Amorium was a city in Phrygia, Asia Minor which was founded in the Hellenistic period, flourished under the Byzantine Empire, and declined after the Arab attack of 838. In antiquity Phrygia (Φρυγία was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now modern-day Turkey. Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black This article focuses on the cultural aspects of the Hellenistic age for the historical aspects see Hellenistic period. Its ruins are located near the village of Hisarköy, Turkey. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches

Amorium Höyük (mound) as seen from the minaret of the village of Hisarköy

John Kallos, titular Bishop of Amorion

Amorium is the Latinized pronunciation of its name and this name seems to have hold on in a generally more prominent scope, as compared to the Ancient Greek and Byzantine Amorion, despite the city's having been important primarily in the context of Byzantine history. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Arab/Islamic sources refer to the city as Ammuriye. The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. Although an attractive idea, the name does not derive from the Latin root word of amor 'love', but is generally linked to the Proto-Indo-European ma 'mother', which leads to the conclusion that, at its foundation, the settlement was associated with the Mother Goddess cult, widespread in ancient Anatolia. A mother goddess is a Goddess, often portrayed as the Earth Mother who serves as a general Fertility deity the bountiful embodiment of the Earth. Today, Amorium's höyük (mound, tumulus) is situated by the modern Turkish village of Hisarköy, under Ottoman rule the site was called Hergen Kaleh. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches

History

Its site lies at a distance of 13 kilometers from the district center of Emirdağ, in Afyonkarahisar Province. Emirdağ is a town and district of Afyonkarahisar Province in Turkey, on the road from the city of Afyon to Eskişehir. Afyonkarahisar (also called more simply Afyon) is a province in western Turkey. Excavations on the site are currently being pursued by a team from the New York Metropolitan Museum. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile in New York City,

That the city had minted its own coins as of some time between 133 BC to 27 BC till the 3rd century AD is evidence of its maturity as a settlement and of its importance during the pre-Byzantine period as well. Year 27 BC was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Julian calendar. The 3rd century is the period from 201 to 300 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. Amorium then must have been prestigious and prosperous. But early historical records that mention the city are extremely scarce, in fact strictly limited to a reference by Strabo, although it is expected that new discoveries will shed a light to the city's Roman period and before. Strabo ( Greek: Στράβων 63/64 BC – ca AD 24 was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial It was an episcopal see (bishopric) as early as 431.

The Greek fable writer Aesop was born in Amorium; he lived from about 620 to 560 BC. Aesop (also spelled Æsop, from the Greek Αἴσωπος — Aisōpos) (620-560 BC) known only for the genre of Fables

Amorium held a key importance starting from the 7th century, with its becoming the last stronghold of defense in Central Anatolia before access to the heart of the Byzantine Empire. The 7th century is the period from 601 to 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. The city faced a full-fledged attack by the new rising power a few years after 641, the year in which the first forays of Arab raiders into the Anatolian geography had taken place. Events By Place Europe Chindaswinth deposes Tulga, and becomes king of the Visigoths. Successive Arab assaults continued for two centuries after that. In 668, the castle has been captured by the Arabs, to be recovered by the Byzantine Empire short afterwards, and the wide-scale sieges of 716 and 796 could be thwarted. Events By Place Europe Childeric II succeeds Clotaire III as King of the Franks. For the area code see Area code 716 Events By Place Byzantine Empire Theodosius III leads a revolt against Anastasius Events By Place Europe December - Coenwulf becomes king of Mercia.

In the 9th century, the city produced a ruling dynasty on the Byzantine throne, the Phrygian dynasty or Amorian dynasty. The 9th century is the period from 801 to 900 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. This is a list of the Emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire, commonly known as the Byzantine Empire by modern historians

In 838, the city went through the worst destruction in its history by Al-Mu'tasim's armies, never to recover its former importance again. Events By Place Europe At Hingston Down, Egbert of Wessex beats the Danish and the West Welsh Abu Ishaq al-Mu'tasim ibn Harun (أبو إسحاق المعتصم بن هارون ʾAbū ʾIsḥāq al-Muʿtaṣim ibn Hārūn 794 &ndash January 5, 842) was an The 838 destruction is also memorable on religious grounds, on account of the 42 notables of Amorium who had been taken as hostages and taken to Samarra (today in Iraq) and who were executed there in 845 (the 42 Martyrs of Amorium). Sāmarrā ( Arabic, سامَرّاء) is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. Events March 28 — Paris is sacked by Viking raiders probably under Ragnar Lodbrok, who collect a huge ransom in exchange

It is a titular see of the Catholic Church. A titular see in the Roman Catholic Church is a Diocese or Archdiocese that now exists in title only

Sources and external links

(incomplete)

• This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913. The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia [1]
• Excavations in Amorium
• Bishop John explores Turkish Amorion roots (article from St.Augustine Record)