In speaking of the history of the country, we may include what is known of its chronology, since this is no more than the order in which kings reigned. Until the time of the t2th dynasty of Egypt, we have neither chronology nor history of Ethiopia. We can only speculate upon the earlier conditions of the country, with the aid of softie in dications in the Bible. The first spread of the descendants of Cush seems to be indicated by the order in which the Cushite tribes, families, or heads are enumerated in Gen. x. All the names, except ing Nimrod, might be thought to indicate a colo nization of southern and eastern Arabia, were there not good reason to suppose that Seba, though else where mentioned with Sheba (Ps. lxxii. to), is con nected with Ethiopia, and is probably the Hebrew name of the chief Ethiopian kingdom from the time of Solomon downwards.* If this be the case, it would be remarkable that Nimrod is mentioned at the end of the list and Seba at the beginning, while the intervening names, most if not ali, are Arabian. This distribution may ac count for the strongly-Caucasian type of the Abys sinians, and the greater indication of Nigritian in fluence in all the other Ethiopian races, for a curve drawn from Nimrod's first kingdom,—there can, we think, be little doubt, that the meaning in Genesis is, that he went northward and founded Nineveh,—and extending along the south Arabian coast, if carried into Africa, would first touch Abyssinia. The connection of southern Arabia and Abyssinia has been so strong for about two thousand years, that we must admit the reasonable ness of this theory of their ancient colonization by kindred tribes. The curious question of the direction from which Egyptian civilization came cannot be here discussed. It is possible that it may have descended the Nile, as was, until lately, supposed by many critics, in accordance with statements of the Greek writers. The idea or tradition on which these writers probably build may be due to the Nigritian origin of the low nature-worship of the old Egyptian religion, and perhaps, so far as it is picture-writing, of the hiero glyphic system, of which the characters are some times called Ethiopic letters by ancient writers.
Under the 12th dynasty we find the first mate rials for a history of Ethiopia. In these days Nubia seems to have been thoroughly Egyp tianized as far as beyond the Second Cataract, but we have no indication of the existence at that time in Ethiopia of any race hut the Egyptian. We find an allusion to the Negroes in the time be tween the tzth dynasty and the 18th, in the name of a king of that period, which reads RA ?-NEHSEE, or the Sun ? of the Negroes,' rather than the Negro Sun ?' (Turin Papyrus of Kings, ap. Lep sius Kiinigsbuch, pl. xviii. 197 ; xix. 278). The word NEIISEE is the constant designation of the Negro race in hieroglyphics.
Before passing on to the beginning of the 18th dynasty, when the Egyptian empire commenced, * josephus, it should he remarked, calls Mero Saba (Antig. ii. to. 2) : in his time the city and island of Meroe were more famous than any other city and territory of Ethiopia above Egypt, so that his intention is perhaps to indicate Ethiopia gene rally. Seba of Cush he calls Sabas (Ibid i. 6. 2).
we may notice two possible references to the Ethio pians in connection with the Exodus, for that event is placed either before or during the period of the empire, and we incline to the former opinion. In
Is. xliii., which, though relating to the future, also speaks of the past, and especially mentions or alludes to the passage of the Red Sea (see particu larly ver. 16, 17), Ethiopia is thus apparently con nected with the Exodus : I gave Egypt [for] thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee' (vcr. 3). It can scarcely be supposed that this is an emphatic re lation of future events, and it is difficult to connect it with any other known past event, as the conquest of Egypt by Sennacherib, which may have already occurred. If this passage refer to the Exodus, it would seem to favour the idea that the Israelites went out during the empire, for then Ethiopia was ruled by Egypt, and would have been injured by the calamities that befel that country. In Amos there is a passage that may possibly connect the Ethiopians with the Exodus : [Are] ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, 0 children of Israel ? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt ? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir ' (ix. 7) ? But the meaning may be that the Israelites were no better than the idolatrous people of Cush.
At the beginning of the 18th dynasty we find the Egyptians making expeditions into Ethiopia, no doubt into its further regions, and bringing back slaves. At this time the Egyptians seem to have intermarried with people of Ethiopia, probably of the intermediate race, darker than the Egyptians, but not of the Negro race. One of the wives of Kahmes, or Amosis, the first king of the i8th dynasty, is represented as black, though not with Negro features. A later sovereign of the same dynasty, Amenoph III., is seen by his statues to have been partly Ethiopian, and this may have been one cause of his identification by the Greeks with Memnon. During this and the dynasty which succeeded it, the r9th, we have no proof that the regularly-governed Egyptian dominions extended beyond Napata ; but it is probable that they reached a little beyond the junction of the White and Blue Niles. There can be no doubt that Ethiopia remained subject to Egypt as late as the reign of Rameses VI., soon after whom the empire may be said to have closed, having lasted three centuries from the beginning of the ISth dynasty. Under the empire, Ethiopia, or at least the civilized portion, was ruled by a governor, who bore the title, SUTEN-SA-EN-KEESH, Prince,' lite rally Royal son"of Cush,' etc. The office does not seem to have been hereditary at any time, nor is it known to have been held by a son of the reigning king, or any member of the royal family.
After the reign of Rameses VI., the feebleness of the later Theban kings may have led to the loss of Ethiopia, and we know that in Solomon's time there was a kingdom of Seba. Shishak, the first king of the 22d dynasty, probably made Ethio pia tributary. When this king, the Sheshenk I. of the monuments, invaded the kingdom of Judah, he had in his army the Lubim, the Sukkiim, and the Cushim' (2 Chron. xii. 13). The Lubim are a people of northern Africa, near Egypt, and the Sukkiim are of doubtful place. The indications are of an extensive dominion in Africa, for though the Lubim and Sukkiim may have been merce naries, it is unlikely that the Cushim were also.