Osroene

Osroene, also spelled Osrohene and Osrhoene (Ancient Greek: Ὁσροηνή; Syriac: ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܒܝܬ ܥܸܣܪܐ ܥܝܢܐ Malkuṯā d-Bayt ʿŌsrā ʿĪnē) and sometimes known by the name of its capital city, Edessa (modern Şanlıurfa, Turkey), was a historical kingdom located in upper Mesopotamia, which enjoyed semi-autonomy to complete independence from the years of 132 BC to AD 244. It was a Syriac-speaking kingdom.

Osroene, or Edessa, acquired independence from the collapsing Seleucid Empire through a dynasty of the nomadic Nabatean tribe called Orrhoei from 136 BC. The name Osroene is derived from Osroes of Orhai, a Nabatean sheik who in 120 BC wrested control of this region from the Seleucids in Syria. Most of the kings of Osroene are called Abgar or Manu and they were Syriac kings who settled in urban centers. Under its Nabatean dynasties, Osroëne became increasingly influenced by Aramaic culture and was a centre of national reaction against Hellenism. By the 5th century, Edessa had become the headquarters of Syriac literature and learning. In 608, Osroëne was taken by the Sāsānid Khosrow II, and in 638 it fell to the Muslims.

The kingdom's area, the upper course of the Euphrates, became a traditional battleground for the powers that ruled Asia Minor, Persia, Syria, and Armenia. On the dissolution of Seleucid Empire, it was divided between Rome and Parthia. At this time Osrhoene was within Parthian suzerainty. However, the Romans later made several attempts to recover the region.

Read more about Osroene:  History, Osroene in Roman Sources, Rulers of Osroene