History of Karka

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The History of Karka [lower-alpha 1] is a sixth-century text which describes the persecution and killings of Christians in Kirkuk (formerly known as Karka de Beth Selok) in the year 446. [1] This outbreak of violence occurred in the Sasanian Empire under Yazdegerd II. [1]

Prior to discussing the martyrdoms of 446 it gives a short account of the history of the region. [3] The History extends back as far as ancient Assyrian figures such as Sargon II and mythological characters such as Nimrod, Ninus, and Belos. [4] It presents a confused account of the history's origins, mixing history and mythology. [5]

The persecution which makes up the core of the History of Karka [6] came as a part of Yezdgard II's efforts to ensure obedience among his aristocrats, and his demands included participation in religious observances that Christians were forbidden to participate in. [2] As a result, the persecution fell on aristocratic Christians, rather than specifically upon clergy or members of the general population. [2] The aim was not so much to destroy Christianity as it was to enforce loyalty among the nobility. [2]

Notes

  1. Or more fully History of Karka de Beth Selok. [1] Each of the words de, Beth, and Selok can be transcribed in more than one way. An even longer version of the title is History of Karka d-Beit Slok and Its Martyrs. [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 H.A. Drake (5 December 2016). Violence in Late Antiquity: Perceptions and Practices. Taylor & Francis. p. 96. ISBN   978-1-351-87574-5.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Richard E. Payne (5 August 2016). A State of Mixture: Christians, Zoroastrians, and Iranian Political Culture in Late Antiquity. Univ of California Press. pp. 45–46. ISBN   978-0-520-29245-1.
  3. Richard E. Payne (5 August 2016). A State of Mixture: Christians, Zoroastrians, and Iranian Political Culture in Late Antiquity. Univ of California Press. p. 141. ISBN   978-0-520-29245-1.
  4. Clemens Gantner (3 March 2016). Visions of Community in the Post-Roman World: The West, Byzantium and the Islamic World, 300–1100. Routledge. pp. 214–215. ISBN   978-1-317-00136-2.
  5. Muriel Debié; David Taylor (25 October 2012). "Syriac and Syro-Arabic Historical Writing". In Andrew Feldherr; Sarah Foot; Daniel R. Woolf (eds.). The Oxford History of Historical Writing: Volume 2: 400-1400. OUP Oxford. pp. 163, 170. ISBN   978-0-19-923642-8.
  6. Philip Wood (29 August 2013). The Chronicle of Seert: Christian Historical Imagination in Late Antique Iraq. OUP Oxford. p. 27. ISBN   978-0-19-967067-3.