Germa
Encyclopedia
Germa, known in ancient times as Garama, is an archaeological site in Libya
and was the capital of the Garamantes
.
The Garamantes were a Berber
people living in the Fezzan
in the northeastern Sahara
, originating from the Sahara's Tibesti region. Garamantian power climaxed during the 2nd and the 3rd centuries AD, often in conflict with the Roman Empire
to the north. The Garamantes often conducted raids across Rome's African frontier, the Limes Tripolitanus
, and retreat back to the safety of the desert. However, in 203 the Roman Emperor
Septimius Severus
launched a campaign deep into the Sahara, capturing Garama, but he abandoned it soon after.
Archaeological work at Germa has most recently been conducted by Prof. David Mattingly's Fazzan Project, which has continued the work of Charles Daniels and Mohammed Ayoub. The Fazzan Project is about to publish the 2nd of 4 planned volumes based on its work.
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
and was the capital of the Garamantes
Garamantes
The Garamantes were a Saharan people who used an elaborate underground irrigation system, and founded a prosperous Berber kingdom in the Fezzan area of modern-day Libya, in the Sahara desert. They were a local power in the Sahara between 500 BC and 700 AD.There is little textual information about...
.
The Garamantes were a Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
people living in the Fezzan
Fezzan
Fezzan is a south western region of modern Libya. It is largely desert but broken by mountains, uplands, and dry river valleys in the north, where oases enable ancient towns and villages to survive deep in the otherwise inhospitable Sahara.-Name:...
in the northeastern Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
, originating from the Sahara's Tibesti region. Garamantian power climaxed during the 2nd and the 3rd centuries AD, often in conflict with the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
to the north. The Garamantes often conducted raids across Rome's African frontier, the Limes Tripolitanus
Limes Tripolitanus
The Limes Tripolitanus was a frontier zone of defence of the Roman Empire, built in the south of what is now Tunisia and the northwest of Libya. It was primarily intended as a protection for the tripolitanian cities of Leptis Magna, Sabratha and Oea in Roman Libya.-History:The Limes Tripolitanus...
, and retreat back to the safety of the desert. However, in 203 the Roman Emperor
Roman Emperor
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
Septimius Severus
Septimius Severus
Septimius Severus , also known as Severus, was Roman Emperor from 193 to 211. Severus was born in Leptis Magna in the province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary succession of offices under the reigns of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. Severus seized power after the death of...
launched a campaign deep into the Sahara, capturing Garama, but he abandoned it soon after.
Archaeological work at Germa has most recently been conducted by Prof. David Mattingly's Fazzan Project, which has continued the work of Charles Daniels and Mohammed Ayoub. The Fazzan Project is about to publish the 2nd of 4 planned volumes based on its work.