Qolshamih (City)

Qolshamih was a city in central Therak along the river Sallar. Its mythical founding was in 1832 BCE, but archaeological evidence suggests that the site was inhabited at the earliest by 900 BCE. Although founded relatively late compared to the earliest of the city-states in region, Qolshamih managed to assert its dominance over the region by 750 BCE. When Lombash was conquered in 612 BCE by the Kingdom of Sokyill, Qolshamih controlled all of the mainland except the southern deserts.

The city was ruled by various kings (šarrū) since its foundation, and two primary dynasties are known to history. From at least 800 until 530 BCE, the city was ruled by the Haqlu dynasty. These kings established the dominance of the city on the mainland, but they were ultimately unable to drive back the repeated invasions of Sokyill that threatened the very heart of the Kingdom. Thus, they were replaced in a relatively peaceful palace coup in 530 by the dynasty of Karron, which originated from nobility in northern Pheykran that had married into the royal line that it eventually replaced. This dynasty lasted until the fall of the kingdom in 123 BCE to the chieftain Harun.

By the time that the conquest of Alaria was completed, royal power became more focused on the coast of Therak, and Qolshamih, which had no harbors and which was situated far away from the lucrative coastal trade routes, was abandoned by the dynasts in 445 for a new capital Tuffad. The city remained powerful, however, throughout the remainder of the kingdom. It appears to have suffered a fire that destroyed most of the old quarter in 320, but it was soon rebuilt. The city is mentioned as a center of pagan celebrations during the hight of the Kingdom, and its skyline was apparently adorned with four magnificent temples to the gods of the harvest.

In 290 BCE, the illegitimate pretender to the Throne of Karron, Bel-Shin, proclaimed the city his capital and set up his court there, but the inhabitants turned him over to the royal armies when they arrived outside the walls. During the chaos of the civil war at the beginning of second century, the city was sacked twice and most of its wealth was taken by the marauding armies of the rival Masters of Arms. When Royal power was collapsing through the middle and end of the second century, little is recorded of the city, but it is known that it was depopulated by an army of Harun in 126 BCE. During the Post-Classical Period, it appears that the city declined and became completely abandoned by the beginning of first century CE.

Etymology
"Qolshamih" is derived from the Therakan qōl šamħī, meaning "voice of the heavens," qōl being a singular masculine noun in the construct state and šamħī being a plural masculine in the genitive case. The original compound, Qōl-šamħī, which is attested in Old and Middle Therakan texts, was modified as Therakan fell out of use during the Post-Classical period, and the pharyngeal fricative and /i/ underwent metathesis under Majatran/Arabic influence.