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Chapter 3 - ‘May the Force Be With You!’

Men and Gods in Battle in the Phoenician World

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 February 2024

Corinne Bonnet
Affiliation:
Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa
Ian Rutherford
Affiliation:
University of Reading
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Summary

The epigraphic documentation in the Phoenician language of the island of Cyprus makes it possible to approach the exploration of the semantic field of the force (’z) in the conceptual universe of the Phoenicians. Gods ‘of strength’ appear in inscriptions commemorating victories, both at Kition and at Larnaka-tis-Lapithou. Baal and Anat are discussed: the profession of war is not a male prerogative in the world of the gods. Strength is also present in the world of men: anthroponomy conceals a few names, albeit not many, constructed using the root ‘zz ‘to be strong’. At the same time Anat, Resheph, Baal and Mikal, gods present in the Phoenician context of Cyprus with also (but not only) warlike attributes, are implicated in the formation of anthroponyms, most of the time without reference to weapons and shields, if they are only those who serve their worshippers to face the daily battles from the delicate moment of birth onwards.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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