History of the Sovereigns

History of the Sovereigns is a historical work by Faraset ra Renazhiq.

Full Text: English Translation
Farah ro Tesan lists the first sovereign rule as Xedou and his wife Shemelou, but there are no histories elsewhere with a woman named Shemelou. But I do not think that Shemelou is Xedou’s wife. Older records name her Shuraa where they name her at all. Furthermore, Xhemi is said to be the mother of Shiemela, who is Shemelou, who is in a younger generation than Xedou. Some say she is Shiela, but Shiela is the daughter of Xedou by the Taranham account, and the granddaughter later in the Tesan’s same text. So this cannot be the case. Maybe Farah is in error because he assumes that Xedou and Sataar are two different people, which is a mistake that no one should have made, especially not a historian as famous as he is. All other accounts make it clear the first Xedou, Xedou, is ra’Xedou Shataar. This means that he made a mistake about Shemelou, and Shemelou is not the sovereign with Xedou, but that Xedou was married to Shuraa Xedoshurah. So the first sovereigns are Xedou ra Sataar and Shaa Xedou ra Shuraa. They ruled NS 1 to 46, and then it passed on to their son.

Some historians think that the son of Sataar, Xhemi, ruled next, rather than Sataar the Second taking the sovereignty. They use Farah ro Tesan to argue this idea, quoting him: “The second generation of the Xedouhum: Xhemi first offspring of Xedou and Shemelou, who some think is da Shiela; her brother Sataar, who became sovereign. They ruled nine years, and then nine more, and then the rule fell to the Xedouhum son.”  Historians think that “then nine more” means a new sovereignty rule was begun. Who was that? The Taranham author says a woman by the name of Rashurah da Shiela ruled between Sataar the First and Sataar the Second. But this could mean she ruled first and then married Sataar, and it is not a separate reign. The name Shiela also is not Xhemi, but rather the daughter of Xedou, and the only record mentioning a “Xhemi daq Shiela” lists her as a noble relative within the Xedou family, not a queen. So Xhemi daq Shiela is not Xhemi daughter of Xedou, and Shiela is a different daughter of Xedou who may have taken the name Rashurah, but it is assured that Xhemi never ruled. Since other accounts do not mention Rashurah, it is best to assume she did not rule, either. Why then say “they ruled nine years, and then nine more”? Because the rule of Sataar the Second was eighteen years, and the first nine years were drastically different in quality than the last nine years. This is because they entered a war in the last nine years.

Sataar the Second ruled after Sataar the First. Now Farah says Sataar the Second bore two sons, Raentak and Raatuk – that is, Renaq and Ratak, the twins. This much is clear. What is not clear is whether or not Xedou ra Raentak ruled as one of the sovereigns, or if he was skipped in the lineage. The most ancient accounts by the Taranham author and the author of the Direct Lineage do not mention Raentak. However, some say that Raqxedou, who is mentioned in the Direct Lineage account, is Raentak, because Renaq’s name would have been written in the ancient language as ra’Xedou Renaq, or Renaqxedou, which could have been shortened to Raqxedou. This could mean that Raentak became sovereign and ruled jointly with his wife, who by the Direct Lineage account is Daqxedou. Some people remark that this name is similar to Daqiy, daughter of ra’Xedou, and that the Direct Lineage account even says that the sovereign is a granddaughter of Xedou; but it is better to postulate Daqxedou is a separate, younger woman. Others note that Farah also listed Raqxedou and Daqxedou, but said Daqxedou had a second husband, suggesting a daughter succeeded the sovereignty and not the son Raentak. But the mention of a second husband might be a second husband of either Daqxedou or Raentak, and because Raentak’s wife married him, they would have ruled jointly, and she would have been equally sovereign, and adopted in through marriage as Sataar’s granddaughter. So my reconstruction may not be consistent with all accounts, but it seems the best theory to equate Raentak with Reqxedou. So Sataar the First was succeeded by Sataar the Second, and Sataar the Second was succeeded by Raentak and his wife, who were formally called Reqxedou and Daqxedou after the name of their grandfather.

After Raenak it is even less certain who the ruler was. All accounts list different rulers now. Farah is unclear in the matter after Reqxedou and Daqxedou, and might or might not be suggesting that Xedou rules next. This would align with the Direct Lineage account, which mentions Xedou. But other accounts say differently. The Taranham account never mentions that Raenak rules, but still lists a joint couple Sungamaar and Shurrah Redouk; Redouk sounds like the combination of Renaq and Xhadouk, and thus is assumed to be the same man, even though no one else calls him Shurrah. This inference also means Daqxedou is the same as Sungamaar, and that after them ruled Shuredouk and Xedoutarat. Since no one else mentions Shuredouk and Xedoutarat, and Xedou is said to be the grandchild of Raatuk who rules subsequently, it is best to do the following lineage mapping: Sataar ruled first, then Sataar his son, then Raentak, then Shuredouk and Xedoutarat, and after them Xedou. Xedou chose this simple name to avoid the name changing paradigm of the time of taking on both mother and father’s surname; he chose to give his name in terms of his great sovereign lineage alone, beginning a tradition that continues uninterrupted to the present day.

Both Farah and the Direct Lineage accounts say Shuerafa is next. The Taranham only say that the next ruler is another Xedou, but that is only explaining the tradition of taking the father’s sovereign name in pride of the dynasty. The next rulers are clear: Xedou ra Shuerafa, and after him, his grandson Xedou the Second, and last in the Nomadic Period, Raentar the First.

As for the number of years, I can only make a guess, and I do not choose to do so at this present time. The numerical accounts are just as inconsistent as the names of the rulers. But for now, I believe I have made clear the full dynasty of the Nomadic Period from NS 1 to 233: Sataar the First, Sataar the Second, Raentak, Shuredouk and Xedoutarat, Xedou the First, Shuerafa, Xedou the Second, Raentar the First. And the line was unbroken through all the Nomadic Period, and indeed through all subsequent years.