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81-539: Some scholars have claimed that the Magnaura was founded in 425 A.D. during the reign of Emperor Theodosius II . However, others dispute this assertion on the grounds that it arises from an incorrect conflation of the University of Constantinople with the later palace school ( ekpaideutērion ) housed at the Magnaura that was founded by caesar Bardas in the mid-9th century. The location and architectural features of

162-503: A royal court where physical access to the ruler could wield great influence. Seemingly lowly domestic functions—such as making the ruler's bed, bathing him, cutting his hair, carrying him in his litter , or even relaying messages—could, in theory, give a eunuch "the ruler's ear" and impart de facto power on the formally humble but trusted servant. Similar instances are reflected in the humble origins and etymology of many high offices. Eunuchs supposedly did not generally have loyalties to

243-448: A desirable commodity for tributes . Eunuchs were the only males outside the royal family allowed to stay inside the palace overnight. Court records going back to 1392 indicate that the average lifespan of eunuchs was 70.0 ± 1.76 years, which was 14.4–19.1 years longer than the lifespan of non-castrated men of similar socioeconomic status. The Vietnamese adopted the eunuch system and castration techniques from China . Records show that

324-561: A fully formalized system of law. This plan was left unfinished, but the work of a second commission that met in Constantinople, assigned to collect all of the general legislations and bring them up to date, was completed; their collection was published as the Codex Theodosianus in 438. The law code of Theodosius II, summarizing edicts promulgated since Constantine, formed a basis for the law code of Emperor Justinian I ,

405-463: A living by going uninvited to large ceremonies such as weddings, births, new shop openings and other major family events, and singing until they are paid or given gifts to go away. The ceremony is supposed to bring good luck and fertility, while the curse of an unappeased hijra is feared by many. Hijra often engage in prostitution and begging to earn money, with begging typically accompanied by singing and dancing. Some Indian provincial officials have used

486-515: A man in Christ, and the other rejected the title, based on God being eternal and thus could not be born. Nestorius' compromise, the title Christotokos ("birth-giver of Christ"), was rejected; he was accused of separating Christ's divine and human natures, resulting in "two Christs", in a doctrine later called Nestorianism . Nestorius was strongly opposed by Archbishop Cyril of Alexandria and eventually lost Theodosius's support. At Nestorius's request,

567-447: A man presented the emperor with an "apple huge beyond any exaggeration." The emperor thanked the man with 150 solidi , and promptly sent the apple to his wife as a present. Eudocia decided to give the apple to Paulinus, a friend of both her and the emperor. Paulinus, unknowing of where Eudocia had gotten the apple, thought it was fit for only the emperor, and gave it to him. Theodosius was suspicious, and asked Eudocia what she had done with

648-546: A means of gaining employment in the imperial service. Certain eunuchs, such as the Ming dynasty official Zheng He , gained immense power that occasionally superseded that of even the Grand Secretaries . Self-castration was a common practice, although it was not always performed completely, which led to it being made illegal. It is said that the justification for the employment of eunuchs as high-ranking civil servants

729-400: A particular lover of fine food having "consumed his estate dining lavishly and at leisure every day on tuna and garlic-honey cheese paté like a Lampsacene eunoukhos. " The earliest surviving etymology of the word is from late antiquity . The 5th century (CE) Etymologicon by Orion of Thebes offers two alternative origins for the word eunuch: first, to tēn eunēn ekhein , "guarding

810-401: A personal characteristic), Vossius ultimately sums up his argument in a different way, saying that the word "originally signified continent men" to whom the care of women was entrusted, and later came to refer to castration because "among foreigners" that role was performed "by those with mutilated bodies". Modern etymologists have followed Orion's first option. In an influential 1925 essay on

891-423: A preceding example in the life of Muhammad himself, who used the eunuch Mabur as a servant in the house of his own slave concubine Maria al-Qibtiyya ; both of them slaves from Egypt. Eunuchs were for a long time used in relatively small numbers, exclusively inside harems, but the use of eunuchs expanded significantly when eunuchs started being used also for other offices within service and administration outside of

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972-458: A title that has been translated as Book of the Guide to [Divine] Benefits and Averting of [Divine] Vengeance and also as Book of Tutor of Graces and Annihilator of Misfortunes . In a chapter dedicated to eunuchs, Al-Subki made "the clear implication that 'eunuchness' is itself an office," Shaun Marmon explained, adding that al-Subki had specified occupational subgroups for the tawashiya [eunuchs]:

1053-591: A wide range of men who were seen to be physically unable to procreate . Hippocrates describes the Scythians as being afflicted with high rates of erectile dysfunction and thus "the most eunuchoid of all nations" (Airs Waters Places 22). In the Charlton T. Lewis, Charles Short, A Latin Dictionary , the term literally used for impotent males is spado but may also be used for eunuchs. Some men have falsified

1134-769: Is a male who has been castrated . Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium BCE. Over the millennia since, they have performed a wide variety of functions in many different cultures: courtiers or equivalent domestics , for espionage or clandestine operations , castrato singers, concubines or sexual partners, religious specialists, soldiers, royal guards, government officials, and guardians of women or harem servants. Eunuchs would usually be servants or slaves who had been castrated to make them less threatening servants of

1215-522: Is likely that his wife Eudocia encouraged him in this matter and was behind the establishment of the university; she had been born in Athens, where the Neoplatonic School of Athens was the last great center for pagan, classical learning. Eudocia was known for her great intellect. In 429, Theodosius appointed a commission to collect all of the laws since the reign of Constantine I , and create

1296-551: The Corpus Juris Civilis , in the following century. Eudocia reached the height of her influence with the emperor from 439 to 441, a period in which the emperor's sister Pulcheria was sidelined in favor of his wife. Eudocia's power was undone by a certain Phrygian apple in a story conveyed by the sixth-century historian John Malalas of Antioch. Malalas wrote that one day, the emperor was on his way to church when

1377-655: The Eastern Empire 's sole emperor after the death of his father, Arcadius , in 408. His reign was marked by the promulgation of the Theodosian law code and the construction of the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople . He also presided over the outbreak of two great Christological controversies, Nestorianism and Eutychianism . Theodosius was born on 10 April 401 as the only son of Emperor Arcadius and his wife Aelia Eudoxia . On 10 January 402, at

1458-627: The Prophet's Tomb , maintaining borders between males and females where needed, and keeping order in the sacred spaces. They were highly respected in their time and remained there throughout the Ottoman Empire's control of the area and afterward. In the present day, it is reported that only a few remain. Eunuchs were an active component in the slave market of the Islamic world until the early 20th-century for service in harem as well as in

1539-801: The Trans-Saharan slave trade , the Red Sea slave trade or the Indian Ocean slave trade , who served the concubines and officials in the Harem together with chamber maidens of low rank. The white eunuchs were slaves from the Balkans or the Caucasus , either purchased in the slave markets or taken as boys from Christian families in the Balkans who were unable to pay the jizya tax. They served

1620-545: The zimam watched over women, and the muqaddam al-mamalik over adolescent boys. Edmund Andrews of Northwestern University , in an 1898 article called "Oriental Eunuchs" in The American Journal of Medicine , refers to Coptic priests in "Abou Gerhè in Upper Egypt" castrating slave boys. Coptic castration of slaves was discussed by Peter Charles Remondino , in his book History of Circumcision from

1701-556: The Byzantine Empire, Imperial China, the Ottoman Empire, and various Middle Eastern cultures. They often held significant power and influence in these societies, particularly in royal courts and harems. Eunuch comes from the Ancient Greek word εὐνοῦχος ( eunoûkhos ), first attested in a fragment of Hipponax , the 6th century BCE comic poet and prolific inventor of compound words. The acerbic poet describes

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1782-743: The Confessor and Procopius , the Sasanian king Yazdegerd I (399–420) was appointed by Arcadius as the guardian of Theodosius, whom Yazdegerd treated as his own child, sending a tutor to raise him and warning that enmity toward him would be taken as enmity toward Persia. Though this story is assumed to be inconclusive, Antiochus , a eunuch of Persian origin, became a tutor and an influence on Theodosius. He also became praepositus sacri cubiculi later but Theodosius dismissed him when he reached his adulthood. In 414, Theodosius's older sister Pulcheria vowed perpetual virginity along with her sisters. She

1863-518: The Earliest Times to the Present , published in 1900. He refers to the "Abou-Gerghè" monastery in a place he calls "Mount Ghebel-Eter". He adds details not mentioned by Andrews such as the insertion of bamboo into the victim. Bamboo was used with Chinese eunuchs. Andrews states his information is derived from an earlier work, Les Femmes, les eunuques, et les guerriers du Soudan , published by

1944-480: The Huns. Anatolius negotiated a peace agreement; the Huns withdrew in exchange for humiliating concessions, including an annual tribute of 2,100 Roman pounds (c. 687 kg) of gold. In 447 the Huns went through the Balkans, destroying among others the city of Serdica ( Sofia ) and reaching Athyra ( Büyükçekmece ) on the outskirts of Constantinople. In 449, an Eastern Roman attempt to assassinate Attila failed, however

2025-508: The King's court of advisers. Hijra, a Hindi term traditionally translated into English as "eunuch", actually refers to what modern Westerners would call transvestites or transgender women (although some of them reportedly identify as belonging to a third gender ). The history of this third sex is mentioned in the ancient Kama Sutra , which refers to people of a "third sex" ( tritiya-prakriti ). Some of them undergo ritual castration, but

2106-428: The Magnaura as a material projection of Byzantine imperial power over all subjects of the oikoumene . This Byzantine Empire –related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Theodosius II Theodosius II ( ‹See Tfd› Greek : Θεοδόσιος Theodosios ; 10 April 401 – 28 July 450) was Roman emperor from 408 to 450. He was proclaimed Augustus as an infant and ruled as

2187-429: The Magnaura is thought to have followed a basilican plan with two side aisles supporting galleries and multiple apses at its eastern end. One of the most remarked upon features in this building was the so-called Throne of Solomon situated in its central apse, which is said to have been surrounded by automata in the form of trees, singing birds, and roaring lions that awed and delighted visitors. Scholars have described

2268-465: The Magnaura seem to correspond with those provided by Procopius in his description of the Senate House , which was rebuilt by Justinian I . Around 682, the Magnaura was restored. Later on, this site was often used as a throne room for receptions of foreign ambassadors as well as for public addresses by the emperor and for public assemblies which were often held in the atrium on the western side of

2349-656: The Romans and the Sassanids deteriorated in 420 due to the Persian persecution of Christians, and the Eastern empire declared war against the Sassanids (421–422); the war ended in an indecisive stalemate, when the Romans were forced to accept peace as the Huns menaced Constantinople . Peace was arranged in 422 without changes to the status quo . The later wars of Theodosius were generally less successful. The Eastern Empire

2430-487: The Vietnamese performed castration in a painful procedure by removing the entire genitalia with both penis and testicles being cut off with a sharp knife or metal blade. The procedure was agonizing since the entire penis was cut off. The young man's thighs and abdomen would be tied and others would pin him down on a table. The genitals would be washed with pepper water and then cut off. A tube would be then inserted into

2511-517: The Western Emperor Honorius , Theodosius's uncle, died and the primicerius notariorum Joannes was proclaimed emperor. Honorius's sister Galla Placidia and her young son Valentinian , who had earlier fled to Constantinople to escape Honorius's hostility, sought Eastern assistance to claim the throne for Valentinian, and after some deliberation in 424 Theodosius opened the war against Joannes. On 23 October 425, Valentinian III

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2592-635: The affairs of the West after installing Valentinian III as his Western counterpart. When Roman Africa fell to the Vandals in 439, both Eastern and Western Emperors sent forces to Sicily , intending to launch an attack on the Vandals at Carthage, but this project failed. Seeing the borders without significant forces, the Huns and Sassanid Persia both attacked and the expeditionary force had to be recalled. During 443 two Roman armies were defeated and destroyed by

2673-510: The age of 9 months, he was proclaimed co-a ugustus by his father, thus becoming the youngest to bear the imperial title up to that point . On 1 May 408, his father died and the seven-year-old boy became emperor of the Eastern half of the Roman Empire. The government was at first administered by the praetorian prefect Anthemius , under whose supervision the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople were constructed. According to Theophanes

2754-580: The apple. "I ate it," she replied, and then Theodosius asked her to confirm her answer with an oath, which she did. Theodosius then presented her with the enormous apple. The emperor was enraged and suspected an affair between Eudocia and Paulinus; he had his lifelong friend Paulinus executed, and Eudocia asked to be exiled to Jerusalem. A separation ultimately occurred between the imperial couple around 443, with Eudocia's establishment in Jerusalem where she favored monastic Monophysitism . The situation between

2835-500: The assistance of hijras to collect taxes in the same fashion—they knock on the doors of shopkeepers, while dancing and singing, embarrassing them into paying. Recently, hijras have started to found organizations to improve their social condition and fight discrimination, such as the Shemale Foundation Pakistan. The eunuchs of Korea, called Korean : 내시, 內侍 , romanized :  naesi , were officials to

2916-753: The bed", a derivation inferred from eunuchs' established role at the time as "bedchamber attendants" in the imperial palace, and second, to eu tou nou ekhein , "being good with respect to the mind", which Orion explains based on their "being deprived of intercourse ( esterēmenou tou misgesthai ), the things that the ancients used to call irrational ( anoēta , literally: 'mindless')". Orion's second option reflects well-established idioms in Ancient Greek, as shown by entries for transl.  grc  – transl.  noos , eunoos and ekhein in Liddell and Scott 's Greek-English Lexicon, while

2997-456: The building. Amongst the different ceremonies held at the Magnaura was the silention held at the beginning of Lent , at which the imperial household and members of the Byzantine bureaucracy would gather on its great staircase. In his description of the area, Procopius tells of a large marble gateway that led to a peristyle courtyard which stood in front of the Magnaura. The structure of

3078-483: The caliph resulted in his assassination in 1000 CE on the orders of al-Hakim. Since imams during this period ruled over a majority non-Shi'a population, the court eunuchs served an important informal role as ambassadors of the caliph, promoting loyalty and devotion to the Shi'a sect and the imam-caliph himself. The multicultural, multilingual eunuchs were able to connect to the commoners through shared cultural ground. During

3159-888: The corps of mostly African eunuchs, known as the Aghawat , who guarded the Prophet Muhammad's tomb in Medina and the Kaʿba in Mecca. Most slaves trafficked to Hijaz came there via the Red Sea slave trade . Small African boys were castrated before they were trafficked to the Hijaz, where they were bought at the slave market by the Chief Agha to become eunuch novices. It was noted that boys from Africa were still openly bought to become eunuch novices to serve at Medina in 1895. In Medina there

3240-460: The council the "robber synod". Theodosius supported the outcome, but it was reversed by the Council of Chalcedon after his death in 450. Theodosius died on 28 July 450 as the result of falling off his horse. On 25 November, his sister Pulcheria married the newly elected emperor Marcian , a domesticus under the influential general Aspar . The eunuch Chrysaphius was executed shortly after by

3321-540: The court in Thailand and advise them on court ritual since they held them in high regard. In Imperial China, eunuchs managed the imperial household and were involved in state affairs, often wielding significant political power. Sir Henry Yule saw many Muslims serving as eunuchs during the Konbaung dynasty period of Burma (modern Myanmar ) while on a diplomatic mission. In China, castration included removal of

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3402-735: The emperor convened the First Council of Ephesus in 431 to allow Nestorius to contest Cyril's accusations of heresy. The council was divided between the Cyrillians and the Nestorians, with Theodosius ultimately favoring the Cyrillians. The council affirmed the title Theotokos and condemned Nestorius, who returned to his monastery in Syria and was eventually exiled to a remote monastery in Egypt. Constantinopolitan abbot Eutyches reignited

3483-594: The entry from Orion, but stands by the first option, while attributing the second option to what "some say". In the late 12th century, Eustathius of Thessalonica ( Commentaries on Homer 1256.30, 1643.16) offered an original derivation of the word from eunis + okheuein , "deprived of mating". In translations of the Bible into modern European languages, such as the Luther Bible or the King James Bible ,

3564-549: The first option is not listed as an idiom under eunē in that standard reference work. However, the first option was cited by the late 9th century Byzantine emperor Leo VI in his New Constitution 98 banning the marriage of eunuchs, in which he noted eunuchs' reputation as trustworthy guardians of the marriage bed ( eunē ) and claimed that the very word eunuch attested to this kind of employment. The emperor also goes further than Orion by attributing eunuchs' lack of male–female intercourse specifically to castration, which he said

3645-960: The harem, a use which expanded gradually during the Umayyad Caliphate and had its breakthrough during the Abbasid Caliphate . During the Abbasid period, eunuchs became a permanent institution inside the Islamic harems after the model of the Abbasid harem , such as in the Fatimid harem , Safavid harem and the Qajar harem . For several centuries, Muslim Eunuchs were tasked with honored roles in Medina and Mecca . They are thought to have been instituted in their role there by Saladin , but perhaps earlier. Their tasks included caring for

3726-579: The institution of slavery in the Fatimid Caliphate . These eunuchs were normally purchased from slave auctions and typically came from a variety of Arab and non-Arab minority ethnic groups. In some cases, they were purchased from various noble families in the empire, which would then connect those families to the caliph. Generally, though, foreign slaves were preferred, described as the "ideal servants". Once enslaved, eunuchs were often placed into positions of significant power in one of four areas:

3807-659: The king and other royalty in traditional Korean society. The first recorded appearance of a Korean eunuch was in Goryeosa ("History of Goryeo"), a compilation about the Goryeo dynasty period. In 1392, with the founding of the Joseon dynasty , the naesi system was revised, and the department was renamed the "Department of Naesi ". The naesi system included two ranks, those of Korean : 상선, 尙膳 , romanized :  Sangseon , lit.   'Chief of Naesi', who held

3888-556: The later decades of his life, Chrysaphius rose to prominence as one of the emperor's favorites. He favored the pro-Monophysite policy, influenced the foreign policy towards the Huns , and was resented by Pulcheria, general Zeno , and ancient writers. According to Theodorus Lector , Theodosius was so unmindful of his surroundings that he accidentally signed his sister's note selling his wife, Eudocia, into slavery. However, some scholars argue that contrary to hostile ancient sources, Theodosius

3969-514: The military, the aristocracy, or a family of their own (having neither offspring nor in-laws, at the very least). They were thus seen as more trustworthy and less interested in establishing a private dynasty. Because their condition usually lowered their social status, they could also be easily replaced or killed without repercussion. In cultures that had both harems and eunuchs, eunuchs were sometimes used as harem servants. Eunuchs have been documented in several ancient and medieval societies, including

4050-827: The most powerful Chief Eunuchs was Beshir Agha in the 1730s, who played a crucial role in establishing the Ottoman version of Hanafi Islam throughout the Empire by founding libraries and schools. In the 16th century, an Englishman, Samson Rowlie , was captured and castrated to serve the Ottoman governor in Algiers. In the 14th century, the Muslim Egyptian religious scholar Taj-al-Din Abu Nasr 'Abdal-Wahhab al-Subki discussed eunuchs in his book Kitab Mu'id al-Ni'am wa Mubid al-Niqam ( Arabic : كتاب معيد النعم ومبيد النقم ),

4131-755: The new imperial couple. Like Constantine I and several of his successors, he was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles , in a porphyry sarcophagus that was described in the 10th century by Constantine VII in the De Ceremoniis . Saint Right-Believing Theodosius II the Younger is commemorated in Eastern Orthodox Church on 29 July. Eunuch A eunuch ( / ˈ juː n ə k / YOO -nək )

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4212-527: The official title of senior second rank, and Korean : 내관, 內官 , romanized :  Naegwan , lit.   'Common official naesi', both of which held rank as officers. A total of 140 naesi served the palace in the Joseon dynasty period. They also took the exam on Confucianism every month. The naesi system was repealed in 1894 following Gabo reform . During the Yuan dynasty , eunuchs became

4293-651: The ones in direct service to the caliph and the royal household as chamberlains, treasurers, governors, and attendants. Their direct proximity to the caliph and his household afforded them a great amount of political sway. One eunuch, Jawdhar , became hujja to Imam-Caliph al-Qa'im , a sacred role in Shia Islam entrusted with the imam's choice of successor upon his death. There were several other eunuchs of high regard in Fatimid history, mainly being Abu'l-Fadi Rifq al-Khadim and Abu'l-Futuh Barjawan al-Ustadh . Rifq

4374-414: The penis as well as the testicles (see emasculation ). Both organs were cut off with a knife at the same time. Eunuchs existed in China from about 4,000 years ago, were imperial servants by 3,000 years ago, and were common as civil servants by the time of the Qin dynasty . From those ancient times until the Sui dynasty , castration was both a traditional punishment (one of the Five Punishments ) and

4455-465: The period of slavery in the Ottoman Empire , eunuchs were typically slaves imported from outside their domains. A fair proportion of male slaves were imported as eunuchs. The Ottoman court harem —within the Topkapı Palace (1465–1853) and later the Dolmabahçe Palace (1853–1909) in Istanbul —was under the administration of the eunuchs. These were of two categories: black eunuchs and white eunuchs. Black eunuchs were slaves from sub-Saharan Africa via

4536-497: The personal will of the Emperor, while the officials represented the alternative political will of the bureaucracy . The clash between them would thus have been a clash of ideologies or political agenda. The number of eunuchs in imperial employ fell to 470 by 1912, when the practice of using them ceased. The last imperial eunuch, Sun Yaoting , died in December 1996. Eunuchs were frequently employed in imperial palaces by some Muslim rulers as servants for female royalty, as guards of

4617-457: The recruits at the Palace School and were from 1582 prohibited from entering the Harem. An important figure in the Ottoman court was the Chief Black Eunuch ( Kızlar Ağası or Darüssaade Ağası ). In control of both the harem and a net of spies among the black eunuchs, the Chief Eunuch was involved in almost every palace intrigue and thereby could gain power over either the sultan or one of his viziers, ministers, or other court officials. One of

4698-475: The relations between the two did not deteriorate further. Theodosius frequently attempted to resolve doctrinal controversies regarding the nature of Christ . During a visit to Syria , Theodosius met the monk Nestorius , a renowned preacher. Nestorius was appointed as archbishop of Constantinople in 428 and became involved in a Christology dispute between two groups. One group called the Virgin Mary Theotokos ("birth-giver of God"), based on God being born

4779-581: The royal harem, and as sexual mates for the nobles. Some of them attained high-status positions in society. An early example of such a high-ranking eunuch was Malik Kafur . Eunuchs in imperial palaces were organized in a hierarchy, often with a senior or Chief Eunuch (Urdu: Khwaja Saras ), directing junior eunuchs below him. Eunuchs were highly valued for their strength and trustworthiness, allowing them to live amongst women with fewer worries. This enabled eunuchs to serve as messengers, watchmen, attendants and guards for palaces. Often, eunuchs also doubled as part of

4860-437: The service of the emperor and virtuous Confucian officials is a familiar theme in Chinese history. In his History of Government , Samuel Finer points out that reality was not always that clear-cut. There were instances of very capable eunuchs who were valuable advisers to their emperor, and the resistance of the "virtuous" officials often stemmed from jealousy on their part. Ray Huang argues that in reality, eunuchs represented

4941-422: The service of the male members of the court; the service of the Fatimid harem , or female members of the court; administrative and clerical positions; and military service. For example, during the Fatimid occupation of Cairo, Egyptian eunuchs controlled military garrisons ( shurta ) and marketplaces ( hisba ), two positions beneath only the city magistrate in power. However, the most influential Fatimid eunuchs were

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5022-454: The status of their castration to gain entrance into the palace. Chinese eunuch Lao Ai , for instance, became the lover of the mother of Qin Shi Huang , who bore him two sons, before Lao Ai and his sons were executed after participating in a rebellion against Qin Shi Huang. In Siam (modern Thailand) Indian Muslims from the Coromandel Coast served as eunuchs in the Thai palace and court. The Thai at times asked eunuchs from China to visit

5103-418: The theological dispute almost twenty years later by asserting the Monophysite view that Christ's divine and human nature were one. Eutyches was condemned by Archbishop Flavian of Constantinople but supported by the powerful Dioscurus of Alexandria , Cyril's successor. The Second Council of Ephesus in 449 restored Eutyches and deposed Flavian. The Chalcedonians opposed the decision, with Pope Leo I calling

5184-454: The throne, as it seems to be the case for the Syro-Hittite state of Carchemish . Political eunuchism became a fully established institution among the Achaemenid Empire . Eunuchs (called Imperial Aramaic : סריס , romanized:  səris , an Assyrian loanword) held powerful positions in the Achaemenid court. The eunuch Bagoas (not to be confused with Alexander's Bagoas ) was the vizier of Artaxerxes III and Artaxerxes IV , and

5265-489: The urethra to allow urination during healing. Many Vietnamese eunuchs were products of self castration to gain access to the palaces and power. In other cases they might be paid to become eunuchs. They served in many capacities, from supervising public works, to investigating crimes, to reading public proclamations. The four-thousand-year-old Egyptian Execration Texts threaten enemies in Nubia and Asia, specifically referencing "all males, all eunuchs, all women." Castration

5346-469: The vast majority do not. They usually dress in saris or shalwar kameez (traditional garbs worn by women in South Asia) and wear heavy make-up. They typically live on the margins of society and face discrimination. Hijra tend to have few options for earning a wage, with many turning to sex work and others performing ritualistic songs and dances. They are integral to several Hindu ceremonies, such as dance programs at marriage ceremonies. They may also earn

5427-510: The word eunuchs as found in the Latin Vulgate is usually rendered as an officer, official or chamberlain, consistent with the idea that the original meaning of eunuch was bed-keeper (Orion's first option). Modern religious scholars have been disinclined to assume that the courts of Israel and Judah included castrated men, even though the original translation of the Bible into Greek used the word eunoukhos . The early 17th-century scholar and theologian Gerardus Vossius therefore explains that

5508-496: The word eunuch and related terms, Ernst Maass suggested that Eustathius's derivation "can or must be laid to rest", and he affirmed the derivation from eunē and ekhein ("guardian of the bed"), without mentioning the other derivation from eunoos and ekhein ("having a well-disposed state of mind"). In Latin, the words eunuchus , spado (Greek: σπάδων spadon ), and castratus were used to denote eunuchs. The term eunuch has sometimes figuratively been used for

5589-516: The word originally designated an office, and he affirms the view that it was derived from eunē and ekhein (i.e. "bed-keeper"). He says the word came to be applied to castrated men in general because such men were the usual holders of that office. Still, Vossius notes the alternative etymologies offered by Eustathius ("deprived of mating") and others ("having the mind in a good state"), calling these analyses "quite subtle". Then, after having previously declared that eunuch designated an office (i.e., not

5670-432: Was a European eunuch during late Fatimid rule who gained power through his military and political savvy which brought peace between them and the Byzantine empire. Moreover, he squashed revolts in the Libya and the Levant. Given his reputation and power in the court and military he took the reins of the caliphate from his then student al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah ; then ruled as the de facto Regent 997 CE. His usurpation of power from

5751-413: Was a part of town named Harat al-Aghawat (Neighborhood of the Aghas). The Red Sea slave trade became gradually more suppressed during the 20th-century, and Slavery in Saudi Arabia was abolished in 1962. In 1979, the last Agha was appointed. In 1990 seventeen eunuchs remained. In the Isma'ili Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171 CE), eunuchs played major roles in the politics of the caliphate's court within

5832-524: Was an African eunuch general who served as governor of the Damascus until he led an army of 30,000 men in a campaign to expand Fatimid control northeast to the city of Aleppo, Syria. He was noted for being able to unite a diverse group of Africans, Arabs, Bedouins, Berbers, and Turks into one coherent fighting force which was able to successfully combat the Mirdasids , Bedouins , and Byzantines. Barjawan

5913-441: Was due to the trust that certain jealous and suspicious foreign rulers placed in the loyalty of their eunuchized servants. Theophylact of Ohrid in a dialogue In Defence of Eunuchs also stated that the origin of the word was from eupnoeic and ekhein , "to have, hold", since they were always "well-disposed" toward the master who "held" or owned them. The 12th century Etymologicum Magnum (s.v. eunoukhos ) essentially repeats

5994-557: Was installed as emperor of the West with the assistance of the magister officiorum Helion , with his mother taking an influential role. To strengthen the ties between the two parts of the empire, Theodosius's daughter Licinia Eudoxia was betrothed to Valentinian. She married Valentinian III later on 29 October 437, and became empress of the western portion of the empire. Theodosius is often seen by both ancient and modern historians as being constantly pushed around by his sister, wife, and eunuchs, particularly Chrysaphius among them. In

6075-563: Was more in control of his government. Others view that the government was controlled mostly by civilian officials, and not by a particular individual. Among ancient and medieval writers, Monophysites had a favorable opinion of Theodosius. In 425, Theodosius founded the University of Constantinople with 31 chairs (15 in Latin and 16 in Greek). Among the subjects were law, philosophy, medicine, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music and rhetoric. It

6156-535: Was performed with the intention "that they will no longer do the things that males do, or at least to extinguish whatever has to do with desire for the female sex". The 11th century Byzantine monk Nikon of the Black Mountain , opting instead for Orion's second alternative, stated that the word came from eunoein ( eu "good" + nous "mind"), thus meaning "to be well-minded, well-inclined, well-disposed or favorable", but unlike Orion he argued that this

6237-492: Was plagued by raids by the Huns . Early in Theodosius II's reign Romans used internal Hun discord to overcome Uldin 's invasion of the Balkans. The Romans strengthened their fortifications and in 424 agreed to pay 350 pounds of gold to encourage the Huns to remain at peace with the Romans. In 433 with the rise of Attila and Bleda to unify the Huns, the payment was doubled to 700 pounds. Theodosius became engaged with

6318-414: Was proclaimed augusta , and acted as a guardian of her brother. The guardianship ended when he reached his majority, but it is assumed that his sister continued to exert an influence on him until his marriage. In June 421, Theodosius married Aelia Eudocia , a woman of Athenian origin. The two had a daughter named Licinia Eudoxia , another named Flaccilla, and possibly a son called Arcadius. In 423,

6399-688: Was sometimes punitive; under Assyrian law , homosexual acts were punishable by castration. Eunuchs were familiar figures in the Neo-Assyrian Empire ( Akkadian : ša rēš šarri izuzzū "the one who stands by the head of the king", often abbreviated as ša rēš ; c.  850 until 622 BCE) and in the court of the Egyptian pharaohs (down to the Lagid dynasty known as Ptolemies, ending with Cleopatra VII , 30 BCE). Eunuchs sometimes were used as regents for underage heirs to

6480-484: Was that, since they were incapable of having children, they would not be tempted to seize power and start a dynasty. In many cases, eunuchs were considered more reliable than the scholar-officials. As a symbolic assignment of heavenly authority to the palace system, a constellation of stars was designated as the Emperor's, and, to the west of it, four stars were identified as his "eunuchs." The tension between eunuchs in

6561-408: Was the primary power behind the throne during their reigns until he was killed by Darius III . Marmon (1995) writes " Mamluk biographies of the eunuchs often praise their appearance with adjectives such as jamil (beautiful), wasim (handsome), and ahsan (the best, most beautiful) or akmal (the most perfect)." The custom of using eunuchs as servants for women inside the Islamic harems had

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