The Arabs in Antiquity : Their History From the Assyrians to the Umayyads

The history of the Arabs in antiquity from their earliest appearance around 853 BC until the first century of Islam, is described in this book. It traces the mention of people called Arabs in all relevant ancient sources and suggests a new interpretation of their history. It is suggested that the ancient Arabs were more a religious community than an ethnic group, which would explain why the designation 'Arab' could be easily adopted by the early Muslim tribes. The Arabs of antiquity thus resemble the early Islamic Arabs more than is usually assumed, both being united by common bonds of religious ideology and law. Cover 1 THE ARABS IN ANTIQUITY: Their history from the Assyrians to the Umayyads 4 Copyright 5 CONTENTS 6 Map 1 The Arabian Pensinsula and the adjacent regions 15 PREFACE 12 PROLEGOMENA 20 Which Arabs? 20 Arabs and bedouin: present-day evidence 20 Method of investigation 26 Notes 28 Part I THE REMEMBERED ORIGINS 30 1 ARABS IN EARLY ISLAM 32 Sources 32 General historical background 36 The view of a medieval Muslim sociologist: Ibn Khaldūn 37 The view of a medieval Muslim belletrist: al-Ğāhiz 40 Notes 41 2 THE ARABS AS A PEOPLE 43 arab and ağam 43 arab as a nation of tribes 47 The 'real' arab 49 The original āriba peoples 53 The language of the arab 59 The land of the arab and their villages 67 Excursus: the language of Quraysh 70 Notes 72 3 THE ARABS AS A SECTION OF SOCIETY 82 arab and Muslim 82 arab and mawlā 85 arab and muhāğirūn 88 arab, Quraysh and the early Muslims 90 arab, ansār and their successors 93 The arab among the tribesmen 95 Notes 98 4 THE NEGLECTED COUSINS 101 The arāb 101 The arāb in the Qurān 106 Notes 112 5 ARABS IN THE EYES OF OUTSIDERS 115 Arabs and Muslims in non-Arabic sources from the first century AH 115 Arabs in the early Arabo-Islamic tradition: attempt at a summary 118 Notes 120 Part II THE FORGOTTEN ORIGINS 122 6 THE PROBLEM OF THE EARLIEST ARABS 124 Introduction 124 Pre-Islamic Arabs in modern scholarship: a short survey 124 Excursus: nomadism in the Middle East 132 Notes 135 7 ARABS IN CUNEIFORM SOURCES 138 Syria at the beginning of the first millennium BC: sources 138 Political outline 140 The road to Qarqar 143 Excursus: the sons of Qeturah 147 Tiglath Pileser III 148 Excursus: the earliest Arabs in the Old Testament 155 Sargon II 166 Sennacherib 172 Esarhaddon 177 Assurbanipal: the sources 180 The course of events 185 Excursus: the people of Attar-shamayin 187 Excursus: a short historical and redactional survey of the text of the Rassam cylinder 188 The late Judaean kingdom and Arabia 190 Excursus: the Queen of Sheba 192 Nebuchadnezzar II 195 Nabonidus 200 Nabonidus, Cyrus the Great and the Arabs 203 Individual Arabs in the Chaldaean and early Achaemenid periods 208 Arabs down to the rise of the Achaemenids: attempt at a summary 210 Notes 212 8 THE OLD TESTAMENT AND ARABIA 231 Introduction 231 The P tables 233 The lists of J 238 Ishmael and his descendants 239 The story about Ishmael 241 Arabs in the Old Testament: a summary 247 Notes 248 9 THE AGE OF THE ACHAEMENIDS 254 Introduction 254 The sources for the period 540–335 BC 254 Cambyses and the Arabs 255 The testimony from the Persians 256 Scylax of Caryanda 259 Hecataeus of Mytilene 259 Hecataeus' successors 261 Herodotus of Halicarnassus 262 Geshem the Arab 269 Greeks and Arabs from the end of the fifth century BC until Alexander 270 Excursus: Arabia in the list of arkhonts in Xenophon's Anabasis VII:8 275 Notes 276 10 ALEXANDER THE GREAT AND THE ARABS 282 Sources 282 The Mediterranean campaign 283 Alexander and the Arabian peninsula 285 The Arabian expeditions 288 Excursus: the location and role of Gerrha 292 Arabs from Cambyses to Alexander: a preliminary synthesis 293 Notes 296 11 THE HEIRS OF ALEXANDER 301 Antigonus 301 The events of 312 BC: Antigonus in Arabia 302 The expedition in 312 BC: analysis 304 Two early Hellenistic authors on Arabia: Euhemerus and Iambulus 309 The Ptolemies and the Arabs 313 The Red Sea expedition of Ptolemy II 314 Arabs in Ptolemaic Egypt 319 Eratosthenes from Cyrene 320 The Seleucids and the Arabs 327 Arabs around Palestine in the age of the Maccabees 330 Arabs in Syria in the age of the Maccabees 333 Arabs from Alexander to Demetrius: attempt at a summary 336 Notes 338 12 BETWEEN THE GREEKS AND THE ROMANS 348 The Middle East in the second half of the second century BC 348 Sources for the events down to the battle of Actium 349 Mesene 351 Osrhoene 352 Syria-Palestine until the age of Alexander Jannaeus 353 Alexander Jannaeus and the Arabs: the course of events according to Josephus 359 Evaluation of the evidence 362 Tigranes the Great 365 The arrival of the Romans 368 Posidonius of Apamaea 370 Notes 377 13 THE NABATAEAN PROBLEM 383 Arabs, Nabataeans and Jews during the Roman conquest: the events 383 The problem: were the Nabataeans Arabs? 385 Nabataeans and Arabs before 65 BC: the literary sources 386 The Nabataeans before 65 BC: the non-literary testimony 387 Arabs and Nabataeans: a first evaluation 388 Arabs and Nabataeans after the Roman conquest: the sources 390 Arabs and Nabataeans after the Roman conquest: Josephus' account 391 The solution: Herod's legacy 392 The Arabo-Nabataean kingdom 394 The king of Arabs and Nabataeans 396 Excursus: who were the Nabataeans? 397 Notes 402 14 ARABS AND ROMANS UNTIL THE TIME OF TRAJAN 411 Arabs and Romans in the Middle East 411 Arabs and the battle of Carrhae 412 Arabs and the Parthian invasion after Carrhae 414 Arabs and the anti-Caesarians 415 When Antony and Cleopatra ruled the East 417 Rome and the Arabs in the reign of Augustus 418 Excursus: the expedition of Aelius Gallus to Yemen 421 Iuba's book on Arabia 422 Excursus: 'the Ituraeans, the Arabs' 426 Excursus: Emesa 427 Excursus: the arabarchia 428 Arabs in the time of Claudius 431 Arabs in Adiabene 432 Arabs in the time of Nero: Corbulo's testimony 433 Arabs in the New Testament 435 Arabs and the Great Jewish Revolt 437 The Periplus Maris Erythraei 440 Arabs in the Middle East from the end of the Seleucids to Trajan: a summary 441 Notes 442 15 ARABS IN THE AGE OF THE GOOD EMPERORS 451 Sources for the second century AD 451 The reign of Trajan and its results 452 Claudius Ptolemy 455 An anonymous source on Arabs from the second century AD 457 Arabs between Romans and Parthians before the Severian dynasty 458 The Arabs at Edessa 459 The Arabs at Hatra 461 Excursus: arab in the Hatra texts: region or people? 466 Notes 467 16 FROM THE SEVERIANS TO CONSTANTINE THE GREAT 473 Sources for the period from Septimius Severus to Theodosius 473 The course of events from Septimius Severus to Diocletian: general outline 474 Septimius Severus and the Arabs 476 Philippus Arabs 479 The Orient in turmoil: Shāpur I and Palmyra 480 The rise and fall of Palmyra 481 The three empires: interaction around AD 300 485 The king of all Arabs: the text from an-Namāra 486 Historical interpretation of the text 489 The Namara inscription and the kings of al-Hira: the Arabic tradition 492 Analysis of the story 495 The evidence from contemporary documents 499 Arabs in literary texts from the third century 504 Arabs in the outgoing second century: the testimony of Clement of Alexandria 505 Origen 505 Hippolytus' Diamerismós 506 The Book of the Laws of Countries 509 Uranius' Arabica 510 Glaucus 512 Notes 513 17 THE DISAPPEARING ARABS 524 The emergence of the Taieni and the Saraceni 524 Eusebius of Caesarea 525 Basil the Great 528 Epiphanius 529 Other testimonies from the early fourth century 530 The fourth century: Arabs in the waning 531 The time of Julian the Apostate: the testimony of Ammian Marcellinus 532 Excursus: Ammian's description of Arabia and Arabs and its background 533 Arabs and Saracens from the end of the fourth century 536 The tayyāē 539 Arabs versus Saraceni and tayyāyē 539 Notes 540 18 ARABS IN TALMUDIC SOURCES 545 Notes 551 19 ARABS IN SOUTH ARABIA 555 Introduction 555 Arabs in South Arabia until the end of the third century 556 Arabs in South Arabia from the fourth to the sixth century 571 Arabs in South Arabia: survey and summary 581 Notes 586 Part III THE SOLUTION OF AN ENIGMA? 594 20 THE PICTURE OF ARABS IN PRE-ISLAMIC SOURCES 596 A final evaluation of the sources 596 The lands of the Arabs 597 How the Arabs lived 599 Political structure 603 Arabs, Hagar, Nabat 604 Notes 607 21 THE LINGUISTIC ISSUE 610 The language of the Arabs 610 The name and its linguistic background 614 Notes 617 22 THE ARABS AND THEIR RELIGION 619 The six gods of Dumah 619 The two gods of Arabo-Nabataea 621 The cult of the Saracens 624 The gods of the Arabs and the Saracen cult of the twin gods 625 Tracing the Arab god 628 The Arabs and their god 629 Rendezvous in Mecca: the legend of Qusayy b. Kilāb 633 Notes 634 SUMMING UP: THE ARABS FROM THE ASSYRIAN S TO THE UMAYYADS 642 BIBLIOGRAPHY 646 Abbreviations 646 Sources 647 Secondary literature 664 GENERAL INDEX 687 INDEX LOCORUM 699 Pt. I. The Remembered Origins -- 1. Arabs In Early Islam -- 2. Arabs As A People -- 3. The Arabs As A Section Of Society -- 4. The Neglected Cousins -- 5. Arabs In The Eyes Of Outsiders -- Pt. Ii. The Forgotten Origins -- 6. The Problem Of The Earliest Arabs -- 7. Arabs In Cuneiform Sources -- 8. The Old Testament And Arabia -- 9. The Age Of The Achaemenids -- 10. Alexander The Great And The Arabs -- 11. The Heirs Of Alexander -- 12. Between The Greeks And The Romans -- 13. The Nabataean Problem -- 14. Arabs And Romans Until The Time Of Trajan -- 15. Arabs In The Age Of The Good Emperors -- 16. From The Severians To Constantine The Great -- 17. The Disappearing Arabs -- 18. Arabs In Talmudic Sources -- 19. Arabs In South Arabia -- Pt. Iii. The Solution Of An Enigma? -- 20. The Picture Of Arabs In Pre-islamic Sources -- 21. The Linguistic Issues -- 22. The Arabs And Their Religion -- Summing Up: The Arabs From The Assyrians To The Umayyads. Jan Retsö. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 627-667) And Indexes.