The name "Semites" is a word taken from the Bible. The book of Genesis narrates the genealogy of Noah and his sons. One of them was Sim. He became the father of Elam, Assur and Eber, from whom the Aramaic, ancient Jews and Assyrians respectively descended.
Homeland of the Semites
The term "Semites" appeared in the 18th century, when European scholars named the ethnic group, which included the ancient and modern peoples of the Middle East, in honor of Sim. The fact that they are related to each other is confirmed by the similarity of their languages. The term was further expanded and modified. The archaeological boom and excavations in the Middle East have shown that before there were other peoples that can be attributed to this group.
The ancient Semites inhabited the territory of Arabia, Syria, Palestine and Mesopotamia. During raids and military companies, they left their historic homeland. Some Semites even managed to gain a foothold in North Africa. Long before the advent of Christianity, they migrated to modern Ethiopia. Colonists were attracted by the natural wealth of this region. So on the Red Sea coast appeared trading settlements, whose population later created the state of Axum.
Colonialists and Migrants
In addition to the peoples already mentioned, the Semites are also Phoenicians, possessing the glory of the most prominent colonialists and navigators of their time. The network of their trading posts and settlements covered the entire Mediterranean. Colonies of the Phoenicians appeared in Spain, Africa and Sicily. Although this nation later fell into decline and disappeared, elements of its culture survived in many regions of the Mediterranean.
The history of the Semites is indicative of the example of the Maltese - the indigenous inhabitants of the small island of Malta. Apparently, they are descendants of the Phoenicians. The Maltese for a long time lived under the rule of other nations. Their island was owned by the Romans, Byzantines, and even the Normans. Then Malta became the property of the Catholic Order of Malta, and in the 19th century it turned out to be a colony of Great Britain. An independent state on a small piece of land in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea appeared only in 1964. Nevertheless, despite a long life under the rule of others, the Maltese managed to maintain their own distinctive culture and language.
Another factor in the spread of Semitic languages and customs was Jewish migration. The Jews began to settle in foreign countries even before the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and after this event the resettlement took on a universal character.
Nomad society
The behavior and worldview of the Semites was formed according to the natural conditions in which they lived and live. Even at the dawn of civilization, these shepherds became nomads. Since the conditions of deserts have not changed for many centuries, some isolated groups continue to lead this archaic way of life today. Semites are nomads who were able to adapt to existence on the Arabian Peninsula due to the domestication of camels. At the edges of the desert, these peoples grazed sheep and donkeys.
The main unit in their society was the family. Inheritance went along the male line, the supreme power belonged to the father. Families united in collective organizations - tribes. They could include hundreds of people. Each ancient Semite, a member of the tribe, was associated with his cohabitants by blood and a community of interests. Among these ancient inhabitants of the deserts, a sense of solidarity was strongly developed. In the event of an attack on any member of the tribe, his comrades must take revenge on the offenders. It was among the Semites that the “tooth by tooth” and “eye for eye” rules appeared. The principle of blood feud has become part of most legislative codes of the peoples of the Middle East.
Amorei
Amorites - one of the most ancient Semitic peoples, which appeared in the III millennium BC. e. These tribes were never distinguished by unity. On the contrary, internal conflicts and civil strife constantly arose among them, which in the end did not allow them to defend themselves against aggressive neighbors.
The main Amorean city is considered Ugarit. Its ruins were discovered by French archaeologists in 1929. Today it is the territory of Syria. Cattle breeding and farming flourished here. Amorites grew grain, made olive oil and wine. Their wood was highly valued in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Ugarit became one of the first international ports. It was the intersection of trade routes from Anatolia, the Aegean Sea, Babylon, the Middle East and Egypt. Amorean cities fell into decay in the 16th century BC. e. as a result of the devastating invasions of the Hittites and Kassites.
Aramaeans
The other indigenous inhabitants of Syria were the Arameans. The first mention of them dates back to the III millennium BC. e. The Aramaeans managed to penetrate the middle Euphrates and populate almost the entire Middle East. By the beginning of our era, their language had become the main colloquial dialect in Palestine, Arabia and Mesopotamia.
The largest Aramaic center was Damascus. Around this city, a kingdom was formed that existed in the X-VIII centuries. BC e. Damascus state was conquered by Assyria. The various kingdoms of the Middle East were at enmity with each other, even though the Semites inhabited them all. It was a struggle for fertile lands and other important resources of antiquity.
The Jews
If Arabia has always been a desert country, then Mesopotamia, Phenicia and Lower Egypt, surrounding this meager peninsula, in ancient times became the main agricultural granary of mankind. It was here that the first Semites settled in the Fertile Crescent . Photos of these places show the ruins of monuments left over from ancient civilizations.
One of these peoples were Jews. They appeared in the II millennium BC. e. in Palestine as a result of complex ethnological processes. The Semitic cattle breeders who lived in the west of the Fertile Crescent mixed up with the farmers of the Amorean agricultural oases. So a new civilization was born.
The history of the origin of the Jews is closely intertwined with the biblical legends set forth in the Old Testament. A unique feature of this nation was its faith - the oldest Abrahamic religion, Judaism. Some of its features many centuries later influenced the formation of Christianity and Islam.
Jews ruled Palestine until the conquest of Judea by Rome in the 1st century BC. e. Then followed a long period of exile. Jews settled throughout the Roman Empire, and then the barbarian states that arose on its ruins. For a long time they indulged in persecution and discrimination both by Christians and Muslims. Only after World War II did the Jews succeed in rebuilding their own national state in Palestine - Israel.
Assyrians
The Assyrian people formed in the II millennium BC. e. in northern Mesopotamia. The basis of the new ethnic group became the communities of Amorites, Harrites and Subareans. A distinctive feature of the people was the Akkadian language, over the decryption of which several generations of archaeologists of the New Age fought. The state of Assyria is considered the first empire in the history of mankind. The heart of its territory was the middle course of the Tiger and the valley of Lesser and Big Zab. The most important cities of antiquity appeared here: Ashur and Nineveh.
During their heyday, the Assyrians controlled all of Mesopotamia, neighboring Palestine, modern Turkey, Syria, Egypt and even Cyprus. As any empire relies in the vastness of this vast state, many conquered peoples lived. That is why the Assyrian culture turned into a kaleidoscope composed of the customs of neighboring tribes. The kingdom reached the peak of power in the VIII century BC. e. In 609 BC e. The Assyrian Empire was destroyed by the Babylonians.
Chaldeans
In the Assyrian annals relating to 878 BC. e., historians have discovered the first mention of another Semitic people - the Chaldeans. They lived on the coast of the Persian Gulf. Their native places were the lakes and swamps of the lower reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris. The Chaldean people were not numerous - only six of its tribes are known. They spoke the ubiquitous Aramaic.
In the VII-VI centuries. BC e. The Chaldean dynasty ruled Babylon (it was she who founded the New Babylonian kingdom). These Semites were pagans. They are mentioned in the Bible. From there, the second meaning of the word “Chaldeans” spread - so they began to call magicians, sorcerers, magi, astrologers and fortunetellers. Traces of this people can be found in the most unexpected places. One version of the theologians says that the magi who bowed to the newly born Jesus were Chaldeans. Some modern Christians in the Middle East continue to identify with this Semitic nation.
Arabs
Around the 10th century BC e. In the deserts of Arabia and Mesopotamia, a new breakaway Semitic nation appeared. These were the Arabs. The Semites of this group created the Sabean kingdom, which was formed on the territory of modern Yemen.
In the north of their country, the Arabs built Palmyra, Nabatea, Lahm and Gassan. These were rich trading cities, the ruins of which became famous symbols of antiquity. Between the northern and southern Arabs lay the sands of the Arabian desert. Nomads kept in touch through merchant routes through the Hijaz.
The advent of Islam
In the V century, Arab civilization experienced a serious decline. It seemed that this people would forever disappear under the onslaught of their aggressive neighbors - Persia and Byzantium. However, at the beginning of the 7th century, the new religion of Islam began to gain popularity in Arabia. Her preacher was a merchant from Mecca named Muhammad. He created the Islamic Caliphate, which during its heyday controlled the entire Middle East, North Africa and Spain. In terms of expansion, this was the most serious political success that the Semites achieved.
Jews, despite common ethnic roots with Arabs, became their opponents. The conflict between the two peoples was and is in a different religion. Today, the confrontation between Jews and Arabs is one of the explosive factors in the Middle East.
Semitic languages
Linguistic features of languages - this is another unique feature that distinguishes the Semites. The peoples of this group, even after many centuries and today, have much in common in morphology, syntax, phonology and vocabulary. For example, when Arabs invaded Spain in the Middle Ages, local Jews, who had not known their historical homeland for a long time, found that their language was remarkably similar to that of strangers.
Semitic phonology is characterized by a large number of consonants - throat, larynx, emphatic and uvular. In European languages there is nothing like or at least closely related. The southern Semitic languages - Ethiopian and Arabic - are distinguished by their special identity. They adopted a unique way of forming the plural. The origin of the Semites and their further division into several peoples led to the appearance of variations of the previously common Prasemite language.