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ANAH
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ANAH , or `See also:ANA, a See also:town on the See also:Euphrates, about See also:mid-way between the Gulf of See also:Alexandretta and the See also:Persian Gulf. It is called Ijanat in a Babylonian See also:letter (about 2200 B.c.), and An-at by the See also:scribe of See also:Assur-nasir-See also:pal (879 B.C.), 'AvaOw (Isidore Charax), Anatha (See also:Ammianus See also:Marcellinus) by See also:Greek and Latin writers in the See also:early See also:Christian centuries, `ANA (sometimes, as if plural, 'Anat) by Arabic writers. The name has been connected with that of the deity Anat. Whilst 'Ana has thus retained its name for See also:forty-one centuries the site is variously described. Most early writers concur in placing it on an See also:island; so Assurnasir-pal, Isidore, Ammianus Marcellinus, See also:Ibn See also:Serapion, al-Istakri, See also:Abulfeda and al-Karamani. Ammianus (See also:lib. 24, c. 2) calls it a munimentum, Theophylactus See also:Simocatta (iv. ro, v. 1, 2) ro'AvaOwv ¢pobpeov, See also:Zosimus (iii. 14) a 4pobptov, opp. 4aOu?al, which may be the Be6(0)tva of See also:Ptolemy (v. 19).1 Leonhart Rauwolff, in A.D. 1574, found it " divided . . . into two towns," the one " See also:Turkish," " so surrounded by the See also:river, that you cannot go into it but by boats," the other, much larger, on the Arabian See also:side of the river .2 G. A. See also:Olivier in the beginning of the 19th See also:century describes it as a See also:long See also:street (5 or 6 m. long), parallel to the right See also:bank of the Euphrates—some 100 yards from the See also:water's edge and 300 to 400 paces from the rocky barrier of the Arabian desert—with, over against its See also:lower See also:part, an island bearing at its See also:north end the ruins of a fortress (p. 451). This southernmost town of See also:Mesopotamia proper (Gezira) must have shared the chequered See also:history of that See also:land (see MESOPOTAMIA). Of 'Ana's fortunes under the early Babylonian See also:empire the records have not yet been unearthed; but in a letter dating from the third See also:millennium B.C., six men of Hanat (Ha-na-atIi1) are mentioned in a statement as to certain disturbances which had occurred in the See also:sphere of the Babylonian See also:Resident of Subi, which would include the See also:district of 'Ana. How 'Ana fared at the hands of the Mitanni and others is unknown. The See also:suggestion that Amenophis (Amenbotep) I. (16th century B.C.) refers to it is improbable; but we seem to be justified in holding 'Ana to be the town " in the See also:middle of the Euphrates " opposite (ina put) to which Assur-nasir-pal halted in his See also:campaign of 879 B.C. The supposed reference to 'Ana in the speech put into the mouth of See also:Sennacherib's messengers to See also:Hezekiah (2 See also:Kings xix. 13, s. See also:xxxvii. 13) is exceedingly improbable. The town may be mentioned, however, in four 7th century documents edited by C. H. W. Johns? It was at 'Ana that the See also:emperor See also:Julian met the first opposition on his disastrous expedition against See also:Persia (363), when he got See also:possession of the See also:place and transported the See also:people; and there that Ziyad and Shureib with the advanced guard of 'See also:Ali's See also:army were refused passage across the Euphrates (36/657) to join 'Ali in Mesopotamia (See also:Tabari i. 3261). Later 'Ana was the place of See also:exile of the See also:caliph Qaim (al-Qairn bi-amr-illah) when Basisiri was in See also:power (450/1058). In the 14th century 'Ana was the seat of a Catholicos, See also:primate of the Persians (Marin See also:Sanuto). In 1610 Della See also:Valle found a See also:Scot, See also:George Strachau, resident at 'Ana (to study Arabic) as physician to the See also:amir (i. 671-681). In 1835 the steamer " See also:Tigris " of the See also:English Euphrates expedition went down in a See also:hurricane just above 'Ana, near where Julian's force had`suffered from a similar See also:storm. Della Valle described 'Ana as the See also:chief Arab town on the Euphrates, an importance which it owes to its position on one of the routes from The See also:west to See also:Bagdad; Texeira said that the power of its amir extended to See also:Palmyra (early 17th century); but Olivier found the ruling See also:prince with only twenty-five men in his service, the town becoming more depopulated every See also:day from lack of See also:protection from the See also:Arabs of the See also:desert. Von See also:Oppenheim (1893) reported that Turkish troops having been recently stationed at the place, it had no longer to pay See also:blackmail (huwwa) Steph. Byz. (sub Tbpor) says that See also:Arrian calls Anatha Tippos. s Texeira (161o) says that "See also:Anna" See also:lay on both See also:banks of the river, and so Della Valle (i. 671). ' See also:Ass. Deeds and Doc. nos. 23, 168, 228, 385. The characters used are DIS TU, which may mean Ana-tu.to the Arabs. F. R. See also:Chesney reported some 1800 houses, 2 mosques and 16 water-wheels; W. F. See also:Ainsworth (1835) reported the Arabs as inhabiting the N.W. part of the town, the Christians the centre, and the See also:Jews the S.E.; Della Valle (161o) found some See also:sun-worshippers still there. See also:Modern `Ana lies from W. to E. on the right bank along a See also:bend of the river just before it turns S. towards See also:Hit, and presents an attractive See also:appearance. It extends, chiefly as a single street, for several See also:miles along a narrow See also:strip of land between the river and a See also:ridge of rocky hills._ The houses are separated from one another by See also:fruit gardens. `na marks the boundary between the See also:olive (N.) and the date (S.). Arab poets celebrated its See also:wine (Yaqut, iii. 593 f.), and Mustaufi (8/14th century) tells of the fame of its See also:palm-groves. In the river, facing the town, is a See also:succession of equally productive islands. The most easterly contains the ruins of the old See also:castle, whilst the remains of the See also:ancient Anatho extend from this island for about 2 M. down the See also:left bank. Coarse See also:cloth is almost the only manufacture. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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