Sofya (4th-century), was a queen consort and regent of the

Kingdom of Axum The Kingdom of Aksum ( gez, መንግሥተ አክሱም, ), also known as the Kingdom of Axum or the Aksumite Empire, was a kingdom centered in Northeast Africa and South Arabia from Classical antiquity to the Middle Ages. Based primarily in wha ...

. She was married to king

Ella Amida Ousanas (fl. 320) was a King of Axum. S. C. Munro-Hay believes that it is "very likely" that Ousanas is the king to whom Aedesius and Frumentius were brought. In Ethiopian tradition, this king is called Ella Allada or Ella Amida. ''Ella Amida'' wou ...

(

Ousanas Ousanas (fl. 320) was a King of Kingdom of Aksum, Axum. S. C. Munro-Hay believes that it is "very likely" that Ousanas is the king to whom Aedesius and Saint Frumentius, Frumentius were brought. In Ethiopian tradition, this king is called Ella Alla ...

). She was widowed in c. 330, and her son,

Ezana of Axum Ezana ( gez, ዔዛና ''‘Ezana'', unvocalized ዐዘነ ''‘zn''; also spelled Aezana or Aizan) was ruler of the Kingdom of Axum, an ancient kingdom located in what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia. (320s – c. 360 AD). He himself employed the ...

, succeeded her dead husband as king. As her son was still a child upon his succession, she ruled as regent during his minority. The official chronicle of the Ethiopian monarchy from 1922 lists Sofya as a reigning monarch in her own right named "Ahywa Sofya", who ruled by herself from 299 to 306 (c. 306–313 on the

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...

). Archeological evidence for a sole reign of Soyfa is lacking however. This king list claims she was the mother of

Abreha and Atsbeha Abreha and Atsbeha were brothers and Aksumite rulers who were said to have adopted Christianity in the 4th-century, although this claim is dubious. The story of Abreha and Atsbeha is lifted from that of the historical personages King Ezana and hi ...

, who are credited with introducing Christianity to Ethiopia. The king list additionally claims that

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

came to Ethiopia in 327 during a "joint" rule between Sofya and "Abreha Atsbeha". In reality it was

Ezana Ezana ( gez, ዔዛና ''‘Ezana'', unvocalized ዐዘነ ''‘zn''; also spelled Aezana or Aizan) was ruler of the Kingdom of Axum, an ancient kingdom located in what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia. (320s – c. 360 AD). He himself employed the ...

who was the first Christian king of Axum and it has been suggested by some historians that he was a partial inspiration for the legend of Abreha and Atsbeha. The king list thus merges some historical facts with myths by acknowledging Sofya's period of rule in early 4th century but does not mention Ezana until 180 years later under the name "Pazena Ezana". Sofya's husband may appear on the list as the king named "Alameda" that reigned directly before Ezana, although archeologist E. A. Wallis Budge believed this to be a different king named

Alla Amidas Alla Amidas (c. 540) was a King of the Kingdom of Aksum. He is primarily known from the coins minted during his reign. Due to die-links between the coins of Alla Amidas and Kaleb, Munro-Hay suggests that the two kings were co-rulers. Alla Amidas ...

. A monarch named "Ahywa" is listed on some king lists reigning directly before

. A manuscript held in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

as well as a king list recorded by Egyptologist Henry Salt in 1814 both mention a monarch called "Ahywa" who reigned for 3 years, although neither specify the gender of this ruler. The same manuscript additionally claims that the mother of Abreha and Atsbeha was a woman named Eguala Anbasa, who may be the same woman as Sofya but under a different name.

References

{{Reflist Aksumite Empire people 4th-century women rulers 4th-century rulers Regents