UNIT THREE

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS AND STATES FORMATION IN

ETHIOPIA AND THE HORN

 3.1. Emergence of States

 One important factor for the emergence of states
was the beginning of sedentary agriculture.
 Peoples had to descend from mountainsides to build
houses near cultivated plots fencing both farming
fields and residences, and harvested crops,
 Families preferred to live together forming larger
communities for better security and to help each
other in hard works.
 Gradually, intermediaries (traders) also began to buy
the products of both to take to predetermined places
or markets for exchange
 Therefore, states were formed mainly through the
expansion of agriculture that gave rise to the class
differentiation.
 Furthermore, the growth of trade facilitated the
development of states.
 State refers to an autonomous political unit having
population, defined territory, sovereignty and
government with the power to decree and enforce
laws.
 State was the outcome of regular cultural process. In
this regard, it should be emphasized that, states
arose independently in different places and at
different times.
 The first states were theocratic states and priests

(shaman) maintained the social and religious affairs of

their people.
As production became market oriented, the priests
were gradually replaced by chiefs,who began
collecting regular and compulsory tributes known as
protection payments.
 Ethiopia and the Horn is one of the regions in Africa,
where early state formation took place.
 Such states gradually developed into powerful
kingdoms and even empires with a well-demarcated
social structure.
 Geographical proximity to and control of the
international water bodies like Red Sea, Gulf of Aden
and Indian Ocean along with their ports as well as
rich interior favored some of them to become
stronger than their neighbors and eventually
dominated them.
3.2. Ancient States

 3.2.1. North and Northeast

 A. Punt
 Punt was the earliest recorded state in Ethiopia
and the Horn.
 The evidence on Punt comes from Egyptian
hieroglyphic writings, accompanied by vivid
paintings; tell of a series of naval expeditions,
which the Egyptian Pharaohs sent to Punt.
 Pharaoh Sahure (r. 2743-2731 B.C.) sent expedition
to collect myrrh, ebony and electrum (gold and
silver alloy
 The best known expedition was the one
undertaken by the order of the famous Egyptian
Queen Hatshepsut (1490-1468 B.C.), whose
expedition is documented at her tomb in Dier El
Bahri.
 She sent five ships under the leadership of Black
Nubian Captain Nehasi.
 The expedition was warmly welcomed by the
Puntites King Perehu.
 The expedition was able to return collecting
frank incense, cinnamon, sweet smelling woods
(sandal), spices, ivory, rhinoceros horn, leopard
and leopard skins, ostrich feathers and egg, live
monkeys, giraffes, people.
 Iron, bronze, asses, foxes, cattle, animals fur,
dying and medicinal plants were also exported
from Punt to Egypt.
 Scholars have not reached agreement as to the
exact location of Punt.
 The varieties of incense and myrrh mentioned in the
writings have suggested northern or northeastern
Somalia to some scholars while others are inclined
more towards Northern Ethiopia because of the
reference to gold, ebony and monkeys.
 The latter reinforces their guess arguing that at that
early period, Egyptian sailboats might not have
been strong enough to pass through the Strait of
Bab-el Mandeb into the Gulf of Aden and the Indian
Ocean.
 Considering the two suggestions, still some
others argue that it was probably stretched from
Swakim or Massawa to Babel Mandeb (Gate of
Tears) and Cape Gardafui.
 B. Da’amat and Other Cultural Centers in Northern
Ethiopia and Eritrea

 The state known as Da’amat had a center a little to the

south of Aksum.
 Inscription of the king of Da’amat tentatively dated to the
fifth century BC shows that he used politicoreligious title
known as Mukarib.
 Various gods and goddesses like Almouqah (principal god),
Astater (Venus god), Na’uran (light god), Shamsi (sun god),
and Sin (moon god) were worshipped in the domain of the
Da’amat state and other northern Ethiopian pre-Aksumite
cultural centers.
 There were similar practices in South Arabia at the time.
Cultural Centers in Northern Ethiopia

 Yeha: is located 30 kms to the northeast of Aksum and

was the oldest of these centers.
 It probably emerged around 1, 000 BC as a small
emporium where South Arabian merchants and their
agents bought and stored ivory, rhinoceros horn and
other commodities coming from the interior.
 Based on historical evidence Yeha reached its zenith
from about 750 to 500 B.C.
 Hawulti Melazo: is situated to southeast of Aksum,
where stone tablets that are inscribed in rectangular
temple surrounded by a wall decorated with paintings
representing herds of cattle have been excavated.
 Addi-Seglemeni: is located at 10kms southwest of
Aksum, from where a stone slab is fetched and the
oldest Ethiopian monumental inscription is discovered.
 There were also other cultural centers like Addi Gelemo,
Addi Grameten, Addi Kewih, Atsbi Dera, Feqiya, Hinzat,
Sefra, Senafe, Tekonda etc.
 C. The Aksumite State

 The nucleus of the Aksumite state was formed around 200-

100 B.C.
 At the beginning, its power was limited to a relatively small
area comprising the town of Aksum and its environs.
 Gradually, however, it expanded to include large territories in
all directions.
 In its heyday, Aksumite territories extended from the Red Sea
coast in the East to the Western edge of Ethiopian plateau
overlooking the vast Nile Valley in the west and from the
northern most corner of Eritrea and possibly as far south as
northern parts of Shewa.
 According to Periplus of Erithrean Sea, Adulis on the western
coast of the Red Sea was the major port of Aksum.
 The long distance trade routes from Adulis and other posts
on the Red Sea coast passed inland through such centers
as Keskesse, Coloe, Matara and even further west across
Tekeze River.
 The document also mentioned ports of Aden (Eudaemon)
Gulf like Avalites (Zayla) and Malao (Berbera), and Indian
Ocean Benadir Coasts like Serapion (Moqadishu), Nicon
(Brava) and Merca.
 The major items of export of the Aksumite state
 ivory, myrrh, emerald, frankincense and
 some spices (like ginger, cassia and cinnamon), gold,
rhinoceros horns, hippopotamus hides,
 tortoise shells and some curiosity animals like apes.

 Import items from Egypt, India, Roman Empire,

and Persia;
 Glassware and jewelry from Egypt and other places; metallic
sheets, tools or utensils of various kinds, oil and wine from
Roman Empire and Syria were imported
 Zoscales (c. 76-89), the then king of Aksum, used to
communicate in Greek language, Lingua Franca of Greco-
Roman world.
 Aksum also had relations with Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and
Laodicea (Asia Minor).
 The Adulis inscription written in Greek about an unknown
king, which eventually was published in Cosmas
Indicopleustes’ book, the Christian Topography, describes
commercial activities of the Red Sea areas.
 It also mentions the internal long distance trade between
Aksum and a distant region called Sasu, most probably in
Beni Shangul and the adjoining lands beyond the Blue Nile.
 They used silent trade .
 Aksumite kings had extensive contacts with the outside
world notably with the South Arabian region, leading to
exchange of ideas, material and spiritual culture.
 Sometimes such contacts involved conflicts between the
two regions.
 One of such known recorded conflict between areas on both
sides of the sea took place around 200 A.D.
 Peoples in Southern Arabian Peninsula, in present day
Yemen, had difficulties in defending themselves against the
army of the Aksumite king, Gadarat.
 From the third to seventh centuries, Aksumite kings like
Aphilas, Endybis, Wazeba, Ezana, Ousanas II minted and
issued different kinds of coins in gold, silver and bronze for
both overseas and local transactions.
 Aksum was one of the four great powers of the world (i. e.
Roman Empire, Persia, China and Aksum) at the time.
 It was a major naval and trading power from the first to the
seventh centuries.
 Aksumite ships were the main means of transporting
goods.
 Aksum was the only one with sufficient sources of
t i m b er f o r s h i p b u i l d i n g a n d i n t h o s e d a y s , t h e
technology for it existed in Adulis.
 Aksum had a large fleet of ships, which was used not
only for trade but also for its wars across the Red Sea.
 Kaleb (r. 500-35) expanded overseas territories of
Aksum beyond Himyar and Saba.
 Kaleb (r. 500-35) expanded overseas territories of
Aksum beyond Himyar and Saba, but the local
prince Dhu-Nuwas was converted to Judaism,
marched to Zafar and Nagran, and killed many
Christians.
 Byzantine Vasaliev Justinian (r. 527-65) with sanctification
of Patriarch Timit III (518-538) provided Kaleb with a
number of ships transporting armies led by Julianos and
Nonossus against Dhu Nuwas.
 Dhu Nuwas was defeated and Kaleb appointed
 Abraha as governor of Arabia that continued until 570 A. D.
 Kaleb was succeeded by his son Gabra Masqal (535-48) who
built church at Zur Amba in Gayint.
 It was during Gabra Maskal that Yared developed Ethiopian
Orthodox Church liturgical songs and hymns.
 The Decline of Axum

 The Aksumite state had begun to decline since the late

s eventh century because of int ernal and external
challenges.
 Environmental degradation, decline in agricultural
productivity and possibly plague infestation started to
weaken it.
 With the destruction of the port of Adulis by the Arabs
around 702, the international lifeline of the state was cut
 The network of Aksumite international trade came under
the control of the rising and expanding Arab Muslims, and
Aksumite state was isolated from its old commercial and
diplomatic partners.
 Consequently, the Aksumite state declined economically.
 This naturally led to the decline of its political and
military power not only on the Red Sea coast but also in
its interior provinces, where Aksumite hegemony was
challenged by local rebellions
 The recurring rebellions of the Beja, the Agaw and
Queen Bani al Hamwiyah (Yodit) finally sealed the
collapse of the Aksumite state.
 As an advanced center of civilization, Aksum had a
profound impact upon the peoples of the Horn of Africa
and beyond, and on its successors i. e. the Zagwe State,
‘Solomonic Dynasty’, and the Gondarine period
Achievements of Axum

 Africa’s only surviving indigenous script and

calendar as well as EOTC hymns and chants,
paintings
 Diversified ceramic and lithic tools, ivory curving,
and urbanization and sophisticated building
traditions (palaces, stele, rock-hewn churches…)
 Complex administrative and governance system
 D. Zagwe Dynasty

 After the decline of Aksumite, its centre shifted southwards

to Kubar rural highland in the territory of the Agaw, one of
the ancient inhabitants of the land between the Eritrean
Plateau and Jema River, and to the west up to the Blue Nile
valleys.
 This gradualy gave the Agaw elites the opportunity to take
part in Aksumite state structure serving as soldiers and
functionaries for at least four centuries.
 After integrating with the Aksumite ruling class, they
successfully took over the state administration
 The Agaw prince Merra Teklehaimanot married Mesobe Worq,
the daughter of the last Aksumite king Dil Na'od.
 Later he overthrew his father-in-law and took control of power.
 Merra-Tekle-Haimanot's successors include Yemrehanna
Kirstos, Harbe, Lalibela (1160-1211), Ne'akuto Le'ab, Yetbarek
etc.
 Notwithstanding the debates, the Zagwe Dynasty is believed
to have ruled from C. 1150 to 1270.
 The Zagwe Dynasty made its center in Bugna District within
Wag and Lasta, more exactly at Adafa near Roha (Lalibela).
 The territory of the Zagwe kingdom extended from most
of the highland provinces of the ancient Aksumite kingdom
in the north down to northern Shewa in the south; the
Lake Tana region and the northern part of what is today
Gojjam in the west.
 The Agaw maintained the ancient Aksumite traditions
almost intact.
 Zagwe rulers renewed cultural and trade contact with the
astern Mediterranean region.
 The most important export items included slaves, ivory and
rare spices while cotton, linen, silver and copper vessels,
various types of drags and newly minted coins were
imported.
 The Zagwe period was a golden age in Ethiopia's paintings
and the translation of some of religious works from Arabic
into Ge'ez.
 Zagwe rulers are best known for the construction of cave,
semi-hewn and monolithic churches
 Cave: with some decoration inside, almost similar with
natural cave, eg. Bete-Mesqel.
 2. Semi-hewn: with detailed interior decoration and partial
decoration outside. They are not totally separated from
surrounding rock. eg. Bete Denagil, Bete Debresina/Mikael,
Bete Golgota, Bete Merqoriwos, Bete Gabri’el- Rufa’el and
Bete Abba Libanos.
 3. Monolithic: with detailed decoration inside
including roof and outside.
 They are completely separated (carved out) from
surrounding rock, eg. Bete Amanuel, Bete
Giyorgis, Bete Mariyam and Bete Medhanialem.
 They are called monolithic churches because they
are chiseled out of a single rock.
 Among the eleven churches of Lalibela, Bete
Medhanelem is the largest of all and Bete
Giyorgis is said to be the most finely built in the
shape of the cross.
 The purpose of the construction of the rock hewn churches
in Lalibela is to establish the second Jerusalem in Lasta , and
mitigate or even avoid difficulties, which Ethiopian
Christians encountered in journey to Holy Lands at least
once in their lifetime.
 This was done by constructing churches based on the
model of Holy Lands in Israel.
 The Zagwe Dynasty came to an end due to internal
problems of royal succession and oppositions from groups
claiming descent from the ancient rulers of Aksum.
 The latter considered the Zagwe kings “illegitimate rulers”
based on the legend of the Queen of Sheba.
 The legend was in turn based on a book known as Kebra-
Negest (Glory of Kings).
 Based on the legend, the power claimants contend that
“Solomonic” Dynasty ruled the Aksumite state until its
power was “usurped” by the Zagwes.
 Yekuno-Amlak (r. 1270-1285), who claimed decent from the
last Aksumite king Dilna’od, organized his forces being
assisted by the ecclesiastical hierarchy and engaged the last
king of Zagwe, Yetbarek in battle.
 Yetbarek was killed in Gaynt and Yekuno-Amlak took the
state power contending the “restoration” of “Solomonic”
Dynasty.
 3.2.2. East, Central, Southern, and Western States

 A . Bizamo: This kingdom was located on the southern

bend of Abay River just opposite to the present districts of
Gojjam and around the current Wambara area.
 It was founded in the eighth century and had early
connections with Damot.
 B . D amo t: w as s tr o n g k i n gdo m th at e xp an de d i t s
territories into most of the lands to south of Abay and
north of Lake Turkana as well as west of Awash and east of
Didessa.
 Motalami was a prominent king of Damot in the thirteenth
century.
 C. E n ar y a: w as a k i n gdo m in t h e Gi b e r e g i o n i n
southwestern Ethiopia.
 The royal clan was Hinnare Bushasho (Hinnario Busaso).
 In the 9th c , Aksumite king Digna-Jan had led a campaign
into Enarya, accompanied by Orthodox Christian priests
carrying arks of covenant (tabots).
 Enarya kingship was a divine one: the king (Hinnare-Tato)
was secluded and considered as sacred.
 He communicated visitors through an intermediary,
AfeBusho.
 The real power rested with Mikretcho (council) including
Awa-rasha (king's spokesman) and Atche-rasha (royal
 D. Gafat

 Its territory lies south of Abay (Blue Nile) River adjoining

Damot on the south western periphery of the Christian
Kingdom.
 It was inhabited by Semitic speaking population related to
Adere and the Gurage.
 It is not clear from available records whether the Gafat formed
a “state” or not, but Gafat mountains provided a rich source of
gold.
 The Gafat were largely practitioners of an indigenous religion.
 Gafat was paying tribute to the Christian Kingdom mainly in
cattle.
 Gambo and Shat are Gafat clan names. The province was ruled
 3.2.2.2. Muslim Sultanates
 After the spread of Islam since the beginning of 8th c , many
muslim communities and states had been established along
the main trade routes from Zeila and its many branches
penetrating the interior.
 A. Shewa: Makhzumi Khalid ibn al-Walid, who claimed
decent from Meca, set up Makhzumite Sultanate in 896 A. D
(283 A.H.) on northeastern foothill of Shewa.
 B. Fatagar: was founded around Minjar, Shenkora and Ada’a
in the eleventh century.
 It was known for the cultivation of wheat and barley, fruits
and extensive grazing grounds of cattle, sheep and goats.
 C. Dawaro: located south of Fatagar between upper waters
of Awash and Wabi- Shebelle extending to Chercher in
Northeast and Gindhir in Southeast.
 Bali: was an extensive kingdom occupying high plateau,
separating basins of Shebelle and Rift valley Lakes.
 It was separated from Dawwaro by the Wabi-Shebelle River
and extended southwards to the Gennale Dirre River.
 Bali was one of the largest of Ethiopia’s Muslim provinces.
 Trade was mainly based on barter exchanging cattle,
sheep, cloth etc.
 It had strong army composed of cavalry and infantry.
 Ifat: It was located in the adjacent to Shewan Sultanate.
 Its territory extended from northeast-southwesterly in
the Afar plain eastward to the Awash.
 It was established by Umar Walasma, who claimed
decent from Hashamite clan and came from Arabia
between 1271 and 1285.
 The livelihood of ifat was based on the cultivation of
w he a t , s o r g h u m , m i l l et a n d t e ff , a n d a n i m a l
husbandry.
 Sugar cane, bananas, variety of fruits, beans, squashes,
cucumbers, and cabbage completed the diet.
 Chat was described for the first time as being
consumed as a stimulant.
 3.3. External Contacts

 Ethiopia and the Horn had contacts with Egypt since at least
3,000 B. C.
 These relations may be the region’s earliest contacts with
the Mediterranean world or the Greco-Roman World.
 It had very close relations with all commercially active South
Arabian Kingdoms starting sometimes before 1,000 B.C.
 The introduction of Christianity to Aksum established a new
pattern of relation between the region and Egypt.
 Until the introduction of Islam into Egypt and the general
reduction of the Christians into minority, relations between
the two were fairly smooth and friendly.
 Following the introduction of Christianity, Aksum had
established close relationship with the East Roman or
Byzantine Empire with which it shared common commercial
interest in the Red Sea area against their rival Persians.
 In the 7th c, this relation became complicated and began to
deteriorate.
 The rapid expansion of the Muslim Arabs through the Near
and Middle East, North Africa and the Nile valley led to the
decline of Aksumite land routes and shipping lines.
 Successive Egyptian Muslim rulers began to use the
consecration and sending of a bishop as an instrument to
further their own foreign policy objectives on the Nile River.
 The coming to power of the Mamluk was followed by the reciprocal
persecution of religious minorities.
 Moreover, the Mamluk presented a barrier to the contacts between
Christian Ethiopia and European states.
 However, the tradition to visit Jerusalem and other Holy places in the
Middle East had begun at the end of the first millennium AD.
 In order to arrive at Holy places, Ethiopian Christian pilgrims used the
land route to Egypt.
 Christian Communities living in different parts of the world served as an
important link or bridge between Ethiopian Christian Kingdom and
Europe. they transmitted information about the EOTC and its
exceptional liturgical practices and territorial extent of the Christian
Kingdom.
 From the information, the Europeans began to consider
Ethiopian Christian Kingdom as a very powerful and wealthy
state existing in the Horn of Africa.
 Consequently, they wanted to use this imaginary strong
Christian power against the Muslim powers in the Holy land.
 The middle of the 12th century, a myth about a very rich and
powerful Christian ruler known as Prester John began to
circulate in Europe.
 The legend was developed when the balance of the crusade
war fought over Jerusalem between the Christians of
Europe and the Muslims of the Middle East.
 In 1165 A .D, a letter addressed to European kings, thought
to be sent by the Prester John appeared in Europe
mentioning about the enormous power of the Prester John.
 The geographical location of the country of Prester John
was not known to Europe for over a century.
 However, the Europeans began to regard Ethiopian
Christian Kingdom as the land of Prester John since the only
Christian kingdom between the Red Sea and the Indian sub-
continent was the Ethiopian Christian Kingdom.
 Then, they began to search for the location of the Kingdom
and to make an alliance with it.
 3.4. Economic Formations

 A. Agriculture and Land Tenure System

 The main stay of ancient states' economy in highland areas
was plough agriculture.
 Land has always been one of the most precious possessions of
human society throughout history.
 The rules according to which members of the society hold,
share and use land constitute what is known as the land
tenure system.
 The most ancient system of land holding which survived in
many parts of Ethiopia and the Horn is the communal land
tenure system.
 Communal right to land is a group right. Here group
refers to the family, the clan and the other lineage
groups to which the individual belonged.
 Each of these groups had communal right to the land
they lived in and freely exploited the resources of the
land.
 Peasants in the north had rist rights in their respective
areas.
 Rist is a kind of communal birthright to land by members
of the families and clans whose ancestors had settled
and lived in the area over long periods.
 It is inherited from generation to generation in accordance
to with customary law.
 All the subjects of the state had the rist rights.
 The rist owners were known as bale-rist.
 Tribute was collected through a complex hierarchy of state
functionaries or officials who were given gult right over the
areas and populations they administered on behalf of the
central government.
 Gult is a right to levy tribute on rist owners’ produce.
 The tribute collected by bale-gults, partly allotted for
their own up keep and the rest were sent to the imperial
center.
 Gult right that became hereditary was called Riste-Gult as
famous wellplaced officials used to transfer their position
to their offspring
B. Handicraft

 Indigenous handcraft technology had existed since the

ancient period.
 The social, economic and political conditions of ancient
states had allowed the emergence of artisans in various
fields with diverse forms and applications including
metal work, pottery, tannery, carpentry, masonry,
weaving, jewellery, basketry and others.
 Metal work was also common
C. Trade

 Trade was another important economic activity of

ancient states that obtained considerable income from
both internal and international trade.
 The major socio-economic and political centers of
earliest states seem to have also been major trade
centers with wide ranging contacts coming to the area
across the international water bodies.
 A network of roads connected the centers with the
coast and various dependencies in the interior.
 Local and international merchants frequented these
roads.
3.5. Socio-cultural Achievements

 A. Architecture
 Architecture also began to flourish and one of the
unique architectural technologies was the engraving of
stele around the third century AD.
 There were totally fifty eight steles in and around Aksum
that can be grouped into well made and decorated, half
completed and megaliths (not hewn).
 The steles were engraved specifically at Gobodara from
which they were transported and planted in Aksum.
 The longest one of these stele measures 33 meters
heights (the first in the world).
 It also bears pre-Christian symbols, which are a
disc and a crescent (half moon) at the top.
 The second longest obelisk measures 24 meters
height
 The third longest stele measures 21 meters
 Picture 2: The Second Longest Aksumite Stele
 The Zagwe churches are regarded as some of the
finest architecture of artistic achievements of the
Christian world and that is why they were
registered by UNESCO as part of world cultural
heritage in 1978
Picture 3: One of the Zagwe Churches (Bete Giyorgis)
 B. Writing System

 The Sabean language had an alphabet with boustrophedon

writing type that is paleographical writing.
 Eritrea and Ethiopia date to the 9th c BC.
 One peculiar feature of Sabean inscriptions is absence of
vowels as most of the words are written in consonants.
 For instance, Da’amat was described as D’mt’
 After the seventh and sixth centuries BC, however, variants
of script arose, evolving in the direction of the Geʽez script
(an alpha syllabary).
 This evolution can be seen most clearly in evidence from
inscriptions mainly graffiti on rocks and caves.
 By the first century AD, "Geʽez alphabet" arose, an abjad
(26 consonant letters only) written left-to-right with
letters identical to the first-order forms of modern
vocalized alphabet.
 Though the first completely vocalized texts known are
inscriptions by Ezana (who left trilingual inscriptions in
Greek, Sabean and Ge'ez)c. 330 AD, vocalized letters
predate him by some years, as vocalized letter exists in
Wazeba’s coin.
 The process was developed under the influence of
Christian scripture by adding vocalic diacritics for vowels,
u, i, a, e, ə, o, to the consonantal letters in a recognizable
but slightly irregular way, so that the system is laid out
as a syllabary.
 Ethiopia's ancient indigenous writing system has
immense contribution to the development of literature,
art and the writing of history.
 C. Calendar

 People needed to know and remember the times when the

rains would begin and end as wellas the rise and fall of the
water level.
 The responsibility of understanding these vital climatic
cycles fell on expertise. In due course, calendars were
invented.
 Calendars were developed and adopted among various
peoples of Ethiopia and the Horn.
 O r o m o ca l e nd ar h a s b e en b a s e d o n a s t r o n o m i ca l
observations of moon in conjunction with
 seven or eight particular stars or group of stars called Urjii
Dhahaa (guiding stars) and Bakkalcha (morning star).
 The Sidama calendar rotates following movements of stars
with 13 months a year.
 Ethiopic solar calendar has 12 months of 30 days plus 5 or 6
(is added every 4 years) Epagomenal days, which comprise
a thirteenth month.
 The Muslim (Islamic) calendar is a lunar calendar consisting
of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or 355 days.
 It employs the Hijra year of 622 AD, in which Mohammed
and his followers made flight from Mecca to Medina and
established the first Muslim community (ummah).
D. Numerals

 Numerals appeared in Ethiopia and the Horn at

the beginning of fourth century AD.
 Geʽez uses numeral system comparable to the
Hebrew, Arabic and Greek numerals