Kristy Greefkes

CAMS 400W

     This tribe from which the land of Libya takes its name is sometimes called the Labu, Libu, or Rebu, and appears in many Egyptian texts, such as the inscriptions on the temple at Medinet Habu.  The earliest of these texts is the Papyrus Anastasi II in Dynasty XVIII and appear in texts, if only rarely, up until Dynasty XXI (Gardiner 1968: 121, 122).

     It is unclear for certain where the Labu originated, but they may have originated from west of the region of Libya.  It is clear, however, that along with other tribes such as the Meshwesh they replaced the pervious inhabitants of Libya at some time during the New Kingdom (Redford 1992: 247).  If the Labu are from the west of Libya, then it seems strange to associate them so closely with the Sea Peoples, even if the Labu do fight alongside the Sea Peoples against the Egyptians.  Another theory, though, is that the Libu originated in the Balkans and were driven to migration by the Illyrians, with the Libu finally settling in Libya (Drews 1993:  58).  The other Sea Peoples are generally thought to have originated in the Aegean, in the case of the Philistines, or in Anatolia, in the case of many of the other Sea Peoples tribes.

     The Labu are characterized by a number of features when they are depicted in Egyptian reliefs, such as fair skin, red hair, and blue eyes.  They also wore ornamental cloaks, had one lock of hair, and were tattooed on their arms and legs.  Some of these characteristics the Labu also shared with the Meshwesh, but unlike the Meshwesh the Labu wore kilts instead of loincloths and were uncircumcised (Gardiner 1968: 122).

     But the Labu were by far more documented for their wars against the Egyptians than for their looks.  We see one of these campaigns documented in the “Israel Stela” of the fifth year of Merneptah’s reign, in which Merey, the chief of the Labu, has led his people along with other tribes against the Egyptians, and Merey and his troops were defeated (Pritchard 1969: 376-378).It has been suggested that the Labu fought against the Egyptians during the reign of Merneptah because there was no food (Gardiner 1968: 121).  This seems like a reasonable explanation since we know that during the politically troubled years in Egypt after the reign of Merneptah, both the Labu and the Meshwesh took the opportunity and settled in western Egypt as far as the west bank of the Nile (Redford 1992: 249).  Then, during the reign of Ramesses III, the Labu attacked Egypt because the pharaoh refused to give back one of the Labu chief’s children, but the Labu were defeated, which is documented in the Papyrus Harris I, 77, 3-7 (Redford 1992: 249).

      The end of the Labu people seems to be as much a mystery as their origins are because there are two differing viewpoints concerning their end.  Redford says that the Libyans were no longer a menace after the aforementioned battle with Ramesses III (1992: 250), whereas Gardiner says that the Libu were still a problem for the Egyptians at least up until the reign of Ramesses X (1968: 122).  There is no evidence from either author as to why there is such a substantial difference in time regarding the end of the Labu people.

Bibliography of Secondary Sources

1.  Drews, R.

     1993    The End of the Bronze Age: Changes in Warfare and the Catastrophe ca. 1200 B.C.  Princeton, New Jersey:  Princeton University Press.

     The chapter from this text that I used dealt with the migration patterns and theories of migration concering the various groups of Sea Peoples.

2.  Gardiner, A. H.

     1968    Ancient Egyptian Onomastica.  Vol. I.  London:  Oxford University         Press.

     This text contains an informative section about the Libu in particular and also has sections concerning the other Sea Peoples.  It is also a useful tool for referencing other texts that deal with the Sea Peoples.

3.  O’Connor, D.

     2000    The Sea Peoples and the Egyptian Sources.  Pp. 85-102, in:  E. D.        Oren (ed.)  The Sea Peoples and Their World: A Reassessment. Philadelphia: University Museum Publications.

     This essay deals with the depictions and inscriptions on the Medinet Habu temple, how they are positioned on the temple and the like, and how this can be used in understanding who the Sea Peoples were and how the Egyptians viewed them.

4.  Pritchard, J. B. (ed.)

     1969    Hymn of Victory of Merneptah.  Pp. 376-378 in:  Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament.  Princeton: Princeton University Press.

     This is the actual text itself detailing the battle between Merneptah and Merey, the chief of the Labu, which took place in the fifth year of the reign of Merneptah.

 Redford, D. B.

     1992    Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times.  Princeton:  Princeton       University Press.

     The chapter in this book concerning the Sea Peoples was helpful in     that it was informative and also provided references to the Sea  Peoples in other texts.  The chapter also contained quite a bit of information on the Labu people specifically, which was most helpful in researching them.

Bibliography of Primary Sources

1.  Kitchen, K.A.

     1996   Ramesside Inscriptions.  Vol. II.  Cambridge:  Blackwell Publishers Inc.     

2.  Pritchard, J. B. (ed.)

     1969    Hymn of Victory of Merneptah.  Pp. 376-378 in:  Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament.  Princeton: Princeton University Press.

3.  Redford, D. B.

     1986    Pharaonic King-lists, Annals, and Day-Books.  Mississauga: Benben Publications.