A nomarch (Ancient Greek: νομάρχης,[1]Ancient Egyptian: ḥrj tp ꜥꜣGreat Chief) was a provincial governor in ancient Egypt; the country was divided into 42 provinces, called nomes (singular spꜣ.t, plural spꜣ.wt). A nomarch was the government official responsible for a nome.[2]
The term nome is derived from Ancient Greek: νομόςnomós "province, district". Nomarch is derived from νομάρχηςnomárkhēs: "province" + -άρχης "ruler".
Egyptian history
The division of the Egyptian kingdom into nomes can be documented as far back as the reign of Djoser of the 3rd Dynasty in the early Old Kingdom, c. 2670 BCE, and potentially dates even further back to the Predynastic kingdoms of the Nile valley. The earliest topographical lists of the nomes of Upper and Lower Egypt date back to the reign of Nyuserre Ini, of the mid 5th Dynasty, from which time the nomarchs no longer lived at royal capital but stayed in their nomes.[3]
The power of the nomarchs grew with the reforms of Nyuserre's second successor, Djedkare Isesi, which effectively decentralized the Egyptian state. The post of nomarch then quickly became hereditary, thereby creating a virtual feudal system where local allegiances slowly superseded obedience to the pharaoh. Less than 200 years after Djedkare's reign, the nomarchs had become the all-powerful heads of the provinces. At the dawn of the First Intermediate Period, the power of the Pharaohs of the 8th Dynasty had diminished to the extent that they owed their position to the most powerful nomarchs, upon whom they could only bestow titles and honours.
The power of the nomarchs remained important during the later royal revival under the impulse of the 11th Dynasty, originally a family of Theban nomarchs. Their power diminished during the subsequent 12th Dynasty, setting the stage for the apex of royal power during the Middle Kingdom.
Later re-use of the term
The title nomarch continued to be used into the Roman period.
The title is also in use in modern Greece for the heads of the prefectures of Greece, which were also titled nomos (pl. νομοί, nomoi; νομαρχία, nomarchia also being used to refer to the area within a nomarch's purview).[4]
^Jones, James Barry; Keating, Michael (1995). The European Union and Its Regions. p. 253. ISBN0-19-827999-X – via Google Books.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nomarchs.
. Philae.nu. Archived from the original on 2 June 2010.
July 06, 2023
nomarch, confused, with, monarch, nomarch, ancient, greek, νομάρχης, ancient, egyptian, ḥrj, ꜥꜣ, great, chief, provincial, governor, ancient, egypt, country, divided, into, provinces, called, nomes, singular, spꜣ, plural, spꜣ, nomarch, government, official, re. Not to be confused with Monarch A nomarch Ancient Greek nomarxhs 1 Ancient Egyptian ḥrj tp ꜥꜣ Great Chief was a provincial governor in ancient Egypt the country was divided into 42 provinces called nomes singular spꜣ t plural spꜣ wt A nomarch was the government official responsible for a nome 2 Contents 1 Etymology 2 Egyptian history 3 Later re use of the term 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksEtymology EditThe term nome is derived from Ancient Greek nomos nomos province district Nomarch is derived from nomarxhs nomarkhes province arxhs ruler Egyptian history EditThe division of the Egyptian kingdom into nomes can be documented as far back as the reign of Djoser of the 3rd Dynasty in the early Old Kingdom c 2670 BCE and potentially dates even further back to the Predynastic kingdoms of the Nile valley The earliest topographical lists of the nomes of Upper and Lower Egypt date back to the reign of Nyuserre Ini of the mid 5th Dynasty from which time the nomarchs no longer lived at royal capital but stayed in their nomes 3 The power of the nomarchs grew with the reforms of Nyuserre s second successor Djedkare Isesi which effectively decentralized the Egyptian state The post of nomarch then quickly became hereditary thereby creating a virtual feudal system where local allegiances slowly superseded obedience to the pharaoh Less than 200 years after Djedkare s reign the nomarchs had become the all powerful heads of the provinces At the dawn of the First Intermediate Period the power of the Pharaohs of the 8th Dynasty had diminished to the extent that they owed their position to the most powerful nomarchs upon whom they could only bestow titles and honours The power of the nomarchs remained important during the later royal revival under the impulse of the 11th Dynasty originally a family of Theban nomarchs Their power diminished during the subsequent 12th Dynasty setting the stage for the apex of royal power during the Middle Kingdom Later re use of the term EditThe title nomarch continued to be used into the Roman period The title is also in use in modern Greece for the heads of the prefectures of Greece which were also titled nomos pl nomoi nomoi nomarxia nomarchia also being used to refer to the area within a nomarch s purview 4 See also EditHaty a Pepi II NeferkareReferences Edit Diodorus Siculus Library 1 73 Grimal Nicolas 1992 A History of Ancient Egypt Blackwell Books pp 142 400 Altenmuller Hartwig 2001 Old Kingdom Fifth Dynasty In Redford Donald B ed The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt Vol 2 Oxford University Press p 597 ISBN 978 0 19 510234 5 Jones James Barry Keating Michael 1995 The European Union and Its Regions p 253 ISBN 0 19 827999 X via Google Books External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nomarchs The Nomes provinces of Ancient Egypt Philae nu Archived from the original on 2 June 2010 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Nomarch amp oldid 1078117638, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
