This contribution investigates the etymology of two obscure Safaitic terms: the verb ʾlmn and the divine title ḏgn . It is argued that the former means “to seek refuge” and ultimately derives from the Greek word for “harbor”, λιμήν. The latter term, ḏgn , is composed of two elements: the relative pronoun ḏ and the noun gn , which is identified as Ginn or Gānn (Genies). This is substantiated through an investigation of the semantic range of the verbal root gnn in Safaitic and its broader context at the beginning of the 1st millennium ce .
Abstract The site of al-Ruwaykaba in the Najrān oasis (Saudi Arabia) contains a collection of rock graffiti that were recorded by the Philby-Ryckmans-Lippens Expedition in 1951 but have remained unpublished. One of these graffiti was authored by a king of Najrān who had not previously been identified because his name and epithet had been interpreted as separate names. Another was authored by a Yemeni from the kingdom of Qatabān, likely a merchant passing through Najrān.
Abstract The article deals with the controversial Sabaic term mblʿt attested in the inscription Fa 120, 12. The general meaning of the context in which the term occurs will be analysed. Various Semitic parallels will proposed, and the tentative interpretation as “sever mouth disease/mortal disease” will be offered.
Abstract Questo studio ha l’obiettivo di prendere in esame gli epiteti Bromio ed Evio, attribuiti al dio Dioniso nelle fonti letterarie e in alcune fonti epigrafiche. La ricerca, in particolare, vuole analizzare la possibile origine di questi epiteti a partire da esclamazioni, espressioni cultuali o termini che esprimono il rumore caratteristico del rito dionisiaco, come è riportato dai dizionari moderni ma anche da alcuni autori antichi, lessicografi o meno. Tutti e due gli appellativi appaiono legati al culto del dio: Bromio è associato al frastuono, Evio al grido rituale; pertanto, il rumore è un aspetto correlato a entrambi gli epiteti. Ci concentreremo in particolare sulle Baccanti di Euripide, testo in cui le due denominazioni compaiono con più frequenza, e stabiliremo in quali contesti e in che momenti della vita di Dioniso esse vengono utilizzate maggiormente.
Dall’insieme della documentazione disponibile, Eshmun emerge come una figura divina complessa, certo non riducibile alla schematica definizione di “dio guaritore”. I vari caratteri e attributi di Eshmun, che nella città di Sidone era o tendeva a diventare la divinità poliade, furono variamente accentuati, sviluppati e valorizzati nello spazio e nel tempo, costruendone un’immagine complessiva modulata e poliedrica.
Abstract A fragment of a large stone slab with a relief inscription was discovered in Nāʿiṭ, Yemen (50 km north of Ṣanʿāʾ). It is of interest because it mentions King Abraha for the first time in the Yemeni mountains, bringing the total number of texts dating from this king’s reign to 10. The text, which is difficult to understand due to its fragmentary nature, mentions “lions” (ʾlbʾ) in line 6. An unknown word, ʾlfl , in the previous line, could mean “elephant.”
Cette étude porte sur les graffiti à caractère eschatologique des deux premiers siècles de l’Hégire dans la péninsule Arabique, période essentielle pour l’histoire religieuse de l’islam. Le corpus retenu, issu essentiellement du Thesaurus d’épigraphie islamique , met en évidence un ensemble de formules stéréotypées autour du pardon, de la miséricorde, du repentir, du Paradis et de l’Enfer. L’analyse insiste sur l’usage récurrent des racines rḥm , ġfr , ʿfw et twb , ainsi que sur les expressions relatives au péché (ḏanb) et au salut (ǧanna , nār) . La proximité lexicale et formulaire avec le Coran, parfois perceptible jusque dans l’emploi d’hapax, suggère un processus d’appropriation du discours coranique. Ces graffiti, malgré leurs simplifications grammaticales et leurs calques scripturaires, constituent une source de première importance pour l’étude de la religiosité et des usages linguistiques de la communauté des premiers croyants.
Abstract Au sud-ouest de l’Arabie saʿūdite, de très nombreux graffites rupestres et pétroglyphes ont été découverts à Ḥimà et dans ses environs. Parmi les textes, sept seulement ont été écrits en grec, dont quatre inédits. Ils sont publiés ou republiés ici. Hormis un court texte chrétien de l’Antiquité tardive, les autres, datables du ii e s. ou du iii e s. de notre ère, ne mentionnent que des anthroponymes. Deux d’entre eux au moins pourraient avoir été gravés par des voyageurs issus de la province romaine d’Arabie.
Abstract L’articolo affronta la questione della denominazione del divino in contesto rituale, indagando un aspetto particolare dei nomi degli dèi: la plasticità. A tal fine, il rito della preghiera costituisce un utile case study per mostrare che, anche nell’invocazione a una singola divinità, il ricorso a specifici “attributi onomastici” consente di evocare una configurazione di potenze adatta alla situazione secondo la logica relazionale propria del politeismo greco.
This article presents the first lexical and semantic study of the Himaitic corpus, inaugurating a new series entitled “Himaitic lexical notes.” It offers a focused overview of four key semantic domains attested in Himaitic inscriptions: kinship and social relations; the natural world (animals, plants, and landscape); spatio-temporal orientation; and writing practices and media. While lexical isoglosses with Safaitic and Thamudic D are frequently observed, the Himaitic material is marked by distinctive thematic preferences, the use of rare or unique lexemes, and the absence of conventional inscriptional themes such as warfare and religious formulae. The study underscores the cultural and linguistic specificity of the Himaitic tradition and its significance within the broader Ancient North Arabian epigraphic landscape.
Abstract This article contains a fresh analysis of P.Yadin 8 and 9, both from 122 ce , with new readings of the Judean and Nabatean Aramaic texts. It argues that both documents are closely related and that each records a creditor’s seizure of property from debtors who failed to repay their loans. The procedure adopted, which included in the case of P.Yadin 9 the creditor informing other creditors of his intention to seize the debtor’s property to gain their permission therefor, illustrates features of Nabatean law on asset seizure known from P.Starcky from the previous century. The sophistication of this procedure explains its survival in Roman Arabia.
Abstract L’articolo analizza il rapporto tra onomastica divina e pratica rituale nel Mediterraneo orientale di epoca romana. In particolare, due villaggi del Libano, da un lato, e della Cilicia, dall’altro, danno vita a divinità dai contorni mobili, legate cioè a movimenti rituali, che siano passi di danza o l’attraversamento dei carboni ardenti (danze pirobatiche). In entrambi i casi, tali caratteristiche sono espresse dai nomi divini e rilevano da pratiche rituali aventi luogo nei contesti presi in esame. Esplorando però più in profondità la produzione documentaria dei luoghi sacri di Deir el-Qalaa (Libano) e di Castabala (Cilicia) si evince che la mobilità è un tratto religioso endemico, che riguarda ogni aspetto del mondo antico e che si esplica concretamente nella prassi rituale, riferendosi alla capacità degli dèi di colmare distanze, di coadiuvare i passaggi dei cicli naturali, di rendersi presenti e visibili per il tramite dei rituali.
Presentation of an unpublished Jewish Aramaic epitaph of a man who died on New Year’s Day ad 424. The stone is kept in a private Jordanian collection, but, from the layout, the text of the inscription and the type of stone, it can be ascribed with certainty to Zoora (modern Ġawr al-Ṣāfī, al-Karak Governorate, southern Jordan) where over 70 similar texts have been found. It contributes to the documentation of a small and distinct community in this remote location.
Abstract One of the objectives of an ongoing research programme conducted by the “Mission archéologique syro-française de Ras Shamra – Ougarit” is to enhance our understanding of the armament of Ugarit and to present previously unpublished material to the scholarly community. There is quite a considerable number of realia that can be associated with armaments, which belong to a wide range of different types. Most of the pieces are classified as offensive weapons. There is very much less armament that is exclusively defensive. It is worth mentioning that this applies to the whole of the Near Eastern archaeological documentation of the Bronze Age. This article offers a comprehensive overview of the defensive armament in Ugarit, structured into three sections addressing armour, helmets, and shields, respectively. For each category, the archaeological evidence is examined first, followed by an analysis of relevant textual sources. The final section is devoted to the iconographic documentation.
Abstract This article examines the representation of Yhwh as master of the stars in the books of Amos (4:13; 5:8; 9:5-6) and Job (chapters 9 and 38). These passages propose a unique divine configuration in which Yhwh is presented not only as the creator of the constellations but also as the holder of ordered cosmic knowledge, breaking with the prophetic tradition that devalued astronomy and astral cults. The analysis places these texts in the broader context of the astralization of deities in the Levant and the emergence, during the Persian period, of a theology in which divine power is expressed through the organization of the heavens. The article also highlights the cultic, sapiential, and epistemic implications of this figure of Yhwh, particularly through the confrontation between human knowledge and divine knowledge in Job 38, and in comparison with Aramaic mantic traditions. Finally, this study highlights the consequences of this representation in terms of the transformations of Israelite monotheism during the Second Temple Period, paying attention to the semantic shifts in divine attributes, especially in the epithet Sabaoth , now associated with universal sovereignty rather than with a strictly military function.
Abstract This paper presents an analysis of a group of Ancient North Arabian Safaitic inscriptions that resulted from field work carried out by Yarmouk University in Wādī Qaṭṭāfī/Wādī Salḥūb in northeastern Jordan. Translations are provided on the basis of the published and accessible Safaitic materials and studies thereon. Lexemes whose interpretation is not unanimously agreed upon by researchers in the field are discussed.
Abstract S’inscrivant dans le quadrant oriental de la Méditerranée et provenant des endroits – mais non de tous – où se sont tissées des relations entre les Phéniciens et les Grecs, un groupe de textes que l’on définit habituellement comme « inscriptions bilingues gréco-phéniciennes » se distinguent pour avoir été rédigés à la fois en grec et en phénicien. Ils sont regroupés et présentés ensemble dans la présente contribution, où nous nous sommes proposé de revisiter et de réélaborer une définition plus détaillée et descriptive de ce corpus, ainsi que d’analyser et de synthétiser leurs caractéristiques principales et communes.
La dédicace grecque et phénicienne d’Arados ( IGLS 7, 4001) a fait l’objet de plusieurs éditions commentées depuis sa découverte sur l’île syrienne d’Arwād lors de la première guerre mondiale. Ce document continue de poser des problèmes d’interprétation qui résultent surtout des difficultés de son déchiffrement. L’objectif du présent article est de rouvrir le dossier afin de proposer une nouvelle lecture fondée sur l’ensemble des sources disponibles et sur l’examen de son support au musée du Louvre. L’étude donne également l’occasion de replacer l’inscription parmi les témoignages qui illustrent l’hellénisation des institutions et des traditions aradiennes sous le principat d’Auguste.
