Mariamne is a name frequently used in the Herodian royal house. In

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

it is spelled Μαριάμη (Mariame) by

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...

; in some editions of his work the second ''m'' is doubled (Mariamme). In later copies of those editions the spelling was dissimilated to its now most common form, Mariamne. In

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

, Mariamne is known as מִרְיָם, (Miriam), as in the

Biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

name (see

Miriam Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tor ...

, the sister of

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

and

Aaron According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...

); Mariamne is the

Hellenized Hellenization (other British spelling Hellenisation) or Hellenism is the adoption of Greek culture, religion, language and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period, colonization often led to the Hellenization of indigenous peoples; in the ...

version of the Hebrew, as

Koine Greek Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...

was a common language in the late Hasmonean era in

Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous L ...

(together with

Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...

), where both Mariamnes lived. For

Gnostic Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

readers Mariamne is also recognized as possibly being

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cru ...

. François Bovon, professor of the history of religion at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, has theorized based on his study of the

Acts of Philip The Greek ''Acts of Philip'' (''Acta Philippi'') is an episodic gnostic apocryphal book of acts from the mid-to-late fourth century, originally in fifteen separate ''acta'', that gives an accounting of the miraculous acts performed by the Apostle P ...

(which describes the

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

as the brother of "Mariamne" or "Mariamme") that Mariamene, or Mariamne, was the actual name of Mary Magdalene. Mary/Mariam was a common name in 1st century Israel, however, not all Marys or Mariams would go by the name Mariamne. Nicknames were often used to distinguish between those with common names (Mary, Joseph, etc.). Holders include: *

Mariamne (second wife of Herod) Mariamne I (died 29 BCE), also called Mariamne the Hasmonean, was a Hasmonean dynasty, Hasmonean princess and the second wife of Herod the Great. She was known for her great beauty, as was her brother Aristobulus III of Judea, Aristobulus III. ...

, a.k.a. Mariamne I *

Mariamne (third wife of Herod) Mariamne II was the third wife of Herod the Great. She was the daughter of Simon Boethus the High Priest. Josephus recounts their wedding thus: There was one Simon, a citizen of Jerusalem, the son of one Boethus, a citizen of Alexandria, and ...

, a.k.a. Mariamne II *

Mariamne III Mariamne III was a daughter of Aristobulus IV and Berenice. She had three brothers, Herod of Chalcis, Herod Agrippa I, and Aristobulus V, and one sister, Herodias. Some time after the death of her father in 7 BCE, Mariamne III was betrothed t ...

, sister of

Herodias Herodias ( el, Ἡρῳδιάς, ''Hērǭdiás''; ''c.'' 15 BC – after AD 39) was a princess of the Herodian dynasty of Judaea during the time of the Roman Empire. Christian writings connect her with John the Baptist's execution. Family relat ...

Mariamne (daughter of Herod Agrippa I) Mariamne (born 34 or 35) was a daughter of King Herod Agrippa I and Cypros. She was betrothed by her father to Julius Archelaus, son of Chelcias (maybe Hilkiya in Hebrew who was a friend and an officer at the court), but this marriage had ...

, a daughter of

Agrippa I Herod Agrippa (Roman name Marcus Julius Agrippa; born around 11–10 BC – in Caesarea), also known as Herod II or Agrippa I (), was a grandson of Herod the Great and King of Judea from AD 41 to 44. He was the father of Herod Agrippa II, the l ...

. *

Mariamne Mariamne is a name frequently used in the Herodian royal house. In Greek it is spelled Μαριάμη (Mariame) by Josephus; in some editions of his work the second ''m'' is doubled (Mariamme). In later copies of those editions the spelling was ...

the sister of the

Apostle Philip Philip the Apostle ( el, Φίλιππος; Aramaic: ܦܝܠܝܦܘܣ; cop, ⲫⲓⲗⲓⲡⲡⲟⲥ, ''Philippos'') was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Later Christian traditions describe Philip as the apostle ...

Olivia Mariamne Devenish Olivia Mariamne Devenish (16 February 1771 – 26 November 1814) was the spouse of Sir Stamford Raffles, vice governor of Java (1811–1816) from 1805 to 1814. A monument was erected to her memory in the botanical garden of Buitenzorg (Bogor ...

(1771–1814), British socialite *

Mariamne Johnes Mariamne Johnes (30 June 1784 – 4 July 1811) was the only daughter of Thomas Johnes of Hafod Uchtryd in mid Wales. She was a talented botanist and a friend and regular correspondent of the English botanist Sir James Edward Smith. She suffered w ...

(1784-1811), daughter of Thomas Johnes, Hafod, Wales

See also