I'm writing an AU modern-day fanfic from a canon set during the reign of the Roman Empire Republic (ETA: Specifically, between 73-71 BC) and I have several interdependent questions
( Read more... )
on a modern map, where would the region known as "Syria" to the Roman Republic in the 1st century BC be located
More or less where it is now. However, to the Greeks the term 'Syria' covered a larger area than the modern country, and was used as a generic geographical term for "everything south of Anatolia, north of Arabia, and west of Mesopotamia".
The Seleucid Kingdom, as I mentioned in my earlier comment, also went under the name "Coele-Syria" because it controlled most of the region called Syria. When the Romans came along, they used the term 'Syria' for the part of the region under their control:
A modern American with ancestors from that region would probably call themselves an Arab-American, or they might be more specific and say Syrian or Lebanese. If they came from the local Christian minority (about 5-10% of the population) they might use a more specific term, though I'm not sure what. (Syriac? Maronite?)
More or less where it is now. However, to the Greeks the term 'Syria' covered a larger area than the modern country, and was used as a generic geographical term for "everything south of Anatolia, north of Arabia, and west of Mesopotamia".
The Seleucid Kingdom, as I mentioned in my earlier comment, also went under the name "Coele-Syria" because it controlled most of the region called Syria. When the Romans came along, they used the term 'Syria' for the part of the region under their control:
A modern American with ancestors from that region would probably call themselves an Arab-American, or they might be more specific and say Syrian or Lebanese. If they came from the local Christian minority (about 5-10% of the population) they might use a more specific term, though I'm not sure what. (Syriac? Maronite?)
Reply
Reply
Leave a comment