페니키아 종교의 형성에 관한 연구

Abstract

This purpose of this article is to trace the origin of Phoenician religion. Especially, we explore that the formation of Phoenician religion was under the influence of Phoenician geographical settings based on Phoenician inscriptions which discovered in Aram proper. We reached the conclusion as followings: 1. Since ca. 1200 BCE, the Phoenician built several city-states in the eastern seaboard of the Mediterrane sea, and each city-state worshipped the guardian deity of the capital and the royal chief deity. Generally, the most renowned deity of Phoenicia was Melqart, but he was worshipped only in the area of Akko and Thre. Many cities worshipped different deities besides Melqart. Each city or kingdom had its own chief deity, e.g. Astarte and Eshmun were worshipped in Sidon, and Baalat in Berytus, Baalat Gebal and Baal-Shamem in Byblos and Dagon in Arward as the chief deity. The characteristic of the Aramean deities is the chief deities of Phoenician cities with their divine spouses. It is quite different from the Aramean understanding of its deity. Whereas it is similar to the Mesopotamian tradition that each city worshipped its respective chief deity. The Phoenician rather followed the traditions of Mesopotamia in that the reference to the spouses of their chief deities was. rare. 2. The major deities of Phoenician had their own functions respectively as many of the Mesopotamian and the Aramaean deities. 3. As the various religions of the Ancient Near East, the animal sacrifice was central to the Phoenician religion, but when and how have not been clearly known.