1

Adiabene, ruling
dynasty of
WITOLD WITAKOWSKI

Adiabene (Hadyab, Syriac: H

: edayyab) was a
minor kingdom in northern Mesopotamia,
east of the Tigris, between the Upper and
Lower Zab, its main city being Arbela. It occasionally included other areas to the west, north
(Gordyene), and northwest (NISIBIS). Its rise
was probably a result of the dissolution of the
Seleucid empire and the growing pressure
of the Parthians, as a vassal state of the latter.
In the beginning of the first century BCE it
was overpowered by Tigranes the Great, king
of ARMENIA (Strabo 11.14.15), but after his
submission to Rome (Pompey) it was ceded
in about 64 BCE to PARTHIA. It remained within
the Parthian sphere with its own dynasty
of Iranian origin (to judge by the names;
Frenschkowski 1990: 21617).
The main source for Adiabenes history
during the first century CE is JOSEPHUS Jewish
Antiquities (AJ 20.24.1796). The first king of
Adiabene that we know by name is Monobazos
Bazaios, called Talmay (Ptolemy) in the
midrash Bereshit/Genesis Rabba (46.10), who,
according to an Iranian custom, married his
sister Helena. Monobazos I apparently had
other sons by other wives, but only two
by Helena: Monobazos II (Bereshit/Genesis
Rabba: Munbaz) and Izates (Zawitos/Zoytos),
the latter envisaged as the successor to hi
father. In order to protect Izates from the jealousy of the other sons his father sent him to
Abennergios, the king of Charax Spasinou
(southern Mesopotamia; see SPASINOU CHARAX),
whose daughter, Samacho, Izates married.
After Monobazos Is death (36 CE) his elder
son, Monobazos II, acceded to the throne, but
to honor his fathers wish he stepped down
when Izates arrived, while the queen widow
secured the consent of the Adiabenian aristocracy for Izates accession (3660 CE). The other
brothers were sent away as hostages to Rome
and to the king of Parthia, Artabanos.

Furthermore Josephus informs us (AJ

20.3.34) that when still in Charax Spasinou,
Izates, under the influence of a Jewish
merchant, Ananias, converted to Judaism but
postponed his circumcision. Back in Adiabene,
under the influence of another Jew, Eleazar, but
against the advice of Helena and Ananias
(who were afraid that people would resent
their kings introduction of foreign religious
customs) he was circumcised. Josephus
account is corroborated (although with different details) by Bereshit/Genesis Rabba 46.11
(Schiffman 1987: 3012). Monobazos II,
apparently still as a prince, also converted
to Judaism. Independently, Izates mother,
Helena, accepted Jewish religion as well (AJ
20.3.35); she is also known in Tannaitic
sources, for example, Mishna Nazir 3.6 and
Tosephta Sukka 1.1 (Schiffman 1987: 29899).
Around 46 CE she went to JERUSALEM, but since
the city was at that time suffering from famine
she started relief work importing food from
Egypt and Cyprus, while Izates sent money
(AJ 20.2.513).
When the conspiracy of Parthian nobles
threatened King Artabanos III (12ca. 38 CE),
he took refuge with Izates. He helped
Artabanos to regain his throne by diplomatic
action, a favor repaid with various privileges
and with the transfer of the district of Nisibis
from the control of the Parthian vassal king of
Armenia to that of Adiabene. Izates position
within the Parthian Empire became so powerful that he could refuse to participate in the
war that king Vardanes (ca. 3947/8) had
planned against Rome.
The Adiabenian nobles, disliking Izatess
new religion, tried to remove him by arranging an attack on Adiabene by an Arab king,
Abias. Izates defeated him and punished
the treacherous nobles with death. He was
also lucky in avoiding another attempt at his
removal, by Vologases I of Parthia (51ca. 78),
since the latter, although already leading
troops against Adiabene, had to turn his attention elsewhere due to the invasion of Scythian
tribes.

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, First Edition. Edited by Roger S. Bagnall, Kai Brodersen, Craige B. Champion, Andrew Erskine,
and Sabine R. Huebner, print pages 6971.
2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Published 2013 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
DOI: 10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah11001

2
After Izates death his brother Monobazos II
became the king again (60 CE). He sent the
bodies of his mother and brother to be buried
in Jersualem. He had to face attacks from
Tigranes V, the king of Armenia who had
been appointed by the Romans (see CORBULO,
GNAEUS DOMITIUS), until Rome and Parthia concluded peace (63). He probably sent gifts to the
temple in Jerusalem and was memorialized for
it in the Tannaitic sources (unless his name is
substituted there for that of Izates; see
Schiffman 1987: 300).
Judaism became the permanent religion of
the Adiabenian royal family, as can be inferred
from Josephus mention that two members of
the royal family, Monobazos (not the king)
and Kenedaios fought valiantly in the Jewish
war against Rome 6670 (BJ 2.520). When the
war was lost they and other members of
the royal family were sent by TITUS to Rome as
hostages (BJ 6.357).
Monobazos and Helena had palaces built
in Jerusalem (BJ 5.252) and were eventually
buried there. Josephus also mentions a palace
of a female relative of Izates, Grapte (BJ 4.567),
as well as a tomb (monument) of Helena
(BJ 5.55, 119, 147).
Around 113 Adiabene was incorporated
entirely into the Arsacid empire together with
other North Mesopotamian states, OSRHOENE
and Gordyene (Wolski 1993: 89). In 116 it
was seized by TRAJAN. Cassius Dio (68.22.23)
reports a king Mebarsapes (though it is
uncertain whether he belonged to the Izates
Dynasty) who defended Adiabene against
Trajans onslaughts but was defeated. In
the occupied territories Trajan organized the
provinces of Mesopotamia and Assyria, but
the Roman rule did not last for long.
From the Syriac Chronicle of Arbela (26/
transl. 44) we know of king Narsai in the
180s, who refused to join the Parthian army
in a war. The Parthians (Vologases IV 147.8
190.1) therefore devastated Adiabene and

drowned Narsai in the Greater Zab. In a

new Roman-Parthian war, in 195, Adiabene
was seized by SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS, who then
struck coins calling himself on the occasion
Adiabenicus. The Romans withdrew four years
later. Still another king of Adiabene, Shahrat, is
reported by the Chronicle of Arbela (28f/tr. 49)
as a member of the coalition that brought
about the fall of the Parthian monarchy and
the rise of the SASANIANS (224). It was also the
end of the kingdom of Adiabene. The same
chronicle also tells of the very early progress
of Christianity in the region (ca. 100), but its
reliability is a matter of debate.
SEE ALSO: Arsaces; Parthian, rulers; Revolts,
Jewish; Temple, Jewish, in Jerusalem;
Tigranes IIIV of Armenia.

REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS

Broer, I. (1994) Die Konversion des Konigshauses
von Adiabene nach Josephus (Ant XX). In
C. Mayer, K. Muller, and G. Schmalenberg, eds.,
Nach den Anfangen fragen: Herrn Prof. Dr. theol.
Gerhard Dautzenberg zum 60. Geburtstag am 30.
Januar 1994: 13362. Gieen.
Frenschkowski, M. (1990) Iranische
Konigslegende in der Adiabene: Zur
Vorgeschichte von Josephus: Antiquitates XX,
1733. Zeitschrift der Deutschen
Morgenlandischen Gesellschaft 140: 21333.
Kawerau, P. et al. (1985) Die Chronik von Arbela.
Louvain.
Neusner, J. (1964) The conversion of Adiabene to
Judaism: a new perspective. Journal of Biblical
Literature 83: 606.
Schiffman, L. H. (1987) The conversion of the royal
house of Adiabe`ne in Josephus and Rabbinic
sources. In L. H. Feldman and G. Hata, eds.,
Josephus, Judaism, and Christianity: 293312.
Detroit.
Theodor, J., ed. (1912) Bereschit Rabba, mit
kritischem Apparat und Kommmentar, vol. 1,
Parascha IXLVII. Berlin.
Wolski, J. (1993) LEmpire des Arsacides. Louvain.