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[German Version] The Limes Arabicus (in Transjordan) and the Limes Palaestinae (in the Negeb) were not boundaries but frontier zones with legionary camps ( castra), detached forts for cohorts ( castella), and watchtowers ( burgi). In the Provincia Arabia (created in 106 ce), the Limes Arabicus was not set up until the end of the 3rd century. Its occupation troops, called limitani, were soon recruited from the local population and increasingly lost their fighting capacity. The Limes was more a zone of contact between the Roman Empire and Arabia than an “iron curtain.” To…

[German Version] (Heb. תִּמְנָע), Hebrew name (after the mother of Amalek in Gen 36:12, 23, 40) for the copper-producing area of el-Meneʿiyye in the southeastern ʿAraba (Egyp. ʿAtika), to which Egypt dispatched mining expeditions in the 13th/12th centuries and the second half of the 10th century; with the help of specialists from northwestern ʿArabia and southern Palestine, they mined copper ore and smelted it in situ; they probably also traded in copper from the far richer deposits at Punon/Fēnān to the northeast. A tented Egyptian shrine of Hathor was used at the same time or reused ¶ som…

[German Version] Peniel, Heb. פְּנוּאֵל/ pĕnûʾ ēl, “face of El” (probably from a landform). Peniel (or Penuel) was a site in northern Transjordan, according to Gen 32:22–32 at a ford of the Jabbok, according to Judg 8:5–11 between Succoth (Deir ʿAllā) and Jogbehah (Ǧubēḥa), and according to Judg 8:16 partially destroyed by Gideon (secondary addition to the Succoth episode); in the last third of the 10th century bce, it was taken (or made to pay tribute) by Pharaoh Shishak (Sheshonk) under the name New Pnuel ( pnwʾ l ḥdšt; Karnak king list [Hughes, plates 2–9] nos. 53f., immediate…

[German Version] מִריָם ( miryām, “the well-nourished one”), alternatively identified as the sister of Aaron (Exod 15:20) or the sister of Moses and Aaron (Num 26:59; 1 Chr 5:29). If it was not Miriam who sang (or composed) the song of triumph in Exod 15:21 (often, and probably correctly, considered one of the earliest of Israel's traditions), her traditio-historical roots are totally obscure. Exod 15 in its final form reacted to the scandal of a prominent female voice from Israel's distant past by …

[German Version] is a semilegendary land of gold, reachable by ship from Elath (1 Kgs 9:28; 10:11; 22:49). According to Gen 10:29 (post-P), which makes Ophir a “son of Joktan” and a “brother of Havilah” (Hā’il or the Nufũd desert?), it was probably on the western coast of Arabia; the alternative Punt (Somalia) is based on the catalogue of trade goods in 1 Kgs 10:22, including ivory and apes, but Ophir may also have been a transfer station for the transport of Somali goods. In the mid-10th century bce, gold was mined in the vicinity of Medina. The gold of Ophir was proverbial (Isa 1…

[German Version] Frankincense Road, a caravan route from the incense producing region in southeast Arabia (Ḥaḍramaut, Oman) through western Arabia to Gaza (Pliny the Elder, Naturalis historia, VII 64). As a luxury item that combines limited volume with high value, frankincense was a typical international article of merchandise in antiquity. In turn, the flow of capital and technical expertise from the Fertile Crescent to Arabia resulted in secondary formations of tribes and states (formative phase of the Sabaean Kingdom [Sabaeans] c. 750–675 bce) and, in northern Arabia, in t…

[German Version] Roman roads were provided with milestones every 1,000 double paces (Lat. milia passuum, hence “mile”), which not only served as landmarks but might also include the name and position of the person responsible for building it, its date of construction, and the distance to the destination. Multiple renovations resulted in groups of milestones. Alongside ancient maps, these milestones provide evidence for the existence and routes of Roman roads; they are a primary source for the administrative and economic history of ¶ the Roman provinces, their trade and traffic…

[German Version] In addition to the temple in Palestine and northern Arabia, there were open-air sanctuaries, demarcated sites whose inventory regularly included an asherah , a holy tree, and a massebah, a holy stone, at least since the late Neolithic era. As its Old Testament designation, asherah, indicates, the tree represents the goddess, while the massebah was considered the locus of the presence of the god (thus Beth-El, Bethyl [Bethel]; cf. Gen 28:18–19a). Masseboth/bethyls could be left in their natural state, decorated with reliefs, sculpted geometrica…

[English Version] I. Religionsgeschichtlich Der Brauch, den Göttern als Himmelswesen olfaktorische Opfer darzubringen, geht mindestens bis ins 4.Jt. v.Chr. zurück (äg. śnčr=»räuchern«, wörtl. »vergöttlichen«), doch muß man von allem möglichen Räucherwerk (engl. incense) den W. unterscheiden (engl. frankincense), der im Mittelmeerraum nicht vor dem 8.Jh. v.Chr. nachzuweisen ist. Die Nachfrage stieg bis zum 1.Jh. n.Chr. stark an, um danach zurückzugehen und im 4.Jh. n.Chr. fast ganz zusammenzubrechen…

[German Version] I. Old Testament – II. Islam I. Old Testament Through recourse to the name of a northern Arabian tribal confederation in the 7th century bce (* Šamaʿʾil; attested in Neo-Assyrian sources and reflected in ¶ Gen 25:13–15 [P]), which was transformed in analogy to “Isaac",” the figure of Ishmael served the parties in the course of the edition of the Pentateuch in defining the proximity or distance between the two sons of Abraham", Ishmael and Isaac, that is, Jews and Arabs (including Idumeans), who shared the land in…

[German Version] I. Religious Studies – II. Liturgy I. Religious Studies The custom of making olfactory sacrifices to the gods as heavenly beings dates from at least the 4th millennium bce (Egypt. śnčr = “to smoke; to perfume,” lit. “to deify”). However, frankincense, of which there is no evidence in the Mediterranean area before the 8th century bce, should be distinguished from all other types of incense. There was a growing demand for frankincense until the first century ce. This subsequently dropped, and in the 4th century collapsed almost completely. Along with this…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Dead Sea (textual finds) Canaanite ḥæbrōn (‘place of alliance’ or ‘junction’, the same semantics are at work in the more recent (!) name Qiryat ʿArbaʿ, ‘four-town’, sc. the four clans or tribes named in 1 Sam 25:3; 27:10; 30:26-31); Greek Χεβρων (LXX), Ἑβρών, Γιβρών, Ναβρόν, Χεβρών etc. (Jos passim); ha-barûk (‘the blessed’ = Abraham, Gen 14,19) in  Qumran (DJD III 298, DJD II 160); Arab. al-Ḫalīl ar-Raḥmān (‘the friend [= Abraham, see e.g. Is 41,8] of the merciful [= Allah]’). Central city in the Judaean mou…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Egypt | Syria | Zenobia | Alexander | Commerce | Hasmonaeans | India, trade with | Arabia | Phoenicians, Poeni | Pilgrimage | Pompeius | Egypt (Arabic Ġazza, Hebrew Azzā, from Semitic ǧzz, ‘being thorny’). From  Thutmosis III (1457 BC) to Ramses IV (mid 12th cent. BC) an Egyptian administrative centre in southern Palestine [1], under the Ramessids ‘the town of Canaan’, short ‘Canaan’ (Κάδυτις, Hdt. 2,159; 3,5); under  Ramses II also the ‘town of Ramses in Canaan’. Taken over…

[English version] Dieser Ort ist auf folgenden Karten verzeichnet: Totes Meer (Textfunde) kanaan. ḥæbrōn (“Bündnisort” oder “Verkehrsknotenpunkt”, die gleiche Semantik liegt dem jüngeren(!) Namen Qiryat Arba, “Vierstadt”, sc. der vier in 1 Sam 25,3; 27,10; 30,26-31 genannten Sippen bzw. Stämme, zugrunde); griech. Χεβρων (LXX), Ἑβρών, Γιβρών, Ναβρόν, Χεβρών u.ä. (Ios. passim); ha-barûk (“der Gesegnete” = Abraham, Gn 14,19) in Qumran (DJD III 298, DJD II 160); arab. al-Ḫalīl ar-Raḥmān (“der Freund [= Abraham, s. z.B. Jes 41,8] des Erbarmers [= Allah]”). Zentralo…

[English version] Dieser Ort ist auf folgenden Karten verzeichnet: Ägypten | Ägypten | Alexandros | Arabia | Handel | Hasmonäer | Indienhandel | Phönizier, Punier | Pilgerschaft | Pompeius | Syrien | Zenobia (arab. Ġazza, hebr. Azzā, von semit. ǧzz, “dornig sein”). Von Thutmosis III. (1457 v.Chr.) bis Ramses IV. (Mitte 12. Jh. v.Chr.) ägypt. Verwaltungszentrum in Südpalästina [1], unter den Ramessiden “die Stadt Kanaans”, kurz “das Kanaan” (Κάδυτις, Hdt. 2,159; 3,5); unter Ramses II. auch “Ramsesstadt in Kanaan”. Im 12. Jh. v.Chr. v…

[English Version] I. Allgemeiner Überblick 1.  Ursprung und Einteilung. Die sem. S. gehören zus. mit den indogerm. und hamitischen zu den flektierenden Sprachen, die im Gegensatz zu isolierenden und agglutinierenden Sprachen ihre Wortwurzeln abwandeln können, z.B. arab. Sg. rūḥ, »Geist, Odem«, Pl. ʾarwāḥ. Die Verwandtschaft von sem. und hamitischen Sprachen hat ihre Ursache offenbar in vorgesch. Wanderungen protohamitisch-sem. sprechender Gruppen aus Nordafrika – auch aus einer im 7. – 4.Jt. noch »grü…

[German Version] I. General Survey 1. Origin and classification. Like the Indo-European and Hamitic languages, the Semitic languages are inflectional; in contrast to isolating and agglutinative languages, they can change the form of a root, for example Arabic singular rūḥ, “spirit, breath,” plural ʾ arwāḥ. The relationship between the Semitic and Hamitic languages is clearly the product of prehistoric migrations of groups speaking proto-Afro-Asiatic (formerly called Hamito-Semitic) from North Africa – from a Sahara still “green” from the …

(Hebrew Mošæh, Greek Μω(υ)σῆς; Mō(y)sȇs). [1] Israelite religious founder [German version] I. Biblical tradition According to tradition, M. was a Levite who grew up as an Egyptian prince, was forced to flee to Midian, was called there by the god Yahweh to lead the enslaved Hebrew people out of Egypt; Biblical cultic and moral law were revealed to him on Mt. Sinai, and he led the Hebrew people through the desert to the edge of the Promised Land, where he died on Mount Nebo, across from Jericho (Ex 2 - Dt 34). …

(hebr. Mošæh, griech. Μω(υ)σῆς). [1] israelit. Religionsstifter [English version] I. Biblische Überlieferung Nach der Überl. war M. ein Levit, der als äg. Prinz aufwuchs, nach Midian fliehen mußte, dort vom Gott Jahwe berufen wurde, die versklavten Hebräer aus Ägypten führte, am Sinai die Offenbarung des biblischen Kult- wie Sittengesetzes empfing und die Hebräer durch die Wüste bis an den Rand des verheißenen Landes führte, wo er auf dem Berg Nebo gegenüber von Jericho starb (Ex 2 - Dt 34). An diesem Bild …

[English Version] I. Biblisch 1.  In Israel und Juda. Vom 10. bis ins 8.Jh. v.Chr. ist im Vergleich zu Ägypten und Mesopotamien nur mit einer rudimentären V. zu rechnen. Die Staatseinnahmen wurden im wesentlichen vom königlichen Krongut erwirtschaftet, das noch z.Z. Hiskias die Festungen verproviantierte (Königsstempel). Das Krongut unterstand dem Majordomo ('šr ‘l hbjt; 1Kön 4,6 u. ö.; epigraphisch: ReRö II, 113f.; in einem Privathaushalt: Gen 43,16 u. ö.). Die Beamtenbez. »Knecht« (‘bd, »Sklave«) des …

[English Version] I. Bezeichnungen Die Siedlungsgebiete, die von den Philistern besiedelt und nach den ass. Eroberungen im akkad. Sprachgebrauch als Palasˇtu u.ä. zusammenfassend benannt worden waren, dürften die Grundlage jener Bez. bilden, die im Griech. erstmals bei Herodot (als Sy´ria hē´) Palaisti´ne (Hdt. 1,105; 2,104.106; 3,5.91; 4,39; 7,89) belegt ist, auch wenn das zu vermutende aram. Zwischenglied der pers. Zeit, auf das der griech. Sprachgebrauch zurückgehen dürfte, (bisher) nicht beleg…

[English Version] I. Stand der Forschung, allgemeinP. ist die Wiss. von der Entwicklung der Schrift und untersucht als wesentlicher Bestandteil der Handschriftenkunde die alten Schriftformen, v.a. die der Antike und des MA. Dabei spielt keine Rolle, ob Tinte verwendet wurde oder ein »epigraphisches« Schriftwerk vorliegt. Die Schrift ist eine empirische Brücke zw. der Archäologie und der Geschichtswiss. (Geschichte) und liefert der P. zwei Ansätze: einen philol. und einen archäologischen. Philol. gese…

[German Version] I. Paleography Today – II. Palestine – III. Texts I. Paleography Today Paleography is the study of the development of writing; as an important element in codicology, it examines early forms of writing, particularly those of antiquity and the Middle Ages. The distinction between the use of ink and “epigraphic” writing is irrelevant. Writing is an empirical bridge between archaeology and the historical sciences (History/Concepts of history); it provides two starting points for paleography, one …

[German Version] I. Terminology – II. Geography – III. Archaeology – IV. History and Society – V. History of Religions I. Terminology The area settled by the Philistines, referred to collectively in Akkadian by such names as palaštu after their conquest by Assyria, probably provided the basis for the Greek ( Sýria hḗ) Palaistínē, first found in Herodotus (1.105; 2.104, 106; 3.5, 91; 4.39; 7.89), even though the hypothetical intermediate Aramaic expression of the Persian period, the likely basis of the Greek form, is still unattested. To the exten…

[German Version] I. The State of Israel – II. History – III. Society I. The State of Israel The formal full name, State of Israel (Heb. Medinat Yisrael), calls attention to the spatial divergence between the political entity and the geographical and historical Erets Israel (Land of Israel, Palestine and its linguistic equivalents). Israel is located in southwest Asia, on the southern stretch of the eastern coast of the Mediterranean. In its northern half, inland from the shore, is the coastal area and further east are the hills, from n…