Nitzana (Nabatean city)
Encyclopedia
Nitzana is an ancient Nabataean
city located in the southwest Negev
desert in Israel
close to the Egypt
ian border. It may have been a camel caravan
station on the eastern branch of the ancient Incense Route, serving pilgrims and merchants travelling to Sinai or central Egypt
. The Nabataean towns of the Negev were typically founded around the first century BC, conquered by Romans
two centuries later, who garrisoned the site, and inhabited by Byzantine
Christians from at latest the fourth century until the invasion and the Muslim conquest of Syria
in the seventh century. Relatively few stones remain on the site because most were recycled into buildings in Gaza
in the early 20th century.
administration and the earliest phase of Arabic Islam. The papyri make this the best-documented of all the old Nabataean sites in the Negev. The find sites were two store rooms in the ruined Church of Mary Mother of God and of the soldier saints Sergius and Bacchus. Private documents, such as wills, greatly outnumber official ones: a fragmentary text of Virgil
and a Latin-Greek glossary of the Aeneid
, fragments of the Gospel of John
and early seventh-century church archives and the personal papers of a "George, son of Patrick", on the one hand, and archives of the military unit, "Numerus of the Most Loyal Theodosians" on the other. Onomastics
show that the largely Nabataean inhabitants of the city had become Christianized and Romanized in the early centuries CE, as well as documenting the arrival of a Byzantine phylarch
ate. Many names of ancient cities in the Negev come only from these documents. One of the last of the papyri describes coinage struck and soldiers employed by 'Abd al-Malik, replacing the Roman institutions with a new Ummayad power structure.
it was found in the 1800
Nabataeans
Thamudi3.jpgThe Nabataeans, also Nabateans , were ancient peoples of southern Canaan and the northern part of Arabia, whose oasis settlements in the time of Josephus , gave the name of Nabatene to the borderland between Syria and Arabia, from the Euphrates to the Red Sea...
city located in the southwest Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
desert in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
close to the Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian border. It may have been a camel caravan
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
station on the eastern branch of the ancient Incense Route, serving pilgrims and merchants travelling to Sinai or central Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. The Nabataean towns of the Negev were typically founded around the first century BC, conquered by Romans
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....
two centuries later, who garrisoned the site, and inhabited by Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
Christians from at latest the fourth century until the invasion and the Muslim conquest of Syria
Muslim conquest of Syria
The Muslim conquest of Syria occurred in the first half of the 7th century, and refers to the region known as the Bilad al-Sham, the Levant, or Greater Syria...
in the seventh century. Relatively few stones remain on the site because most were recycled into buildings in Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
in the early 20th century.
Nessana papyri
In the 1930s a major trove of sixth- and seventh-century papyri in Greek and Arabic was discovered at this site, revealing in the course of excavations in 1935-37, a wealth of information about day-to-day life in Nabataean society between 505 and 689 CE, the last phase of ByzantineByzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
administration and the earliest phase of Arabic Islam. The papyri make this the best-documented of all the old Nabataean sites in the Negev. The find sites were two store rooms in the ruined Church of Mary Mother of God and of the soldier saints Sergius and Bacchus. Private documents, such as wills, greatly outnumber official ones: a fragmentary text of Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
and a Latin-Greek glossary of the Aeneid
Aeneid
The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It is composed of roughly 10,000 lines in dactylic hexameter...
, fragments of the Gospel of John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
and early seventh-century church archives and the personal papers of a "George, son of Patrick", on the one hand, and archives of the military unit, "Numerus of the Most Loyal Theodosians" on the other. Onomastics
Onomastics
Onomastics or onomatology is the study of proper names of all kinds and the origins of names. The words are from the Greek: "ὀνομαστικός" , "of or belonging to naming" and "ὀνοματολογία" , from "ὄνομα" "name". Toponymy or toponomastics, the study of place names, is one of the principal branches of...
show that the largely Nabataean inhabitants of the city had become Christianized and Romanized in the early centuries CE, as well as documenting the arrival of a Byzantine phylarch
Phylarch
A phylarch is a Greek title meaning "ruler of a tribe", from phyle, "tribe" + archein "to rule".In Classical Athens, a phylarch was the elected commander of the cavalry provided by each of the city's ten tribes....
ate. Many names of ancient cities in the Negev come only from these documents. One of the last of the papyri describes coinage struck and soldiers employed by 'Abd al-Malik, replacing the Roman institutions with a new Ummayad power structure.
See also
- Nitzana – a modern-day village near the ruins
it was found in the 1800