Nakraḥ

Nakraḥ is an Ancient South Arabian god. He was one of the major deities of the Minaean pantheon. He had sanctuaries in the cities of Qarnā, capital of Maʿīn, Yathill, and its territory. He was also worshipped abroad, like in the Minaean colony at Dadān (northern Arabia).

Nakraḥ is an Ancient South Arabian god. Since the earliest Minaic inscriptions, he was part of the pantheon of the kingdom of Maʿīn (YM 2009).

The theonym appears in both the spellings Nakraḥ (Nkrḥ) and Nakraḥ^um (Nkrḥm). The form with mimation is mostly attested in the inscriptions dating back to the second half of the 1st millennium BCE. The only variant form is ʿAthtar Nakraḥ in the early inscription YM 30135. The god is often evoked with the epithet “Patron” (s²ymn) (Y.92.B.A 15). His symbol is a fork with two prongs, resembling an elongated Ancient South Arabian letter h (Maʿīn 102).

The discovery of Temple I at the site of as-Sawdāʾ (ancient Nashshān) revealed that Nakraḥ was the representative deity of the kingdom of Maʿīn among the political entities of the Jawf valley in the 8th century BCE. On the bas-reliefs of the temple’s pillars, the god is depicted facing Hawr, a god of the kingdom of Kaminahū. Both are accompanied by a caption with their names. They have long beards and wear robes; Nakraḥ also holds a stick (Fig. 1; as-Sawdāʾ TA 1B 5b).

In the capital of Maʿīn Qarnā, a hypostyle temple dating back to the early 7th century BCE (Fig. 2) attests to the importance of Nakraḥ in the early history of the kingdom: every pillar bears a dedication to the god, suggesting that he was the patron of the temple (Maʿīn 102).

The cult of Nakraḥ spread to the city of Yathill, modern Barāqish, when it was annexed to the Minaean kingdom in the 7th century BCE. The long inscriptions on the city wall mention the entire pantheon of the kingdom, where the god is listed after ʿAthtar dhu-Qabḍ and Wadd (M 247). The intra muros temple of Nakraḥ, excavated by the Italian Archaeological Mission in the Republic of Yemen (MAIRY) in the 1990s, has provided interesting archaeological and textual documentation. Among the inscriptions, several expiatory texts are addressed to Nakraḥ (Fig. 3; Y.92.B.A 29).

Penitence was also practised in the sanctuary of Nakraḥ located at Darb aṣ-Ṣābī, west of Yathill, which was probably the destination of pilgrimages. Over forty buildings have been recognised at the site, and many inscriptions have been documented: they define the borders of the sacred area (MAFRAY-Darb aṣ-Ṣabī 4) and related prohibitions (MAFRAY-Darb aṣ-Ṣabī 1), and attest to expiations (MAFRAY-Darb aṣ-Ṣabī 32).

Mentions of Nakraḥ are also found outside the Jawf valley. The god was worshipped by the Minaic community settled in Tamnaʿ, the capital of Qatabān, as the inscription VL 9 from the necropolis of Ḥayd bin ʿAqīl attests. Together with the other Minaean gods, Nakraḥ is the addressee of the dedication of an elegant, inscribed bronze plaque in the caravan town of Qaryat al-Fāw in central Arabia (Riyāḍ 302F8). There was also a cult to the god at the Minaean colony at Dadān, in northern Arabia (M 287), where people wrote their requests of help to the god on the rocks along the path of the slopes of the Jabal Khurayba (Naṣīf 1993, 1).

Irene Rossi

References and suggested reading

Sources

• Naṣīf 1993, 1: Naṣīf, A.A. 1993. Nuqūsh Maʿīnīya min al-ʿUla. ad-Dārah 8: 52–69.

References

• Arbach, M. 2011. La découverte du temple intra-muros de Nakraḥ à Maʿīn, l’antique Qarnā. AAE 22: 201–214. DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0471.2011.00344.x.
• Audouin, R. & M. Arbach 2004. La découverte du temple d’Aranyadaʿ à Nashshān. Rapport préliminaire d’une opération de sauvetage franco-yéménite. CRAI 2004 (Jul.-Oct.): 1287–1304. DOI: 10.3406/crai.2004.22785.
• De Maigret, A. & C.J. Robin 1993. Le temple de Nakraḥ à Yathill (aujourd’hui Barāqish), Yémen. Résultats des deux premières campagnes de fouilles de la mission italienne. CRAI 137(2): 427–496. DOI: 10.3406/crai.1993.15228.
• Robin, C.J., J.-F. Breton & J. Ryckmans 1988. Le sanctuaire minéen de Nkrḥ à Darb aṣ-Ṣābī (environs de Barāqish). Rapport préliminaire (seconde partie). Étude des Inscriptions. Raydān 5: 91–158.

_{Alternate spellings: Nakrah, Nakrahum, Nakraḥum, Nkrḥm, Nkrḥ}