WʽZB
WʽZB (vocalized as Waʽzeb) or Ella Gabaz was a king of Axum (flourished mid 6th century). He uses the name "Ella Gabaz" on his coinage, but calls himself WʽZB in an inscription where he states he is the "son of Ella Atsbeha", or king Kaleb.[1]
| WʽZB | |
|---|---|
 | |
| King of Aksum | |
| Predecessor | Wazena |
| Successor | Ioel |
In his discussion of this king, Stuart Munro-Hay draws on material from the story of Abba Libanos, the "Apostle of Eritrea", in which a king named "Za-Gabaza Aksum" is mentioned, to suggest that Ella Gabaz and Za-Gabaza might be epithets WʽZB adopted, and indicate that he did some important construction on Mariam Syon (or Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion) in Axum.[2]
Notes
- A translation of this inscription by Richard Pankhurst is included in G.W.B. Huntingford, The Historical Geography of Ethiopia (London: The British Academy, 1989), pp. 65f.
- Munro-Hay, Aksum: An African Civilization of Late Antiquity (Edinburgh: University Press, 1991), p. 89.
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