The Tribes and Kingdoms of Arabia

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The Minaeans were a people divided into groups lead by a Kabir (lit. Great/Big). These people inhabited the lands of Northern Yemen and made their money off the incense road, little is known about their warrior traditions but it can be assumed they follow after the Sabaeans due to the heavy influence Saba has had on their linguistics and culture. The Minaeans were a people divided into groups lead by a Kabir (lit. Great/Big). These people inhabited the lands of Northern Yemen and made their money off the incense road, little is known about their warrior traditions but it can be assumed they follow after the Sabaeans due to the heavy influence Saba has had on their linguistics and culture.

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The Bible speaks of the Qedarites skills as archers in Isaiah 21:16-17 stating "Within one year, as a servant bound by countract would count it, all the splendors of Kedar will come to an end. The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few." the bible also attributes the lands of the Qedarites (Qidri) as being in Arabia.



The Qedarites were the first Arab confederacy to be recorded history, king Gashmu the Arab (Biblical Hebrew "Geshem haAravi") is identified as a king of Qedar in North Arabian inscriptions, he is the biblical opponent of Nehemiah.



The tribes of Qedar are expert raiders having been in conflict with the Assyrians since the 9-8th century BC and all their neighbors up until the Romans landed in Arab territory.

Qedarites trade in livestock, according to the Bible and trade their lineage to the son of Ishmael, Kedar. The Bible speaks of the Qedarites skills as archers in Isaiah 21:16-17 stating "Within one year, as a servant bound by countract would count it, all the splendors of Kedar will come to an end. The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few." the bible also attributes the lands of the Qedarites (Qidri) as being in Arabia.The Qedarites were the first Arab confederacy to be recorded history, king Gashmu the Arab (Biblical Hebrew "Geshem haAravi") is identified as a king of Qedar in North Arabian inscriptions, he is the biblical opponent of Nehemiah.The tribes of Qedar are expert raiders having been in conflict with the Assyrians since the 9-8th century BC and all their neighbors up until the Romans landed in Arab territory.Qedarites trade in livestock, according to the Bible and trade their lineage to the son of Ishmael, Kedar.

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The land of Oman has flourished as a trading hub since the time of Sumer, the city of Masqat imports spices and incense from India then sells it off in Syria and Alexandria in Egypt, very little is known about these people other than they are the gateway to trade between India and the Mediterranean world. The land of Oman has flourished as a trading hub since the time of Sumer, the city of Masqat imports spices and incense from India then sells it off in Syria and Alexandria in Egypt, very little is known about these people other than they are the gateway to trade between India and the Mediterranean world.

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The Nabataeans settled into Edom following the flight of it's original inhabitants, these Bedouin people created a complex irrigation system and under them the cliff city of Petra flourished as a centre for commerce in the ancient world.



Nabataean merchants told tales of extreme lengths went through to get their products so as to add value of them, tales of snake armies and shark gods echoed the cliffs of Petra as they hustled their spice and incense through to Egypt and Syria. The Nabataeans settled into Edom following the flight of it's original inhabitants, these Bedouin people created a complex irrigation system and under them the cliff city of Petra flourished as a centre for commerce in the ancient world.Nabataean merchants told tales of extreme lengths went through to get their products so as to add value of them, tales of snake armies and shark gods echoed the cliffs of Petra as they hustled their spice and incense through to Egypt and Syria.

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The Hagarites claim to be descendant from the mother of Ishmael, Hagar and settled in the coast of Bahrain (at the time East Arabia).

Their population has elements of Chaldeans (Kaldanin) whom fled Babylon into Bahrain following the arrival of Darius I.



The people of Gerrha are skilled in tools and the art of fishing, their docks repair ships form up and down the Arabian Sea as well as serve as a hub for spice trading. The Hagarites claim to be descendant from the mother of Ishmael, Hagar and settled in the coast of Bahrain (at the time East Arabia).Their population has elements of Chaldeans (Kaldanin) whom fled Babylon into Bahrain following the arrival of Darius I.The people of Gerrha are skilled in tools and the art of fishing, their docks repair ships form up and down the Arabian Sea as well as serve as a hub for spice trading.

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The Himyarites can trace their descendants to Ishmael and the Qahtanites via Kedar through Qahtan bin Tayman bin Qedar bin Isma'il 'ibn Ibrahim.



With strong ties to Ethiopia the Himyarites inhabit the westernmost point of South Arabia with their capital in Dhofar they would go on to be one of the most prominent tribes up until the 7th Century AD.



The Himyarites are renowned for their skills as hunters and like most South Arabians they trade in frankincense and myrrh with Damascus and Alexandria. The Himyarites can trace their descendants to Ishmael and the Qahtanites via Kedar through Qahtan bin Tayman bin Qedar bin Isma'il 'ibn Ibrahim.With strong ties to Ethiopia the Himyarites inhabit the westernmost point of South Arabia with their capital in Dhofar they would go on to be one of the most prominent tribes up until the 7th Century AD.The Himyarites are renowned for their skills as hunters and like most South Arabians they trade in frankincense and myrrh with Damascus and Alexandria.

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The Sabaeans are one of the most prominent south Arabian civilizations in documented history, appearing in both the Quran ('Qawm Saba') and the Bible ('Sheba') the Sabaeans were a confederation of sorts whom commanded the Sayhad desert strip in Yemen, their capital in Ma'rib was irrigated via the grand Ma'rib Dam and their income like other south Arabians came mostly from frankincense trade through India and the Mediterranean. The Sabaeans are one of the most prominent south Arabian civilizations in documented history, appearing in both the Quran ('Qawm Saba') and the Bible ('Sheba') the Sabaeans were a confederation of sorts whom commanded the Sayhad desert strip in Yemen, their capital in Ma'rib was irrigated via the grand Ma'rib Dam and their income like other south Arabians came mostly from frankincense trade through India and the Mediterranean.

He was particularly impressed by the prices of South Arabian goods and complained bitterly about Greece's trade deficit (100 million sesterces). Consequently, the Romans looked upon the riches of southern Arabia with envy.

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Named "Istratyata" from the Greek "Stratiotes" appropriated into Aramaic and drawn from the sedentary urban population and the surrounding bedouin tribes levies made up the bulk of all Arab infantry forces.





Spearmen - Romahin/Ramah





From the Aramaic Rumah, Romah (Nabataean Arabic) and Ramah (Arabic) both simply mean spear.



Most Tribes and Kingdoms would have their own trained warriors as well as the fighting aged men who would be rallied to fight and raid, these men mostly did not wear armor from what we can conclude from archaeological findings and rock art.



Swordsmen - Sayyafa





From the semitic root S-Y-F, Sayf means sword in Arabic and was considered the most honorable weapon among the Arabs.

It has been concluded that second to the spear, the sword was the main weapon of the Arab infantry.



Veteran Swordsmen - Sayyafaya Qathiq





Lightly armored in leather and padded armor that would have been accumulated through years of service likely either as war booty or a bought by the warrior himself these men are skilled medium-tier infantry.



Axemen - Haribaya haBaltah



The definitive article "al-" was not used in this period, instead the archaic Aramaic definitive artile "ha-" was used in North Arabian and Safaitic dialects.



The Romans who would later occupy Nabataea spoke of encountering Arab opponents who traditionally fought with axes, though unskillfully.



Nabataean Elite Infantry - Qestunarin





Late game Nabataean heavy infantry.



Nabataean Royal Spearmen - Lukhataya Malkut





During the late reforms of the Nabataean military created royal divisions of both Infantry and Cavalry to serve similar to how the Seleucid Royal Infantry functioned.



Nabataean Guards - Natarin





Late period Royal Guards, based on the later guards of King Herod (source: Osprey's Army of King Herod the Great) as no archaeological evidence has been found as to the equipment of the guards of Petra.



Bedouin Infantry - Rigalaya Bedawi





Armed with spear and bow these units represent versatile light infantry recruited from the surrounding Bedouin populations.



Camel Mounted Spearmen - Lukhataya Gamla





These men use their mounts for transport, armed with short spears and wicker shields they are most effective as a mobile force that can dismount and distract the enemy into a skirmish.



Sabaean Guards - Faqeye Khamsan





Men called to defend cities and borders under threat.



Nabataean Thureos - Thuryoforiya





Following Hellenic style reforms, the Late Nabataean military adopted the Thureos shield as is depicted by engravings at Petra. Levy Spearmen - IstratyataNamed "Istratyata" from the Greek "Stratiotes" appropriated into Aramaic and drawn from the sedentary urban population and the surrounding bedouin tribes levies made up the bulk of all Arab infantry forces.Spearmen - Romahin/RamahFrom the Aramaic Rumah, Romah (Nabataean Arabic) and Ramah (Arabic) both simply mean spear.Most Tribes and Kingdoms would have their own trained warriors as well as the fighting aged men who would be rallied to fight and raid, these men mostly did not wear armor from what we can conclude from archaeological findings and rock art.Swordsmen - SayyafaFrom the semitic root S-Y-F, Sayf means sword in Arabic and was considered the most honorable weapon among the Arabs.It has been concluded that second to the spear, the sword was the main weapon of the Arab infantry.Veteran Swordsmen - Sayyafaya QathiqLightly armored in leather and padded armor that would have been accumulated through years of service likely either as war booty or a bought by the warrior himself these men are skilled medium-tier infantry.Axemen - Haribaya haBaltahThe definitive article "al-" was not used in this period, instead the archaic Aramaic definitive artile "ha-" was used in North Arabian and Safaitic dialects.The Romans who would later occupy Nabataea spoke of encountering Arab opponents who traditionally fought with axes, though unskillfully.Nabataean Elite Infantry - QestunarinLate game Nabataean heavy infantry.Nabataean Royal Spearmen - Lukhataya MalkutDuring the late reforms of the Nabataean military created royal divisions of both Infantry and Cavalry to serve similar to how the Seleucid Royal Infantry functioned.Nabataean Guards - NatarinLate period Royal Guards, based on the later guards of King Herod (source: Osprey's Army of King Herod the Great) as no archaeological evidence has been found as to the equipment of the guards of Petra.Bedouin Infantry - Rigalaya BedawiArmed with spear and bow these units represent versatile light infantry recruited from the surrounding Bedouin populations.Camel Mounted Spearmen - Lukhataya GamlaThese men use their mounts for transport, armed with short spears and wicker shields they are most effective as a mobile force that can dismount and distract the enemy into a skirmish.Sabaean Guards - Faqeye KhamsanMen called to defend cities and borders under threat.Nabataean Thureos - ThuryoforiyaFollowing Hellenic style reforms, the Late Nabataean military adopted the Thureos shield as is depicted by engravings at Petra.

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Slings have been in use by Semitic armies since pre-biblical times and are effective weapons especially when underestimated.

In the Islamic times, women would stand at the back of an army and stone any man who retreated, a practice possibly adopted from the pre-Islamic Arabs.



Archers - Qeshatin



The bow is a traditional weapon used by the Arab tribes, fragments of composite bows have been found in and around Um el-Qaiwan (el-Dur) in the United Arab Emirates.



Skirmishers - Muramaya





Javelins are not a weapon commonly attributed to Arabs the role is commonly portrayed as filled by slaves from the Horn of Africa though Arab javelinmen do occur in the pages of history, such as those Arab skirmishers who with slings and javelins defended Gaza.



Ituraean Archers - Qeshatin Ituraya





Recruited by Nabataea only.



The Ituraean people live north of the sea of Galilee and have their lineage traced to Ishmaelites who inhabited Edom before the Nabataeans.



Ethiopian Slave Skirmishers - Abda Habashin





Bought for the purpose of war, several South Arabian kingdoms such as the Himyarites used slaves from the horn of Africa to bolster their armies. Slingers - MuqaliyaSlings have been in use by Semitic armies since pre-biblical times and are effective weapons especially when underestimated.In the Islamic times, women would stand at the back of an army and stone any man who retreated, a practice possibly adopted from the pre-Islamic Arabs.Archers - QeshatinThe bow is a traditional weapon used by the Arab tribes, fragments of composite bows have been found in and around Um el-Qaiwan (el-Dur) in the United Arab Emirates.Skirmishers - MuramayaJavelins are not a weapon commonly attributed to Arabs the role is commonly portrayed as filled by slaves from the Horn of Africa though Arab javelinmen do occur in the pages of history, such as those Arab skirmishers who with slings and javelins defended Gaza.Ituraean Archers - Qeshatin IturayaRecruited by Nabataea only.The Ituraean people live north of the sea of Galilee and have their lineage traced to Ishmaelites who inhabited Edom before the Nabataeans.Ethiopian Slave Skirmishers - Abda HabashinBought for the purpose of war, several South Arabian kingdoms such as the Himyarites used slaves from the horn of Africa to bolster their armies.

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Extremely similar to the Bedouin Cavalry, these units are early period cavalry who's look is based off of Assyrian reliefs and slightly better armed than the Bedouin.



Bedouin Cavalry - Farasun Bedawi





Swift and versatile, great for raiding but not much else Bedouin Cavalry is extremely light melee cavalry.



Nabataean Light Cavalry - Farashin Khafif





Slightly better than the light cavalry the other Arab factions use, Nabataean cavalry is trained in a more Hellenistic way and is a decent counter to their Greek counterparts, a Nabataean force of some 6,000 Cavalry was able to intercept a Macedonian force that had just attacked Petra and leave but a few alive to report the loss.



Nabataean Horse Archers - Farashin Qeshate





Continuing the Aramaean tradition, rock art in North Arabia has been found depicting men using what is likely composite bows on horse back.



Camel Archers - Qeshatin Gamla







The most symbolic of all Arab fighting units, first portrayed by the Assyrians in the 9th century BC and later recalled by Livy at the battle of Magnesia, these men use 4 cubit long swords and composite bows.



Nabataean Lancers - Farashin Khabara





Historians often account of the extreme length used by Arab lancers, as is also depicted in rock art from Mada'in Saleh.



Sabaean Nobles - Qaylan





There was a bug with this unit at the time of the screenshot that has since been fixed and they are mounted as normal.



Guard Cavalry - Farashin Natara





(shields have since been fixed)



Late Period heavy cavalry, rock art from Mada'in Saleh and surrounding areas depicts heavy cavalry and even scarce depictions of scale horse armor.



Bodyguards



Other Arab





Sabaean





Nabataean

Light Arab Cavalry - Farasun KhafifExtremely similar to the Bedouin Cavalry, these units are early period cavalry who's look is based off of Assyrian reliefs and slightly better armed than the Bedouin.Bedouin Cavalry - Farasun BedawiSwift and versatile, great for raiding but not much else Bedouin Cavalry is extremely light melee cavalry.Nabataean Light Cavalry - Farashin KhafifSlightly better than the light cavalry the other Arab factions use, Nabataean cavalry is trained in a more Hellenistic way and is a decent counter to their Greek counterparts, a Nabataean force of some 6,000 Cavalry was able to intercept a Macedonian force that had just attacked Petra and leave but a few alive to report the loss.Nabataean Horse Archers - Farashin QeshateContinuing the Aramaean tradition, rock art in North Arabia has been found depicting men using what is likely composite bows on horse back.Camel Archers - Qeshatin GamlaThe most symbolic of all Arab fighting units, first portrayed by the Assyrians in the 9th century BC and later recalled by Livy at the battle of Magnesia, these men use 4 cubit long swords and composite bows.Nabataean Lancers - Farashin KhabaraHistorians often account of the extreme length used by Arab lancers, as is also depicted in rock art from Mada'in Saleh.Sabaean Nobles - QaylanThere was a bug with this unit at the time of the screenshot that has since been fixed and they are mounted as normal.Guard Cavalry - Farashin Natara(shields have since been fixed)Late Period heavy cavalry, rock art from Mada'in Saleh and surrounding areas depicts heavy cavalry and even scarce depictions of scale horse armor.BodyguardsOther ArabSabaeanNabataean

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As depicted in rock art from Yemen. Sabaean Chariots - MerkabatAs depicted in rock art from Yemen.

Arab TribesMa'inQedarMasqatArab KingdomsMamlakta NabtayaMamlakat HegraMamlakat HimyarMamlaktin SabaBackgroundArabia was not always a barren desert, it was once a fertile land and the home of the original Semitic people who would later become the Babylonians and the Canaanites.In 3,000 BC the Arabian Peninsula was the only exclusively Semitic region on Earth, these Semitic nomads domesticated the dromedary between 3,000 and 2,500 BC.Around 2,500 BC the Arabian people migrated upwards into Syro-Mesopotamia, we know these people as the Akkadians.The Akkadian people spoke an eastern Semitic language, very different to Arabic and Aramaic though the Amorites who also migrated from Arabia had a west Semitic language which bore more grammatical similarity to Arabic as opposed to Hebrew and Aramaic.The Arab people have been attributed three biblical patriarchs, Jaktan (Genesis 10:25-30), Abraham through Keturah (Genesis 10:1-6) and the most accepted among scholars is Ishmael (Genesis 25:13-18).By the 9th Century BC the Arab tribes had settled on the fringes of Assyrian and Canaanite civilization, these people the Akkadians had calledAribi were in constant conflict with the other Semitic cultures around them, the Arab tribes would raid the sedentary Semitic populations for their wealth and resources.Gindibu is the first king of these tribes mentioned in history, he fought the Assyrians at Qarqar and provided 1,000 camel mounted warriors to the army of the Aramaean king Ben Haddad of Damascus to fight the Assyrian King Shalmanezar.Gindibu is often attested by historians as the first known king of the Qedarite people, following him the line of kings is unknown until 750 BC where the confederacy of Arab tribes is lead by a queen known as Zabibeh. This royal lineage rules south of Babylon according to Assyrian sources, by 539 BC the Kedarites were located south of Jordan and in the Negeb desert.Of these kings among the most notable is Gashmu who is mentioned in the Bible (Nehemiah 6:1-6) under the Hebrew name 'Geshem' meaning rain.Following 539 BC the lands of Edom and Moab had become mostly populated by Arabs from Kedar and Nabataea and in 312 BC the Nabataeans are mentioned in a cuneiform inscription to have defeated the host of a Syrian king.While the Nabataeans were celebrating a religious festival the king Antigonus attempted to attack Petra and he sent his general Athenaeus, with a force numbering 4,000 infantry and 600 cavalry, to conquer the Nabataeans. While the Nabataeans were away celebrating a festival the Macedonian army stormed their mountain fortress at Petra and looted their treasures. Afterwards, some 8,000 Nabataeans apprehended the fleeing Macedonians and almost completely annihilated their army with only 50 of the cavalry to report their defeat, most of them wounded. Antigonus then sent his son Demetrius to command a second expedition against the Nabataeans. This time the Macedonian army numbered 4,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry but they were successful only in negotiating a peace treaty with the Nabataeans.By 165 BC the Nabataeans had subjugated the Kedarites and had full control of Jordan and most of the Negeb desert as well as the city of Bosra in Syria.Some time during the 2nd-1st Century BC we see magnificent and unique architecture springing up across the Arabian peninsula, grand structures built into caves popped up both in North and South Arabia the most famous of these being al-Khazneh in Petra.The Arabs made their money mostly off trade during the 4th-3rd Century BC and on wards goods would go from South Asia, South East Asia and China to Oman and Yemen where the caravans would take them north into Nabataea, Syria and Egypt to be sold.The Nabataeans founded a trade enterprise rivaling that of the Phoenicians, in the mid 19th century Nabataean inscriptions were found in Pozzuoli in the Italian peninsula which provided indisuptable evidence of Nabataean settlement in Italy.The first inscription referred to Dusares and was dated from year 8 of king Malichus I (53/52 BC). The second inscription was in memory of the restoration of the local mahramah, or temple, accomplished in the year 14 of king Aretas IV (A.D. 5/6). Later, in 1966, a new cultual ara DVSARI SACRVM and a number of small betyls were found.In the early 1970s the first aerial photographs of the submerged city stretching from Puteoli to the Portus Iulius at Baia became available: They portrayed complex structures, horrea and various buildings laying under the sea level. Further research led to the first identification of the site of the Nabataean temple. Then in 1977 Professor Giuseppe Camodeca identified a dedicatory inscription dated 121 AD made by the Inquilini vici Lartidiani in honor of Emperor Hadrian. The Vicus Lartidianus was part of a wider area, identified as the dwelling of foreign people engaged in trade and business in Puteoli. [Source: http://www.nabataea.net/] Indian and East Asian pottery and art have also been found in Petra, indicating that the city was a trade hub for both the Eastern and Hellenic worlds.Saba was also of course involved in this trade of spice and incenses, the Kingdom of Saba produced magnificent art in their capital city of Marib and across Yemen.Pliny the Elder recorded the distance between Timna (the capital of Qataban) and Gaza, the northern end of the frankincense route, as 2,437,500 steps, or 62 days by camel.(Pliney XII, CHAP. XIIII and Pliney XII.84)The early Arabs shaved the hair off the forehead to distinguish a free man from a slave, the nomadic people drank no wine and owned no houses but only lived in tents.The Arab nomads rejected sedentary life, they grew no beards or often shaved the mustache off if they had one as a full beard was the mark of a sedentary semite.As beards fell out of fashion with sedentary people like Aramaeans and Jews due to Romanization the Arabs grew their beards long once more.Arabs dressed simply, garments of two separate pieces of cloth or some other fabric wrapped around the waist and draped over the shoulders similar to the Islamic Hijra clothes (this is believed to be the origin of them) were popular as was a simple skirt worn around the waist known as an Izzar.Language of the ArabsThe Arabs spoke many languages which evolved through time into dialects of Classical Arabic which in their own respect were very different.The Nabataeans originally spoke their own dialect of Aramaic with a cursive script which would be the father of the Arabic script and language.Letters were flipped, curved, folded and completely changed to allow for a more free flowing cursive script, later in antiquity there was also influence from the Persian Pahlavi script.In the Southern deserts of the Sayhad most languages were heavily influenced by Sabaic, which is closely related to the Ge'ez language and script in Ethiopia.Ge'ezThe Arabic language reflects the conservative society it was born from, Aramaic evolved to lose it's definitive article (ha-) while Arabic and Hebrew preserve it, Arabic changed to use the definitive article "al-" while Himyaritic arabic exclusively used the article "am-".Arabic also preserves proto-semitic case endings (irab) not found in Aramaic or other west Semitic languages.Example:"ذهبَ الولدُ إلى المدرسةِ" (Thahaba al-waladila al-madrasah)Case ending in bold.Arabic made a shift from o to a, v to b, p to f and kh to ḥ however these sounds can still be found in some modern sedentary Arabic dialects such as North West Syrian and North Iraqi (Moslawi) dialect.IE: Hebrew "ochev" and Arabic "aḥob".This is because Arabic evolved around the local language of the region, many personal day-to-day words in Syrian and Iraqi Arabic are of Aramaic origin and this is a good indicator of this linguistic harmony as opposed to complete assimilation.Some of these features can even be noticed in Classical dialects, in the Quran readings of al-Kisa'i it is noted that he pronounces the final 'ah' as 'eh', this shift is called Imalah and occurs also in North Mesopotamian Arabic.A poet once recounted flirting with a girl from Mosul, he noted the way she pronounced R in Arabic was not rolled at the top of the mouth but like the Aramaic way with the tongue pressed to the tip of the bottom gums.Today in Mosul this lisp is also reflected by the writing where the arabic letter Ra is substituted with the letter Ghayn to show the sound it makes, in same cases R is removed from a word such as Arba'ah becomes simply "Oba'ah".The UnitsArab InfantryArab SkirmishersArab CavalryChariotsWIP UI PreviewYou may be wandering a few things so I want to clear them up before you feel a need to ask.Why Linothorax for armored units? - Rock art from across Arabia scarcely depicts armor, though when it does it is normally a tube and yolk or scale armor, for the former I can only represent it with a padded and leather Linothorax.Why the difference in unit naming between factions?I am deeply interested in all semitic languages, especially researching common links between them, I have acquired a basic knowledge of Aramaic grammar and I am very interested in pre-Islamic linguistics of Arabia, as such all units have been named to represent their region of origin, shared units use a generic central Arabian saifitic language which is similar to classical Arabic but retains the archaic definitive article "ha-".Sabaean Chariots??? - Rock art from Yemen depicts chariots use in war, crewed by two men and used by archers. This however is not possible so I have substituted the two man archer team for one man with a javelin.Will cities also be renamed? - Yes, all of them will have the correct Arabic and Aramaic names.