Tayma
Tayma
تيماء | |
---|---|
![]() Old Town of Tayma | |
Coordinates:27°37′47″N38°32′38″E/ 27.62972°N 38.54389°E | |
Country | ![]() |
Province | Tabuk province |
Time zone | UTC+3(AST) |
Tayma/ˈteɪmə/(Taymanitic:𐪉𐪃𐪒,TMʾ,vocalized as:Taymāʾ;[1]Arabic:تيماء,romanized:Taymāʾ) is a largeoasiswith a long history of settlement, located in northwesternSaudi Arabiaat the point where the trade route betweenMedinaandDumah(Sakakah) begins to cross theNafud desert.Tayma is located 264 km (164 mi) southeast of the city ofTabuk,and about 400 km (250 mi) north ofMedina.[2][3]It is located in the western part of the Nafud desert.
History
[edit]The historical significance of Tayma is based on the existence there of an oasis, which helped it become a stopping point on commercial desert routes.[4]An important event was the presence there ofNabonidus,the lastNeo-Babylonian emperor,who took residence there in the mid-6th century BC.[4]
Bronze Age: Egyptian inscription
[edit]Recent archaeological discoveries show that Tayma has been inhabited since at least theBronze Age.In2010,theMinistry of Tourism of Saudi Arabiaannounced the discovery of thePharaonic Tayma inscriptionbyRamesses III.This was the first confirmed find of ahieroglyphicinscription on Saudi soil. Based on this discovery, researchers have hypothesized that Tayma was part of an important land route between theRed Seacoast of theArabian Peninsulaand theNile.[citation needed]
Assyrian, Babylonian, and biblical sources
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Teima_stone_Louvre_AO1505.jpg/220px-Teima_stone_Louvre_AO1505.jpg)
The oldest mention of the oasis city appears as "Tiamat" in Neo-Babylonian inscriptions dating as far back as the8th century BC.The oasis developed into a prosperous city rich inwellsand handsome buildings.Tiglath-pileser IIIreceived tribute from Tayma[5]andSennacherib(r. 705–681 BC) named one ofNineveh's gates the Desert Gate, recording that "the gifts of the Sumu'anite and the Teymeite enter through it". It was rich and proud enough in the seventh century BC forJeremiahto prophesy against it inJeremiah 25:23:"Dedan,Tema, and Buz, and all those who have their hair clipped ". It was ruled then by a local Arab dynasty known as theQedarites.The names of two8th century BCqueens,ŠamšiandZabibe,are recorded.[citation needed]
Emperor Nabonidus (ruled c. 556–539 BC) conquered Tayma, and for ten years of his reign retired there to worship and search for prophecies, entrusting the kingship of Babylon to his son,Belshazzar.[5]Taymanitic inscriptions also mention that the people of Tayma fought wars with Dadān (Lihyan).[6][clarification needed]
Cuneiforminscriptions possibly dating from the6th century BChave been recovered from Tayma.[7]They are known as theTayma stones.
Tayma is mentioned several times in theHebrew Bible.The biblicaleponymisTema,one of the sons ofIshmael,after whom theLand of Temais named.[citation needed]
Jewish community: classical period and 12th century
[edit]According to Arab tradition, Tayma was inhabited by aJewishcommunity during the lateclassical period,but whether they were exiledJudeansor the Arab descendants of converts is unclear. TheJewish diasporaat the time of theTemple's destruction,according toJosephus,was inParthia,Babylonia, Arabia, as well as some Jews beyond theEuphratesand inAdiabene.In Josephus' own words, he had informed "the remotest Arabians" about the destruction.[8]So, too, inpre-Islamic poetry,Tayma is often referred to as a fortified city belonging to the Jews, as an anonymous Arab poet wrote, "Unto God will I make my complaint heard, but not unto man; because I am a sojourner in Taymā, Taymā of the Jews!"[9]
As late as the6th centuryAD, Tayma was the home of a wealthy Jew,Samaw'al ibn 'Adiya.[10][11]
Tayma and neighboringKhaybarwere visited byBenjamin of Tudelasometime around 1170. He claimed that the city was governed by a Jewish prince. Benjamin was a Jew fromal-Andaluswho travelled to Persia and Arabia in the 12th century.
Crusader threat
[edit]In the summer of 1181,Raynald of Châtillon,Prince of Antiochand Lord ofOultrejordain,attacked a Muslim caravan near Tayma during a raid of theRed Seaarea despite a truce betweenSaladinandBaldwin IV of Jerusalem.[12]
Climate
[edit]In Tayma, there is a desert climate. Most rain falls in the winter. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is BWh. The average annual temperature in Tayma is 21.8 °C (71.2 °F). About 65 mm (2.56 in) of precipitation falls annually.
Climate data for Tayma | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 17.7 (63.9) |
21.1 (70.0) |
24.2 (75.6) |
29.4 (84.9) |
32.8 (91.0) |
36.1 (97.0) |
36.9 (98.4) |
37.1 (98.8) |
35.8 (96.4) |
31.5 (88.7) |
24.2 (75.6) |
18.9 (66.0) |
28.8 (83.9) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 4.5 (40.1) |
6.9 (44.4) |
9.8 (49.6) |
14.5 (58.1) |
18.9 (66.0) |
22.2 (72.0) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.3 (73.9) |
20.9 (69.6) |
16.5 (61.7) |
10.7 (51.3) |
5.8 (42.4) |
14.8 (58.6) |
Averageprecipitationmm (inches) | 9 (0.4) |
4 (0.2) |
10 (0.4) |
9 (0.4) |
3 (0.1) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
7 (0.3) |
16 (0.6) |
7 (0.3) |
65 (2.6) |
Source:Climate data |
Archaeology
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Stele_Salm_Louvre_AO5009.jpg/220px-Stele_Salm_Louvre_AO5009.jpg)
The site was first investigated and mapped by Charles M. Doughty in 1877.[13] The Taymastelediscovered by Charles Huber in 1883, now at theLouvre,lists the gods of Tayma in the 6th century BC: Ṣalm of Maḥram and Shingala-and-Ashira (or rather, Ashima).[14]This Ashira may beAthirat/Asherah.
Archeological investigation of the site, under the auspices of theGerman Archaeological Institute,is ongoing.[15][16]
Clay tabletsand stone inscriptions usingTaymaniticscript and language were found in ruins and around theoasis.Nearby Tayma was aSabaeantrading station, whereSabaean languageinscriptions were found.
Economy
[edit]Historically, Tayma is known for growingdates.[17]The oasis also producedrock salt,which was distributed throughoutArabia.[18]Tayma also minedalum,which was processed and used for the care ofcamels.[19]
Points of interest
[edit]- Qasr Al-Ablaq (قصر الأبلق) is aqasrlocated on the southwest side of the city. It was built by the Arab Jewish poet and warriorSamaw'al ibn 'Adiyaand his grandfather 'Adiya in the 6th century.
- Qasr Al-Hamra (قصر الحمراء), a palace was built in the 7th century BC.
- Tayma has an archaeologically significantperimeter wallbuilt around three sides of the old city in the 6th century BC.
- Qasr Al-Radhm (قصر الرضم)
- Haddaj Well (بئر هداج)
- Cemeteries
- ManyAramaic,Lihyanite,Thamudic,andNabataeaninscriptions
- Qasr Al-Bejaidi (قصر البجيدي)
- Al-Hadiqah Mound
- Al Naslaarock formation
- Many museums. Although Tayma has museums of its own such as the "Tayma Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography", many artifacts from its history have been spread to other museums. Early finds such as the "Tayma Stele" are at the Louvre in Paris among others while large museums of national importance in Saudi Arabia, such as theNational Museum of Saudi Arabiain Riyadh and theJeddah Regional Museum of Archaeology and Ethnographyalso have significant collections of items from or related to ancient Tayma.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Kootstra 2016.
- ^"Tema - Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible -".Retrieved2021-03-27– via StudyLight.org.
- ^"Tema in the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia".International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Online.Retrieved2021-03-28.
- ^ab"Tayma - Arabian Rock Art Heritage".Retrieved2019-02-10.
- ^ab"Tayma - Arabian Rock Art Heritage".Retrieved2023-07-17.
- ^"krc2.orient.ox.ac.uk"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2016-10-19.Retrieved2019-08-14.
- ^Folmer, M. L. (1995).The Aramaic Language in the Achaemenid Period: A Study in Linguistic Variation.Peeters Publishers.ISBN978-90-6831-740-4.
- ^Josephus.The Jewish War.Translated byWhiston, William.1.1.5 – via PACE: Project on Ancient Cultural Engagement.Greek: Ἀράβων τε τοὺς πορρωτάτω = Preface to Josephus'De Bello Judaico,paragraph 2, "the remotest Arabians" (lit. "the Arabian [Jews] that are further on" ).
- ^Yāqūt, Šihāb al-Dīn ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Ḥamawī (1995). "Taimā".Mu'jam al-Buldān.Vol. II. Beirut. p. 67;
{{cite book}}
:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)cf. al-Ṭabbā‘ in his Forward to Samaw’al 1997, p. 7[full citation needed] - ^Margoliouth, David Samuel (1906). "A poem attributed to Al-Samau'al".Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society.London: 363–371.JSTOR25210253.
- ^A‘šā (1968). Muḥammad Muḥammad Ḥusayn (ed.).Dīwān al-a'šā al-kabīr maymūn bn qays: šarḥ wa-ta'līq(in Arabic). Beirut. pp. 214, 253.
{{cite book}}
:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^Leiser, Gary La Viere (1977). "The Crusader Raid in the Red Sea in 578/1182–83".Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt.14:87–100.doi:10.2307/40000370.JSTOR40000370.
- ^Dougherty, Raymond P. (1930). "A Babylonian City in Arabia".American Journal of Archaeology.34(3): 296–312.doi:10.2307/497985.JSTOR497985.S2CID191390322.
- ^Miller II, Robert D. (2021).Yahweh: Origin of a Desert God.Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. p. 124.ISBN9783647540863, 3647540862.
{{cite book}}
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value: invalid character (help) - ^Hausleiter, A. (2010). "L'oasis de Tayma". In al-Ghabban, A. I.; et al. (eds.).Routes d'Arabie. Archéologie et Histoire du Royaume Arabie-Saoudite(in French). Somogy. pp. 218–239.ISBN978-2-7572-0393-4.
- ^Hausleiter, A. (2010). "La céramique du début de l'âge dur Fer". In al-Ghabban, A. I.; et al. (eds.).Routes d'Arabie. Archéologie et Histoire du Royaume Arabie-Saoudite(in French). Somogy. p. 240.ISBN978-2-7572-0393-4.
- ^Prothero 1920,p. 83.
- ^Prothero 1920,p. 97.
- ^Prothero 1920,p. 98.
Sources
[edit]- Kootstra, Fokelien (2016)."The Language of the Taymanitic Inscriptions & its classification".Arabian Epigraphic Notes.2:67–140.Retrieved14 December2022.
- Prothero, G.W. (1920).Arabia.London: H.M. Stationery Office. p. 83.
External links
[edit]Media related toTaymaat Wikimedia Commons
- Deutsches Archäologisches Institut:Tayma
- Nabatea:The 12 Tribes of Ishmael: Tema
- about Jouf district
- Verse account of Nabonidus,translation at Livius.org
- Chronicle of NabonidusArchived2016-12-08 at theWayback Machine,translation at Livius.org
- Travel through the province of Tabuk,Splendid Arabia: A travel site with photos and routes