List of legendary monarchs of Ethiopia

Depiction of the Queen of Sheba, named Makeda in Ethiopian tradtion, from the medieval manuscript "Bellafortis" by Conrad Kyeser (c. 1405).

Ethiopian traditions record a range of different monarchs from earlier times whose existence has not been verified by modern-day archeology. Their stories and legends may have elements of truth but it is unclear to what extent this is the case. Numerous king lists have been recorded either on manuscripts or via oral tradition. However, surviving information on the kings prior to the reign of emperor Yekuno Amlak (1270–1285) is often scattered, incomplete or contradictory.^[1][2] The king lists that do refer to pre-1270 Ethiopia rarely match completely with one another.^[3] This variation is likely because the lists were compiled over a long time period across several different monasteries.^[4]

Notable legendary Ethiopian monarchs include:

• Arwe – Mythical serpent king who ruled for 400 years before being killed by the father of the Queen of Sheba.
• Ethiopis – A king who was said to have inspired the name of the country of Ethiopia.
• Makeda – The biblical queen of Sheba who, according to Ethiopian tradition, is believed to be the mother of Menelik I.
• Menelik I – Son of the queen of Sheba and king Solomon of Israel and founder of the Solomonic dynasty in the 10th century BC. Much information on this king comes from the 14th century text Kebra Nagast, however he remains historically unverified. In reality, the Solomonic dynasty began in 1270 AD with the reign of Yekuno Amlak.
• Abreha and Atsbeha – Two brothers who supposedly brought Christianity to Ethiopia, however their existence is doubted by some historians. Some scholars believe that the story of Abreha and Atsbeha may in fact be based on the Axumite kings Ezana and Saizana.^[5]
• Gudit – Legendary queen who supposedly laid waste to the Kingdom of Axum. Her deeds are recorded in oral tradition, but the various stories about her occasionally have differing or conflicting details.

This article will be mostly focusing on a 1922 king list written by the then Prince Regent of Ethiopia Tafari Makannon (the future emperor Haile Selassie) and published in 1927.^[6] It is the only known king list that attempts to provide a timeline of Ethiopian monarchs from the 46th century B.C. up to modern times without any gaps.^[7] There are however different versions that exist of this king list, and it is not clear when the first version was written. Ethiopian foreign minister Heruy Wolde Selassie is a contender for the author of the king list.^[8] His book Wazema contains a version of the list that begins later, in 2545 B.C., instead of 4530 B.C. like on Tafari's list.^[9] Aleka Taye Gabra Mariam also wrote a variation of this king list which has some slight differences in names and reign dates.^[10] These variations will be mentioned and discussed in this article.

The 1922 king list will be referred to as "Tafari's list" in this article in order to differentiate it from other versions. However, Tafari himself did not claim authorship and instead stated that he had made a copy of an already existing list.^[11]

It is also important to note that this king list contains a great deal of conflation between the history of modern-day Ethiopia and Aethiopia, a term used in ancient times and in some Biblical translations to refer to a generalised region south of Egypt, most commonly in reference to the Kingdom of Kush in modern-day Sudan. As a result, many parts of this article will deal with the history of ancient Sudan and how this became interwoven into the history of the Kingdom of Axum, Abyssinia (which includes modern-day Eritrea) and the modern-day state of Ethiopia.

Discover more about Tradition related topics

Queen of Sheba

Queen of Sheba

The Queen of Sheba is a figure first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. In the original story, she brings a caravan of valuable gifts for the Israelite King Solomon. This account has undergone extensive Jewish, Islamic, Yemenite and Ethiopian elaborations, and it has become the subject of one of the most widespread and fertile cycles of legends in the Middle East.

Manuscript

Manuscript

A manuscript was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has come to be understood to further include any written, typed, or word-processed copy of an author's work, as distinguished from the rendition as a printed version of the same. Before the arrival of printing, all documents and books were manuscripts. Manuscripts are not defined by their contents, which may combine writing with mathematical calculations, maps, music notation, explanatory figures, or illustrations.

Oral tradition

Oral tradition

Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. The transmission is through speech or song and may include folktales, ballads, chants, prose or poetry. In this way, it is possible for a society to transmit oral history, oral literature, oral law and other knowledge across generations without a writing system, or in parallel to a writing system. Religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism, and Jainism, for example, have used an oral tradition, in parallel to a writing system, to transmit their canonical scriptures, rituals, hymns and mythologies from one generation to the next.

Arwe

Arwe

Arwe, also known as Wainaba, in Ethiopian mythology, is a serpent-king who rules for four hundred years before being destroyed by the founder of the Solomonic dynasty. His story comes in a number of versions, all of which have him as a tyrannical ruler who demands sacrifice. The myth is part of a wider tradition of serpent- or dragon-kings, such as the Babylonian dragon.

Ethiopis

Ethiopis

Ethiopis or Etiyopus is the name of a legendary king from Ethiopian tradition who was supposedly the inspiration behind the name of the country.

Menelik I

Menelik I

Menelik I was the claimed first Emperor of Ethiopia. According to Kebra Nagast, a 14th-century national epic, in the 10th century BC he is said to have inaugurated the Solomonic dynasty of Ethiopia, so named because Menelik I was the son of the biblical King Solomon of ancient Israel and of Makeda, the Queen of Sheba.

Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)

Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)

The United Monarchy is a political entity described in the deuteronomistic history of the Hebrew Bible as, under the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon, encompassing the territories of both the later Kingdom of Judah and Samarian Kingdom of Israel. Whether the United Monarchy actually existed is a matter of ongoing academic debate, and scholars remain divided between those who support the historicity of the biblical narrative, those who doubt or dismiss it, and those who support the kingdom's theoretical existence while maintaining that the biblical narrative is exaggerated. Proponents of the kingdom's existence traditionally date it to between c. 1047 BCE and c. 930 BCE.

Kebra Nagast

Kebra Nagast

The Kebra Nagast, var. Kebra Negast, or The Glory of the Kings, is a 14th-century national epic from Ethiopia, written in Ge'ez by Nebure Id Ishaq of Axum, by the office of Abuna Abba Giyorgis and at the command of the governor of Enderta Ya'ibika Igzi'. The text, in its existing form, is at least 700 years old and although clearly legendary is considered by many Ethiopian Christians to be a historically reliable work. It is considered to hold the genealogy of the Solomonic dynasty, which followed the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

Abreha and Atsbeha

Abreha and Atsbeha

Abreha and Atsbeha were brothers and Aksumite rulers who were said to have adopted Christianity in the 4th-century, although this claim is dubious. The story of Abreha and Atsbeha is lifted from that of the historical personages King Ezana and his brother Saizana. Stuart Munro-Hay has also speculated that the myth may have emerged from a confusion with two other religious Aksumite figures: Kaleb of Axum, whose throne name was Ella Atsbeha, and Abraha, an Aksumite general who promoted Christianity in Yemen.

Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.4 billion followers representing one-third of the global population. Its adherents, known as Christians, are estimated to make up a majority of the population in 157 countries and territories, and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, whose coming as the messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible and chronicled in the New Testament.

Ezana of Axum

Ezana of Axum

Ezana was ruler of the Kingdom of Axum, an ancient kingdom located in what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia.. He himself employed the style "king of Saba and Salhen, Himyar and Dhu-Raydan". Tradition states that ‘Ezana succeeded his father Ella Amida (Ousanas) as king while still a child but his mother, Sofya then served as regent until he came of age. He conquered the Kingdom of Kush around the year 350 AD.

Gudit

Gudit

Gudit is the Classical Ethiopic name for a personage also known as Yodit in Tigrinya, and Amharic, but also Isato in Amharic and Ga'wa in Ţilţal. The personage behind these various alternative names is portrayed as a powerful female ruler, probably identical to Māsobā Wārq, the daughter of the last Aksumite king, Dil Na'ad, mentioned in an early Arabic source. She is said to have been responsible for laying waste the Kingdom of Aksum and its countryside, and the destruction of its churches and monuments. If she is the same as the Tirda' Gābāz in other Ethiopian sources, she is also said to have attempted to exterminate the members of the ruling dynasty. The deeds attributed to her are recorded in oral tradition and in a variety of historical narratives.

Background

Tafari Makonnen in 1923.

Charles Fernand Rey's 1927 book In the Country of the Blue Nile included a 13-page appendix with a list of Ethiopian kings written by the Prince Regent Tafari Makonnen, who later became the emperor of Ethiopia in 1930.^[6] Tafari's list stretches back to 4530 BC and ends in 1779 AD, with dates following the Ethiopian Calendar.^[12] Tafari's cover letter was written in the town of Addis Ababa on the 11th day of Sane, 1914 (Ethiopian Calendar), which was 19 June 1922 on the Gregorian Calendar according to Rey.^[11] Rey himself was awarded Commander of the Order of the Star of Ethiopia by Tafari.^[13]

The goal of Tafari's list was to showcase the immense longevity of the Ethiopian monarchy. The list does this by providing precise dates over 6,300 years and drawing upon various historical traditions from both within Ethiopia and outside of Ethiopia (see "Historicity" section below).

The king list includes 312 monarchs divided into eight dynasties:

• Tribe of Aram (4530–3244 BC) (21 monarchs)
• Tribe of Kam (2713–1985 BC) (24 monarchs)
• Agdazyan dynasty (1985–982 BC) (52 monarchs)
• Dynasty of Menelik I (982 BC–493 AD) (132 monarchs)
• Dynasty of Kaleb (493–920) (27 monarchs)
• Zagwe dynasty (920–1253) (11 monarchs)
• Solomonic dynasty (1253–1555) (26 monarchs) and its Gondarian branch (1555–1779) (18 monarchs)

In addition to the above, there is an "Israelitish" dynasty with 8 unnumbered kings from the time of Zagwe rule which did not ascend to the throne of Ethiopia.

The first three dynasties are likely legendary and take various elements from the Bible, as well as Egyptian, Nubian, Greek, Coptic and Arab sources. The monarchs of the Menelik and Kaleb dynasties appear on various other king lists, but these lists often contradict one another and many of the kings themselves have not been archeologically verified, though some of the later kings on Tafari's list are confirmed by Aksumite coinage. Many of the historically verified rulers of the Agdazyan and Menelik dynasties did not rule over Ethiopia but rather over Egypt and/or Nubia. It is only from the dynasty of Kaleb onwards that the monarchs are certainly Ethiopian or Aksumite in origin. The Zagwe and Solomonic dynasties are both historically verified, though only the Solomonic line has a secure dating of 1270 to 1975, which somewhat contradicts Tafari's list.

The following table outlines the origins of the dynasties of the 1922 king list:

Because of the length of the Menelik dynasty, Tafari's king list breaks up the line of monarchs into three sub-sections, concerning the time periods 982 BC–9 AD (the monarchs who reigned before the birth of Jesus Christ), 9–306 AD (Pre-Christian monarchs who reigned after the birth of Christ) and 306–493 AD (Monarchs of this line who were Christian themselves). Tafari's list names the kings from Kaleb to Dil Na'od as a separate dynasty, however other Ethiopian king lists do not make the same distinction and the Solomonic dynasty even claimed descent from Menelik I through Dil Na'od.

Each monarch has their respective reign dates and number of years listed. Two columns of reign dates were used in the list. One column uses dates according to the Ethiopian calendar from 4530 BC to 1779 AD. The other column lists the "Year of the World", placing the creation of the world in 5500 BC. Other Ethiopian texts and documents have also placed a similar date for the creation of the world, such as a manuscript in which the year 7260 was equivalent to the Gregorian date 1768, placing the creation of the world at 5492 BC.^[14] Another manuscript in dated to the year 7276 A.M. and is equivalent to 1784 A.D., which would place the beginning of the world in 5492 B.C. as well.^[15] Considering that the Ethiopian calendar is roughly 7 or 8 years behind the Gregorian calendar, this would match very closely with the date given on Tafari's list of 5500 B.C. (Ethiopian calendar). E. A. Wallis Budge noted that the Abyssinians/Ethiopians believed that the world was created "at the autumnal equinox 5500 years before the birth of Christ" and had previously used this as their main dating system.^[16] The dating of 5500 BC as the creation of the world on this list is likely influenced by calculations from the Alexandrian and Byzantine eras which placed the world's creation in 5493 BC and 5509 BC respectively.^[17]

Response to the King List

E. A. Wallis Budge in 1920.

Egyptologist E. A. Wallis Budge was dismissive of the claims of great antiquity made by the Abyssinians, whom he described as having a "passionate desire to be considered a very ancient nation", which has been aided by the "vivid imagination of their scribes" who borrowed traditions from the Semites (such as Yamanites, Himyarites and Hebrews) and modified them to "suit [their] aspirations".^[18] He noted the lack of pre-Christian king lists and believed that there was no 'kingdom' of Abyssinia/Ethiopia until the time of king Zoskales.^[18] Budge additionally stated that all extant manuscripts date to the 17th–19th centuries and believed that any king lists found in them originated from Arab and Coptic writers.^[1] Budge felt that Tafari's king list "proves" that "almost all kings of Abyssinia were of Asiatic origin" and descended from "Southern or Northern Semites" before the reign of Yekuno Amlak.^[19] However, native Ethiopian rule before Yekuno Amlak is evidenced by the kingdoms of D'mt and Aksum, as well as by the rule of the Zagwe dynasty.

Budge divided Abyssinian/Ethiopian history into the following sections:^[20]

1. 5500–1000 B.C. (Mythical)
2. 1000–Nativity of Jesus (Traditional)
3. Nativity–1268 A.D. (Semi-historical)
4. 1268–present (Historical)

With the above groupings, it is clear that Budge does not consider any of the kings of Tafari's list who reigned from 4530 to 1013 B.C. (i.e. before the reign of Makeda) to be historically verifiable.

The Geographical Journal reviewed In the Country of the Blue Nile in 1928, and noted the king list, which contained "many more names [...] than in previously published lists" and was "evidently a careful compilation" which helps to "clear up the tangled skein of Ethiopian history".^[21] However, the reviewer did also notice that it "[contained] discrepancies" which Rey "makes no attempt to clear up".^[21] The reviewer points to how king Dil Na'od is said to have reigned for 10 years from 910 to 920 A.D., yet James Bruce noted that the deposition of this dynasty occurred in 960 A.D., 40 years later.^[21] The reviewer does admit, however, that Henry Salt's dating of this event to 925 A.D. may have had "more reason" to it compared to Bruce's dating, considering that Salt's dating is seemingly backed up by Tafari's king list.^[21]

Historian Manfred Kropp described the king list as an artfully woven document developed as a rational and scientific attempt by an educated Ethiopian from the early 20th century to reconcile historical knowledge of Ethiopia.^[22] Kropp noted that king list has often been viewed by historians as little more than an example of a vague notion of historical tradition in north-east Africa.^[22] However he did also note that the working methods and sources used by the author of the king list remain unclear.^[22] Kropp further stated that despite some rulers' names having astonishing similarities to those of Egyptian and Meroitic rulers, there has been little attempt to critically examine the king list in relation to other Ethiopian sources.^[23]

Kropp further noted that Tafari's king list was the first Ethiopian king that attempted to provide the names of kings from the 970th year of the world's creation onwards without any chronological gaps.^[7] In particular, it was the first Ethiopian king list to consistently fill in all dates from the time of Solomon to the Zagwe dynasty.^[7] Kropp felt that the king list was a result of incorporating non-native traditions of Ethiopia into the native Ethiopian history.^[7]

Historicity and Sources

Coin of king Endubis.

The king list includes a mixture of legendary and historically verifiable rulers. The earliest monarchs are likely legendary, particularly one king named Hogeb who is listed as having a 100-year reign. Some rulers are of ancient Egyptian, ancient Nubian, ancient Greek, Biblical, Coptic and Arab origin. Many kings from the reigns of Makeda and Menelik I onwards appear to be verified through their appearances on other existing king lists from Ethiopia itself. However, these king lists are not always supported by archeological evidence. Aksumite kings from approximately the third century onwards minted coins, a practice that may have begun either with the reign of Endubis or a short time before and continued until the 7th century. These coins help to prove the historicity of some kings on Tafari's list, but there are also many kings named on these coins who do not appear on Tafari's list. Likewise, there are numerous kings on Tafari's list who allegedly reigned during the Aksumite period that are otherwise unattested in the archeological record beyond the king lists that were written centuries after the fall of the kingdom of Aksum. While there are undoubtedly traces of historical fact on Tafari's king list, it is only from the Zagwe dynasty onwards that the names and order of the kings match the opinion of historians and archeologists who study Ethiopia. Although even the Zagwe dynasty has differing traditions on the kings (see Alternate Zagwe dynasty lists).

Heruy Wolde Selassie and Wazema

Heruy Wolde Selassie in a photograph taken prior to 1939.

Historian Manfred Kropp believed the author of the king list was Ethiopian foreign minister Heruy Wolde Selassie (1878–1938).^[8] Selassie was later foreign minister to Haile Selassie and was a philosopher and historian, as well as being able to master several European languages.^[8] He had previously served as secretary to Menelik II.^[8] Kropp noted that Selassie's historical sources include the Bible, Christian Arab writers Jirjis al-Makin Ibn al-'Amid and Ibn al-Rāhib, and Christian traveler and writer Sextus Julius Africanus.^[24] Kropp argued that Selassie was one of a number of Ethiopian writers who sought to synchronize Ethiopian history with the wider Christian-Oriental histories.^[24] This was aided by the translation of Arabic texts in the 17th century.^[24] Kropp also felt that the developing field of Egyptology influenced Selassie's writings, particularly from Eduard Meyer, Gaston Maspero and Alexandre Moret, whose works were published in French in Addis Ababa in the early 20th century.^[24] Manfred Kropp additionally noted the existence of multiple versions of the king list, which suggest that Selassie grew increasingly critical of the sources he used for the first version of the list in 1922.^[24] Kropp believed that Selassie was also assisted by French missionaries and the works they held in their libraries.^[22]

Selassie wrote a book called Wazema which contained a variation of the king list.^[9] Kropp stated that there were three different versions of the king list published in the works of Heruy Wolde Selassie.^[9] Selassie's king list omits the first dynasty of Tafari's list – the so-called "Tribe of Ori or Aram" – and also the first three rulers of the second dynasty, instead beginning in 2545 B.C. with king Sebtah.^[9] Selassie stated that he used European literature amongst his sources, including James Bruce's Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile.^[9]

Manfred Kropp noted one important source for the information in Wazema. Selassie himself told the reader that if they wish to find out about more about Joktan, the supposed founder of the Agazyan dynasty, they could consult page 237 of a book by "Moraya".^[25] At first Kropp thought this was referring to Alexandre Moret,^[25] but it was later made clear that Selassie's king list had been inspired by a book called Histoire de l'Éthiopie (Nubie et Abyssinie) by Louis J. Morié, published in 1904.^[26]

Louis J. Morié's Histoire de l'Éthiopie

Louis J. Morié was a French historian who wrote a history of Ethiopia in the early 20th century. The book, titled Histoire de l'Éthiopie (Nubie et Abyssinie), was published in 1904 and was the first volume of a series on the history of Africa.^[27] Historian Manfred Kropp identified this book as a key source in the creation of the Ethiopian king list that was copied by Tafari Makannon in 1922 and published in Charles F. Rey's book In the Country of the Blue Nile in 1927.^[26] Kropp provided examples from Morie's text, specifically page 237 which provides information on Piori I (no. 46 on the king list) and pages 304–305 which provide information on the High Priests of Amun that appear on the Ethiopian king list, including the additional "Pinedjem" whose existence was an error of early Egyptology.^[26] Kropp described the discovery of the king list's source as exciting but mixed with some "bitterness" as Morié's book is more imaginative than scientific in its approach to Ethiopian history.^[26] Kropp blamed Selassie's European friends and contemporaries for the influence of Morié's book on Selassie's writing of Ethiopian history.^[26]

Louis J. Morié believed that it was during the reign of an Egyptian pharaoh, either Pepi I or Pepi II, that a colony of Sabaeans came to Aethiopia.^[28] This may have been the inspiration behind the narrative of the Ag'azyan dynasty on the 1922 king list, in which a Sabaean dynasty arrived in Ethiopia and became its rulers. Morié's book is also possibly the inspiration behind the inclusion of the "Tribe of Ori or Aram" on the 1922 king list, which was very similar to the legendary "Soleyman" dynasty from Coptic and Arabic folklore of Egypt.^[29] While Selassie's original king list did not include this dynasty, Morié's book may have nonetheless been retained and used by another Ethiopian writer who expanded the king list.

Morié's book displays his desire to hold on to religion and Biblical narratives in a world that was increasingly looking towards science. He showed concern with the possibility of abandoning religion, which would result in the "civilized" peoples of the world to descend down the moral scale.^[30] Morié felt that it was possible for science and religion to be in agreement.^[31] He described Atheism as one of the greatest scourges of nations and a cause of moral and political decadence.^[32] Because of his anxieties of the decline of religion, Morié sought to base his historical narrative around the Biblical timeline. One result of this is that his dating of Egyptian history is vastly different to what is commonly accepted in mainstream Egyptology today, such as his dating of the reign of Narmer/Menes to 5004 B.C. compared to modern day estimate of c. 3150 to 3000 B.C.^[33] Morié also described the Book of Genesis as the best source to consult on the most remote parts of human history.^[34]

Morié believed that the "Ethiopian state of Meroe" was the oldest empire of the post-Flood world, having been founded by Cush of the Bible, and went on to birth the kingdoms of Egypt, Uruk, Babylon, Assyria and Abyssinia.^[35] Morié followed the Biblical tradition by crediting Nimrod, a son of Cush, with founding Uruk and Babylon, and crediting Mizraim, a son of Ham, with founding Egypt.^[31] He additionally identified Mizraim with the Egyptian god Osiris, Ham with Amun and Cush with Khonsu.^[36] Morié defined the history of "Ethiopia" as divided into two parts; Ancient Nubia and Christian Abyssinia,^[37] and defined "Ethiopians" as the Nubian and Abyssinian peoples.^[38]

The following collapsible table includes a list of possible sources for the names and information on the 1922 Ethiopian king list:

Aleka Taye's History of the People of Ethiopia

Aleka Taye Gabra Mariam (1861–1924) was a Protestant Ethiopian scholar, translator and teacher whose written works include books on grammar, religion and Ethiopian history.^[83] Taye was sent to Germany in 1905 by Emperor Menelik II to teach Ge'ez and Amharic at the School of Oriental Studies in Berlin, and to recover some rare Ethiopian books that had been taken to Germany.^[84] Taye ultimately brought back 130 books for the Emperor.^[85]

Taye was ordered by Menelik II to write a complete history of Ethiopia using Ethiopian, European and Arab sources.^[86] Taye's work was not published in his lifetime. His book History of the People of Ethiopia was published in Asmara in 1928 (1920 E.C.) and is believed by historiographers to be part of a larger unpublished manuscript that also dealt with the history of the world and the history of the Ethiopian kings.^[86] However, the book on the Ethiopian kings was only half-printed due to the Italian Occupation of Ethiopia in 1935 and was never completed.^[86] There is also some controversy over whether Taye was truly the author of this book.^[86]

As Taye died in 1924, his text would have pre-dated the publication of Charles Fernand Rey's book In the Country of the Blue Nile in 1927 but it is unclear if it pre-dated the writing of Tafari's king list in 1922. It is possible that Taye's text could have influenced Tafari's list, especially as it was written for the benefit of the Ethiopian monarchy in the first place.

Taye's History of the People of Ethiopia contains a king list that matches closely with the one written by Tafari.^[10] The names, order, reign lengths and dates of monarchs from the Agadazyan dynasty to the Solomonic dynasty mostly match with what is written on Tafari's list, though with some occasional differences.^[10]

Other Ethiopian King Lists

Tafari ultimately did not reveal the sources of information for his king list in his brief cover letter, but there are clear references to Ethiopian tradition and many historically verified kings appearing in later portions of the list. Tafari stated that he had "taken a copy" of the list and sent it to Rey, writing in his cover letter that he would be happy to send more information on the history of Ethiopia if asked again.^[11] This would suggest that the king list already existed in some form and that Tafari had simply copied down the information included, possibly from the work of Heruy Wolde Selassie or Aleka Taye mentioned above. In any case, the list was clearly intended to be a royal chronicle of the Ethiopian monarchy presented for an English-speaking and reading audience. E. A. Wallis Budge believed that Tafari's king list was likely compiled by the "most competent of scholars and scribes in Adis Ababa", though likely also contained the "considered opinions of Government officials in Abyssinia".^[87]

Manfred Kropp noted that numerous king lists exist that date back to the 13th century and these are reliable documents.^[23] However, for the period before this there are only legendary memories of the Axumite rulers.^[2] King lists were created to provide a connection between the Solomonic dynasty and the legendary Axumite kings while skipping the Zagwe dynasty.^[88] Such lists were written for the purpose of proving the legitimacy of the ruling Solomonic emperors and had information drawn from chronicles held in monasteries.^[88] Kropp believed that Ethiopian king lists were intended to fill in the gaps between major events, such as the meeting of Makeda and Solomon, the arrival of Frumentius and the beginning of the Zagwe dynasty.^[4] The great variation in names and order between king lists was likely because this process took place across several different monasteries and were also passed on orally.^[4]

E. A. Wallis Budge felt that any written information on the period of Ethiopian history before the 13th century was "incomplete" and "untrustworthy".^[1] However, he felt that this was likely because any king lists or chronological works held in Axum were likely burned or destroyed before Yekuno Amlak ascended the throne in 1270.^[1] Budge noted that numerous king lists were known to exist in which the number and order of kings were rarely the same.^[3] He felt that it was clear that the chronographers of Abyssinia from the 13th and 14th centuries "did not know how many kings had reigned over [their country] from the time of Makeda [...] or the exact order of succession".^[3] Budge theorized that while the kings lists showed evidence that they were based on legend and tradition, some parts of the list suggested that the scribes did indeed "[have] access to chronological and historical documents of some kind", including Coptic and Arabic texts which were possibly brought over by monks fleeing Egypt and Nubia during the time of the Arab conquests.^[3] Some lists began with Adam or David.^[3]

European travellers James Bruce, Henry Salt and Carlo Conti Rossini all published different king lists in Europe between the late 18th and early 20th centuries.^[89] The lists were written based on information gathered from local Ethiopian scribes.^[90] These king lists contain a list of names from Menelik I to Dil Na'od, but both the names and order of kings only occasionally overlap between the different lists, and there are numerous kings who appear on one list but are omitted from another (see Other King Lists for further information). There are also at least two manuscripts held in the British Museum that contain differing king lists covering the same lineage of monarchs.^[89] Budge theorised that the existence of multiple king lists were to due to rival claimants to the throne.^[91] Tafari's king list noticeably tries to accommodate all these differing traditions by including the majority of the different kings into one longer line of succession.

Two European missionaries in the 16th and 17th centuries, Pedro Páez and Manuel de Almeida, visited Ethiopia and personally saw two different king lists on which they based their respective writings on the history of Ethiopia.^[92] The manuscripts likely dated to before 1620.^[92] Both Páez and de Almeida stated that the Ethiopian emperor lent them books from the church of Axum containing the king lists.^[92] The king lists copied down by Páez and de Almeida include the names of several kings mentioned on Tafari's list as reigning from the 7th to the 10th centuries AD.

Manuel de Almeida read a book from a church at Axum which included a short list of kings of the Zagwe dynasty. This list states that the kings Yemrehana Krestos, Lalibela and Na'akueto La'ab all reigned for exactly 40 years each, with the last king Harbai reigning for 8 years.^[93] These reign lengths match those given by Tafari, suggesting he may have used a similar source for his king list. Manuel de Almeida however stated that "those who knew the history better" said that many kings were missing from this list.^[93]

A text known as the "Paris Chronicle" includes a list of kings that closely matches the order of kings numbered 247 to 256 on Tafari's list with the exception of Queen Gudit who is not mentioned on the list.^[94] The chronicle dates to the eighteenth century.^[92] Because the list matches so closely with Tafari's, it can be assumed that a similar text was used to draw up parts of the king list.

Unpublished sources

It is possible that Tafari's king list includes information gathered from sources that have yet to be published or are in private hands. One unpublished text, simply called the Chronicle of Ethiopia, was in the possession of Qesa Gabaz Takla Haymanot of Aksum.^[95] The author of this chronicle collected information from various old chronicles from a number of different churches and monasteries, and attempted to compile the information in a "harmonic" way.^[96] The chronicle covers information from the reign of Menelik I to Menelik II.^[96] Some of the known information from this unpublished chronicle does support elements of Tafari's list.

Kebra Nagast

Illustration accompanying an edition of the Kebra Nagast.

It is likely the author of the 1922 king list used the Kebra Nagast for information regarding the beginnings of the Solomonic dynasty. The text, also known as The Glory of the Kings, tells of how the Queen of Sheba (Makeda) met King Solomon of Israel, their son Menelik I and how the Ark of the Covenant came to Ethiopia.

The origins of the Kebra Nagast are obscure. A popular belief is that it was written in the 13th or 14th century to legitimise the ruling Solomonic dynasty.^[97] However, some historians have suggested that was written in the 6th century to glorify the Axumite king Kaleb.^[97] Another hypothesis is that was written before the birth of Christ.^[98] The original language of the Kebra Nagast before it was translate into Ge'ez is also debated, with arguments for Arabic, Coptic or Semetic origins all being suggested.^[97] Old Testament scholar David Allan Hubbard identified Patristic, Qur'anic, Rabbinical and Aporcyphal texts as sources for the Kebra Nagast.^[99] The Kebra Nagast itself claims that the original text was found by the Archbishop of Rome (i.e. Constantinople) in the Church of Saint Sophia and that he read the manuscript claimed the world belonged to the Emperor of Rome and the Emperor of Ethiopia.^[100]

Illustration accompanying an edition of the Kebra Nagast.

The colophon of the Kebra Nagast claims that the text was translated from Arabic in the 14th century during the reign of Amda Seyon I (r. 1314–1344).^[98] However, some historians have been suspicious of this statement and have suggested that the authors of the original text itself were Ethiopian scribes.^[98] Historian Stuart Munro-Hay stated that there is no record of Ethiopian monarchs claiming descent from Solomon before the 13th century AD.^[98]

Historian Gizachew Tiruneh felt that it was most likely that the text was written in the 6th century and was written by Monophysite Christians in Ethiopia.^[99] He noted that the Solomonic dynasty had been well established by the 14th century and felt that it was unlikely they would need to be legitimised by this period.^[101] Tiruneh also noted that the Kebra Nagast ends with a story that took place in c. 525 AD, when Kaleb of Axum defeated the Jewish king in south Arabia.^[101] He also pointed out there was no mention of Islam in the text, despite Muslim incursions into Ethiopia and its neighbours having taken place by this time.^[101] Tiruneh further noted that the story of Menelik, son of Makeda and Solomon, was known as far back as the 10th century A.D. in the Alexandrian Church.^[101]

Biblical influences

The Queen of Sheba meets King Solomon of Israel, from an illustration accompanying a copy of the Kebra Nagast.

Various Biblical figures are included in this king list. Three of Noah's descendants are named as founders of the first three dynasties; Aram, Ham and Joktan. Gether, son of Aram, and Cush, son of Ham, are both also included as kings on this list. Descendants of Cush named Sabtah, Seba and Sabtechah are also named as kings of Ethiopia. Other Biblical figures include Nimrod, son of Cush, and the Queen of Sheba, whom Ethiopians call "Makeda". Zerah the Cushite may also be included on Tafari's king list under the name "Sera" which is used for two different kings on the list.

According to Ethiopian tradition Makeda was an ancestor of the Solomonic dynasty and mother of Menelik I, whose father was king Solomon of Israel. E. A. Wallis Budge believed that the queen was more likely to have been from Yemen or Hadhramaut than from Ethiopia.^[18] He also believed that the tradition of the Queen of Sheba entered the region of modern-day Ethiopia when it was conquered by a Yemeni tribe called the "Habasha", who were "the first to introduce civilization into the country", as theorized by Carlo Conti Rossini.^[18] Budge also thought it was possible that the story was introduced via Jewish traders who settled in Abyssinia/Ethiopia.^[18] However, by the early 21st century the theory of a south Arabian or 'Sabaean' origin for Ethiopian civilization was largely abandoned by scholars,^[102] and thus some of Budge's ideas would now be considered outdated.

The Biblical events of the flood and the fall of the Tower of Babel are both included in the chronology of the king list, dated respectively to 3244 B.C. and 2713 B.C., with the 531-year period in between listed as an interregnum where no kings reigned.

Another Biblical story included is that of the Ethiopian eunuch, named Jen Daraba according to this king list, who visited Jerusalem during the reign of the 169th sovereign Queen Garsemot Kandake VI. However, the version of the story presented by Tafari has some major inaccuracies such as mistakenly stating that Philip the Apostle baptised the eunuch when it was actually Philip the Evangelist according to the Bible.

The following collapsible list names all monarchs on the 1922 king list that originate from or are inspired by the Biblical narrative:

Coptic and Arabic influences

1760 Coptic prayer book written in Arabic.

The first dynasty of Tafari's list, the Tribe of Ori, is almost certainly taken from medieval Coptic and Arabic texts on the kings of Egypt who ruled before the Great Flood. French historian Louis J. Morié, in his 1904 book Histoire de L'Ethiopie, recorded an almost identical list of kings and queens to those found on the first dynasty of Tafari's list.^[29] Morié stated that the king list he saw was recorded by the Copts in their annals and was found in both Coptic and Arabic tradition.^[103] He however felt that the Egyptian Delta would not have been habitable in the Antediluvian era and thus theorized that these kings ruled Thebes and "Ethiopia" (i.e. Nubia).^[104] Morié noted that there had originally been a list of 40 kings, but only 19 of them had been preserved up to the early 20th century.^[104] He believed that the king list originated from the works of Murtada ibn al-Afif, an Arab writer from the 12th century who wrote a number of works, though only one, titled The Prodigies of Egypt, has partially survived to the present day.^[104][105] The Coptic king list begins with Aram, son of Shem, in the same way that Tafari's king list begins with Aram, otherwise known as Ori.^[104]

A medieval Arab text called Akhbar al-Zaman (The History of Time), dated to between 940 and 1140, may have been an earlier version of the king list Morié saw.^[106] The authorship is unknown, but may have been written by historian Al-Masudi based on earlier Arab, Christian and Greek sources.^[106] Another possible author is Ibrahim ibh Wasif Shah who lived during the Twelfth century.^[106] The text contained a list of kings of Egypt who ruled before the Great Flood and shows some similarities with the list of kings of the "Tribe of Ori or Aram" included on Tafari's list, who also ruled before the Great Flood. Several kings show similarities in names and chronological order, though not all kings on one list appear on the other. The kings included on Akhbar al-Zaman are not archeologically verified and do not appear on any ancient Egyptian king lists.

A number of Coptic monks from Egypt came to Ethiopia in the 13th century and brought with them many books written in Coptic and Arabic.^[107] These monks also translated many works into Ge'ez.^[107] It is possible that the legends from Akhbar al-Zaman may have entered Ethiopia during this time.

Manfred Kropp theorized that this Ethiopian king list may have been influenced by the works of Ibn al-Rāhib, a 13th-century Coptic historian whose works were translated into Ge'ez by Ethiopian writer Enbaqom in the 16th century, and Jirjis al-Makin Ibn al-'Amid, another 13th century Coptic historian whose work Al-Majmu' al-Mubarak (The Blessed Collection) was also translated around the same time.^[108] Both writers partially based their information on ancient history from the works of Julius Africanus and through him quote the historical traditions of Egypt as recorded by Manetho.^[108] Jirgis was known as "Wälda-Amid" in Ethiopia.^[108] Kropp believed that some of the names of the early part of Tafari's king list were taken from a king list included within Jirgis' text which draws upon traditions from Manetho and the Old Testament.^[109]

Ancient Egyptian and Nubian influences

Reconstructions of six statues of Kushite kings discovered at Dukki-Gel in Sudan.

Many of the Egyptian and Nubian monarchs included on the list are historically verified but are not proven to have ruled the area of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea, and often have reign dates that do no match dates used by modern-day archeologists. The rulers numbered 88 to 96 on the list are the High Priests of Amun who ruled Upper Egypt during the time of the Twenty-first dynasty, whose influence was limited to Lower Egypt. The order of the priests on the list is mostly confirmed by archeology, though their rule did not extend to modern day Ethiopia and Eritrea. Several other kings on the list have names that are clearly influenced by those of Egyptian pharaohs such as Senefrou (8), Tutimheb (53), Amen Emhat I (63), Amen Emhat II (83), Amen Hotep Zagdur (102), Aksumay Ramissu (103) and Apras (127).

Numerous Nubian rulers from the Kushite kingdom in modern-day Sudan are also included on Tafari's king list. In particular, most of the pharaohs of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt, who ruled over both Nubia and Egypt, are listed as part of the dynasty of Menelik I. However, the Kushite Pharaohs are not known to have ruled much further south than the area of modern-day South Sudan. Kushite monarchs from after the Twenty-Fifth Dynasty of Egypt are also occasionally mentioned on this list, specifically Aktisanes, Aspelta, Harsiotef, Nastasen and two kings named "Arkamen", whose name could match with various different Kushite kings. Additionally, there are six queens on this list who are referred to as "Kandake", the Meroitic term for the king's sister used by the rulers of Kush.

Apart from the monarchs listed above, there were also some Viceroys of Kush who ruled over Nubia during the time of the New Kingdom after Egypt conquered the Kingdom of Kerma in c. 1500 BC. Some of the names on Tafari's king list may be based on these Viceroys of Kush, including the aforementioned High Priests of Amun from the time of the Twenty-First dynasty.

The Axumite empire at its maximum extent of influence.

The reasons for the inclusion of Egyptian and Nubian monarchs may stem from the Axumite conquest of Meroë, the last capital of the Kingdom of Kush, by King Ezana in c. 325 AD.^[110] It was from this point onward that the Axumites began referring to themselves as "Ethiopians", the Greco-Roman term previously used largely for Nubians.^[111] Following this, the inhabitants of Axum/Ethiopia were able to claim lineage from the "Ethiopians" or "Aethiopians" mentioned in the Bible, including the Kandakes, who were actually Kushites. The claiming of the term "Ethiopian" by the Axumites may, however, pre-date Christianity. For example, Axumite king Ezana is called "King [...] of the Ethiopians" on a Greek inscription where he also calls himself "son of the invincible Mars", suggesting that this pre-dates his conversion to Christianity.^[112]

Shanakdakhete, the earliest recorded reigning Kandake of Kush, who was in power in the mid-2nd century BC.

The inclusion of Kushite rulers on the king list suggests that the traditions of ancient Nubia were considered culturally compatible with those of Axum.^[113] Makeda, the biblical Queen of Sheba, was referred to as "Candance" or "Queen Mother" in the Kebra Nagast,^[114] suggesting a cultural connection between Ethiopia and the ancient kingdom of Kush. Portuguese missionary Francisco Álvares, who travelled to Ethiopia in 1520, recorded one Ethiopian tradition which claimed that Yeha was "the favourite residence of Queen Candance, when she honoured the country with her presence".^[115]

As some Egyptian monarchs were able to rule over Nubia, the inclusion of these monarchs on Tafari's king list may have also stemmed from the Axumite conquest of Meroë. Additionally, some Nubian objects from the Napatan and Meroitic periods have been found in Ethiopian graves dating to the 8th to 2nd centuries BC.^[116] There have also been discoveries of red-orange sherds similar to those from the pre-Axumite period in sites of the Jebel Mokram Group in Sudan, showing contacts along caravan routes toward the Nile Valley in the 1st millennium BC.^[117] This shows that interactions between Nubia and modern day Ethiopia long pre-date the Axumite conquest. Archaeologist Rodolfo Fattovich believed that the people of the pre-Axumite culture had contacts with the kingdom of Kush, the Achaemenid Empire and the Greeks, but that these contacts were "mostly indirect".^[118]

Stele with Egyptian hieroglyphs found in Axum, as shown in James Bruce's Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile.

Scottish traveler James Bruce, in his multi-volume work Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile included a drawing of a stele found in Axum and brought back to Gondar by the Ethiopian emperor.^[119] The stele had carved figures of Egyptian gods and was inscribed with hieroglyphs.^[119] E. A. Wallis Budge believed the stele to be a "Cippi of Horus" which were placed in homes and temples to keep evil spirits away.^[119] He noted that these date from the end of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty (c. 664–525 BC) onwards.^[119] Budge believed this was proof of contacts between Egypt and Axum in the early 4th century BC.^[119] Archeological excavations in the Kassala region have also revealed direct contact with Pharaonic Egypt.^[120] Some tombs excavated in the Yeha region, the likely capital of the Dʿmt kingdom, contained imported albastron dated to c. 770–404 B.C. which had a Napatan or Egyptian origin.^[121]

The world according to Herodotus. He defined "Aethiopes" as being south of Egypt and including Meroe.

The earliest known Greek writings that mention "Aethiopians" date to the 8th century BC, in the writings of Homer and Hesiod. Herodotus, in his work Histories (c. 430 BC), defined "Aethiopia" as beginning at the island of Elephantine and including all land south of Egypt, with the capital being Meroe.^[122] This geographical definition confirms that in ancient times the term "Aethiopia" was commonly used to refer to Nubia and the Kingdom of Kush rather than modern day Ethiopia. The first writer to use the name "Ethiopia" for the region of the Kingdom of Axum was Philostorgius around 440 AD.^[123]

Budge theorised that one of the reasons why the name "Ethiopia" was applied to Abyssinia was because Syrian monks identified Kush and Nubia with Abyssinia when translating the Bible from Greek to Ge'ez.^[124] Budge further noted that translators of the Bible into Greek identified Kush with Ethiopia and this was carried over into the translation from Greek to Ge'ez.^[125] He argued that it was unlikely that the "Ethiopians" mentioned in ancient Greek writings were the Abyssinians, but instead were far more likely to be the Nubians of Meroë.^[126] He believed that the native name of the region around Axum was "Habesh" from which "Abyssinia" is derived and originating in the name of the Habasha tribe from southern Arabia.^[125] He did note however that the modern day people of the region did not like this term and preferred the name "Ethiopia" due to its association with Kush.^[125] The ancient Nubians are not known to have used the term "Ethiopian" to refer to themselves, however Silko, the first Christian Nubian king of Nobatia, in the early sixth century described himself as "Chieftain of the Nobadae and of all the Ethiopians".^[127]

Taharqa, Nubian pharaoh of Kush and Egypt from 690 to 664 BC.

Budge noted that none of the Egyptian and Nubian kings appear on other known king lists from Ethiopia.^[128] He believed that contemporary Ethiopian priests had been "reading a modern European History of Egypt" and had incorporated in the king list Egyptian pharaohs who had "laid Nubia and other parts of the Sudan under tribute", as well as the names of various Kushite kings and Priest kings.^[129] To support his argument, he stated that while the names of Abyssinian kings have meanings, the names of Egyptian kings would be meaningless if translated into the Ethiopian language.^[19] Historian Manfred Kropp likewise noted that no Ethiopian manuscript prior to Tafari's king list included names of monarchs resembling those used by ancient Egyptian rulers.^[7]

A comparison of Tafari's list with other known Ethiopian king lists shows that most of the kings on Tafari's list with Egyptian or Nubian names do not have these elements in their names on the other king lists (see Alternate King lists from Menelik I to Bazen). For example, the 102nd king on Tafari's list, Amen Hotep Zagdur, only appears as "Zagdur" on one British Museum manuscript and on Rossini's list.^[130] The next king, Aksumay Ramissu, is only known as "Aksumay" on the same two lists.^[130] The 106th king, Abralyus Wiyankihi II, only appears as "Abralyus" on the same manuscript.^[130] The 111th king, Tsawi Terhak Warada Nagash, is a combination of multiple kings. One king named "Sawe" or "Za Tsawe" is listed as the fifth king following Menelik I, according to one British Museum manuscript and the lists recorded by Bruce and Salt.^[89] Another king named "Warada Nagash" is named as the eighth king following Menelik I on a different manuscript.^[130] No known list includes both kings, and Tafari's list combined the two different kings as a single entry, with the addition of the name "Terhak", to be equated with the Nubian pharaoh Taharqa, who otherwise does not appear on other Ethiopian king lists.^[130] The reason for Taharqa's inclusion is likely because he is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible (2 Kings 19:9; Isaiah 37:9) and was described as the "King of Ethiopia", in reference to Kush in modern-day Sudan.^[131] Also missing from other Ethiopian king lists are the six "Kandake" queens numbered 110, 135, 137, 144, 162 and 169. It is likely that these queens refer to the reigning female monarchs of Kush, although it is unclear who exactly they are based on as their names do not match any known queens of Kush. The second Kandake queen, Nikawla (no. 135), has a name which was sometimes used to the refer to the Queen of Sheba.^[132]

Herihor, High Priest of Amun of Upper Egypt between c. 1080 and 1074 BC, shown here with wife Nodjmet.

If Budge is correct in his assumption that the inclusion of Egyptian and Nubian monarchs was largely due to contemporary European Egyptological writings, then this may explain why the High Priests of Amun of the early Third Intermediate Period were included on Tafari's king list numbered 88 to 96. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several major Egyptologists (such as Heinrich Brugsch, James Breasted and George Reisner) believed that the rise of the Kush kingdom was due to the influence of the High Priests of Amun moving into Nubia towards the end of the Twentieth Dynasty because of political conflict arising at the end of the New Kingdom.^[133] Brugsch in particular entertained the idea that the early Kushite kings were lineal descendants of the priests from Egypt, though this was explicitly rejected by Breasted.^[134] Later Egyptologists A. J. Arkell and Walter Emery theorized that a priestly "government in exile" had influenced the Kushite kingdom.^[135] Budge himself would agree with these ideas and suggested that the High Priests of Amun moved south to Nubia due to the rise of the Libyan pharaohs in Lower Egypt, and consolidated their high position by intermarrying with Nubian women.^[136] Budge further theorised that the name of the Nubian pharaoh Piye or "Piankhi" was taken from that of the High Priest of Amun Piankh and he was possibly Piankh's descendant.^[137] Such ideas around the Kushite monarchy originating from this specific line of priests are now considered outdated, but the popularity of these theories in the early 20th century could explain their inclusion, in almost exact chronological order, on Tafari's king list from 1922.

The following collapsible list names all monarchs on the 1922 king list that originate from or are inspired by Egyptian rulers or gods:

The following collapsible list names all monarchs on the 1922 king list that originate from or are inspired by Kushite rulers:

Greek influences

1512 woodcut print of Cassiopeia.

The ancient Greek mythical queen of Aethiopia, Cassiopeia, is claimed as part of Ethiopia's ancient history according to Tafari's list, which lists her as the 49th monarch and the third of the Agdazyan dynasty. Her grandson Electryon also makes an appearance on this list, though oddly he is placed six centuries before Cassiopeia, as part of the Tribe of Kam. Cassiopeia's husband, Cepheus also makes an appearance on the king list, but is numbered 71st and is dated to over 400 years after her reign.

The legendary Cretian king Minos is listed as the 66th monarch under the name "Mandes", a variation of the name used by Diodorus in his work Bibliotheca Historia,^[61] though oddly he was listed as a king of Egypt in Diodorus' text rather than Crete. Diodorus' text seems to have influenced other parts of the king list, such as the 122th monarch named "Sabakon" (an alternate name for the Nubian pharaoh Shabaka, who is already mentioned earlier in the list) and the 127th monarch named "Apras", the Greek name for Egyptian pharaoh Wahibre Haaibre.

In addition to the above, the Egyptian king Proteus is also included on the list as part of the Agdazyan dynasty, however he only appears in Greek writings and is otherwise unattested in the Egyptian archeological record.

Memnon, a mythical king of "Aethiopia" who fought in the Trojan war, is not directly mentioned on Tafari's king list. However, he may be named "Amen Emhat", a name used by several Egyptian pharaohs that may have inspired the name "Memnon". Peter Truhart identified the 83rd king of Tafari's list, "Amen Emhat II", as Memnon and the 81st king, "Titon Satiyo", as Memnon's father Tithonus.^[74]

The following collapsible list names all monarchs on the 1922 king list that originate from or are inspired by Greek mythology:

Conflict with other Ethiopian traditions

Abreha and Atsbeha

Tafari's list occasionally does not match with other Ethiopian traditions. One example is Abreha and Atsbeha, who are believed by Ethiopians to have been two brothers who brought Christianity to Ethiopia. However, Tafari lists 'Abreha Atsbeha' as a single monarch numbered 201st on his list and as a son of queen Sofya. In reality, the son of Sofya was king Ezana who was the first Christian king of Axum. Ezana is however placed much later in the list, over 150 years after the reign of Sofya. Queen Sofya ruled as a regent for her son Ezana, though Tafari considers her to be a reigning monarch in her own right, even allowing for her regency to be counted as a period of co-rule with her son. The listing of 'Abreha Atsbeha' as a single figure may be a transcribable error, as Aleka Taye's version of the king list clearly states that 'Abreha' and 'Atsbeha' are two separate individuals.^[10]

Another example is that of king Angabo I, who is placed in the middle of the Agdazyan dynasty on the 1922 king list. However some Ethiopian legends claim that this king was the founder of a new dynasty.^[139] In both cases the dating is given as the late 14th century BC.

E. A. Wallis Budge noted that there were differing versions of the chronological order of the Ethiopian kings, with some lists stating that a king named Aithiopis was the first to rule while other lists claim that the first king was Adam.^[140] Tafari's list instead begins with Aram.

The list also has its own internal conflicting information. Tafari claims that it was during the reign of the 169th monarch, queen Garsemot Kandake VI, in the first century AD when Christianity was formally introduced to Ethiopia. However, this is in direct conflict with the story of the later queen Sofya, who ruled 249 years later.

Discover more about Tafari Makonnen's King List related topics

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Aram, son of Shem

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Ham (son of Noah)

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Menelik I

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Kaleb of Axum

Kaleb of Axum

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Zagwe dynasty

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Gondar

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Dil Na'od

Dil Na'od

Dil Na'od was the last King of Aksum before the Zagwe dynasty. He lived in either the 9th or 10th century. Dil Na'od was the younger son of Ged'a Jan, and succeeded his older brother 'Anbasa Wedem as negus. According to E. A. Wallis Budge, "The reign of Delna'ad was short, perhaps about ten years." However, James Bruce has recorded another tradition, that Dil Na'od was an infant when Gudit slaughtered the princes imprisoned at Debre Damo, his relatives, and forced some of his nobles to take him out of his kingdom to save his life.

Gregorian Dates: Tafari's king list uses dates according to the Ethiopian Calendar. According to Charles Fernand Rey, one can estimate the Gregorian date equivalent by adding a further seven or eight years to the date.^[141] As an example, he states that 1 AD on the Ethiopian calendar would be 8 AD on the Gregorian calendar.^[141] He notes that the calendar of Ethiopia likely changed in some ways throughout history but argued that this was a good enough method for estimates.^[141] E. A. Wallis Budge stated that the Ethiopian calendar was 8 years behind the Gregorian calendar from 1 January to 10 September and 7 years behind from 11 September to 31 December.^[16]

Tribe of Ori or Aram (1,286 years)

"Tribe or Posterity of Ori or Aram"^[142]

1894 map of the theoretical location of the so-called "Mountains of the Moon".

The first dynasty of Tafari's king list consists of 21 monarchs who ruled before the Biblical "Great Flood". This dynasty is almost certainly legendary and borrowed from a list of pre-flood kings of Egypt that is found in Coptic and Arab texts. French historian Louis J. Morié recorded a similar list of 19 monarchs in his 1904 book Histoire de L'Éthiopie.^[29] These kings are not archeologically verified and it is likely that the stories around them developed in later times. The medieval Arab text Akhbar al-Zaman contains a king list that may have been an earlier version of the list Morié saw centuries later. This list contained a total of 19 kings and the majority had similar names to those found on the later version in 1904 (See the Akhbar al-Zaman section of this article for more information on this text).^[106] Morié noted that the kings were supposed to be rulers of Egypt, but believed that they had actually ruled what he referred to as "Ethiopia", although he specifically was writing about Nubia.^[29] He pointed to a story of the third king, Gankam, who had a palace built beyond the Equator at the Mountains of the Moon, as proof that these kings resided in "Ethiopia".^[143][105] The kings of this dynasty are described as Priest-kings in Coptic tradition and were called the "Soleyman" dynasty.^[105] Louis J. Morié may well have been the inspiration behind the appropriation of this legendary Egyptian dynasty into the Ethiopian king list as his book shows clear influence over the next two dynasties of this king list.^[26]

The "Soleyman" dynasty was said to have been "Priest-kings" who ruled before the Great Flood for 9,000 years, though Morié personally believed the period of rule was closer to 2,000 years.^[104] Their capital city was called either "Fanoun" or "Kanoun" and they ruled over much of North and East Africa according to Coptic legend.^[104] They also founded other cities named "Gevherabad" (capital of the province of "Schadoukiam"), "Ambarabad" (or "Anbarabad") and "Gabkar" and used a now lost language called "Bialban".^[104]

Due to its non-native origin, the tradition of the Ori/Aram dynasty has often been treated as irrelevant to wider Ethiopian tradition. Ethiopian writer and foreign minister Heruy Wolde Selassie ignored this dynasty in his book Wazema.^[9] Ethiopian historian Fisseha Yaze Kassa, in his book Ethiopia's 5,000-year history, completely omitted this dynasty and instead begins with the Ham/Kam dynasty.^[144] In his book Regents of Nations, Peter Truhart described this dynasty as "non-historical".^[145]

Other Ethiopian traditions name a completely different line of kings as the first to rule Ethiopia. Egyptologist E. A. Wallis Budge stated that in his time the contemporary Ethiopians could not "tell us [anything] about the reigns of their [pre-Flood] kings" and relied on Biblical genealogy for a list of names.^[146] The list that Budge provided for the pre-Flood kings varies considerably from the one on Tafari's list (see Other King Lists section below), essentially using the Biblical genealogy from Adam to Solomon.^[147] Budge noted that some Ethiopian king lists stretched back to 5500 B.C. (the year the world was believed by the Ethiopians to have been created) and began with Adam.^[3] Other Ethiopian traditions instead state that the Ethiopians descend from Ham, a grandson of Noah.^[148] There are some brief king lists that outline a genealogy from Ham and his son Cush to kings representing Ethiopia and Axum.^[149]

By contrast, Tafari's list names neither Adam or Ham as the founder of the Ethiopian line, but instead chooses Aram, son of Shem, a grandson of Noah, to be the "great ancestor" of the Ethiopian monarchy.^[150] E. A. Wallis Budge believed that the reason for this was because contemporary Ethiopians wanted to distance themselves from Ham and the Curse of Ham.^[150] The Curse of Ham had been used as an ideological justification for the Atlantic slave trade during the 16th to 19th centuries.^[151] Likewise, it was also used to justify the European Scramble for Africa during the 1880s to 1910s, when nearly 90 percent of Africa was colonized by European powers and Ethiopia was one of only two countries to remain independent (the other being Liberia). The medieval Ethiopian text Kebra Nagast stated that "God decreed sovereignty for the seed of Shem, and slavery for the seed of Ham".^[150] The original writer of Tafari's king list appears to have deliberately relegated Ham to being the founder of the second Ethiopian dynasty instead of the first dynasty as was done on older king lists.

The only rulers of this dynasty who do not originate from the Coptic Antediluvian king list are "Senefrou" and "Assa", which E. A. Wallis Budge equated with the Egyptian pharaohs Sneferu and Djedkare Isesi. The historical reign dates of these pharaohs are far later than what is stated on this king list. Their inclusion as rulers of Ethiopia may be due to some kind of interaction with Nubia (i.e. "Aethiopia").

One issue with the Ori dynasty is that the king list dates the Great Flood to 3244 B.C. and yet states that Aram, who was born after the Flood, ruled over 1,200 years before it took place. This also causes problems with the dating given for Gether and Nimrod who both lived after the Flood.

Interregnum (531 years)

Painting of the Tower of Babel by Abel Grimmer (1604).

"From the Deluge until the fall of the Tower of Babel".^[159]

This 531-year period is the only gap in Tafari's king list where no monarchs are named. Tafari leaves this gap unexplained, but some older Ethiopian king lists state that the monarchs who reigned between the Great Flood and the fall of the Tower of Babel were pagans, idolators and worshippers of the "serpent", and thus were not worthy to be named.^[150]

The Tower of Babel was, according to the Bible, built by humans in Shinar at a time when humanity spoke a single language. The tower was intended to reach the sky, but this angered God, who confounded their speech and made them unable to understand each other and caused humanity to be scattered across the world. This story serves as an origin myth to explain why so many different languages are spoken around the world. The builder of the Tower, Nimrod, reigned 1,063 years before it fell according to this king list.

The dating of the fall of the tower to directly before the beginning of the Kam dynasty suggests that it was at this point that Ham came to Aethiopia and became its king.

Tribe of Kam (728 years)

1913 map of the earliest-known civilizations by Edward Sylvester Ellis.

"Sovereignty of the tribe of Kam after the fall of the tower of Babel."^[159]

This dynasty begins with the second son of the Biblical prophet Noah, Ham, whose descendants populated the African continent and adjoining parts of Asia according to Biblical tradition. Ham was the father of Cush (Kush/Nubia), Mizraim (Egypt), Canaan (Levant) and Put (Libya or Punt). One of Ham's descendants, Nimrod, is named as part of the previous dynasty which raises questions over how closely Tafari's Ethiopian king list is following Biblical tradition.

According to Heruy Wolde Selassie's book Wazema, the Kamites originated from the Middle East and conquered Axum, Meroe, Egypt and North Africa.^[160]

Most Ethiopian traditions present a very different line of kings descending from Ham. E. A. Wallis Budge stated that in his time there was a common belief in Ethiopia that the people were descended from Ham, his son Cush and Cush's son Ethiopis, who is not named in the Bible, but from whom the country of Ethiopia gets its name.^[161] Budge however found it doubtful that the Kushites were the first to inhabit the region of modern-day Ethiopia.^[161] Nonetheless, Ham has often been considered the founder of Ethiopia according to many Ethiopian king lists. Some lists explicitly state the names "Ethiopia" and "Axum" come from descendants of Ham that are not named in the Bible.^[149] See Alternate Hamitic dynasty section below for more information.

Ethiopian historian Fisseha Yaze Kassa's book Ethiopia's 5,000-year history begins this dynasty with Noah and omits Habassi, but otherwise has a similar line of kings as this list.^[144] Heruy Wolde Selassie omitted the first three rulers of this dynasty in his book Wazema and begins the dynasty with Sebtah in 2545 BC.^[9]

Peter Truhart, in his book Regents of Nations, dated the monarchs of this dynasty to 2585–1930 BC and stated that the capital during this period was called 'Mazez'.^[145] He believed that the first king Kam was a representation of Egypt (or "K.mt") and a reference to Egyptian contacts with the Land of Punt (or modern-day Ethiopia as Truhart identifies it) that took place around 3000 BC.^[145] He thus identifies king Kout as the first king of this dynasty instead of Kam.^[145] Truhart identified the monarchs from Kout to Lakniduga as the "Dynasty of Kush" based at 'Mazez' and ruled from 2585 to 2145 BC,^[145] while the monarchs from Manturay to Piori I are listed as the "Kings of Ethiopia and Meroe" who ruled from 2145 to 1930 BC.^[138]

Agdazyan Dynasty (1,003 years)

"Agdazyan dynasty of the posterity of the kingdom of Joctan."^[170]

Note: Historian Manfred Kropp stated the word "Agdazyan" is likely a transcribal error and meant to say "Ag'azyan", as the Ethiopian syllable signs da and 'a are relatively easy to confuse with each other.^[171]

1861 map of the distribution of the Human race, according to the Book of Genesis.

The third dynasty of this king list is descended from Joktan, a son of Eber, grandson of Shem and great-grandson of Noah. The first ruler of the dynasty, Akbunas Saba, is likely meant to be Sheba, son of Joktan.^[172] The dynasty ends with the famous Queen of Sheba, whose name is Makeda in Ethiopian tradition. According to Genesis 10:7 and 1 Chronicles 1:9, Sheba was a grandson of Cush through Raamah, which provides a link between this Semitic dynasty and the Hamitic dynasty that preceded it. The so-called Agdazyan dynasty includes a number of kings whose names clearly reference ancient Egypt and Kush, most notably the line of High Priests of Amun that reigned near the end of this dynastic period. While most of these monarchs are archaeologically verified, they did not rule modern-day Ethiopia, but rather ruled over or had some contact with ancient Nubia and Kush, which is equated with Ethiopia in some translations of the Bible and these translated editions have influenced modern Ethiopia's belief in an affinity with ancient Nubia.

Four panels by an unknown 17th to 19th century Ethiopian painter showing the killing of Arwe.

While this dynasty takes some inspiration from foreign sources, it does include some notable kings that developed within indigenous tradition. These include Ethiopis, whose name supposedly inspired the name of the country Ethiopia, and Angabo, a king who killed the mythical serpent Arwe. One Ethiopian tradition claims that Angabo was the founder of a new dynasty consisting of three further kings and queen Makeda.^[173][174] Tafari's king list includes these monarchs, but not as direct successors of each other. Angabo is numbered 74th, while his successors are numbered 77th, 80th, 97th and 98th. (See Angabo dynasty for more information).

The word Ag'azyan means "free" or "to lead to freedom" in Ge'ez.^[175][160] According to Heruy Wolde Selassie in his book Wazema, this originated from the liberation of Ethiopia from the rule of the Kamites/Hamites.^[160] Selassie also claimed that three of Joktan's sons divided Ethiopia between themselves.^[160] Sheba received Tigray, Obal received Adal and Ophir received Ogaden.^[160] If this is to be believed, then presumably the later monarchs who followed Sheba/Akbunas Saba ruled from the Tigray Region. It is unclear who ruled the other territories and whether they ever came under rule of the Tigrayian monarchs in later times. It is possible that Sheba/Akbunas Saba may have conquered the other territories and thus became king of all of Ethiopia.

E. A. Wallis Budge had a different theory of the origin of the term Aga'azyan, believing that it referred to several tribes that migrated from Arabia to Africa either at the same time as or after the Habashat had migrated.^[175] He stated that the word "Ge'ez" had come from "Ag'azyian".^[175] The term "Agdazyan" may also refer to the Agʿazi region of the Axumite empire located in modern-day Eastern Tigray and Southern Eritrea

Sheba is usually considered by historians to have been the south Arabian kingdom of Saba, in an area that later became part of the Aksumite Empire. The Kebra Nagast however specifically states that Sheba was located in Ethiopia.^[176] This has led to some historians arguing that Sheba may have been located in a region in Tigray and Eritrea, which was once called "Saba".^[177] American historian Donald N. Levine suggested that Sheba may be linked with the historical region of Shewa, where the modern Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is located.^[178] Additionally, a Sabaean connection with Ethiopia is evidenced by a number of settlements on the Red Sea coast that emerged around 500 BC and were influenced by Sabaean culture.^[179] These people were traders and had their own writing script.^[179] Gradually over time their culture merged with that of the local people.^[179][180] The Sabaean language was likely the official language of northern Ethiopia during the pre-Axumite period (c. 500 BC to 100 AD).^[181]

Ancient blocks from Yeha, the likely capital of D'mt, with Sabaean inscriptions.

Some historians believe that the kingdom of Dʿmt was Sabaean-influenced, possibly due to Sabaean dominance of the Red Sea or due to mixing with the indigenous population.^[182][183] D'mt had developed by the first millennium B.C. in modern-day northern Ethiopia and Eritrea, and had "a veneer of cultural affinities adopted largely from the Saba'an culture centred across the Red Sea in the area of modern Yemen".^[184] The D'mt area had a written language that appeared "almost entirely Saba'an in origin".^[121] Historian Jacke Phillips argued that "some form of underlying political unification must have allowed its dispersal".^[121]

Older hypotheses on the origin of the pre-Axumite culture suggested that it developed due to migrations of population from south Arabia in pre-modern times or that there had been some kind of Sabaean colonization of the modern-day Ethiopia/Eritrea region.^[185] More recent theories instead suggest that the culture developed out of a long process of contacts dating back to the 2nd millennium BC.^[185]

Taking into account the proof of Sabaean-Ethiopian contacts, this dynasty, while likely legendary, is nonetheless a clear reference to the historical interactions with southern Arabia that occurred in the ancient past and influenced Ethiopian culture and tradition. The mix of Egyptian, Nubian, Greek and Biblical figures in this dynasty showcases the many cultural interactions that Ethiopians had with their neighbours.

Depiction of Makeda, the Queen of Sheba, from an Ethiopian Chapel in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Roman-Jewish historian Josephus wrote that that Achaemenid king Cambyses II conquered the capital of Aethiopia and changed its name from "Saba" to "Meroe".^[186] Josephus also stated the Queen of Sheba came from this region and was queen of both Egypt and Ethiopia.^[187] This suggests that a belief in a connection between Sheba and Kush was already in place by the 1st century AD. Josephus also associated Sheba/Saba with Kush when describing a campaign led by Moses against the Ethiopians, in which he won and later married Tharbis, the daughter of the king of 'Saba' or Meroe.

Due to the alleged Sabaean origin of this dynasty, it is possible that some of the names of kings may be drawn from a south Arabian tradition that identifies a legendary figure named Qahtan (ancestor of the Qahtanite Arabs) with the Biblical figure Joktan.^[188][160] The Arab genealogy from Joktan names his great-grandson as Saba (representing the Sabaean kingdom or "Sheba") and his great-great-grandson Kahlan (who represents an Arab confederation in Ancient Yemen). Saba and Kahlan may be represented by the first two kings of this dynasty, Akbunas Saba and Nakehte Kalnis, due to the similarity of their names.

This dynasty is notable for including a line of Egyptian High Priests of Amun numbered 88 to 96 which closely matches archaeological evidence but is not entirely correct. Manfred Kropp felt that these monarchs were the clearest borrowings from Egyptological knowledge and he theorized that Heruy Wolde Selassie deliberately altered the chronological order when writing this king list.^[189]

Peter Truhart, in his book Regents of Nations, dated the kings from Akbunas Saba II to Lakndun Nowarari to 1930–1730 BC and listed them as a continuation of the line of "Kings of Ethiopia and Meroe" that begun in 2145 BC.^[138] However, Truhart's king list then jumps forward and dates the kings from Tutimheb onwards as contemporaries of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth dynasties of Egypt, with a date range of 1552–1185 BC.^[138] Truhart also identified modern-day Ethiopia with the Land of Punt.^[138] His list however omits the High Priests of Amun from Herihor to Pinedjem II without giving a clear reason.^[74] Despite this, he still acknowledges the rule of the High Priests in Thebes as taking place from c. 1080 to 990 BC.^[74]

Dynasty of Menelik I (1,475 years)

A new dynasty begins with Menelik I, son of Queen Makeda and King Solomon. The Ethiopian monarchy claimed a line of descent from Menelik that remained unbroken — except for the reign of Queen Gudit and the Zagwe dynasty — until the monarchy's dissolution in 1975. Tafari's 1922 king list divides up the Menelik dynasty into three sections:

• Monarchs who reigned before the birth of Christ (982 B.C.–9 A.D.)
• Monarchs who reigned after the birth of Christ (9–306 A.D.)
• Monarchs who were Christian themselves (306–493 A.D.).

Additionally, a fourth line of monarchs descending from Kaleb is listed as a separate dynasty on this king list but most Ethiopian king lists do not acknowledge any dynastic break between Kaleb and earlier monarchs. This line of monarchs is dated to 493–920 A.D. and is made up of the last kings to rule Axum before it was sacked by Queen Gudit. The line of Menelik was restored, according to tradition, with the accession of Yekuno Amlak.

Heruy Wolde Selassie considered Makeda to be the first of a new dynasty instead of Menelik.^[219]

Monarchs who reigned before the birth of Christ (991 years)

The Ark of the Covenant arriving in Ethiopia with Menelik I.

Ethiopian tradition credits Makeda with being the first Ethiopian monarch to convert to Judaism after her visit to king Solomon, before which she had been worshipping Sabaean gods.^[220] However, Judaism did not become the official religion of Ethiopia until Makeda's son Menelik brought the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia.^[221] While Ethiopian tradition asserts that the kings following Menelik maintained the Jewish religion, there is no evidence that this was the case and virtually nothing is known of Menelik's successors and their religious beliefs.^[119]

Other Ethiopian king lists, based on either oral or textual tradition, present an alternate order and numbering of the kings of this dynasty (see Alternate King lists from Menelik I to Bazen). If any other Ethiopian king list is taken individually, then the number of monarchs from Menelik I to Bazen is not enough to realistically cover the claimed time period from the 10th century B.C. to the birth of Jesus Christ. Tafari's list appears to try to bring together various different king lists into one larger list by naming the majority of kings that are scattered across various oral and textual records regarding the line of succession from Menelik. The result is a more realistic number of monarchs reigning over the course of ten centuries. Of the 67 monarchs on Tafari's list from Menelik I to Bazen, over half are attested in other known king lists.

Tafari's king list names various Nubian and Egyptian rulers as part of Menelik's dynasty. These Nubian and Egyptian rulers did not follow the Jewish religion, so their status as alleged successors of Menelik calls into question how strong the 'Judaisation' of Ethiopia truly was in Menelik's reign. In several cases, the kings do not have Egyptian and Nubian elements in their names on king lists from before the 20th century and it appears that these elements were added in the 20th century to provide a stronger link to ancient Kush.

Peter Truhart, in his book Regents of Nations, believed that an "Era of Nubian Supremacy" began with the reign of Amen Hotep Zagdur, as from this point onwards many kings' names show clear links to the kings of Napata and Kush.^[74] Truhart believed that the kings from Safelya Sabakon to Apras were likely related to or possibly identifiable with the Pharaohs of the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth dynasties (c. 730–525 BC).^[74] He additionally believed that an "Era of Meroen Influence" began with the reign of Kashta Walda Ahuhu.^[74]

Some historians refer to this dynasty as the "Solomon" dynasty, in reference to its claimed descent from king Solomon and because of the use of the term to the refer to the later Solomonic dynasty that was descended from this earlier line of kings.^[74]

Monarchs highlighted in  green  appear on traditional Ethiopian king lists from before the 20th century that were written on manuscripts or transmitted orally. However, many of their names have been expanded or altered for the 1922 king list.