Editing Sheba (section)

=== The king ===
Ancient South Arabian kings built great public works, had special ties with the gods legitimated through rites only they could perform, and led their armies during battle. They are represented as brave warriors, pious worshippers, and active builders. The fathers of the king is rarely attested independently. The function of the king was distinct from the role of the ''sheikh''. The ''[[Geographica]]'' by [[Strabo]] claims that in the region, the succession of kings was not familial, a claim that is partly confirmed by inscriptions. South Arabian kings did not appeal to their genealogy or the accomplishments of their fathers to legitimate their own rule.{{Sfn|Avanzini|2016|pp=53–57}} Only late in Sabaean history, from the second half of the 2nd century CE, did a real dynastic succession from father to son appear, and it only lasted for two generations.{{Sfn|Arbach|Schiettecatte|Al-Ḥajj|2021}}

The Sabaean king was called the ''[[mukarrib]]'' ("federator") more often than the ''malik'' ("king") between the 8th and 6th centuries BCE, to indicate their hegemony over their neighbours. When Saba declined after the 6th centuries BCE and Sabaean territory contracted to what it was prior to the conquests of [[Karib'il Watar]], the title ''mukarrib'' is replaced by that of ''malik''.{{Sfn|Schiettecatte|2024}}

In the early centuries of Saba, the title of the king was a combination of a name and an epithet. All titles were chosen from a combination of six possible names (Dhamar'ali, Karib'il, Sumhu'alay, Yada"il, Yakrubmalik and Yitha'amar) and four possible epithets (Bayan, Dharih, Watar and Yanu). The repetitiveness of names has caused difficulties for historians trying to determine the relative succession of kings (even when they are attested) and raises questions about what the personal names were of each king.{{Sfn|Robin|2002|p=52}} A similar practice took place in the neighbouring [[Kingdom of Hadhramaut]].{{Sfn|Avanzini|2016|p=56}} In the centuries leading up to the Christian era, this changed, kings began identifying with their real name, and reconstructions of Sabaean chronology become simpler.{{Sfn|Avanzini|2016|p=57}}

Accession to the Sabaean throne required the consent of "the Sabaeans, the ''qayls'' and the army" in one inscription. The legislative body extended beyond the king, including other functionaries. The Sabaean monarchs did not implement taxes but derived their wealth from royal lands, war boody, and rent from clients. Military service could be compelled and financial requests could be made for the purpose of funding construction work. Any tithes on temple lands went to the temples themselves, not the monarch.{{Sfn|Hoyland|2002|p=120}}

The king of Saba was not deified. The only known case of deification from ancient South Arabian cultures is from the [[Awsan|Kingdom of Awsan]] during its resurgent phase.{{Sfn|Avanzini|2016|pp=57, 201}}