"Himyar" redirects here. For the racehorse, see Himyar (horse).
Himyar
𐩢𐩣𐩺𐩧 (Himyaritic) مملكة حمير (Arabic)
110 BCE–525 CE
The Himyarite Kingdom at its height in 525 AD
Capital
Zafar Sana'a (from the beginning of the 4th century)[1]
Common languages
Ḥimyarite
Religion
Arab polytheism Judaism after 390 CE[a]
Government
Monarchy
King
• 275–300 CE
Shammar Yahri'sh
• 390–420 CE
Abu Karib As'ad
• 510s–525 CE
Yusuf Ash'ar Dhu Nuwas
Historical era
Antiquity
• Established
110 BCE
• Disestablished
525 CE
Currency
Drachma[2][3]
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Sabaeans
Qataban
Kingdom of Aksum
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The Himyarite Kingdom[b] was a polity in the southern highlands of Yemen, as well as the name of the region which it claimed. Until 110 BCE, it was integrated into the Qatabanian kingdom, afterwards being recognized as an independent kingdom. According to classical sources, their capital was the ancient city of Zafar, relatively near the modern-day city of Sana'a.[1] Himyarite power eventually shifted to Sana'a as the population increased in the fifth century. After the establishment of their kingdom, it was ruled by kings from dhū-Raydān tribe. The kingdom was named Raydān.[4]
The kingdom conquered neighbouring Saba' in c. 25 BCE (for the first time), Qataban in c. 200 CE, and Haḍramaut c. 300 CE. Its political fortunes relative to Saba' changed frequently until it finally conquered the Sabaean Kingdom around 280.[5] Himyar then endured until it finally fell to invaders from the Kingdom of Aksum in 525 CE.[6]
The Himyarites originally worshiped most of the South-Arabian pantheon, including Wadd, ʿAthtar, 'Amm and Almaqah. Since at least the reign of Malkikarib Yuhamin (c. 375–400 CE), Judaism was adopted as the de facto state religion. The religion may have been adopted to some extent as much as two centuries earlier, but inscriptions to polytheistic deities ceased after this date. It was embraced initially by the upper classes, and possibly a large proportion of the general population over time.[4]
Descendants of the Himyarites, namely the aristocratic families of Dhu'l-Kala and Dhu Asbah, played a prominent role in early Islamic Syria. They led the South Arabian contingents of the Muslim army during the conquest of Homs in 638 and contributed to making Homs a center for South Arabian settlement, culture and political power. Their chiefs supported Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan against Caliph Ali in the First Muslim Civil War (656–661). Their influence waned with their defeat at the Battle of Marj Rahit against the Quda'a confederation and the Umayyad caliph Marwan I in 684 and practically diminished with the death of their leader at the Battle of Khazir in 686. Nonetheless, members of the Dhu'l-Kala and Dhu Asbah played important roles at different times through the remainder of Umayyad rule (661–750) as governors, commanders, scholars, and pietists.
^ ab"Encyclopædia Britannica, Himyar". Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
^"GREECE. PALESTINE. HIMYARITES. Taran Yaub, ca. 200 A.D. … | Drouot.com". drouot.com.
^"Greek Coinage; Arabia Felix Himyarites, 1st Century AD, NGC VF, Store #191510". Integrity Coin Store.
^ abJérémie Schiettecatte. Himyar. Roger S. Bagnall; Kai Brodersen; Craige B. Champion; Andrew Erskine; Sabine R. Huebner. The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, John Wiley & Sons, 2017, 9781444338386.ff10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah30219ff. ffhalshs-01585072ff
^See, e.g., Bafaqih 1990.
^Playfair, Col (1867). "On the Himyaritic Inscriptions Lately brought to England from Southern Arabia". Transactions of the Ethnological Society of London. 5: 174–177. doi:10.2307/3014224. JSTOR 3014224.
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The HimyariteKingdom was a polity in the southern highlands of Yemen, as well as the name of the region which it claimed. Until 110 BCE, it was integrated...
The Kingdom fell after a long but sporadic civil war between several Yemenite dynasties claiming kingship; from this, the late HimyariteKingdom arose...
from Judea into southern Arabian Peninsula to ride the ascent of the HimyariteKingdom around 380 CE. The Sanaite Jews have a tradition that their ancestors...
originates much earlier in Syria), beginning when the ruling class of the HimyariteKingdom converted to Judaism and replacing invocations to polytheistic religions...
the Emperors. — Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, §23. The Frankincense kingdom is described further east along the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula...
Yuha’min (r. 375–400) was a king (Tubba', Arabic: تُبَّع) of the HimyariteKingdom (in modern-day Yemen), succeeding his father Tharan Yuhanim. Byzantine...
highlands until a joint Himyarite-Sabean alliance pushed them out. Aksum-Himyar conflicts persisted throughout the 3rd century. The kingdom continued to expand...
initiative and engineered by the Kinda's South Arabian patron, the HimyariteKingdom. The tribes may have sought a prominent, non-involved leader to bring...
invasions from 518 to 525 fought between the Christian Kingdom of Aksum and the Jewish HimyariteKingdom. The wars functioned as proxy wars waged by the former...
family of Yemen that were affiliated with the Sabaean Kingdom and later on, the HimyariteKingdom. They were ultimately deprived from their elite status...
was a king of the HimyariteKingdom (in modern-day Yemen). The definitive event during his reign was the submission of the Kingdom of Hadhramaut. Though...
(Arabic: أَبْرَهَة ٱلْأَشْرَم), was a viceroy for the Kingdom of Aksum who ruled the HimyariteKingdom of Yemen and much of the Arabian Peninsula in the 6th...
his title to Malik at the time of the kingdom of Saba' and Dhu Raydan that was established between Himyarites and Sabaeans, both descending from ancient...
book focusing on biographies and the ancestry of the rulers of the HimyariteKingdom. Another content of this book were musing about the genealogy of the...
of Sicily, 1127–1130, deposed when his duchy became a part of his new Kingdom of Sicily. Waiofar, deposed 760. Ebalus, Duke of Aquitaine, deposed 892...
the HimyariteKingdom. Some related compositions were produced during this time period, such as Simeon of Beth Arsham's Letter on the Himyarite Martyrs...
War and finally Bar Kokhba revolt. In modern day Yemen, the Ancient HimyariteKingdom appears to have abandoned polytheism and converted to Judaism around...
thriving commercial kingdom that included parts of modern Ethiopia and Eritrea. In 275 CE, it was succeeded by the HimyariteKingdom, which spanned much...
lucrative spice trade: Saba', Ma'īn, Qatabān, Hadhramaut, Kingdom of Awsan, and the HimyariteKingdom. Islam arrived in 630 CE and Yemen became part of the...
thrown in a ditch of which lit with fire by Dhu Nuwas, a king of HimyariteKingdom which embrace Judaism. Al-Ukhdud is a historical place located 5 km...
indications in the Qur'an it would appear that the Jews to the West of the HimyariteKingdom, in western Arabia, maintained some form of rabbinical organisation...
Christian Kingdom of Aksum of Ethiopia invaded ancient Yemen at the request of the Byzantine emperor Justin I to take control of the HimyariteKingdom, then...
political-power transferring process began and during it, the Himyaritekingdom became a tributary of the Kingdom of Aksum, which had adopted Christianity as its de...
the Himyarites (Ktābā da-ḥmirāye) is an anonymous Syriac account of the persecution and martyrdom of the Christian community of Najran in the Kingdom of...
united in the defense of the Ka'bah and the city. A man from the HimyariteKingdom was sent by Abraha to advise them that Abraha only wished to demolish...
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