
Contents
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Introduction Introduction
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The Origins The Origins
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Alexander’s Conquest Alexander’s Conquest
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Hellenization and the Rise of a Syrian Identity Hellenization and the Rise of a Syrian Identity
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Seleukid Hegemony and Disintegration Seleukid Hegemony and Disintegration
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The Cloud from the West The Cloud from the West
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Conclusion Conclusion
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Bibliography Bibliography
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2 The Hellenistic Near East: A Dynamic Canvas
Get accessDavid Engels is chair of Roman History at the University of Brussels (ULB) since 2008 and currently works as research professor at the Instytut Zachodni in Poznań, Poland. Author and editor of numerous scholarly books and papers on ancient history, cultural comparatism, and the philosophy of history, his book publications include Das römische Vorzeichenwesen (Stuttgart, 2009); Le Déclin (Paris, 2013); Von Platon bis Fukuyama (as ed.; Brussels, 2015); Studies on the Seleukid Empire between East and West (Leuven, 2017); Rome and the Seleukid East (ed. with Altay Coskun, Brussels, 2019); Renovatio Europae (as ed., Poznań, 2019); Oswald Spengler: Werk, Deutung, Rezeption (Stuttgart, 2021); Europa Aeterna (as ed., Poznań, 2022).
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Published:22 April 2025
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Abstract
The fusion between East and West operated by the Hellenistic dynasties made Syria one of the most fertile and influential territories of the ancient world. Chapter 2 first sketches the historical origins of the political entities that emerged in the Levant before the Achaimenid conquest, then the rule of the great kings themselves. After reviewing Alexander’s impact on Syria, the chapter assesses the reshaping of northern Syria by the Seleukids and of southern Syria by the Ptolemies. After the establishment of Seleukid rule over southern Syria following the Fifth Syrian War, Seleukid power slowly disintegrated in the wake of Roman interference. The chapter then looks at the integration of the Levant into the Roman Empire as a political structure centered around the Mediterranean before it remarks on a series of basic patterns anchored in the longue durée of Syrian history.
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