EPİGRAFİK KAYNAKLAR IŞIĞINDA MS II. VE III. YÜZYILLARDA PHRYGİA HİERAPOLİS’İ (PAMUKKALE) YAHUDİLERİ

In ancient history, while diaspora Jews adhered to their religious traditions, they were also influenced by the conditions of their region and period. In this context, the changing political, social and economic internal dynamics of the Roman Empire in the second and third centuries AD had similar consequences for the Jews in Hierapolis (Pamukkale). Grave inscriptions from the same period clearly prove that Hellenic urban culture and universal Roman thought left traces on the Jews who had already arrived in the region. In other words, the tangible evidence of Jewish groups begins to appear clearly during the pax Romana and the crisis period. This is a concrete sign of interaction with pagan culture. As a result, the diaspora Jews who came (were brought) to Hierapolis managed to integrate into the Roman Imperial system. At the same time, they emphasise their own common culture (identity) and openly declare their religion on their tombs. The focus of this paper is the social, economic and religious life of the Jews living in the city of Hierapolis, through grave inscriptions dated to the second half of the second and third centuries AD.