Kwa ujumla, jamii ya Waarabu wa kipagani ilikuwa haijui kusoma wala kuandika. Ilikuza tamaduni tajiri mno za mdomo na masikio, hadithi za kishujaa, na zaidi ya yote ushairi mzuri wa kusimuliwa kwa mdomo, ambao ndio aina kongwe kabisa ya fasihi ya Kiarabu. Zaidi ya hayo, kwa karne nyingi kabla ya Uislamu, kuenea kwa lugha ya Kiarabu katika jamii iliyotegemea mdomo zaidi ya Arabia na zaidi yake, pamoja na Uarabu wa sehemu za Levant na Iraq, kulifanyika kwa njia ya kukariri tamaduni za mdomo na masikio, hadithi za kishujaa, mashairi ya Kiarabu na mashairi ya kale ya kitambo (kwa mfano, al-mu’allaqat). Ushairi huu wa kabla ya Uislamu ukawa chanzo kikuu cha lugha na balagha ya Kiarabu, na kumbukumbu tajiri ya kihistoria ya maisha ya kisiasa na kitamaduni ya wakati huo. Mawasiliano haya ya tamaduni zenye nguvu za mdomo na masikio za kabla ya Uislamu, pamoja na ushairi na kukariri hadithi za kishujaa, yalipitishwa si tu na washairi na warawi (wasimuliaji wa hadithi), bali pia na wafanyabiashara wa Kiarabu waliosafiri, kupitia hija ya kila mwaka kwenda Makka ya kabla ya Uislamu na mashindano ya ushairi katika masoko ya fasihi ya msimu (mfano maarufu ni Souq ‘Ukath, karibu na Ta’if huko Hijaz). Katika utamaduni huu wa Kiarabu wa kabla ya Uislamu, mshairi alicheza nafasi ya mwanahistoria wa mdomo, msimuliaji wa hadithi, mkosoaji wa jamii, msomi wa umma, mtabiri na mchochezi wa kisiasa.

By and large Arab pagan society was illiterate, cultivating immensely rich oral/aural traditions and epic stories and prizing, in particular, exquisite oral poetry, the oldest form of Arabic literature. Furthermore, for many centuries before Islam the spread of Arabic in the predominantly oral culture of Arabia and beyond, and the Arabisation of parts of the Levant and Iraq, were carried out through the memorisation of oral/aural traditions, epics, Arabic poetry and classic poems (for instance, the mu’allaqat). This pre-Islamic poetry became a major source for the Arabic language and rhetoric and a rich historical record of the political and cultural life of the time. This communication of powerful pre-Islamic oral/aural traditions and poetry and the memorisation of epics were transmitted not only by poets and rawis (storytellers) but also by travelling Arab traders, through the annual pilgrimage to pre-Islamic Mecca and poetry competitions at seasonal literary markets (a famous example was Souq ‘Ukath, near Ta’if in the Hijaz). In this pre-Islamic Arab culture the poet played the role of oral historian, storyteller, social critic, public intellectual, soothsayer and political agitator.

Ushairi wa Kiarabu na elimu ya kusoma na kuandika kwa Kiarabu, pamoja na mpito kutoka utamaduni ulio hasa wa mdomo na wa kusikia, na mapokeo ya simulizi, kuelekea mazingira ya Kiarabu yaliyoandikwa zaidi na utamaduni wa vitabu, viliathiriwa sana na kuenea kwa Ukristo wa Kihelenistiki na baadaye kuibuka kwa Uislamu, na na kile Uislamu ulichokiita "watu wa Kitabu" (ahl al-kitab). Jambo muhimu ni kwamba mpito huu wa taratibu kutoka kutojua kusoma na kuandika na mapokeo ya mdomo na ya kusikia hadi kujua kusoma na kuandika na utamaduni wa maandishi pia ulichochewa na mahakama za Wakristo Waarabu wa Ghassaniyyin, wafalme-wakuu wa Palestina. Mahakama hizi zilidhamini sanaa kwa ukarimu, hasa ushairi wa Kiarabu. Mpito huu kuelekea kujua kusoma na kuandika, pamoja na mapokeo muhimu ya kukariri mashairi ya kishujaa na ushairi wa kawaida wa Kiarabu, uliendelea kustawi kwa kuenea kwa Uislamu, lakini jambo muhimu ni kwamba iliambatana pia na kusomwa na kukaririwa kwa Qur'ani Tukufu kama njia ya kueneza Kiarabu sanifu na kuimarisha Uarabu na Kiarabu kuwa lugha ya mawasiliano katika himaya ya Kiislamu iliyoanzishwa hivi karibuni. Waarabu wa Provincia Palaestina na wa Provincia Arabia ya zamani, wenye utamaduni wao ulio hasa wa mdomo na wa kusikia, pia waliathiriwa na maisha ya kifasihi ya Waarabu katika karne ya 5 na ya 6, na na mapokeo ya kukariri ushairi wa kawaida wa Kiarabu uliofanywa na washairi, warawi na watu wa kawaida.

Arabic poetry and Arabic literacy and the movement from a predominantly oral/aural culture and oral traditions to a more literate Arabic setting and book culture was hugely influenced by the spread of Hellenistic Christianity and later the rise of Islam and by what Islam termed the ‘people of the Book’ (ahl al-kitab). Crucially, this gradual movement from illiteracy and oral/aural traditions to literacy and written culture was also promoted by the Christian Arab courts of the Ghassanid phylarchs of Palestine. These courts generously patronised the arts, especially Arabic poetry. This movement to literacy, together with the important tradition of memorisation of epics and classic Arabic poetry, continued to flourish with the spread of Islam, but crucially it was also accompanied by the reading and memorisation of the holy Quran as a means of spreading standard Arabic and establishing Arabisation and Arabic as the lingua franca in the newly founded Islamic empire. The Arabs of Provincia Palaestina and former Provincia Arabia, with their predominantly oral/aural culture, were also influenced by the literary life of the Arabs in the 5th and 6th centuries and by the tradition of memorisation of classic Arabic poetry by poets, rawis and ordinary people.

Katika zama za kabla ya Uislamu, kulikuwa na mahakama za Waarabu Wakristo huko Hirah, kusini mwa Iraq, na Jabiyah, katika Palaestina Secunda, pamoja na washairi wa mahakamani, kama al-Nabighah adh-Dhubyani (535–604 BK), ambaye alicheza nafasi muhimu katika kueneza ushairi wa Kiarabu wa kawaida. Wafalme wa kikabila wa Ghassan (phylarchs)

In pre-Islamic times, there were Christian Arab courts at Hirah, in southern Iraq, and Jabiyah, in Palaestina Secunda, and court poets, such as al-Nabighah adh-Dhubyani (535–604 AD), who played an important role in the spread of classical Arabic poetry. The Ghassanid tribal kings (phylarchs)

wa Palaestina Secunda, hasa, aliwasaidia sanaa na kuwakaribisha washairi mashuhuri wa Kiarabu kama al-Nabighah na Hassasn ibn Thabit (sahaba wa Mtume Muhammad ﷺ aliyefariki mwaka 674) katika majumba yao.

of Palaestina Secunda, in particular, patronised the arts and entertained some key Arabian poets such as al-Nabighah and Hassasn ibn Thabit (a companion of the Prophet Muhammad who died in 674) at their courts.

Moja ya miunganiko inayowezekana kati ya Waghassani wa Palestina, kama walinzi wa maeneo matakatifu ya Kikristo katika "nchi ya Injili," na maeneo matakatifu ya Kiislamu yajayo huko Makka, inahusiana na al-Nabighah, mtu wa zama moja na Mtume Muhammad ﷺ (570–632 BK). Al-Nabighah (maana yake halisi ni "fikra") ...

One possible connection between the Ghassanids of Palestine as protectors of the Christian holy places in the ‘land of the Gospel’ and the future Islamic holy places in Mecca is related to al-Nabighah, a contemporary of the Prophet Muhammad (570–632 AD). Al-Nabighah (literally ‘the genius’)

alikuwa mmoja wa washairi wakuu wa Kiarabu wa mwisho wa zama za kabla ya Uislamu, ambaye alitumia sehemu kubwa ya maisha yake katika mahakama za wafalme wa Ghassani huko Palestina na mahakama za wafalme Waarabu Wakristo wa Hirah, al-Mundhirs. Kama ilivyokuwa kwa Palaestina Tertia na Palaestina Secunda, Hirah ilikuwa kitovu kikubwa cha Ukristo wa Kiarabu kabla ya Uislamu, kwani kati ya karne ya 4 na ya 7 ilikuwa dayosisi ya Kanisa la Mashariki, na kufikia mwaka 410 BK ilikuwa makao ya askofu wa Kinestoria. Al-Nabighah alijulikana kwa jina lake la Kikristo la Kiarabu 'Ilyas, na baadaye 'Ilyas kutoka Ardhi ya Injili' (Ilyas min ard al-Bishara الياس من أرض البشارة) au Ardhi Takatifu, kama alivyoelezwa na mwanahistoria Mwarabu al-Maqrizi (1364–1442). Kigiriki kilikuwa mojawapo ya lugha mbili za kimataifa za Palestina ya Kibyzantine, na Ilyas ndiyo namna ya Kiarabu ya jina la Kigiriki Elias, jina ambalo ni la kawaida miongoni mwa Waarabu Wakristo hadi leo.

was one of the last great Arab poets in the pre-Islamic era who spent most of his time at the courts of the Ghassanid kings in Palestine and the courts of the Christian Arab kings of Hirah, al-Mundhirs. Like Palaestina Tertia and Palaestina Secunda, Hirah was an important major pre-Islamic Arab Christian centre, being a diocese of the church of the East between the 4th and 7th centuries and seat of the Nestorian bishopric by 410 AD. Al-Nabighah became known as by his Christian Arab name ‘Ilyas and later ‘Ilyas from the Land of the Gospel’ (Ilyas min ard al-Bishara الياس من أرض البشارة ) or the Holy Land, as described by Arab historian al-Maqrizi (1364–1442). Greek was one the two lingua francas of Byzantine Palestine and Ilyas is the Arabic form of the Greek Elias, a name common among Christian Arabs today.

Al-Nabighah/Ilyas ni mmoja wa washairi sita mashuhuri wa kabla ya Uislamu ambao mashairi yao yalikusanywa kabla ya katikati ya karne ya pili ya Uislamu, na yamekuwa yakichukuliwa kuwa kiwango cha ushairi wa Kiarabu. Washairi hawa waliandika mashairi marefu yanayolinganishwa na mashairi ya kishujaa, yanayojulikana kama Muʿallaqat kwa sababu yalining'inizwa kwenye kuta za Kaaba (jengo lililo katikati ya msikiti mtukufu zaidi wa Uislamu mjini Makka). Maelezo yaliyobaki kuhusu miji na mahakama za Ghassani yanatoa picha ya anasa na maisha hai ya kitamaduni, yakiwa na udhamini wa sanaa, muziki na hasa ushairi wa lugha ya Kiarabu.

Al-Nabighah/Ilyas is one of the six eminent pre-Islamic poets whose poems were collected before the middle of the 2nd century of Islam, and have been regarded as the standard of Arabic poetry. These poets have written long poems comparable to epic poems, known as Muʿallaqat since they were hung on the walls of the Kaaba (a building at the centre of Islam’s most sacred mosque in Mecca). The surviving descriptions of the Ghassanid urban centres and courts impart an image of luxury and an active cultural life, with patronage of the arts, music and especially Arab-language poetry.

Warwick Ball, mwandishi, mwanaakiolojia na aliyekuwa Mhifadhi wa Usanifu majengo katika Idara ya Mambo ya Kale nchini Jordan, anatoa maoni yake:

Warwick Ball, writer, archaeologist and former Architectural Conservator in the Department of Antiquities in Jordan, comments:

Mahakama za Waghassani zilikuwa vituo muhimu zaidi vya ushairi wa Kiarabu kabla ya kuibuka kwa mahakama za makhalifa chini ya Uislamu, na utamaduni wao wa mahakama, ikiwa ni pamoja na mapenzi yao kwa majumba ya jangwani kama Qasr ibn Wardan, uliweka mfano kwa makhalifa wa Ummayya na mahakama yao.

the Ghassanid courts were the most important centres for Arabic poetry before the rise of the Caliphal courts under Islam, and their court culture, including their penchant for desert palaces like Qasr ibn Wardan, provided the model for the Umayyad caliphs and their court.

(Ball 2000: 103‒105; pia Shahid 2006b: 102)

(Ball 2000: 103‒105; also Shahid 2006b: 102)

Jumuiya za Wasamaria zilianzishwa karibu katika miji yote ya Palestina ya Kirumi: Neapolis, Sebaste, Kaisaria Maritima, Scythopolis, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gaza, Iamnia, Emau, Ashdod na Antipatris (Hjelm 2016), na jumuiya hizi pia zilipatikana katika miji mingi ya Palestina wakati wa enzi ya Byzantium. Kwa kweli, kidemografia, Wakristo wa Byzantium wanaozungumza Kigiriki pamoja na Wasamaria walitawala eneo la kati la Palaestina Prima, wakati Waarabu Wakristo wa Ghassan na Waarabu Wanabatea walitawala Palaestina Secunda na Palaestina Tertia kwa mtiririko huo. Hata hivyo, maasi ya Wasamaria katika karne ya 5 na 6 katika Palaestina Prima yalitawaliwa na ghasia kubwa pande zote mbili, na ukandamizaji wake wa kikatili mikononi mwa Wabyzantium na washirika wao Waarabu wa Ghassan (Crown 1989: 72–73; Shahid 2010: 8) ulichangia kubadilisha idadi ya watu katika eneo hilo, na kuwafanya Wakristo kuwa kundi kubwa katika mkoa wa Palaestina Prima kwa miongo mingi. Pia, Wasamaria wengi waliukubali Uislamu kuanzia mwanzoni mwa karne ya 7.

Samaritan communities were established in practically all the cities of Roman Palestine: Neapolis, Sebaste, Caesarea Maritima, Scythopolis, Ascalon, Ashdod, Gaza, Iamnia, Emmaus, Ashdod and Antipatris (Hjelm 2016), and these communities were also found in most Palestinian cities in the Byzantine period. In fact, demographically the Greek-speaking Byzantine Christians and Samaritans dominated the central region of Palaestina Prima, while the Christian Ghassanid Arabs and Nabataean Arabs dominated Palaestina Secunda and Palaestina Tertia respectively. However, the Samaritan revolts during the 5th and 6th centuries in Palaestina Prima were marked by great violence on both sides, and their brutal suppression at the hands of the Byzantines and their Ghassanid Arab allies (Crown 1989: 72–73; Shahid 2010: 8) contributed to shifting the demographics of the region, making the Christians the dominant group in the province of Palaestina Prima for many decades. Also, many Samaritans converted to Islam from the early 7th century onwards.

Waarabu wa Ghassani walijitokeza katika karne ya 5 na kuwa jumuiya muhimu ya kikabila, kilugha na kidini huko Palestina, na Kanisa lao la Othodoksi la Kimonofisiti likapata umuhimu mkubwa Palestina. Katika karne ya 5 hadi 6 mji wao mkuu ulikuwa Jabiyah katika Milima ya Golan, ulioko ndani ya Palaestina Secunda. 'Gabitha' inatajwa mwaka 520 BK katika barua ya Kiaramu ya Kisiriaki kutoka kwa Askofu Mkimonofisiti Simeon wa Bet Arsham. Baada ya Vita vya Yarmouk mwaka 636 BK na ushindi wa Waarabu dhidi ya Palestina na Syria, mji wa Ghassani wa Jabiyah ukawa makao makuu ya kambi kuu ya kijeshi ya majeshi ya Kiislamu huko Syria. Kwa ujumla, Waarabu wa Ghassani wa Kimonofisiti waliwapendelea washindi wa Kiarabu wa Kiislamu kuliko Wakalkedoni wa Kikristo (Wigram 2004). Baada ya kushindwa kijeshi kwa Byzantium huko Yarmouk, wengi wa Waghassani wangefurahi kujiondoa kwa Mfalme wa Byzantium na Kanisa la Kikalkedoni linalozungumza Kigiriki, na kujiunga na nguvu inayochipuka ya Uislamu.

The Ghassanid Arabs rose in the 5th century to be become an important ethno-linguistic religious community in Palestine and their Monophysite Orthodox Church became important in Palestine. In the 5th‒6th centuries their capital was at Jabiyah in the Golan Heights, located within Palaestina Secunda. ‘Gabitha’ is mentioned in 520 AD in a Syriac Aramaic letter of Monophysite Bishop Simeon of Bet Arsham. Following the Battle of Yarmouk in 636 AD and the Arab conquest of Palestine and Syria, the Ghassanid town of Jabiyah became the headquarters of the main military camp for the Muslim armies in Syria. Overall the Monophysite Ghassanid Arabs preferred the Muslim Arab conquerors to the Christian Chalcedonians (Wigram 2004). Following the Byzantine military defeat at Yarmouk many of the Ghassanids would have been happy to get rid of the Byzantine Emperor and the Greek-speaking Chalcedonite Church and ally themselves with the rising power of Islam.

Neno millet, lililotokana na neno la Kiarabu la Kurani millah, lilikuwa likimaanisha jumuiya ya kidini chini ya Uislamu. Makanisa ya Othodoksi ya Monofisiti yaliyotawaliwa na Waghassani huenda yalitoa wazo la mfumo wa millet kwa Uislamu. Hili likawa kanuni kwa wasiokuwa Waislamu, ambao walipewa uhuru mkubwa wa kidini na wa kijamii ndani ya jumuiya zao wenyewe katika historia yote ya Palestina ya Kiislamu na Mashariki ya Karibu.

Derived from the Quranic Arabic term millah, the term millet denoted the religious community under Islam. The Ghassanid-dominated Monophysite Orthodox churches may have given the idea of the millet system to Islam. This became a principle for non-Muslims, who were given a significant degree of religious and social autonomy within their own community throughout the history of Islamic Palestine and the Near East.

Zaidi, kulingana na wanahistoria Warwick Ball na Irfan Shahid, juhudi za Waghassani za kukuza aina rahisi zaidi na yenye msimamo mkali wa Ukristo wa Mungu Mmoja katika muktadha mahsusi wa Kiarabu zinaweza kusemwa kuwa zilitangulia Uislamu (Ball 2000: 105; Shahid 2006b: 102).

Furthermore, according to historians Warwick Ball and Irfan Shahid, the Ghassanids’ promotion of a simpler and more rigidly monotheistic form of Christianity in a specifically Arab context can be said to have anticipated Islam (Ball 2000: 105; Shahid 2006b: 102).

Uhuru mkubwa uliofurahiwa na makazi ya Waarabu wa Ghassani katika Palaestina Prima ulitokana na ukweli kwamba maeneo yao yalipata hadhi ya aina mbili: phylarchate, zikiongozwa na phylarch mkuu wa Kiarabu (mfalme wa kikabila), na episkopate, zikiongozwa na maaskofu. Petros (au Petrus), kiongozi wa kabila la Waarabu au kundi la makabila kutoka Provincia Arabia ya Byzantine, ambaye jina lake la awali lilikuwa Aspebetos, alikuwa wa kwanza kuteuliwa kwa wakati mmoja kuwa phylarch na askofu katika Palaestina Prima (Shahid 2006a: 181; Isaac 2003: 450‒451). Historia ya maisha ya Aspebetos yenye rangi nyingi ilikuwa ya kustaajabisha. Alianza kama kamanda wa kijeshi katika utumishi wa shah wa Uajemi. Kisha alijiunga na Wabyzantine na kuwa phylarch wa Kiarabu wa Provincia Arabia. Baadaye alihamia Palaestina Prima, akaishi karibu na monasteri ya Euthemius, iliyoko kati ya Aelia Capitolina (Yerusalemu).

The substantial autonomy achieved by the Ghassanid Arab-populated settlements of Palaestina Prima was derived from the fact that their localities acquired the status of both phylarchates, headed by a supreme Arab phylarch (a tribal king), and episcopates, headed by bishops. Petros (or Petrus), a chief of an Arab tribe or group of tribes from Byzantine Provincia Arabia, whose original name was Aspebetos, was the first to be simultaneously appointed as phylarch and bishop in Palaestina Prima (Shahid 2006a: 181; Isaac 2003: 450‒451). The colourful career of Aspebetos was remarkable. He started as a military commander in the service of the Persian shah. He then defected to the Byzantines and became the Arab phylarch of Provincia Arabia. He then moved to Palaestina Prima, settling near the monastery of Euthemius, located between Aelia Capitolina (Jerusalem)

na Yeriko, na alihudumu kama phylarch wa Kiarabu wa Palaestina Prima.

and Jericho, and served as the Arab phylarch of Palaestina Prima.

Yeye na mwanawe Terebon kisha waligeuzwa kuwa Wakristo na kubatizwa na Euthemius. Pia alichukua jina Petros (Kigiriki: jiwe), ambalo likawa jina lake la ubatizo. Butros, umbo la Kiarabu la jina la Kigiriki Petros – jina ambalo bado ni maarufu miongoni mwa Wakristo wa Kipalestina na Waarabu – ndilo jina ambalo yeye na wafuasi wake Waarabu huko Palestina wangelitumia.

He and his son Terebon were then converted to Christianity and baptised by Euthemius. He also adopted the name Petros (Greek: rock) which became his baptismal name. Butros, the Arabic form of the Greek name Petros – a name still common among Palestinian and Arab Christians – would be the name used by him and his Arab followers in Palestine.

Petros/Butros alikuwa askofu wa kwanza mwenye cheo cha phylarch wa Parembole ya Palestina takriban mwaka 427 BK. Mstari huu wa maaskofu wa Palestina uliendelea hadi katikati ya karne ya 6. Ingawa usimamizi wake wa kiaskofu ulikuwa katika Palaestina Tertia, alikuwa chini ya Patriarchate ya Palestina Yote ya Aelia Capitolina, ambayo baadaye ilijulikana kama Patriarchate ya Ilya (Yerusalemu).

Petros/Butros became first phylarch-bishop of the Palestinian Parembole in around 427 AD. This line of Palestinian bishops survived until the middle of the 6th century. Although his bishopric was based in Palaestina Tertia, he was responsible to the All Palestine Patriarchate of Aelia Capitolina, which later became known as the Patriarchate of Ilya (Jerusalem)

chini ya utawala wa Waarabu Waislamu kuanzia mwaka 637 na kuendelea. Kugeuka kwa Aspebetos/ Butros kulifuatiwa na kugeuka kwa kabila lake la Kiarabu, naye akawa Mkristo mwenye bidii, kwa miaka mingi akaliongoza jumuiya hiyo ya Wakristo Waarabu (Saracen) na akafanikiwa kuongeza kwa kiasi kikubwa idadi ya Waarabu Wakristo huko Palestina. Kilele cha kazi yake kilikuwa ushiriki wake hai katika Baraza la Kiekumene la Efeso mwaka 431 BK, ambapo hakuonekana tu kama jina lililoandikwa kwenye orodha ya baraza, bali kama mshiriki hai katika mijadala na kama mjumbe wa Baraza la Efeso kwenda kwa Nestorius (Shahid 2006a: 46‒48, 181‒184, 528; 2006b: 128). Wanafamilia wa nyumba ya Aspebetos waliendelea kustawi kama viongozi wa kikabila wa Arab Palaestina Prima, na katika karne ya 6 Cyril wa Scythopolis, mwandishi wa historia ya maisha ya kimonaki huko Palestina, anamweleza Terebon II, kitukuu cha Aspebetos, kama ‘phylarch mashuhuri katika eneo hili’: eneo lililo kati ya Yerusalemu na Yeriko (Shahid 1995: 652).

under Arab Muslim rule from 637 onwards. The conversion of Aspebetos/ Butros was followed by the conversion of his Arab tribe and he became a zealous Christian and for years led his converted Saracen (Arab) Christian community and managed to increase significantly the number of Christian Arabs in Palestine. The climax of his career was his active participation at the ecumenical Council of Ephesus in 431 AD, where he appears not merely as a subscription in the conciliar list but as an active participant in the debates and a delegate of the Council of Ephesus to Nestorius (Shahid 2006a: 46‒48, 181‒184, 528; 2006b: 128). Members of the house of Aspebetos continued to thrive as the tribal leaders of Arab Palaestina Prima and in the 6th century Cyril of Scythopolis, the historian of monastic life in Palestine, describes Terebon II, Aspebetos’ great-grandson, as ‘the renowned phylarch in this region’: the area between Jerusalem and Jericho (Shahid 1995: 652).

Lakini kulikuwa na tofauti za msingi kati ya wafalme-maaskofu wa Kiarabu "wanaojitegemea" wa Palaestina Prima – jimbo kuu – na wafalme-maaskofu wa Ghassani waliojitegemea kiasi katika majimbo mawili ya "mpakani" ya Palaestina Secunda na Palaestina Tertia: Abu Karib na al-Harith. Hawa wa mwisho walifanya kazi kutoka katika miji mikuu iliyoanzishwa na inayotambuliwa.

But there were some fundamental differences between the ‘autonomous’ Arab phylarchs-bishops of Palaestina Prima – a core province – and the fairly independent Ghassanid kings-phylarchs of the two ‘frontier provinces’ of Palaestina Secunda and Palaestina Tertia: Abu Karib and al-Harith. The latter operated from established and recognised capitals.

Pia waliamuru majeshi yao ya Kiarabu ya kitaaluma yenye ukubwa, na si vikosi vya makabila tu vilivyotolewa kwa muda. Walisimamia sheria na utulivu ndani ya eneo lao pana, na walikusanya mapato na kodi kutoka kwenye biashara yenye faida kubwa ya kimataifa na ya kikanda iliyopita katika majimbo yao. Walitoa ulinzi kwa maeneo matakatifu huko Palestina, na muhimu zaidi, walituma mabalozi wao wenyewe katika nchi za kigeni – mabalozi waliotenda kwa majina yao wenyewe badala ya kuiwakilisha dola ya Byzantine.

They also commanded their own substantial professional Arab armies, and not just contingent tribal forces. They enforced law and order within their wider domain and raised revenues and taxes from the lucrative international and regional trade passing through their provinces. They provided protection to the holy places in Palestine and, crucially, they dispatched their own ambassadors to foreign countries – ambassadors who acted in their names rather than representing the Byzantine state.

Mwaka 451 ulikuwa wakati wa mabadiliko makubwa kwa Kanisa huko Palestina. Katika Mtaguso wa Chalcedon, 451, majimbo matatu ya "Palestina Tatu" yalitenganishwa na mamlaka ya Patriarkia ya Antiokia. Kutengwa kwa kanisa kwa "Palestina Tatu" kutoka Antiokia hakukuwa na athari ya mara moja kwa kanisa la Waarabu wa washirika, ambao walibaki wakishikilia kwa uthabiti Orthodoksi. Kwa kukua kwa Umonofisiti Mashariki ya Karibu katika karne ya 6, hasa baada ya msukumo uliotolewa na Mfalme Anastasius, Patriarkia ya Palestina ilibaki ngome ya Orthodoksi iliyotawaliwa na Wagiriki huko Palestina, na urithi huu uliacha athari ya kudumu katika mahusiano ya Waarabu na Wagiriki ndani ya Kanisa la Palestina (Shahid 2006a: 528). Pia ulifungua migogoro ya ndani iliyodumu hadi leo; katika karne ya 5 BK, migawanyiko hii ya ndani ndani ya Kanisa la Palestina pia ilionekana katika alama na misimbo ya rangi:

The year 451 was a turning point for the Church in Palestine. At the Council of Chalcedon, 451, the ‘Three in One’ Palestine provinces were separated from the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch. The ecclesiastical separation of the ‘Three Palestines’ from Antioch did not have an immediate effect on the Arab church of the federates who remained staunchly Orthodox. With the growth of Monophytism in the Near East in the 6th century, especially after the impetus given by the Emperor Anastasius, the Patriarchate of Palestine remained the stronghold of Greek-dominated orthodoxy in Palestine and this legacy had a lasting impact on Arab‒Greek relationships within the Palestine Church (Shahid 2006a: 528). It also opened up internal conflicts which lasted until today; in the 5th century AD, these internal divisions within the Palestine Church were also reflected in symbols and colour codes:

Shirikisho la Waarabu wa Palestina tatu, angalau Prima na Secunda, lilibaki la Kiorthodoksi kwa uthabiti, wakati wale walio nje ya mamlaka ya Patriarchate ya Yerusalemu walikuwa wengi wao Wamonofisiti, hasa kundi kubwa, Waghassani … Mgawanyiko ndani ya kanisa la Waarabu unaakisiwa katika historia ya Palestina, ambapo picha ya wafalme wa Kiarabu wa Kiorthodoksi wa Parembole katika Palaestina Prima ni angavu, na ile ya Waghassani wa Arabia ni hafifu. (Shahid 2006a: 528)

The Arab federates of the three Palestines, at least Prima and Secunda, remained staunchly Orthodox, while those outside the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, were mostly Monophysites, especially the dominant group, the Ghassanids … The division within the Arab church is reflected in Palestinian historiography, where the image of the [Arab] Orthodox phylarchs of the Parembole in Palaestina Prima is bright and that of the Ghassanids of Arabia is dim. (Shahid 2006a: 528)

Tofauti kidogo katika asili yake na wafalme wote Waarabu wa Palaestina Prima, Palaestina Secunda na Palaestina Tertia alikuwa Elias, Patriaki Mwarabu wa Aelia Capitolina (Yerusalemu), ambaye alikuwa kiongozi wa Kanisa lote la Palestina mwaka 494 BK. Wakati wengine walikuwa wafalme Waarabu washirika wa Dola, Elias alikuwa Mwarabu wa Kirumi aliyezaliwa Arabia. Kazi yake ya kikanisa haikuwa ya kawaida pia.

Somewhat different in background from all Arab phylarchs of Palaestina Prima, Palaestina Secunda and Palaestina Tertia was Elias, the Arab Patriarch of Aelia Capitolina (Jerusalem), who became head of the All Palestine Church in 494 AD. While the others were federate Arab kings, Elias was a Rhomaic Arab born in Arabia. His ecclesiastical career was no less remarkable.

Alianza kama mtawa jangwani Palestina akiwa pamoja na Mtakatifu Euthymius Mkuu (377–473), abati anayeheshimiwa leo katika Kanisa Katoliki la Roma na Makanisa ya Kiorthodoksi ya Mashariki. Baadaye Elias alivuta usikivu wa Patriaki Anastasius, aliyemweka wakfu kuwa padri wa Kanisa la Anastasia huko Yerusalemu; hatimaye Elias akawa Patriaki wa mji mtakatifu, na akajihusisha katika utawala wenye ufanisi wa Patriakiate yake. Alijitolea muda kuboresha makanisa na nyumba za watawa, na akaweka msingi wa Kanisa la Theotokos huko Yerusalemu, kanisa la kuvutia lililokamilika wakati wa utawala wa Mfalme Justinian na kuwekwa wakfu mwaka 543.

He started as a monk in the desert of Palestine associated with Saint Euthymius the Great (377–473), an abbot venerated today in both Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Elias then drew the attention of Patriarch Anastasius, who ordained him priest of the Church of Anastasia in Jerusalem; finally, Elias became the Patriarch of the holy city, and engaged in an effective administration of his Patriarchate. He devoted time to the improvement of the churches and monasteries and laid the foundation of the Church of the Theotokos in Jerusalem, the spectacular church completed during the reign of Emperor Justinian and dedicated in 543.

Huenda Elias pia alihusika katika kutafsiri ibada rahisi na orodha ya masomo ya Biblia kwenda Kiarabu, kwa manufaa ya jamii mbalimbali za Wakristo Waarabu zilizotawanyika katika "Palestina Tatu," ambazo zilikuwa chini ya mamlaka yake ya kikanisa (Shahid 2006a: 193‒194).

Possibly Elias was also associated with the translation of a simple liturgy and biblical lectionary into Arabic for the benefit of the various Christian Arab communities scattered in the ‘Three Palestines’ which came under his ecclesiastical jurisdiction (Shahid 2006a: 193‒194).