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Great King Solomon, considered as the wisest man in the ancient world, reportedly married a daughter of Pharaoh, the King of Egypt. Solomon’s time coincides with the first Pharaohs of Libyan Amazigh background. Who was the Egyptian princess whom Solomon married? Is it possible that she had Amazigh roots?
Solomon was the third king of the Kingdom of Israel. His reign was the golden age of the Hebrew nation. As his father David, who reigned before him, had done many conquests, he reigned over a vast territory extending on both sides of the Jordan River. He is famous mostly for building the Temple of Jerusalem, at the heart of the worship of the only God during Antiquity. Solomon and his father David are considered as prophets in the Jewish, Christian and Muslim religions.
Here is the story of Solomon’s wedding to Pharaoh’s daughter: “Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and married one of his daughters. He brought her to live in the City of David until he could finish building his palace and the Temple of the Lord and the wall around the city.” (Bible, 1 Kings 3 v 1) According to Jewish tradition, she converted to Judaism.
What was the name of the Pharaoh whose daughter Solomon married? The text doesn’t mention his name. According to historical estimations, Solomon reigned for 40 years, from 970 to 931 BCE. The reign of three Pharaohs was consecutive with his: Siamun/Neterkheperre (986-967), Psusennes (967-943), and Sheshonq I (943-922). All dates for such an old era are of course approximations. Most specialists believe Solomon’s wife was the the daughter of Siamun, but Psusennes would be another possibility; Sheshonq is less likely, as he started reigning close to the end of Solomon’s reign.
Several Pharaohs of this time had Libyan Amazigh origins. Osorkon the Elder (992-986), Siamun’s predecessor, was the first Libyan Pharaoh. Siamun and Psusennes were not Libyans; but Karimala, daughter of Osorkon the Elder, is described in a temple inscription as both a “king’s daughter” and a “king’s wife”. She probably married either Siamun or Psusennes. If it was their daughter whom Solomon married, she would have been half Libyan. Finally, Sheshonq I, the nephew of Osorkon the Elder, founded the 22nd dynasty, a Libyan dynasty.
As we see, while we don’t know which Pharaoh was the father of Solomon’s wife, it is possible that she had Libyan origins.
After Solomon’s death, his kingdom was divided. Pharaoh Sheshonq I invaded the territory of his son Rehoboam and pillaged the treasures of the Temple of Jerusalem and the Royal Palace. The biblical mention of Sheshonq I (called Shishak) might be the first written reference to the Amazigh, and the (approximate) year of his enthronement was adopted as “year 0” of the modern Amazigh calendar.
