Kandake Amanirenas: Rēgīna Nubiae
Available from Amazon.
Reading level
The blurb on the back cover states that this novella is for "intermediate-mid and above" readers, and the author’s introduction states that it is intended for students in their second or third year of study. Comprehensible Antiquity puts this novella at Level F.
Diverse & Multicultural Identities
For information about how representation of multicultural and diverse identities is analyzed in LNDb, see here.Parallel cultures
The story centers on a parallel culture: it is told from the perspective of the queen of Nubia and her people, with the Romans as outsiders. The fact that all the non-Roman characters are people of color is also significant.Gender
Features one cis female main character (Amanirena). Features no cis male main characters or transgender main characters.Sexual identity
Features a depiction of heterosexual identity: Amanirena is married to a man, the king of Nubia, whose death early in the story makes her queen regnant.SES/class
No depictions identified.Religion
Features depictions of Nubian and Egyptian religion. Upon seeing a statue of Augustus set up in the temple of Isis, Amanirena orders the statue to be destroyed and its head cut off. The head is brought back into Nubia, where it is offered to the Nubian gods. (This head is the famous "Meroe head" on display in the British Museum.)Disability
Late in the story, Amanirena experiences a partial loss of sight when a Roman soldier cuts out one of her eyes. Her disability is described as not hindering her qualities as a leader: "Quod Rōmānus mīles oculum tēlō secāverat, Amanirena solum ūnum oculum habēbat. Amanirena nōn aegra erat. Nōn perterrita erat. Quamquam ūnum oculum habēbat, fortis et audāx mīles in proeliō fuerat et erat." Though her disability is not mentioned any further than these sentences, there are so few novellas that feature disability that this instance bears mentioning.Language Statistics
Vocabulary
Word List
A complete word list for Kandake Amanirenas: Rēgīna Nubiae can be found here.
Glosses
This novella contains glosses in the form of footnotes with English translations.
Of the 158 unique words (not counting proper nouns) used in the text, 31 of them (19.6%) are glossed at their first appearance in the text. Of the 2966 total words in the text, 141 of them (4.8%) are glossed.
Of the 158 unique words (not counting proper nouns) used in the text, 31 of them (19.6%) are glossed at their first appearance in the text. Of the 2966 total words in the text, 141 of them (4.8%) are glossed.
Glossary
This novella contains a Latin-English glossary, with every form of each word listed separately and grouped under a single definition. The glossary is complete; save for a few minor oversights, every word is included.
Syntax
Summary
Genre & Sources
This novella is in the genre of historical (Classical).
It is an adaptation of the story of Amanirena, queen of Nubia in the late first century BCE. The details of the attempted Roman conquest of Nubia and the resistance of Amanirena are found in Strabo (17.53–54), Cassius Dio (54.5), and, in less detail, Pliny the Elder (6.181, 186). The author also notes that it may be good preparation for reading Caesar.
It is an adaptation of the story of Amanirena, queen of Nubia in the late first century BCE. The details of the attempted Roman conquest of Nubia and the resistance of Amanirena are found in Strabo (17.53–54), Cassius Dio (54.5), and, in less detail, Pliny the Elder (6.181, 186). The author also notes that it may be good preparation for reading Caesar.
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Amanirena, a good leader in both war and peace, becomes queen of Nubia at the death of her husband. Augustus captures Egypt and wishes to extend the boundaries of the empire southward into Nubia. He sends an envoy from Egypt into Arabia Felix, but the Romans, stricken by the arid conditions, are defeated there. Meanwhile, Amanirena, hearing that the envoy is away from Egypt, attacks and captures two Roman-occupied cities. She sees a statue of Augustus that the Romans had put in the Temple of Isis, and orders the head of the statue to be removed. A Roman soldier, seeing the destruction of the statue, cuts out Amanirena's eye. Amanirena brings the statue head back to Nubia and buries it underneath the steps of a temple there as an offering to the Nubian gods. Meanwhile, Augustus sends a new envoy, who retakes the two Egyptian cities and attacks a Nubian city. The Romans defeat the Nubians and kill Amanirena's son in the battle. The Romans enter Nubian territory and build a garrison there. After negotiations, both the Romans and Nubians agree to a treaty, but it is seen as a victory by both—the Romans extended their territory, and the Nubians were not forced to pay tribute.
First 100 Words
Underlined words are glossed in the text. See also the preview found on Amazon.Nōn solum Aegyptus sed etiam Nūbia erant in Africā. Nūbae in merīdiem spectant. In Nūbiā sōl erat calidus sed calidissimus!
Teriqetas, rēx magnus et fortis, Nūbiam rēgnābat. Teriqetas marītus Amanirenae erat.
Amanirena erat rēgīna sapiēns. Nūbae magnam pecūniam habēbant quod Amanirena cōnsilia magna capiēbat. Amanirena mīles fortis et audāx erat quod mīlitēs in proelium ducēbat et multōs hostēs necābat.
Teriqetas perterritus erat quod Rōmānī fortiōrēs et fortiōrēs erant. Rōmānī in septentriōnēs spectant. Imperātor Rōmānus, Augustus, Aegyptum cēperat. Teriqetas audīvit imperātōrem Nūbiam capere velle.
Amanirena magna nōn erat quod fēmina erat. Amanirena magna nōn erat quod rēgīna erat. Fuerant multae rēgīnae in Nūbiā. …
Supplementary Materials
If you have resources for Kandake Amanirenas and would like to share them on LNDb, please contact me.Presentation
| Illustrations? | no |
| Illustrator | N/A |
| Macrons? | yes |
| Font | Calibri, 15 pt |
| Pages of story | 61 |
| Total pages | 76 |
| Chapters | 12 |
Key Information
| Publication date | February 8, 2020 |
| Publisher | Independently published |
| ISBN | 8602567236 |
| ISBN-13 | 979-8602567236 |
