Section 1:
Background of the Phoenicians
The Phoenicians were ancient people who lived on the East-Mediterranean coast and mountains of Lebanon. The Phoenicians in Lebanon became under the Roman rule when the latter conquered their land. Roman citizenship was granted to the Phoenicians in principal cities of Byblos, Tyre and Sidon. There was significant growth of economic and intellectual activities during the Pax Roman. The Phoenicians were great traders of their times (Dunstan, 2010).
Lebanese-Phoenician relations
The Phoenicians and the Lebanese had a close relationship during those ancient times. Thus when the Lebanese regained their independence in the 12th century, the Phoenicians experienced three centuries of prosperity and freedom from any foreign control. The earlier Phoenician invention of the alphabet enabled communications and trade.
Language
Phoenician was the language of Ancient Phoenicians in Rome. It was a Semitic language closely related to the Hebrew, Armaic and Arabic languages. Pūt (PT) was the Phoenician name for their homeland while Pōnnīm was the name the Phoenicians called themselves. The Phoenician alphabet had some 22 letters that consisted of purely consonants without vowels. The alphabets were initially mostly linear but later became more cursive and less legible especially at Carthage. Their writings ran from left to right.
Religion
The Phoenician Canaanite religion was pagan which was influenced by powers and processes of nature. The Phoenicians worshiped many gods. While a goddess was the central figure in the Phoenician pantheon, the father of the gods was the one who presided over it. They worshiped triad of deities. While their basic nature was similar, the deities varied in names in respect to the city in which they were worshiped. El or Baal was the primary god, called the protector of the universe.
Funerary Practice
Among the dominant religious cultist activities of the Phoenicians was the funeral rites. While evidence of cremation has been found, popular belief is that the ancient Phoenicians buried their dead in tombs. Those of the high social class together with members of the royal families were given elaborately decorated sarcophagi and placed in tombs curved out of rock.
The dead bodies were accompanied with such objects as coins, food, figurines, cosmetics among others. This means that there was belief in afterlife where the dead will find use of the accompanying objects. It is believed that the religious beliefs of the Ancient Phoenicians were highly influenced by the funeral rites of the Egyptians because of their contact at Byblos port through which the latter imported plenty of Lebanese cedars for their temples.
Section 2
Levantine cities
During the time of the ancient Phoenicians, there were three three great Levantine cities namely: Smyrna, Beirut and Alexandria. They were ports that were more open their inland counterparts such as Cairo, Ankara and Damascus (Marilvn & Martha, nd).. The Levantine cities had common defining characteristics which included geography, language, diplomacy, trade, hybridism, pleasure, modernity as well as vulnerability (Dunstan, 2010). In addition to being cosmopolitan cities, the Levantine cities in ancient Phoenician were key contact points between the Ottoman Empire and Europe.
Tripolitania
Tripoli in present day Libya, was one of the first cities to be established by the Phoenicians. It was among many of North African cities and towns that emerged as key Phoenician trading posts. The Phoenicians built commercial relations and made treaties with the native Berber tribes. Tripolis or Three Cities was a name given to Punic settlements on the Libyan coast which included Tripoli (Oea), Labdah, and Sabratah (Marilvn & Martha, nd).. After the destruction of Carthage city by the Romans in 146 B.C., Tripolitania was placed in the hands of Rome’s ally, the Berber king of Numidia who had backed Pompey the Roman general and statesman during the Roman civil war. Tripolitania effectively became a extended territory of Rome. During the rule of Romans, Tripolitania flourished in trade as the Phoenicians were astute traders with long-distance caravans to far lands.
St. Augustine’s Canaanites
St. Augustine mentions that the seafaring Phoenicians used the term “Canaan” for their homeland. This assertion is further strengthened by inscriptions on the coins of Laodicea city in modern day Syria which have the legend “Of Laodicea, a metropolis in Canaan” (Marilvn & Martha, nd). In addition, St. Augustine notes that of the many Canaanites who emigrated seaward ultimately settled in Carthage and the country people near Hippo, who are thought to be Punic in origin, still referred to themselves as Chanani during his time.
Reference:
Dunstan, William. (2010). Ancient Rome. Maryland, Rowman & Littlefield.
Marilvn, Chase, & Martha, Kuhn. (nd). Hebrews, Phoenicians & Hittites (eBook). Illinois, Lorenz Educational Press.
