W'zb
fl. 6th century
Orthodox
Ethiopia

W'zb Emperor, was a son and one of the successors of Emperor Kaléb as ruler of the Aksumite Empire. It is not possible, at present, to place him in historical perspective in relation to the other sons of Kaléb, Bétä-'Esra'él and Gäbrä-Mäsqäl, who are also known from a Ge'ez inscription in South-Arabian script, found at Aksum, in which he records a war against a people called WYTL, not known elsewhere.

His title, as given in this inscription, is as follows: "W'zb, King of Aksum, of Himyar, of du-Raydan, of Saba', of Salhen, of Béga, Kasu, Siyamo, and of WYTL, be'esi HDFN, son of 'Ellä-'Asbeha servant of Christ."

R. Schneider

R. Schneider, in Atti del IV Congresso Internazionale di Studi Etiopici, Roma 1972 (Roma, 1974).

This article is reproduced, with permission, from The Dictionary of Ethiopian Biography, Vol. 1 'From Early Times to the End of the Zagwé Dynasty c. 1270 A.D.,' copyright © 1975, edited by Belaynesh Michael, S. Chojnacki and Richard Pankhurst, Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. All rights reserved.