HYKSOS, The name of a dynasty of Egyptian Kings, who are known also as the Shepherd Kings. Manetho, of whose annals an excerpt is preserved in Josephus, narrates that foreign conquerors from Asia took possession of Egypt who were called Hykussos. This name seems to mean 'foreign kings' (hulu-khesou); the explanation, based on the mutilated form Hyksos and interpreting sox as Egyptian skids, 'shepherd,' although attributed to Manetho, seems to have originated at a later time. Con sequently, we have in this no basis for deter mining the nationality of those foreigners, of unknown race,' as Alanetho says. Usually, his torians, following this later etymology and the insertion in Manetho ("they are said to have been Plnenicians or Arabs"). consider them as nomadic Semites. either .Arabs or Canaanites. reeently settled in Palestine. Others have sup posed them to be Turanians, thinking that they found Mongolian features on statues which were for a long time attributed to the Ilyk (us) but are now generally recognized as belonging to an earlier period. Nothing positive can be said as to the origin of this people: it is only known that the conquerors had first founded an empire in Syria (coming from the north from Asia Minor?) before conquering Egypt. This explains why many Semites came thither along with them and. later. under their rule. The date of their conquest is doubtful. From ther confused ex tracts from Manetho. they would seem to have formed Dynasties Fifteen and Sixteen, 'lasting 259 and 251 years, respectively. and would thus have begun about 2100 B.C. But Dynasty Six teen seems to he an erroneous repetition. so that only Dynasty Fifteen with six ( ?) kings re mains. and for these 250 years are eertainly too nmeh. Taking into consideration the recently discovered Sothiae date for Dynasty Twelve. not much more than a century would remain for them. and therefore the invasion of the bwreign ers ought. to be placed at about 1700 me. The reports of the cruelties and devastations, which, according to Egyptian tradition, accompanied the conquest. arc untrustworthy. In one point, however, the traditional account has been con firmed: the invaders built a strong fortress on the northeastern frontier of the delta, in the Sethroite none, called .1varis (Egyptian, 11 al ien ), and in it a strong garrison I. se cure the •onneetion betN)een the Syrian and Egyp tian provinces. The conquerors soon adapted themselves to Egyptian manners. leaving prob ably the Old administration untotwhed, and the Kings assumed Egyptian names. Three or four of these royal names have been found on the monuments. The six Kings of this dynasty were: Salatis or Saites; Boon ( possibly Kheyilit of the monuments) ; Apophis 1. or Apoehnan (hiero glyphic .Ipopi avera Apophis ( .1 popi • r- who seems to have been misplaced by Manetho and to belong to the cud of the series. after lamas and Archles (or Asses?). Perhaps these lost two
names are merely corrupt repetitions of the pre ceding. The second Apophi, reigned for at thirty-three years, as the mathematical papyrus of London written in his reign attests; for the other Kings we bare only the corrupt Manetho nian dates (nineteen. fonrtecn. thirty-nine years, etc.). These Kings resided in Memphis. Avaris, and Ileliopolis ( ?), having the Delta under t heir direct administration. and leaving the country above Memphis to tributary princes of the old nobility. This proved fatal to their do minion, for the vassal Prince of Thebes soon felt strong enough to rebel against his sovereign. A popular tale (Papyrus Saltier I.) gives a fanciful narrative of the beginning of this war. but the mutilated of the manuseript renders it difficult to decide whether the foolish arrogance of Apopi or his exaggerated zeal for his god Net is represented as the cause of the struggle. The popular idea that the Ilyk(ns)sos brought their own native god of war. Sntekh. and tried to force his exclusive NV01'5:11111 upon the Egyptians, is incorreet; this god was merely the Egyptian divinity Set (playfully written Sutekh), the local god of the capital. Avaris, who became. of course, the official patron of the Kings. but did not dispossess any other culls. The revolt against Apopi (IL") was started by the Prince of Thebes (which of the three princes of that name is doubtful). and lasted for long years. extending through the reigns of two short lived Theban princes (Kames and Snekliten-r0).
The princes of the nurses north of Thebes were annihilated in the war of as they do not seem to have the national cause. When Amosis I. (Ahmose. e 160n (ix.) ascended the throne, the Pharaohs of the foreign dynasty seem to have been almost completely expelled, but they sustained a long siege in their last stronghold..\varis. This city fell in the third or fourth year of Amasis Alimose and the sur Nit ing inhabitants Were distributed as slaves. The strange statement in Manethb that Mis pbragunithosis a i.e. 'Thoth nos (".1500 n.e.) took Avaris and allowed the remainder of the Ilyk to retire to Syria, is. of course, erroneous. No remarkable buildings of the Ilyk(us)sos Kings have survived: only traces of temple restorations in Bubastis and the modern Gebelr•n. Possibly their constructions were de stroyed after the expulsion. A considerable part of Syria seems to have been tributary to them. but the small stone lion bearing the name of .\popi found at Bagdad on the Tigris, can not he considered to prove that these monarelis ruled as far as Babylonia. The whole of this interesting portion of Egyptian history is very obscure. Consult: Koch, 11c Regibus Past oribus ( rburg, 184 4 ) ; Chabas, Les pasleu•s en Egypte 181;s) ; \\• 31. :Milner, in .11iffcilnitqcn der t•ur'der•usiitisehcuc Gesellschaft (Berlin, 1898).