Maiuma (festival)
Maiuma, Maiouma | |
---|---|
Celebrations | Theatrical and aquatic performances: games, mime shows, nude swimming |
Date | During May |
Maiuma or Maiouma, also written with a final s, was a
Origin and etymology
There is no information about the original purpose of Maiuma.[2]
Malalus' "folk etymology"
Malalus of Antioch in Syria, a 6th-century
Ancient Semitic origin theory
Robert M. Good's 1986 thesis is that the
R.M. Good also mentions an
American Phoenician language scholar, Philip Schmitz, similarly suggests that the Punic word my'ms is derived by word combination from the Semitic word for water and the Greek name of the spring festival, Μαιουμα(ς), 'Maiouma(s)'.[7]
Alternative meanings: water festival or harbour
Nicole Benayche (2004) shows how the word -- probably of Semitic origin and later Graecised, maybe also as a play of words on the Greek maia -- came to denote in the Greek and Roman world two different things: either spring festivals, both water-related and pleasant, but with no deeper connection to the Graeco-Syrian
History
Emperor Commodus (r. 177–192), when he renewed by edict the Olympic Games, earmarked revenue originating in certain ceremonies for financing the Maiumas rituals.[9]
Emperor
Malalas, writing in the 6th century, relates that the festival was held in his city of Antioch every three years and lasted for 30 days.[9] An inscription from al-Birketein at Gerasa from the end of that century however mentions the festival being held there annually several years in succession.
Cities holding Mayouma festivals
Authors like Nicole Benayshe are warning against the mistake of conflating the Greco-Syrian festival with later water-centered celebrations, as well as using the widely used toponym Maiuma, which often occurs as a common noun for harbour or seaside quarter, as proof for that city hosting the nocturnal mysteries.[4] She notices the wide popularity of events held next to the water in later periods, accompanied by the construction of dedicated buildings.[4]
Ancient literary sources explicitly mention three places where ceremonies called Mayoumas took place: Antioch, Ostia and
Apart from Antioch with its suburb, Daphne, several other locations in the East Roman Empire are known as venues for the festival, such as
Maiumas or related festivals were also allegedly held at
As toponym
Michael Avi-Yonah and Shimon Gibson are mentioning four places named after the festival, starting with Maiumas, the port of Gaza.[9]
The Anonymous pilgrim of Piacenza mentions in the 570s a place called Maiumas on the coast near Ashkelon, perhaps today's Khirbat al-Ashraf at the entrance to the Shikma Valley/Wadi Sikrayr .[9]
The archaeological site known in Arabic as Khirbat Miyāmās has preserved in its name the memory of the ancient festival and has been identified with the 3rd-century Kfar Shumi or Shami mentioned in the
The 6th-century
Moral reactions
The aquatic shows and pagan religious activities raised the ire of both Jewish rabbis and Christian holy men, who considered the popular feast to be licentious.[2][9] From an outraged John Chrysostom we learn about mimes swimming naked in the theatre and Joshua the Stylite, a Syriac chronicler, writes about nocturnal festivities held at the end of the 5th century in Edessa in mid-May, both probably relating to Maiumas celebrations.[2]
See also
- Maiuma disambiguation page
- Floralia, ancient Roman religious festival held in April
- May Day, today's May festival
- May Queen, British personification of the May Day holiday
- Roman festivals
- Rosalia, a festival of roses celebrated throughout the Roman Empire
References
- ^ a b c Pearse, Roger. The festival of the Maiuma at Antioch, at roger-pearse.com, 2 July 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- ^ ISBN 9780674048317. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- ISBN 9780191744457, via oxfordreference.com. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- ^ ISBN 9004138684. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Cross, Andrew (2014). Baal Peor and the Marzeah Feast at arcalog.com. Accessed 16 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Good, Robert M. (1986). "The Carthaginian Mayumas" (PDF). Studi epigrafici e linguistici sul Vicino Oriente antico (SEL) (3). Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- . Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- ISBN 0-8264-1316-1.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Avi-Yonah, Michael; Gibson, Shimon (2008). "Maiumas". Maiumas. Encyclopaedia Judaica (2nd ed.). The Gale Group. Retrieved 15 May 2024 – via Jewish Virtual Library.
- . Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- Atiqot110, pp. 159-172. Accessed 15 May 2024.
- ^ Jordan, Gerasa: Al-Birketein Roman pools of Jerash (Gerasa). At Hydria Virtual Museum. The Mediterranean Information Office for Environment, Culture and Sustainable Development (MIO-ECSDE / MEdIES), Athens, Greece. Retrieved 15 May 2024.