S2E15: The Somali Mercantile Age

 

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed the newest episode. This week's episode was a little bit of a weird one. Instead of focusing on a specific period in Aksumite history or Aksumite ruler, this episode focuses on one of the multiple historical trends behind the ongoing (in our show) decline of the Aksumite empire. While we've already touched on the importance of plague, climate change, unrest, and political instability, another of the factors that contributed to Aksum's decline was the increasing out competition of Aksumite merchants by their Somali rivals.

Sort of error in the episode. In this episode, I kind of admittedly exaggerate just how grim Aksumite naval affairs were. While the Aksumite capacity for naval war was essentially destroyed by the raid on Adulis, the merchants of Aksum would quickly recover in this regard. As we'll talk about next episode, Aksumite merchant fleets were, in anything, more aggressive after the fall of Adulis. They fought an extended war over the Dahlak archipelago, and successfully raided Jeddah and Socotra. This isn't to downplay the devastation of the raid either, but just to note that ending the episode on such a bleak note without further listening may lead you to the wrong impression.

The Somali people have always existed in something of a background role in this podcast, with their most significant mention coming in the episode on Kaleb's war, when a group of Somalis (likely from the Dir clan) served as mercenaries during the invasion of Himyar. This episode provides some more details on what exactly the Somali people were doing throughout this era. Those in the northern cities served as an important hub for merchants that travelled between India and Egypt, while those on the Southern coast trafficked in the exotic goods of southern Africa. However, I didn't mention what the average Somali of the inland regions were doing. The answer there was primarily living a lifestyle of nomadic pastoralism. The Somali peninsula was one of the first regions of sub-saharan Africa to make widespread use of the geel, while also herding sheep and goats. Much like how the Aksumite empire was essentially a group of cities dependent on the vast tracts of farmland in between, the same applies to Somalia except with massive herds of sheep instead of teff fields. This, however, was less true in southern Somalia, or the Shebelle region. This relatively fertile region could maintain a combination of agrarian and pastoral living.

However, while Somali cities were able to acquire a degree of wealth from trading on the Indian ocean, the potential profits of these commercial ventures were severely limited by the Aksumite domination of Red Sea trade. By dominating the only trade route through the Red Sea, Aksumite merchants were able to successfully insert themselves between Somali merchants and markets in Egypt and the Mediterranean as middlemen. Additionally, Aksumite merchants engaged in direct competition by ferrying goods from India to Egypt, offering lower princes by avoiding the tarriffs that Aksum levelled on foreigners.

However, as Aksumite power in the Red Sea diminished over the 6th century, Somali merchants were able to break the Aksumite monopoly over the Red Sea. Additionally, the conversion of many urban Somalis to Islam gave them a competitive advantage when trading with the growing Muslim powers of the middle east. Somalis could avoid the Jizya tax that the caliphate leveled against non-Muslims, while also generally achieving better relations with Muslim states through the adoption of a common faith.

A small version of a Somali woven ship, called a beden.

With Somali merchants now outcompeting Aksumite merchants, Somali city states began a golden age of economic prosperity. From the 8th until the 17th century, Somali merchants maintained a dominant grip on trade in the Western Indian Ocean.

An early modern depiction of a larger Somali ship from a European atlas

S2E14: The Rise of Islam (From the Aksumite Perspective)

 

I hope you all enjoy the latest episode of the History of Africa podcast. This episode focuses on the Rise of Islam, but from the perspective of the Aksumites.

The story of the flight of the Muslims to Aksum, while obscure in the West, is a famous story in the Islamic world. However, the political and historical context behind the migration to Aksum is fairly obscure globally.

Depiction of Armah rejecting the demands of Amr ibn al-As to turn over the Muslims illus. Rashid ad-Din Sinan

Aksum, at the time of the First Hijrah, had fallen a long way since its apex a century prior. The once dynamic mercantile economy of the empire had fallen into crisis ever since the arrival of plague and the loss of Yemen, so the countryside of Aksum reverted from a wealthy, urbanized society into an agrarian, rural society. As the economy of Aksum declined and poverty became rampant, so too did criminality. In the region of Wolqayt, a few small groups of bandits rapidly grew into large, organized armies that ravaged the countryside. Soon enough, these bandits were a threat to the city of Aksum itself. To put down these bandits, the emperor of Aksum, Armah, appointed a local noble (or possible relative) named Daniel to serve as Hatsani. The Hatsani of Aksum was a title that had long been used to describe the head military leader of Aksum during times of war. Saizana, for example, was Hatsani during the Aksumite conquest of Nubia, as was Germa during the invasion of Arabia under Datwinas. After Armah's rule, the title would be adopted by the kings of Aksum. Hatsani Daniel proved to be incredibly successful in his effort to destroy the bandits

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, I am Hatsani Danael, son of Dabra Ferem. When the people of Wolqayt devastated the land and came to Aksum, I expelled them, treated them harshly, and killed them. I captured 102 of their foals and 802 of their cattle. And I exiled the survivors. -Inscription attributed to Daniel

However, Daniel was, if anything, too successful at his task. Soon after he defeated the bandits, Daniel himself began ravaging the countryside himself, robbing the locals of their livestock. When Armah dispatched an army now to stop this looting, Daniel turned on Armah. He declared himself to be the new king of Aksum, and his looting soon transformed into an outright revolt.

Map of the two migrations of Muslims: the first to Aksum and the second to Medina

It may be confusing as to why Armah was bothering to dedicate so much attention to protecting refugees when his kingdom was falling apart around him. However, due to the study of this event usually stemming from the Arab perspective, the motives of Armah are not often considered. Armah's decision to welcome refugees from a city in Arabia that was persecuting a religious minority of monotheists closely mirrors another event in Aksumite history, and this comparison may provide us some insight into his motives. Before the invasion of Himyar, the Aksumite King Kaleb and his father welcomed Christian Himyarite refugees into his court. Later, after Kaleb's invasion of Himyar, one of these refugees, Sumyafa Ashwa, was elevated to the status of King of Himyar, ruling as an Aksumite client. Perhaps Armah sought to do a similar thing with the Muslim refugees of Mecca. Mecca, in this era, had notably stayed neutral in the competition for influence between Aksum, Rome, and Persia in Arabia. Should these Muslims ever take power, then Aksumite influence in Mecca would be secured. Others have argued that, rather than political concerns, Armah was simply drawing from a long Aksumite tradition of relative religious tolerance. This, however, is a questionable assertion, as Aksum possessed no reputation for tolerance ever since the zealot king Mehadyis had forcefully ended the remnants of Aksumite paganism in the late fourth century.

The silver coins of Armah, the last Aksumite coins ever minted

Regardless of whether Armah's decision to welcome the refugees was motivated by religious principles or geopolitical concerns, the decision certainly paid geopolitical dividends. After the Muslim refugees left Aksum to join the Islamic community in Medina, the Muslims would do a lot more than simply take power in Mecca. By the end of the life of the Prophet Muhammad, the Muslims had expanded to encompass the entire Arabian peninsula. Under the successors of Muhammad, known as the Rashidun Caliphs, the fledgling Muslim state began an expansionist streak. Sassanid Persia fell in its entirety, while Rome lost 2/3s of its territory. However, despite being in a position of weakness, Aksum remained untouched by the expanding Islamic power.

S2E13: The Aksumite-Persian War

Hello everyone. I hope you enjoy this week's episode on the Aksumite-Persian war. While this war is often overlooked by contemporary historians, it played a consequential role in world history. The Aksumite-Persian war would have a massive impact not only on Ethiopia, Persian, and Yemeni history, but would even have an impact on the rise of a certain Arabian religion whose rise would mark the end of antiquity and the beginning of the medieval age in the Near East. 

Our war begins due to dynastic fallout in the then-independent kingdom of Aksumite Arabia. In 570, Abraha, the Aksumite general who rebelled against Kaleb and created his own independent kingdom, died. Abraha struggled to designate a clear heir before his death. While he had many sons, the two who would play the most consequential role in the upcoming struggle were named Masruq and Madi Karib (sometimes also referred to by the name Yaksum).

Note: The identity of Madi Karib is sometimes contested. The mainstream scholarly opinion is that Madi Karib and Yaksum are two names for the same person, with Karib being the name used by Arabs and Yaksum being the one used by Ethiopians. However, it is worth noting that some scholars believe otherwise, and that Yaksum and Madi Karib are two distinct people. This podcast endorsed the mainstream view as espoused by Glen Bowersock in his book The Throne of Adulis: Red Sea Wars on the Eve of Islam. It's also worth noting that many accounts of the period seemingly conflate the actions of Madi Karib and the legendary king Sayf. However, because of his poor attestation in reliable histories outside of the History of Tabari, we opted to side with Bowersock's perspective that Sayf died before the invasion commenced, and that the actions attributed to Sayf during and after the invasion were instead performed by Madi Karib.

Where things went sour between two most prominent sons of Abraha is up for debate. Their struggle may have originated out of a cynical desire for the throne, or it may have been based on a staunch disagreement regarding how they would engage in diplomacy with Aksumite Africa. Masruq favored a policy of reconciliation, and sought to return Aksumite Arabia to a tributary status. Again, his motivations for why are unclear. Reconstructing the history of Masruq and Karib's feud is a bit like asking questions about the chicken and the egg. Did Masruq submit to Aksum for help against Karib's rebellion? Or did Karib rebel because Masruq submitted to Aksum? In the podcast, I chose to make something of a compromise between these views, arguing that Masruq was already planning to submit to Aksum, but that Karib's rebellion made the need to do so more urgent. However, Karib's early attempt to seize the throne failed, and he was sent into exile. 

Given that last episode focused entirely on Aksum's disastrous decline in the era preceding this war, it should not be a surprise that the Aksumite military which would fend off the Persian invasion was a far-cry from the massive armies of Kaleb and Abraha. The combined forces of Masruq's militia and the Aksumite reinforcements sent to aid him tallied approximately 10,000, a far cry from the ~120,000 raised by Kaleb in his invasion of Himyar.

Karib, on the other hand, found himself with a slight advantage. While in exile, Karib found himself in the palace of the Persian shah Khosrow II. The Persians, longtime rivals of the Aksumites, were all too happy to take the opportunity to support this rival claimant to the throne of Aksumite Arabia in an effort to undermine their enemy. There he also met Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan, a Himyarite Arab noble. Like Karib, Yazan also sought to drive Masruq out of southern Arabia. What role Yazan played in this conflict isn't very clear. Some biographies I read claimed that he played a pivotal invasion in the campaign, while others claim he actually died before the invasion succeeded. Personally, this is the theory I lean toward. The evidence of Yazan's presence in Yemen during the invasion is unreliable, and it seems to me that many biographies of Yazan seemingly blend him and Karib into the same person. Additionally, Yazan's biographies often include mythical details, such as Djinn, magic, and spirits, as well as the occasional obvious political commentary from the 15th century Egyptian authors of the biography. These details make it difficult to take the biography of Yazan seriously as a historical source compared to contemporary Persian and Aksumite writings. 

The fashion and styles of this illustration of Sayf ibn Dhi-Yazan are more reminiscent of late-medieval Egypt than late-antiquity Yemen. Look at that moustache!

While Khosrow was willing to support Karib, he clearly viewed this invasion as a huge risk. Rather than committing a true army, Khosrow instead sent an army of prisoners to accompany Karib in his war. These prisoners were from the Daylamite ethnic group, which had rebelled against Khosrow in support of a rival. The leader of these Daylamites was named Boe (pictured below with the bow in hand), who led this force of 1,000 Daylamites into Yemen. In the end, only about 800 made it to their destination (the rest were blown off course), but their forces swelled to 16,000 men with the rallying of both Karib and Yazan's supporters to the invaders' side.

This combined force met Masruq's army in Hadramawt, the eastern fringes of Aksumite Arabia. Initial clashes were mostly even, with Masruq gaining a minor advantage on his foes despite his numerical inferiority. However, the tide of the battle turned when the son of the Persian commander Boe was killed in battle. Enraged by the death of his son, Boe began targeting Masruq himself with arrowfire. One of these arrows eventually struck and killed Masruq, with the scene being depicted below in the Tārīkhnāma, a Persian manuscript.  

Similarly to the Yazan illustration, the fashion and styles depicting the death of Masruq more closely resemble the styles that the Tārīkhnāma's 10th century Persian authors would be familiar with.

Demoralized by the death of their leader, the Aksumite forces scattered. With Persian support, Karib retook the throne of an independent Yemeni kingdom, once again dominated by the region's Aksumite elites. However, the kingdom remained unstable after Karib ascended to the throne. Just three years after he retook his position, Karib's kingdom was once again invaded by an Aksumite force, allegedly led by one of Abraha's other, less prominent sons. With Karib dead, a larger Persian army led by Boe once again invaded the territory and defeated the Aksumite defenders, this time outright annexing the region into a Persian satrapy with Boe, now known by his new title of Wahriz, serving as its governor.

Earlier in the season, I realized an episode entitled the Aksumite Empire's Greatest Defeat, which focused on the failed campaign of Negus Datwinas in Southern Arabia. While I still believe that Datwinas' campaign should hold the title for Aksum's greatest defeat, the loss of Yemen to Persian invasion certainly comes close. Just as the throne of Aksum had regained its foothold in Yemen, it was lost almost immediately. Had Aksum maintained its hold on Yemen, as well as the incense monopoly and control over the Red Sea it enabled, who knows how history would have turned out. Additionally, the expulsion of Aksumite influence in Yemen would force the Aksumites to take desperate measures to maintain influence in Arabia. This leads us into next week's episode, which focuses on the rise of Islam from an Aksumite perspective, and how the actions of the Aksumite king Armah (also known as Najashi) changed the history of the world forever.

Anyways, here's a video of a guy shooting the Persian "Panjegan" bow, or at least a modern guess at what they may have looked like.

S2 E12: The Year of the Elephant and the First Plague

Hello everyone. I hope you enjoy the latest episode of the show, in which Aksum (and the whole world, really) are devastated by the First Plague Pandemic, and Abraha's kingdom of Aksumite Arabia begins to unravel.

Map of the First Plague Pandemic

If you'd like to learn more about the evidence we have for the First Plague pandemic originating in Subsaharan Africa, you can listen to the latest premium episode on our Patreon. For just $1.99, you get to access all of our premium episodes.

Depiction of an Aksumite in Zafar, Yemen. Often claimed to be a representation of Abraha, though this is debatable.

With the plague dying down in Southern Arabia, Abraha set to work repairing his kingdom's economy. The old staple industry of Yemen, the export of incenses, would struggle with the drought facing the country. While the Marib dam was eventually repaired, the newly reinvigorated farmland had to be used to eliminate the famine ravaging the countryside. Instead, Abraha placed his economic hopes in pilgrimage. He ordered the construction of an incredibly elaborate church in Sana'a, hoping that it would become an attractive destination for pilgrims across Arabia. 

The remaining foundation of the Al-Qullays Church

However, these pilgrims came only in small numbers. Most Arabian Christians stuck with the more familiar and popular pilgrimage destination: the Kaaba. The Kaaba was a cube shaped building outside of Mecca, an ancient temple used as a multi-purpose worship site by the various religions of Arabia. The various tribes of the peninsula would, once each year, set aside their feuds and disputes to peacefully worship and trade at the Kaaba. According to Islamic and Arab-Christian tradition, the Kaaba was first constructed by Ishmael, the oldest son of Abraham. Most contemporary historians assert that the Kaaba was not as old as initially claimed, and was instead built in the early centuries AD as a shrine to Hubal, one of the numerous gods of North-Arabian polytheism. Regardless, the Kaaba was already a centuries-old and pilgrimage to the site was already a well established tradition when Abraha tried to build his competing church. Realizing that he couldn't attract pilgrims while the Kaaba existed, Abraha launched an attack on Mecca in an attempt to destroy the Kaaba. While his army won the initial skirmishes on his way to the city, he was unsuccessful in his bid to enter the city. According to the Islamic tradition, Abraha was slowed by his elephant mount, Mahmud, refusing to advance. Then, he was attacked and eventually killed by a flock of birds. The modern re-interpretation of the story is that Abraha's army was either beset by plague or ran out of supplies and was forced to turn back. Soon after he returned, he passed away.

Abraha's death immediately destabilized Aksumite Arabia. In place of an established, long-time ruler, Aksumite Arabia was now ruled by one of Abraha's inexperienced sons, Masruq. To make matters worse, Masruq immediately had to contend with multiple rivals who wanted his position of power for themselves. Not only did many of the powerful Arab chieftains and nobles want the Aksumite prince out of Arabia forever, but he also found opposition from within the Aksumite elites. This latter group was emboldened further when Masruq, desperate for allies, submitted to Ella Amidas and resumed tribute payments. One of Masruq's brothers, Madi Karib, was immensely angered by this decision. He turned on his brother, and began plotting a revolt, but was exiled before it could get underway. However, Karib was not willing to give up so soon. He, as well as an Arab noble called Sumyafa Ashwa, fled to Persia, where they beseeched the Persian Shah for assistance in toppling Masruq. Next episode will focus on the inevitable war with Persia. If you'd like to make sure you catch it, follow our show on whatever platform you use to listen.

S2E11: The Aksumite Civil War

In the year 525, Aksum was on top of the world. The empire had long been among the most powerful states on the planet, considered an equal of Rome and Persia as far back as the rule of Ezana. However, with the conclusion of Kaleb's conquest of Himyar, the state vaulted to the top. For a brief year, Aksum was, probably, the single wealthiest and most powerful state on Earth.

However, after this great peak in power, Aksum immediately saw a period of instability. Fueled by a differing policy on how to treat the conquered people of Himyar, the two Aksumite generals Ariat and Abraha butted heads. Yes, their names are incredibly similar, so it can be somewhat confusing to listen to. Ariat, Kaleb's half-brother, viewed the conflict as a holy war. To Ariat, the main goal of the conflict had always been to convert the Himyarites. He marched his army around the Yemeni countryside, coercing conversion to Christianity out of any Jewish or Pagan villages he encountered. Abraha, on the other hand, had viewed the conflict as just another war. He looted villages indiscriminately of religion, and sought direct dominance of the region rather than working through local intermediaries. You can imagine how these two must have viewed each other: Ariat viewing Abraha has an atheistic opportunist and vice versa as a reckless zealot, though neither of these caricatures were accurate. And, again, because the names are so similar:

Abraha = Former slave turned general, supported indiscriminate looting, and giving the loot directly to soldiers

Ariat = Kaleb's brother, supported looting only of non-Christians, and sending the loot to Aksum as tribute

This confrontation eventually escalated into a civil war after Abraha imprisoned an ambassador sent by Kaleb. Taking this as an act of treason, Ariat convinced Kaleb to send him reinforcements to confront Abraha. Abraha's force was significantly outnumbered. Ariat's army possessed more than 100,000 men by some estimates, making it the largest army under the command of a single man in Aksumite history. Abraha, on the other hand, likely commanded 50,000 men or less. Despite this disparity in numbers, early skirmishes proved inconclusive. Understanding that he couldn't win, Abraha challenged Ariat to a duel, an opportunity to personally kill his hated rival which the latter couldn't refuse. However, Abraha emerged victorious in the duel, and Ariat's army defected en masse. Later attempts by Kaleb to reconquer Yemen ended in failure.

Overcome by the weight of this defeat, Kaleb decided to abdicate the throne. Remember, Kaleb's dream job since childhood was to live a peaceful, studious life in a monastery. So, that's what he did. He donated the crown jewels of Aksum to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, where they have been lost ever since the church was destroyed by a fire in 614.

S2E10: Saint Kaleb the Conqueror

 

Hi everyone, I hope you enjoyed this week's episode on the life and times of the Aksumite king Kaleb. He is most famous for his invasion of the kingdom of Himyar, located in modern Yemen. His rule represented the peak of Aksumite power, avenging Aksum's previous defeats in Southern Arabia and expanding Aksumite hegemony to its greatest extent. By the end of his reign, the Aksumite Empire was unquestionably the most powerful kingdom not only in the Red Sea region but arguably in the entire Indian Ocean.

The portrait of Negus Kaleb that serves as the cover for season 2 of the podcast

Kaleb is something of a relatable character. As a young man, he never wanted to be king. Aksum at the time was still in the later stages of the religious and intellectual renaissance that started with the arrival of the nine saints. Kaleb, an inquisitive and academic young man, was more interested in reading religious and theological texts than ruling a nation. While religious institutions today are largely perceived as anti-intellectual and superstitious, nothing could have been further from the truth in Kaleb's era. At the time, monasteries were the most prestigious academic institutions of the day. Monks within these monasteries engaged in rigorous theological debates and worked hard to preserve the extensive monastic libraries. However, Kaleb's father, King Ousas, died before he could produce a more willing heir, so the title of King of Kings was thrust upon the reluctant young man.

However, despite his reluctance to take the title, Kaleb proved initially to be quite an effective ruler. His domestic reign was prosperous, but he really made a name for himself when a crisis across the Red Sea demanded a response. The King of Himyar, Dhu Nuwas, had begun to persecute the Christian population of the long-time Aksumite ally, the city of Najran. The Aksumite garrison which had been assigned to protect the city was massacred with special malice, provoking an Aksumite response. Kaleb expended the vast resources of Aksum to assemble the largest army in Aksumite history, more than 100,000 men by some estimates. Accompanying this army was a brigade of trained war elephants and a battalion of Somali mercenaries.

The campaign proved to be a decisive victory. The Himyarite army was devastated at the battle of Zafar, and the Himyarite king died soon after. Depending on which source you believe, the Himyarite King was either executed by Aksumite forces or killed himself by riding his horse into the ocean. However, soon after this successful invasion, rifts began to form within the Aksumite military. One faction, led by Kaleb's relative, Ariat, supported punishing the Himyarites for the persecution at Najran. The other faction, led by a slave-turned-advisor-turned-general Abraha, supported further integration of Himyar into the Aksumite state, annexing the region and turning its inhabitants into subjects of the king instead of persecuting them. In the next episode, we'll witness this rift evolve into outright civil war, with Ariat and Kaleb on one side against Abraha and his supporters on the other.

Author's note: in the podcast I make the claim that "an estimate of 60,000 was more accurate for the number of soldiers in the invasion force. This was a mistake. I meant to say that 60,000 was a more accurate estimate for each of the invading armies. I had seen estimates as high as 200,000 for the entire invasion force, but had seen reputable scholars dispute this number as being closer to 120,000, with 60,000 being present in both Ariat and Abraha's invasion forces. Some sources, however, note that Abraha alone may have commanded about 100,000 men, while Ariat only commanded 60,000. The matter is confusing and nobody knows for sure.

S2E9: The Zealot King and the Nine Saints

  
 

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoy this week's episode of the history of Africa. This week, we cover two somewhat obscure periods of Aksumite history, the rule of the zealot king Mehadyis and the arrival of the "Nine Saints" into the Aksumite empire.

Mehadyis' silver coin. Notice the Ge'ez writing and more prominent Christian imagery

This era of Aksumite history is fairly mysterious, as historical records about Aksum from this time are quite rough. As an example of that, Mehadyis is the last Aksumite ruler whose name's pronunciation is uncertain (he is the last ruler to spell his name with the old, vowel-less Ge'ez alphabet as MHDYS). Because of the scant records of this period, I had to make some admitted stretches in connecting the dots of what occurred in this period. For example, we know that Mehadyis included a lot of Christian imagery in his coins, we know that he did not appoint an Abuna during his rule (at least not one that had any real power), and that all Pagan syncretic practices evaporated rapidly during his rule. While there are no historical records that explicitly state that he went on a campaign to root out Pagan practices during his reign, the culmination of these three events seems to point to something along these lines occurring during his reign. However, I'm adding this disclaimer to future-proof this episode. In the future, evidence might come to light that disproves this admittedly quite flimsy understanding of this period in Aksumite history. Additionally, for this same reason, the dating in this episode is questionable, and could definitely be disproven by new evidence coming to light. If any archaeological or textual discoveries emerge that challenge the assumptions in this episode, I will make sure to update the episode with our most recent understanding of the period.

Medieval Ethiopian mural depicting the Nine Saints

Fortunately, the archaeological records of the ensuing period are significantly better, in part due to the gradual arrival of the nine saints. Again, the exact date of their arrival is not certain (and it's unlikely that they all arrived in close succession), so the dating of this episode is subject to change. However, regardless of what year they arrived, their impact on Tawhahedo Christianity is undeniable. 

A page from the Garima Gospels, the oldest illuminated manuscript in the world

The Nine Saints introduced many important aspects of church activity that continue in Ethiopia to this day, including the countries first permanent monasteries, some of its most important churches, and the introduction of a strong church scholastic tradition.

The entrace to Debre Damo

The extremely isolated Debre Damo monastery requires climbing equipment to reach

Ethiopia's church has been the single most important institution in terms of preserving important historical documents and records. If not for the reforms introduced by the Nine Saints and continued by their disciples, our understanding of East African history would be incredibly limited. Additionally, much of the modern culture of the Ethiopian highlands stems from the artistic and institutional traditions of the Tawhahedo Church. For example, the bedrock of Ethiopian musical tradition stems largely from the works of Saint Yared, a disciple of one of the Nine Saints who was later himself sainted for his immense contributions to Tawhahedo liturgical music.

Mural depicting Saint Yared and his disciples performing in front of the Aksumite Negusa

Thank you for listening to the show. As always, myself and my editor put ~20 hours of work into each episode's research, writing, recording, editing, uploading, and promoting. If you'd like to help support us for the free education and entertainment we provide, then you can do so by supporting the show on Patreon, providing a review on your listening app of choice, or by sharing the podcast with anyone you think might be interested.