Osroene | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 132 BC–AD 638[1] | |||||||||
.svg) The map above includes Osroene as a tributary kingdom of theArmenian Empire underTigranes the Great. | |||||||||
| Status | Kingdom, vassal state, province | ||||||||
| Capital | Edessa (modern-dayŞanlıurfa, Turkey) | ||||||||
| Common languages | Aramaic (official) Koine Greek Arabic Persian Parthian Armenian | ||||||||
| Religion | Christianity c. 200 AD(State religion)[2][3] (contested) | ||||||||
| Demonym | Osroenian | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| King | |||||||||
| Historical era | Hellenistic Age | ||||||||
• Established | 132 BC | ||||||||
• Disestablished | AD 638[1] | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Osroene orOsrhoene (/ɒzˈriːniː/;Ancient Greek:Ὀσροηνή) was an ancient kingdom and region inUpper Mesopotamia. TheKingdom of Osroene, also known as the "Kingdom ofEdessa" (Classical Syriac:ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܒܝܬ ܐܘܪܗܝ / "Kingdom of Urhay"), according to the name of itscapital city (nowŞanlıurfa,Turkey), existed from the 2nd century BC up to the 3rd century AD, and was ruled by theNabataeanAbgarid dynasty.[4][5][6][7][1][8] They were generally allied with theParthians.[1][9]
The Kingdom of Osroene enjoyed semi-autonomy to complete independence from the years of 132 BC to around AD 213. The kingdom's population was of mixed culture, beingAramaic and thenSyriac-speaking from the earliest times.[10] The city's cultural setting was fundamentallySemitic (Syrian-Aramaic and Arab), alongside Greek and Parthian influences.[9][11][12]
The rulingAbgarid dynasty was deposed by the Romans during the reign of Roman EmperorCaracalla (r. 211–217), probably in 213, and large parts of the kingdom of Osroene were incorporated into the already existingRoman province of the same name.[13] Whether the kingdom of Osrhoene continued to exist as a rump state in the following decades is a matter of debate - in each case it briefly existed during the reign of Roman emperorGordianus III (238–244).[14] Christianity came early to Osroene. From 318, Osroene was a part of theDiocese of the East. By the 5th century, Edessa had become a main center ofSyriac literature and learning. In 608, theSasanian emperor,Khosrow II (r. 590–628), took Osroene. It was briefly reconquered by the Byzantines, but in 638 it fell to the Muslims as part of theMuslim conquests.
Osroene, or Edessa, was one of several states that acquired independence from the collapsingSeleucid Empire througha dynasty of the nomadicNabataean tribe from Southern Canaan and North Arabia, the Osrhoeni, from 136 BC. Osroene's name either derives from the name of this tribe, or fromOrhay (Urhay), the originalAramaic name ofEdessa.[15] Arab influence had been strong in the region.[9]
Osroene endured for four centuries, with twenty-eight rulers occasionally named "king" on their coins. Most of the kings of Osroene were calledAbgar orManu and settled in urban centers.[16]
Osroene was generally allied with theParthian Empire.[1][9] After a period under the rule of the Parthian Empire, it was absorbed into theRoman Empire in 114 as a semiautonomous vassal state, and incorporated as a simpleRoman province in 214.
Edessa was celebrated as the first kingdom to adopt Christianity as its official religion. There were two main Christianizing movements at Edessa, one that came fromNisibis in the east in the first century and the second that came fromAntioch in the west in the end of the second century. There is a mention of a Christian synod in Osroene in 197 CE but scholars have doubted its authenticity. At the end of the second century a bishop of Edessa was consecrated inRome but had to go to Antioch to be confirmed. The connection between Antioch and Edessa became close by the end of the second century and the see of Edessa became subject to Antioch in the early third century.[17]
Edessa was regularly described as the 'capital of Mesopotamia' in early Syriac manuscripts. The earliest dated Christian literary manuscript in any language was written in November 411 CE, a fragment of Isaiah is dated 459-60 CE, a manuscript containing Genesis and Exodus is dated 463-4 CE, and the earliest dated Gospels in any language were completed in October 510 CE, although there are undated Gospel manuscripts which probably are from the fifth century.[18][19][20]
There is anapocryphal legend, theDoctrine of Addai (late 4th or early 5th century), and an anonymous history, theChronicle of Edessa (mid-6th century), claiming that Osroene was the first state to have acceptedChristianity asstate religion,[21][22] but some scholars believe there is not enough evidence to support that claim.[23][24]
By the end of the second century Christianity was well established in Edessa in various forms, some texts belong to the early third century and provide unambiguous evidence for Christianity at Edessa, such as the account of the flood at Edessa in 201 CE which is preserved in the Chronicle of Edessa, fragments of Bardaisan's works preserved by later writers and theBook of the Laws of the Countries written in the School of Bardaisan. By the end of the third century Christianity had spread to surrounding villages.[25]
By c. AD 200, the Church in Edessa must have been of some size to judge from the expansion of Christianity in the early third century in Osroene and neighboringAdiabene, as according to theChronicle of Arbela there were more than twenty bishoprics in the region bordering theTigris in AD 224.[26] Edessa was known as a Christian city at a very early date, but the countryside was only Christianized during the 4-5th centuries bySyrian monks and ascetics.[27]
General opinion is that the official adoption of Christianity happened during the reign ofAbgar VIII the Great (177 – 212), who was either Christian himself or not at all hostile to Christians, as the Christian writerSextus Julius Africanus (c. 160 – c. 240) stayed at Abgar the Great's court in 195, and a Christian inscription was produced in Edessa, which is from the same period or few decades later than theInscription of Abercius from 216.[28] It is estimated that Christianity was preached in Edessa since 160 – 170,[29] and a flood in 201 destroyed "the temple of the church of the Christians", indicating a community large enough to have had a building of notable importance to the city at the time.[30] The earliest known Syriac writer,Bardaisan (154-222), was active[where?], and contemporary coins dated 179-192 clearly show Abgar VIII the Great wearing atiara with a cross.[31][32] The dates and circumstances of the Christianization of the kings and the Kingdom of Osroene are still debated[33][34][35][36] and the claim of becoming the first Christian kingdom is contested byArmenia.[37][38][39]
In theChurch of the Virgin in Dayr al-Suryān in Egypt, built in the middle seventh century and monumental paintings applied in later centuries, a number of narrative scenes of conversion as the central theme were painted. There are remains of a painting of King Abgar of Edessa with themandylion, while on the same wall there is a painting ofConstantine the Great on horseback holding the sign of the cross in his first battle as a Christian. The paintings are making a clear statement: Constantine was the first Christian Roman emperor but Edessa had a Christian king almost three centuries before. On an opposite wall fragments are preserved ofGregory the Illuminator's conversion of the Armenians. The unique conversion scenes were probably painted as a carefully planned addition after the eight century, covering scenes of the Pentecost, and it is possible that the church building had a geographical symbolism as Ethiopia is equaled with the south, Armenia with the north, and Byzantium and Edessa with the east.[40] The first Armenian Christian kingTiridates the Great is absent from the depiction.
Most of Osroene's rulers were sedentarizedArabs from theNabataeanAbgarid dynasty, and the kingdom's population was primarily of mixedSemitic origins, beingAramaic-speaking from the earliest times.[9][10] Before emerging as an early and important center forSyriac Christianity,[41] Edessa was a major centre for cult worship in theNear East, with devotees ofAtargatis andSabians mixing with those ofMesopotamian/PalmyreneBel andNabataeanDushara worshippers, among otherpre-Islamic Arabian cults (such as the twinsMonimos andAzizos).[42]. Its overall cultural setting was hybridized and syncretic, incorporatingBabylonian,Aramaean, Arab,Jewish,Iranian, Indian andHellenistic influences.[11][12][43] A centre of local reaction againstHellenism, its Arab dynasts became increasingly influenced bySyriac Christianity, presaging Rome's later embrace of monotheism.[44]
In his writings,Pliny the Elder refers to the natives of Osroene andCommagene asArabs and the region asArabia.[45]Abgar II is called "anArabphylarch" byPlutarch,[46] whileAbgar V is described as "king of theArabs" byTacitus.[47]
The Edesseneonomastic contains manyArabic names.[48] The most common one in the ruling dynasty of Edessa being Abgar, a well-attested name amongArabic groups ofantiquity.[49] Some members of the dynasty boreIranian names, while others hadArabic names.[1]Judah Segal notes that the names ending in "-u" are "undoubtedly Nabatean".[1] The Abgarid dynasts spoke "a form ofAramaic".[1]
It was in the region in which the legend ofAbgar V originated.
The area of the kingdom was perhaps roughly coterminous with that of the Roman province of Osrhoene. The great loop of the Euphrates was a natural frontier to the north and west. In the southBatnae was capital of the semi-autonomous principality ofAnthemusias until its annexation by Rome, in AD 115. The eastern boundary is uncertain; it may have extended to Nisibis or even to Adiabene in the first century AD. Ḥarrān, however, only 40 km south of Edessa, always maintained its independent status as a Roman colonia.[1]
Edessa, the capital of the ancient kingdom, was a fortress of considerable strength and a staging post both large and nearest to the Euphrates. It was an important road junction; an ancient highway, along which caravans carried merchandise from China and India to the West, meeting there a north–south road connecting the Armenian Highlands with Antioch. Inevitably, Edessa figured prominently on the international stage.[1]
In 64 BC, asPompey waged war on theParthian Empire,Abgar II of Osrhoene had sided with the Romans whenLucius Afranius occupiedUpper Mesopotamia. The king was initially an ally of the Roman generalMarcus Licinius Crassus in his campaign against the Parthians in 53 BC, but Roman historians allege that he betrayed Crassus by leading him to deviate from his safe route along the river and instead into an open desert, where the troops suffered from the barrenness and thus were vulnerable to cavalry attack. Abgar is said to have met withSurenas, the Parthian general, and informed him of the Roman movements. The enormous and infamousBattle of Carrhae followed and destroyed the entire Roman army. Just prior to the battle, Abgar made a pretext to ride away. However, modern historians have questioned whether Abgar intended to betray the Romans and instead may have simply been leading them along an old Arab trade route.[50] According to a Syriac source, Abgar died later that year.[1]
In the early 2nd century AD, KingAbgar VII joined the EmperorTrajan's campaign into Mesopotamia and entertained him at court. The king later rebelled against the Romans, however, which led to the Roman generalLucius Quietus sacking Edessa and putting an end to Osrhoene's independence in 116. In 123, during the reign ofHadrian, the Abgarid dynasty was restored with the installation of Ma'nu VII, and Osroene was established as a client kingdom of the Empire.[51] After theRoman–Parthian War of 161–166 underMarcus Aurelius, forts were built and a Romangarrison was stationed inNisibis. In 195, following a civil war in which the kingdom had supported his rivalPescennius Niger,Septimius Severus mounted an invasion and annexed the territory as a new province, making Nisibis the capital.[52] However, the emperor did allow the king, Abgar XI, to retain the city of Edessa and a small territory surrounding it.[53] In 213, the reigning king was deposed byCaracalla, and the remaining territory was incorporated into the Roman province of Osroene.[54]
According to legends (without historical justification), by 201 AD or earlier, under King Abgar the Great, Osroene became the first Christian state.[55][56] It is believed that theGospel of Thomas emanated from Edessa around 140. Prominent early Christian figures have lived in and emerged from the region such asTatian theAssyrian, who came to Edessa from Hadiab (Adiabene). He made a trip to Rome and returned to Edessa around 172–173. Tatian was the editor of theDiatessaron, which was the primary sacred text ofSyriac-speaking Christianity until in the 5th century thebishopsRabbula andTheodoret suppressed it and substituted a revision of the Old Syriac Canonical Gospels (as in theSyriac Sinaiticus andCuretonian Gospels).[57]
Then, Edessa was again brought under Roman control byDecius and it was made a center of Roman operations against theSasanian Empire.Amru, possibly a descendant of Abgar, is mentioned as king in thePaikuli inscription, recording the victory ofNarseh in the Sassanid civil war of 293. Historians identify that Amru asAmru ibn Adi, the fourth king of theLakhmids, which was then still based inHarran, not yet moved toal-Hirah in southern Mesopotamia.[58]
Many centuries later,Dagalaiphus andSecundinus duke of Osrhoene, accompaniedJulian in his war against the Sasanian emperor,Shapur II, in the 4th century.[59]
The state of Osrhoene was considerably reduced probably duringCaracalla's reign, inc. 213; large parts of the territory fell to the Roman province of Osrhoene that had been established in 195. Some scholars even think that the Osrhoenian monarchy was completely abolished in around 213.[14] The province of Osrhoene was a frontier province, lying close to the Persian empires with which the Romans were repeatedly at war, and was taken and retaken several times. As it was on the frontier it had a Roman legion stationed there.Legio III Parthica and its Castrum (homebase) may have beenRhesaina, but that is uncertain.
Following EmperorDiocletian'stetrarchy reform during his reign (284-305), it was part of thediocese of the East, in thepraetorian prefecture of the same name.
According to the late-4th-centuryNotitia Dignitatum, it was headed by agovernor of the rank ofpraeses, and it was also the seat of thedux Mesopotamiae, who ranked asvir illustris and commanded (c. 400) the following army units:
as well as, 'on the minor roll', apparently auxiliaries:
According toSozomen'sEcclesiastical History, "there were some very learned men who formerly flourished in Osroene, as for instanceBardaisan, who devised a heresy designated by his name, and his sonHarmonius. It is related that this latter was deeply versed in Grecian erudition, and was the first to subdue his native tongue to meters and musical laws; these verses he delivered to the choirs" and thatArianism, a more successful heresy, met with opposition there.
| King | Reign | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Aryu | 132–127 BC | |
| Abdu, son of Maz'ur | 127–120 BC | |
| Fradasht, son of Gebar'u | 120–115 BC | |
| Bakru I, son of Fradasht | 115–112 BC | |
| Bakru II, son of Bakru | 112–94 BC | Ruled alone |
| Bakru II and Ma'nu I | 94 BC | Ruled together |
| Bakru II and Abgar I Piqa | 94–92 BC | Ruled together |
| Abgar I | 92–68 BC | Ruled alone |
| Abgar II, son of Abgar I | 68–53 BC | |
| Interregnum | 53–52 BC | |
| Ma'nu II | 52–34 BC | |
| Paqor | 34–29 BC | |
| Abgar III | 29–26 BC | |
| Abgar IV Sumaqa | 26–23 BC | |
| Ma'nu III Saflul | 23–4 BC | |
| Abgar V Ukkama, son of Ma'nu | 4 BC–7 AD | 1st tenure |
| Ma'nu IV, son of Ma'nu | 7–13 AD | |
| Abgar V Ukkama | 13–50 AD | 2nd tenure |
| Ma'nu V, son of Abgar | 50–57 AD | |
| Ma'nu VI, son of Abgar | 57–71 AD | |
| Abgar VI, son of Ma'nu | 71–91 AD | |
| Interregnum | 91–109 AD | |
| Abgar VII, son of Ezad | 109–116 AD | |
| Interregnum | 116–118 AD | |
| Yalur (Yalud) andParthamaspates | 118–122 AD | Ruled together |
| Parthamaspates | 122–123 AD | Ruled alone |
| Ma'nu VII, son of Ezad | 123–139 AD | |
| Ma'nu VIII, son of Ma'nu | 139–163 AD | First tenure |
| Wa'el, son of Sahru | 163–165 AD | Installed by the Parthians |
| Ma'nu VIII, son of Ma'nu | 165–177 AD | Second tenure |
| Abgar VIII the Great, son of Ma'nu | 177–212 AD | |
| Abgar IX Severus, son of Abgar | 212–214 AD | Deposed by the Romans; Osroene incorporated as a Roman province (colonia)[60][1] |
| Ma'nu IX, son of Abgar (?) | 214–240 AD | Maybe ruled only in name[61] |
| Abgar X Frahad, son of Ma'nu | 240–242 AD | Maybe ruled only in name[14] |
It was around 200 CE that Abgar IX adopted Christianity, thus enabling Edessa to become the first Christian state in history whose ruler was officially and openly a Christian.
It was around 200 CE that Abgar IX adopted Christianity, thus enabling Edessa to become the first Christian state in history whose ruler was officially and openly a Christian.
The fame of Edessa in history rests, however, mainly on its claim to have been the first kingdom to adopt Christianity as its official religion. According to the legend current for centuries throughout the civilized world, Abgar Ukkama wrote to Jesus, inviting him to visit him at Edessa to heal him from sickness. In return he received the blessing of Jesus and subsequently was converted by the evangelist Addai. There is, however, no factual evidence for Christianity at Edessa before the reign of Abgar the Great, 150 years later. Scholars are generally agreed that the legend has confused the two Abgars. It cannot be proved that Abgar the Great adopted Christianity; but his friend Bardaiṣan was a heterodox Christian, and there was a church at Edessa in 201. It is testimony to the personality of Abgar the Great that he is credited by tradition with a leading role in the evangelization of Edessa.
More significant than Bardaisan's conversion to Christianity was the conversion -reported by Bardaisan - of Abgar the Great himself." The conversion is controversial, but whether or not he became a Christian, Abgar had the wisdom to recognise the inherent order and stability in Christianity a century before Constantino did. Ho encouraged it as essential for maintaining Edessa's precarious balance between Rome and Iran. Thus, it is Abgar the Great who lays claim to being the world's first Christian monarch and Edessa the first Christian state. More than anything else, a major precedent had been set for the conversion of Rome itself. // The stories of the conversions of both Abgar V and Abgar VIII may not be true, and have been doubted by a number of Western authorities (with more than a hint at unwillingness to relinquish Rome's and St Peter's own primogeniture?). But whether true or not. the stories did establish Edessa as one of the more important centres for early Christendom."
Modern scholars have taken basically two very different approaches to this legend (which obviously reflects the general search for apostolic origins, characteristics of the fourth century). Some would dismiss it totally, while others prefer to see it as a retrojection into the first century of the conversion of the local king at the end of the second century. In other words, Abgar (V) the Black of the legend in fact represents Abgar (VIII) the Great (c. 177-212), contemporary of Badaisan. Attractive though this second approach might seem, there are serious objections to it, and the various small supportive evidence that Abgar (VIII) the Great became Christian disappears on closer examination.
37°09′30″N38°47′30″E / 37.1583°N 38.7917°E /37.1583; 38.7917
Ethno-linguistic group(s) indigenous to theMiddle East; also known as Syriac-Arameans or Chaldeans | |||||||||
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