SABA. - Name of a state in ancient Yemen. Mentions of S. are found in certain passages of the Old Testament: besides some genealogical notes, there is narrated the homage paid by a queen of S. to Solomon (I Kings 10:1-13; II Chron. 9:1-12). Other brief indirect information comes from Assyrian inscriptions of the 8th century B.C., which likewise report homage from Sabaean chiefs: it is probable that these concern colonies of northern Arabia. Finally, from the 3rd century B.C., the classical writers also speak of the Sabaeans and of the fabulous riches of their land ("Arabia Felix").
From the middle of the last century, the archaeological exploration of Yemen (v.), which has continued down to our own day (very recent expeditions by Albright and Ryckmans), has brought to light a series of direct sources on the ancient Sabaean state: these consist, besides monuments, of numerous inscriptions in alphabetic characters and in a Semitic language, containing especially historical and architectural information or votive and funerary dedications. The oldest documents go back to the 8th century B.C.: they present a state of a theocratic type, governed by "priest-princes" (mkrb, generally vocalized mukarrib) and made up of tribes gathered into religious communities under the patronage of their own deities; a popular assembly assists the mukarrib in legislative functions. The capital of the state is Şirwāh, later Mārib. Around the 5th century B.C. a secular regime takes over, headed by kings; the assembly persists, and special hereditary magistrates (habīr) are charged with overseeing the application of the laws among the tribes. Around 50 B.C. (according to the "low" chronology recently established, albeit with various gradations), S. absorbs the neighboring state of Qatābān, which in turn had annexed the kingdom of the Minaeans; the kings assume the title of "S. and Dū Rajdān" and move the capital to Zafār. With the enlargement of the territory, the importance of the habīr increases, as they become great landowners, while the popular assembly disappears. The predominance of the tribe of the Himyarites causes the classical sources often to call the Sabaeans (Homerites) by their name. In the 3rd century A.D. the Hadramūt too is annexed by S., which thus unifies Yemen under itself. Nevertheless the Ethiopian attacks from the opposite coast, combined with the internal discord following the introduction of Judaism and Christianity, bring about the decline of the state: after a temporary occupation in the 4th century A.D., it falls definitively under Ethiopia in 525.
The South Arabian inscriptions give indications about the religious life of the Sabaeans and in particular about their pantheon, which is headed by a lunar god (Almaqāb), a solar goddess (Sams) and a god of the star Venus ('Aṭṭar). As for art, remains of religious and civil buildings have come to light (the famous dam of Mārib), generally crude and primitive sculptures, and good products of the minor arts.
Bibliography3 works
Sabatino Moscati