Kandake
Encyclopedia
Kandake or Kentake, also Candace, was the title for queens and queen mothers of the ancient African Kingdom of Kush
, also known as Nubia
and Ethiopia
.
In the New Testament
of the Christian Bible, a treasury official
of "Candace, queen of the Ethiopians" returning from a trip to Jerusalem was baptised
by Philip the Evangelist
:
The name Candace and its variants derive from the title Kandake.
claims that Candace of Meroë
fought Alexander the Great. In fact, Alexander never attacked Nubia, and never attempted to move further south than the oasis of Siwa
in Egypt
. Later, the kandake Amanirenas
, as reported by Strabo
, fought a war with the army of the Roman Empire
under Augustus.
Most scholars would dismiss the accounts of Herodotus
, Strabo
, and Diodorus as compelling evidence to support the existence of women warriors in Africa, although all three ancient writers have proved accurate in the great majority of their testable observations about life in the centuries before Christ. As time proceeds, the evidence supporting the presence of a tradition of African women warriors grows in its persuasiveness. An impressive series of Nubian warrior queens, queen regents, and queen mothers, known as kentakes (Greek: Candace "Candake"), are only appearing to the light of history through the ongoing deciphering of the Meroitic script
. They controlled what is now Ethiopia, Sudan, and parts of Egypt.
Bas-reliefs dated to about 170 B.C. reveal kentakes Shanakdakheto, dressed in armor and wielding a spear in battle. She did not rule as queen regent or queen mother but as a fully independent ruler. Her husband was her consort. In bas-reliefs found in the ruins of building projects she commissioned, Shanakdakheto is portrayed both alone as well as with her husband and son, who would inherit the throne by her passing. The following African queens were known to the Greco-Roman world as the "Candaces": Amanishakhete, Amanitore, Amanirenas, Nawidemak, and Malegereabar.
Kingdom of Kush
The native name of the Kingdom was likely kaš, recorded in Egyptian as .The name Kash is probably connected to Cush in the Hebrew Bible , son of Ham ....
, also known as Nubia
Nubia
Nubia is a region along the Nile river, which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.There were a number of small Nubian kingdoms throughout the Middle Ages, the last of which collapsed in 1504, when Nubia became divided between Egypt and the Sennar sultanate resulting in the Arabization...
and Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
.
In the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
of the Christian Bible, a treasury official
Ethiopian eunuch
The Ethiopian eunuch is a figure in the New Testament of the Bible. The story of his conversion to Christianity is recounted in Acts 8.-Biblical narrative:...
of "Candace, queen of the Ethiopians" returning from a trip to Jerusalem was baptised
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
by Philip the Evangelist
Philip the Evangelist
Saint Philip the Evangelist appears several times in the Acts of the Apostles. He was one of the Seven Deacons chosen to care for the poor of the Christian community in Jerusalem . He preached and performed miracles in Samaria, converted Simon Magus, and met and baptised an Ethiopian man, an...
:
- Then the Angel of the Lord said to Philip, Start out and go south to the road that leads down from Jerusalem to Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: And behold, a man of EthiopiaEthiopian eunuchThe Ethiopian eunuch is a figure in the New Testament of the Bible. The story of his conversion to Christianity is recounted in Acts 8.-Biblical narrative:...
, an EunuchEunuchA eunuch is a person born male most commonly castrated, typically early enough in his life for this change to have major hormonal consequences...
of great authority under Candace, Queen of E-thi-o’pi-ans, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem to worship.
The name Candace and its variants derive from the title Kandake.
Warrior queens?
A legend in the Alexander RomanceAlexander Romance
Alexander romance is any of several collections of legends concerning the mythical exploits of Alexander the Great. The earliest version is in Greek, dating to the 3rd century. Several late manuscripts attribute the work to Alexander's court historian Callisthenes, but the historical figure died...
claims that Candace of Meroë
Candace of Meroe
Candace of Meroe was the queen of Nubia at the time of the conquests of Alexander the Great. According to legend, Alexander encountered her when he invaded Nubia...
fought Alexander the Great. In fact, Alexander never attacked Nubia, and never attempted to move further south than the oasis of Siwa
Siwa Oasis
The Siwa Oasis is an oasis in Egypt, located between the Qattara Depression and the Egyptian Sand Sea in the Libyan Desert, nearly 50 km east of the Libyan border, and 560 km from Cairo....
in 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...
. Later, the kandake Amanirenas
Amanirenas
Amanirenas was a warrior-queen of Kingdom Kush.Her full name and title was Amnirense qore li kdwe li ....
, as reported by Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
, fought a war with the army of the Roman Empire
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....
under Augustus.
Most scholars would dismiss the accounts of Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
, and Diodorus as compelling evidence to support the existence of women warriors in Africa, although all three ancient writers have proved accurate in the great majority of their testable observations about life in the centuries before Christ. As time proceeds, the evidence supporting the presence of a tradition of African women warriors grows in its persuasiveness. An impressive series of Nubian warrior queens, queen regents, and queen mothers, known as kentakes (Greek: Candace "Candake"), are only appearing to the light of history through the ongoing deciphering of the Meroitic script
Meroitic script
The Meroitic script is an alphabetic script originally derived from Egyptian hieroglyphs, used to write the Meroitic language of the Kingdom of Meroë/Kush. It was developed in the Napatan Period , and first appears in the 2nd century BCE. For a time, it was also possibly used to write the Nubian...
. They controlled what is now Ethiopia, Sudan, and parts of Egypt.
Bas-reliefs dated to about 170 B.C. reveal kentakes Shanakdakheto, dressed in armor and wielding a spear in battle. She did not rule as queen regent or queen mother but as a fully independent ruler. Her husband was her consort. In bas-reliefs found in the ruins of building projects she commissioned, Shanakdakheto is portrayed both alone as well as with her husband and son, who would inherit the throne by her passing. The following African queens were known to the Greco-Roman world as the "Candaces": Amanishakhete, Amanitore, Amanirenas, Nawidemak, and Malegereabar.
Kandakes of Kush
- Pelekh Candace of MeroeCandace of MeroeCandace of Meroe was the queen of Nubia at the time of the conquests of Alexander the Great. According to legend, Alexander encountered her when he invaded Nubia...
(c. 345 BCE–332 BCE) - Alakhebasken (c. 295 BCE)
- ShanakdakheteShanakdakheteShanakdakheto or Shanakdakhete was a Black African ruling queen of Kush, when the Kingdom was centered at Meroë. She is the earliest known ruling queen of Nubia, and reigned from about 177 to 155 BC...
(177 BCE–155 BCE) - AmanikhabaleAmanikhabaleAmanikhabale was a King of Kush .According to Reisner, Amanikhabale was buried in Pyramid 2 at the North cemetery at Meroe .-References:...
(50 BCE–40 BCE) - AmanirenasAmanirenasAmanirenas was a warrior-queen of Kingdom Kush.Her full name and title was Amnirense qore li kdwe li ....
(40 BCE–10 BCE) - AmanishakhetoAmanishakhetoAmanishakheto was a Kandake of Nubia. She seems to have reigned from 10 BC to 1 AD, although most dates of Nubian history before the Middle Ages are very uncertain.In Meroitic hieroglyphs her name is written as Amanikasheto...
(c. 10 BCE–1 CE) - AmanitoreAmanitoreAmanitore was a Nubian Kandake of the ancient Kushitic Kingdom of Meroë, which also is referred to as Nubia in many ancient sources. An alternate spelling is Kandace, Kandake, or Kentake. In Egyptian hieroglyphics the throne name of Amanitore reads as Merkare...
(1–20 CE) - Amantitere (22–41 CE)
- AmanikhatashanAmanikhatashanAmanikhatashan was a ruling queen of Kush . Her proper title is Kandake. Her pyramid is at Meroe in the Sudan. She was preceded by Amanitenmemide and succeeded by Teritnide....
(62–85 CE) - Maleqorobar (266–283 CE)
- Lahideamani (306–314 CE)