Axum's King Ezana: The Conversion That Changed East Africa

In this episode of The Kingdom of Axum: Rome's Forgotten African Rival, Lucas and Luna explore the dramatic reign of King Ezana, the fourth-century Aksumite ruler who converted to Christianity and transformed his empire. They discuss Ezana's early coins stamped with the pagan crescent and disc, his sudden shift to coins bearing the cross, and the geopolitical context of the conversion—how the Roman Empire under Constantine, the Patriarchate of Alexandria, and the young bishop Frumentius (known in Ge'ez as Abba Selama, 'Father of Peace') all played a role. Lucas explains the intriguing evidence from Ezana's trilingual inscriptions in Ge'ez, Sabaic, and Greek, which show a shift from invoking the gods Mahrem, Astar, and Beher to praising 'the Lord of heaven and earth.' They also touch on the controversy: was Ezana's conversion genuine or politically motivated? And what about the competing tradition that a Syrian missionary named Frumentius arrived earlier? Along the way, they discuss the impact on Aksumite identity, the end of pagan temple worship, and the legacy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. A Fexingo History podcast. #Axum #Ezana #Christianity #EthiopianOrthodox #Frumentius #AksumiteCoinage #Ge'ez #Mahrem #Sabaic #MonumentumAdulitanum #Constantine #Alexandria #4thCentury #AfricanHistory #EastAfrica #Coinage #Conversion #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo