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Sham Ennessim

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Sham Ennessim
Official nameشم النسيم Sham an-Nassim
Observed byEgyptians, Copts
TypeCultural, seasonal, Coptic Orthodox Christianity and agricultural
Celebrations
DateThe day after Eastern Christian Easter
Frequencyannual
Related toEarly Coptic Christianity

Sham Ennessim (Arabic: شم النسيم, Sham Al Nassim or Sham an-Nassim; Egyptian Arabic: Sham Ennesim, IPA: [ˈʃæmm ennɪˈsiːm]; Coptic: ϣⲱⲙ ⲛ̀ⲛⲓⲥⲓⲙ, Shom Ennisim[1]) is today a Egyptian national holiday marking the beginning of spring. It always falls on Coptic Easter Monday. The reasons it falls on this date are religious and historical. [2]

It is a holiday which received recognition as a national holiday in the Arab Republic of Egypt during modernity (since the Arab Republic of Egypt was established in 1953) and is celebrated as a national holiday in the Arab Republic of Egypt today. Some aspects of it have a history that goes back to the times of ancient Egypt but the current celebration as it exists today goes back to the times of early Coptic Christianity [3] and continued to be celebrated by Copts under the Islamic order. The holiday was preserved because of the cultural agency of the Copts. [4] Historically Copts made the festival to be about celebrating the resurrection of Christ, this is why it coincides with the Easter celebration every year. This is why it is celebrated the day after Easter Sunday on the Coptic Orthodox calendar.[5] This is why Copts treat this day as an extension of Easter and Copts have cultural continuity of treating it as an extension of Easter. [6] There is no evidence of a modern non-christian version of this festival having continuity with ancient Egypt.

There have been accounts stating that it is celebrated on the first day of Khamaseen. Such as in the 1834 published book, E.W. Lane reports it is observed on the first day of Khamaseen. This is not correct because the first day of Khamaseen is not synchronized with Easter Monday. For example Coptic Easter Monday for the year 2021 is on the third of May. The third of May is not the first day of Khamaseen and there are no environmental science studies which support the claim that the first day of Khamaseen coincides with Easter Monday. The first day of Khamaseen is during late March.

“The term Khamaseen signifies that the dust storms are repeated several times during a period of around 50 days starting late March and ending in early May.” [7]

Just because there are accounts of it being celebrated by non-Christians in the 1800s to varying degrees does not mean it has continuity with the pharaonic non-Christian version of this as they’re not making offerings to ancient Egyptian deities. The Arab Republic of Egypt was established in the 1952, so for it to exist as a national holiday it had to have been recognized as a national holiday during modernity by the state. Christmas was recognized as a national holiday by the Egypt state in 2002 and there are accounts saying Muslims of Egypt celebrate it, just because Muslims celebrate it does not mean it is not linked to Christianity. [8] [9] Furthermore the idea if this holiday is Christian in origin Muslims wouldn’t celebrate it is also wrong since we know there are Egyptian Muslims who celebrate Christmas. “ Even though the country has a Muslim-majority population, Egypt comes together to celebrate this special Christian holiday.” [10] To prove that there is a non-Christian version of Sham al-Nassim that has continuity with ancient Egypt you need ancient sources or medieval sources. There is no evidence of medieval historians who attest to a non-Christian pharaonic version of this holiday that has continuity with ancient Egypt. An account from 1834 does not disapprove the claim that the holiday is Coptic Christian in origin and it is likely that Muslims participate in it because historically they have been influenced by Christian Copts. Just like Muslims who celebrate Christmas and use the Christmas tree are influenced by Christians. We know from the account of Yahya (11th century AD) that Muslims joined in Christian Palm Sunday celebrations. Muslims do have a history of indulging in Christian holidays to varying degrees, there is no reason why it would be different in this case.

“What becomes clear in this passage is that Muslims regularly joined in the Christian celebration” [11]

“A number of other caliphs, sultans, and governors also participated in Coptic festivals to varying degrees.” [12] We have a account from a medieval source al-Mas’udi of a Muslim governor participating in a Christian religious feast in Egypt. [13]

There is no evidence from medieval sources of a non-christian version of this holiday. Taqi al Din Ahmed Ali ibn al Maqrîzi provides a list of festivals that were celebrated in Egypt, he mentions Easter and does mention that Easter celebrations included outdoor activities but he makes no mention of a non-Christian religious-neutral version of Sham Ennessim [14] [15]

The pharaonic spring festival involved making offerings to ancient Egypt deities on that day and the pharaonic spring festival from ancient Egypt didn’t coincide with the Easter date on the Coptic Orthodox Calendar, this pharaonic spring festival doesn’t exist today. There was never a version of this festival that wasn’t linked to religion in history. The historical reason for eating fseekh(salted fish) is when Egypt was majority Coptic Christian, the fish market would stop during the 55 days of the holy great fast and at that time there was no coolers. This is why they used to salt the fish to be able to keep it for the duration of that time. Then after the feast day the Christian Copts decided to eat the salted fish to help their brethren the Christian Copt fishermen who did not sell any fish for a the 55 days. Eating fseekh was eventually adopted as a tradition for this festival. [16]

The main features of the festival are:

  • People spend all day out picnicking in any space of green, public gardens, on the Nile, or at the zoo.
  • Traditional food eaten on this day consists mainly of fesikh (a fermented, salted and dried grey mullet), lettuce, scallions or green onions, and termes.
  • Coloring boiled eggs, then eating and gifting them.

History

This holiday as it exists was first celebrated by Copts during early Coptic Christianity and they kept celebrating it during late antiquity, medieval times, and up to the present day. [17] According to annals written by Plutarch during the 1st century AD, the ancient Egyptians used to offer salted fish, lettuce, and onions to their deities during their own spring festival known as Shemu. Shemu (Ancient Egyptian: šmw) provides the etymology of the Coptic name "ϣⲱⲙ (Shom) ⲛ̀ⲛⲓⲥⲓⲙ(Ennisim)",and through the phono-semantic reanalysis of "En-ni-sim" as the Egyptian Arabic form of the assimilated definite article "En-" and "nesim", "Shom Ennisim" became "Sham Ennesim". During early Coptic Christianity in Egypt, aspects of this festival was adopted as part of the Easter celebration. [18] Hence why this holiday is not Shemu and differs from it. This holiday coincides with Easter and therefore Easter Monday, is determined to be the date according to the Eastern Christian manner of calculation as used by the Coptic Orthodox Church, the largest Christian denomination in the country, and by the time of the Islamic conquest of Egypt, the festival was settled on Easter Monday. The Islamic calendar being lunar and thus unfixed relative to the solar year, the date of Sham Ennessim remained on the Christian-linked date. As Egypt became Arabized, the term Shemu/Shom Ennisim found a rough phono-semantic match in Sham Ennesim, or "Smelling/Taking In the Zephyrs," which fairly accurately represents the way in which the festival is celebrated.

References

  1. ^ Crum, Walter Ewing (1939). A Coptic Dictionary. Oxford University Press. p. 564b&334a. ISBN 0-19-864404-3.
  2. ^ H.G. Youssef, 2021. What is the significance of Sham El Nessim? Why is salted fish eaten this day?. Suscopts dot org
  3. ^ H.G. Youssef, 2021. What is the significance of Sham El Nessim? Why is salted fish eaten this day?. Suscopts dot org
  4. ^ Falola, Toyin, and Daniel Jean-Jacques. Africa [3 Volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Culture and Society. Illustrated, ABC-CLIO, 2015
  5. ^ H.G. Youssef, 2021. What is the significance of Sham El Nessim? Why is salted fish eaten this day?. Suscopts dot org
  6. ^ Al Arabiya English, and Sonia Farid. “Coptic Easter: How Egypt Celebrates the Rising of Christ.” Al Arabiya English, 20 May 2020
  7. ^ Abed, Abdulkader M., et al. “Characterization of the Khamaseen (Spring) Dust in Jordan.” Atmospheric Environment, vol. 43, no. 18, 2009, pp. 2868–76.
  8. ^ Egyptian Streets. (2017, January 04). Why Egyptian MUSLIMS celebrate christmas. Retrieved April 27, 2021
  9. ^ Egypt: Christmas day in Egypt declared a national holiday for the first time. (2002, December 19). Retrieved April 27, 2021
  10. ^ trafalgar. (2020, December 07). Christmas in Egypt, where everyone's favourite holiday is CELEBRATED TWICE. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  11. ^ Cormack, M. (2013). Muslims and Others in Sacred Space. OUP USA.
  12. ^ Cormack, M. (2013). Muslims and Others in Sacred Space. OUP USA.
  13. ^ Oestigaard, Terje. The Religious Nile. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018, p. 363.
  14. ^ Les fêtes des Coptes' Patrologia Orientalis 10 (1915) pp. 314-343
  15. ^ Werthmuller, Kurt J. Coptic Identity and Ayyubid Politics in Egypt, 1218-1250. American Univ in Cairo Press, 2010 pp. 35
  16. ^ H.G. Youssef, 2021. What is the significance of Sham El Nessim? Why is salted fish eaten this day?. Suscopts dot org
  17. ^ Falola, Toyin, and Daniel Jean-Jacques. Africa [3 Volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Culture and Society. Illustrated, ABC-CLIO, 2015
  18. ^ H.G. Youssef, 2021. What is the significance of Sham El Nessim? Why is salted fish eaten this day?. Suscopts dot org
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