wanderer," or "landless person").[19]
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