Sheba Ge'ez: ሳባ, Saba,(Arabic: سبأ, Sabāʾ, South Arabian , Hebrew: שבא, Sh'va, also referred to as the people of Tubba) was a kingdom mentioned in the Jewish scriptures (Old Testament) and the Qur'an. Sheba features in Ethiopian, Jewish and Qur'anic traditions. Among other things it was the home of the Biblical "Queen of Sheba" (named Makeda in Ethiopian tradition and Bilqis in Islamic tradition).

The actual location of the historical kingdom is disputed. Owing to the connection with the Queen of Sheba, the location has become closely linked with national prestige, as various royal houses have claimed descent from the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. In the medieval Ethiopian cultural work called the Kebra Nagast, Sheba was located in Ethiopia. Ruins in many other countries, including Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran have been credited as being Sheba, but with only minimal evidence.

Modern archaeological evidence increasingly supports Sheba being located in modern Yemen at or near the site of the famous Marib Dam, which was first built more than 2500 years ago. They may have expanded at some point from Arabia into Africa to found trading posts in the lands currently called Eritrea and Somalia. Some scholars suggest a link to the Sabaeans of southern Arabia.

Biblical tradition[link]

Sheba is mentioned several times in the Bible. For instance, in the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:7), Sheba, along with Dedan, is listed as a descendant of Noah's son Ham (as sons of Raamah son of Cush). In Genesis 25:3, Sheba and Dedan are listed as names of sons of Jokshan, son of Abraham. Another Sheba is listed in the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:28) as a son of Joktan, another descendant of Noah's son Shem. Yet another Sheba is mentioned in 2 Samuel 20:1–22 who rebelled against King David, was beheaded and his head thrown over the wall by the people in the city of Abel in order to save their lives. Isaiah's prophecy, "all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense" (Isaiah 60:6), is understood as a prediction of the Biblical Magi bringing gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense to the newborn Jesus.

In Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, the third of these Shebas (Joktan's son) is considered the primary ancestor of the original Semitic component in their ethnogenesis, while Sabtah and Sabtecah, sons of Cush, are considered the ancestors of the Cushitic element.

Jewish-Roman historian Josephus describes a place called Saba as a walled, royal city of Ethiopia, which Cambyses afterwards named Meroe. He says "it was both encompassed by the Nile quite round, and the other rivers, Astapus and Astaboras" offering protection from both foreign armies and river floods. According to Josephus it was the conquering of Saba that brought great fame to a young Egyptian Prince, simultaneously exposing his personal background as a slave child named Moses.^[1]

The Kitab al-Magall ("Book of the Rolls", considered part of Clementine literature) and the Cave of Treasures mention a tradition that after being founded by the children of Saba (son of Joktan), there was a succession of sixty female rulers up until the time of Solomon. The Biblical tradition of the "Queen of Sheba" (named Makeda in Ethiopian tradition and Bilqis in Islamic tradition) makes its first appearance in world literature in 1 Kings 10, describing her as travelling to Jerusalem to behold the fame of King Solomon.

Owing to the connection with the Queen of Sheba, the location has thus become closely linked with national prestige, as various royal houses have claimed descent from the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. The most vigorous claimant has been Ethiopia and Eritrea, where Sheba was traditionally linked with the ancient Axumite Kingdom.

Qur'anic tradition[link]

In the Qur'an, the people of Sheba are called the people of Tubba because "Tubba" was used as the title for Sheba's kings.^[2] The Qur'an mentions this ancient community along with other communities that were destroyed by God.^[3] Some Muslim scholars, including Ibn Kathir, related that the People of Tubba were Arabs from South Arabia.^[4]

Archaeological considerations[link]

Modern archaeological evidence increasingly supports Sheba being located in modern Yemen at or near the site of the famous Marib Dam, which was first built more than 2500 years ago.^[5][6][7][8]

Some scholars suggest a link to the Sabaeans of southern Arabia.^[9] A number of sources claim that the people of Sheba controlled trade in the Red Sea, and expanded at some point from Arabia into Africa to found trading posts in the lands currently called Eritrea and Somalia.^[10][11]

In the medieval Ethiopian cultural work called the Kebra Nagast, Sheba was located in Ethiopia.^[12] Some scholars therefore point to a region in northern Tigray and Eritrea which was once called Saba (later called Meroe), as a possible link with the Biblical Sheba.^[13] Other scholars link Sheba with Shewa (also written as Shoa, modern Addis Ababa) in Ethiopia.^[14]

Ruins in many other countries, including Somalia, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran have been credited as being Sheba, but with only minimal evidence. There has even been a suggestion of a link between the name "Sheba" and that of Zanzibar, and a massive earthenware monument of the Yoruba people all the way in West Africa known as Sungbo's Eredo actually caused mild excitement when it was first studied by Western scholars due to the tribal folk tradition that the divine personage it was built in honour of was none other than the Queen of Sheba herself.

Bibliography[link]

• Alessandro de Maigret. Arabia Felix, translated Rebecca Thompson. London: Stacey International, 2002. ISBN 1-900988-07-0
• Andrey Korotayev. Ancient Yemen. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-19-922237-1.
• Andrey Korotayev. Pre-Islamic Yemen. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 1996. ISBN 3-447-03679-6.

See also[link]

• First Kings
• Genesis
• Sabaeans
• Eritrea
• Ethiopia
• Islamic view of the Queen of Sheba
• King Solomon
• Queen of Sheba
• Rulers of Sheba
• Rulers of Saba and Himyar – a reconstruction of the lineage of the rulers of Saba and Himyar based on extant inscriptions. Based on the work of Dr. Javad Ali.
• Second Chronicles
• Yemen
• Qataban

References[link]

External links[link]

• "Queen of Sheba mystifies at the Bowers" – UC Irvine news article on Queen of Sheba exhibit at the Bowers Museum
• "A Dam at Marib" from the 'Saudi Aramco World' online – March/April 1978
• Queen of Sheba Temple restored (2000, BBC)

For the Charles Gounod opera, see La reine de Saba.

This article contains Ethiopic text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Ethiopic characters.

The Queen of Sheba (Hebrew: מלכת שבא‎, Malkaṯ Šəḇâ in Biblical Hebrew; Malkat Sh'va in Modern Hebrew; Ge'ez: ንግሥተ ሳባ, Nigiste Saba (Nəgəstä Saba); Arabic: ملكة سبأ‎, Malikat Sabaʾ) was a monarch of the ancient kingdom of Sheba and is referred to in Ethiopian history, the Bible, the Qur'an, Yoruba customary tradition, and Josephus. She is widely assumed to have been a queen regnant, although there is no historical proof of this; in fact, she may have been a queen consort.^[1] The location of her kingdom is believed to have been in Ethiopia and Yemen.

Diverse references[link]

The queen of Sheba has been called a variety of names by different peoples in different times. To King Solomon of Israel she was the Queen of Sheba. In Islamic tradition she was called Bilqis or Balqis by the Arabs, who say she came from the city of Sheba, also called Mareb, in Yemen or Arabia Felix. The Roman historian Josephus calls her Nicaule. The Ethiopian people claim her as Makeda or Maqueda. She is thought to have been born sometime in the 10th century BC. Her lineage was part of the Ethiopian dynasty established in 1370 BCE by Za Besi Angabo, which lasted 350 years; Makeda's grandfather and father were the last two rulers of this dynasty. Makeda's mother was known as Queen Ismenie. In 1005 BCE, Makeda's father appointed her as his successor from his deathbed.^[2]

To the early ancient Greeks, Ethiopia referred to an empire that encompassed a vast territory, extending to Arabia, Syria, Armenia, and the territory between the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, and the Persian Gulf. This is the empire that the Queen of Sheba was said to have reigned over. In the Ethiopian Book of Aksum, she is described as establishing a new capital city at Azeba, while the Kebra Negast refers to her building a capital at Debra Makeda, or "Mount Makeda". The Yemenite kingdom of Himyar refers to her in its histories as well.^[3]

In the Hebrew Bible, a tradition of the history of nations is preserved in Genesis 10. In Genesis 10:7 there is a reference to Sheba, the son of Raamah, the son of Cush, the son of Ham, son of Noah. In Genesis 10:26-29 there is a reference to another person named Sheba, listed along with Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab as the descendants of Joktan, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Arphaxad, the descendant of Shem, another son of Noah.

Aharoni, Avi-Yonah, Rainey, and Safrai placed the Semitic Sheba in Southern Arabia in geographic proximity to the location of the tribes descended from their ancestor, Joktan. In addition to Sheba, Hazarmaveth and Ophir were identified. Semitic Havilah was located in Eastern Africa, modern day Ethiopia. Semitic Havilah (Beresh't 10:29) is to be distinguished from Cushite Havilah (Beresh't 10:7), the descendant of Cush, descendant of Ham; both locations for Havilah are thought by these scholars to have been located in present day Ethiopia.^[4]

Narratives concerning the Queen of Sheba[link]

Hebrew biblical accounts[link]

Claude Lorrain, The Embarkation of the Queen of Sheba

According to the Hebrew Bible, the unnamed queen of the land of Sheba heard of the great wisdom of King Solomon of Israel and journeyed there with gifts of spices, gold, precious stones, and beautiful wood and to test him with questions, as recorded in First Kings 10:1-13 (largely copied in 2 Chronicles 9:1–12).

It is related further that the queen was awed by Solomon's great wisdom and wealth, and pronounced a blessing on Solomon's God. Solomon reciprocated with gifts and "everything she desired." Solomon offered to give her everything his kingdom had to offer except the "royal bounty." Therefore, according to the Bible, "she turned and went to her country, she and her servants." The queen apparently was quite rich, however, as she brought four and a half tons of gold with her to give to Solomon (1 Kings 10:10).

In the biblical passages which refer explicitly to the Queen of Sheba there are no hints of love or sexual attraction between Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. The two are depicted merely as fellow monarchs engaged in the affairs of state.

Account in the New Testament[link]

The Queen of Sheba is believed^[who?] to be the Queen of the South referenced in Matthew 12:42 and Luke 11:31 in the New Testament, where Jesus indicates that she and the Ninevites will judge the generation of Jesus' contemporaries who rejected him. (Some arguments believe that The Queen of Sheba was not the Queen of the South, because she did not come from the Ends of the Earth.)

Qur'anic and other Middle Eastern accounts[link]

The Queen of Sheba, Bilqis, shown in a Persian miniature reclining in a garden - tinted drawing on paper c. 1595

The Qur'an, the central religious text of Islam, mentions the kingdom of the Queen by name (Sheba) in the 34th Chapter. Arab sources name her Balqis, Bilqis or Bilquis. The Qur'anic narrative, from sura 27 (An-Naml),^[5] has Suleiman (Salomon) getting reports from the Hoopoe bird about the kingdom of Saba (Sheba), ruled by a queen whose people worship the sun instead of God. Suleiman sends a letter inviting her to submit fully to the One God, Allah, Lord of the Worlds according to the Islamic text. The Queen of Sheba is unsure how to respond and asks her advisors for counsel. They reply by reminding her that they are "of great toughness" in a reference to their willingness to go to war should she choose to. She replies that she fears if they were to lose, Suleiman may behave as any other king would: 'entering a country, despoiling it and making the most honorable of its people its lowest'. She decides to meet with Suleiman in order to find out more. Suleiman receives her response to meet him, and asks if anyone can bring him her throne before she arrives. A jinn under the control of Suleiman proposed that he will bring it before Suleiman rises from his seat. One who had knowledge of the "Book" proposed to bring him the throne of Bilqis 'in the twinkling of an eye' and accomplished that immediately.^[6] The queen arrives at his court, is shown her throne and asked: does your throne look like this? She replied: (It is) as though it were it. When she enters his crystal palace she accepts Abrahamic monotheism and the worship of one God alone, Allah.

Ethiopian accounts[link]

An Ethiopian fresco of the Queen of Sheba travelling to Solomon.

The imperial family of Ethiopia claims its origin directly from the offspring of the Queen of Sheba by King Solomon.^[7] The Queen of Sheba (ንግሥተ ሣብአ nəgəśtã Śāb'ã), is named Makeda (ማክዳ Mākədā) in the Ethiopian account.

Story[link]

An ancient compilation of Ethiopian legends, Kebra Negast ('the Glory of Kings'), is dated to seven hundred years ago and relates a history of Makeda and her descendants. In this account King Solomon is said to have seduced the Queen of Sheba and sired her son, Menelik I, who would become the first Emperor of Ethiopia.

The narrative given in the Kebra Negast - which has no parallel in the Hebrew Biblical story - is that King Solomon invited the Queen of Sheba to a banquet, serving spicy food to induce her thirst, and inviting her to stay in his palace overnight. The Queen asked him to swear that he would not take her by force. He accepted upon the condition that she, in turn, would not take anything from his house by force. The Queen assured that she would not, slightly offended by the implication that she, a rich and powerful monarch, would engage in stealing. However, as she woke up in the middle of the night, she was very thirsty. Just as she reached for a jar of water placed close to her bed, King Solomon appeared, warning her that she was breaking her oath, water being the most valuable of all material possessions. Thus, while quenching her thirst, she set the king free from his promise and they spent the night together.

Other Ethiopian accounts make her the daughter of a king named Agabo or Agabos, in some legends said to have become king after slaying the mythological serpent Arwe; in others, to have been the 28th ruler of the Agazyan tribe. In either event, he is said to have extended his Empire to both sides of the Red Sea.^{[citation needed]}

The tradition that the Biblical Queen of Sheba was a ruler of Ethiopia who visited King Solomon in Jerusalem, in ancient Israel, is supported by the first century CE. Roman (of Jewish origin) historian Flavius Josephus, who identified Solomon’s visitor as a "Queen of Egypt and Ethiopia".^[8]

While there are no known traditions of matriarchal rule in Yemen during the early first millennium BC, the earliest inscriptions of the rulers of Dʿmt in northern Ethiopia and Eritrea mention queens of very high status, possibly equal to their kings.^[9]

Etymology of Makeda[link]

The etymology of her name is uncertain, but there are two principal opinions about its Ethiopian source. One group, which includes the British scholar Edward Ullendorff, holds that it is a corruption of "Candace", the Ethiopian queen mentioned in the New Testament Acts; the other group^[who?] connects the name Makeda with the Ethiopic version of the Alexander romance, which, like other translations, holds that 'Iskinder' (Alexander the Great) of Macedonia (Ethiopic Meqédon) met with Queen Candace (Kandake) of Nubia (c. 332 BCE), and that she dissuaded him from invading her realm.

The Italian scholar Carlo Conti Rossini, however, was unconvinced by either of these theories and, in 1954 stated that he believed the matter unresolved.^[10]

Other traditions[link]

In addition to the above cited accounts, at least one other traditional reference to the queen exists. The Yoruba Ijebu clan of Ijebu-Ode, Nigeria, claim that she was actually a noblewoman of theirs known as Oloye Bilikisu Sungbo. They also assert that a medieval system of walls and ditches, known as the eredo, that was built by their ancestors over the course of the 9th, 10th and 11th centuries, was a monument to the greatness of this personage by her people. After excavations in 1999 the archaeologist Patrick Darling was quoted as saying "I don't want to overplay the Sheba theory, but it cannot be discounted...The local people believe it and that's what is important...The most cogent argument against it at the moment is the dating."^[11]

Later receptions[link]

Christian interpretations[link]

Christian interpretations of the scriptures mentioning the Queen of Sheba in the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament, typically have emphasized both the historical and metaphorical values in the story. The account of the Queen of Sheba is thereby interpreted by Christians as being both a metaphor and an analogy: the Queen's visit to Solomon has been compared to the metaphorical marriage of the Church to Christ where Solomon is the anointed one or the messiah and Sheba represents a Gentile population submitting to the messiah; the Queen of Sheba's chastity has also been depicted as a foreshadowing of the Virgin Mary; and the three gifts that she brought (gold, spices, and stones) have been seen as analogous to the gifts of the Magi (gold, frankincense, and myrrh). The latter is emphasized as being consistent with a passage from Isaiah 60:6; And they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring forth gold and incense; and they shall show forth the praises of the Lord.^[12] This last connection is interpreted^[who?] as relating to the Magi, the learned astronomers of Sheba who saw a new star and set off on a journey to find a new ruler connected to the new star, that led them to Bethlehem.

Medieval depictions[link]

Art in the Middle Ages depicting the visit of the Queen of Sheba includes the Portal of the Mother of God at the 13th century Amiens Cathedral, which is included as an analogy as part of a larger depiction of the gifts of the Magi.^[13] The 12th century cathedrals at Strasbourg, Chartres, Rochester and Canterbury include artistic renditions in such elements as stained glass windows and door jamb decorations.^[12]

Renaissance account[link]

Renaissance relief of the Queen of Sheba meeting Solomon - gate of Florence Baptistry

Boccaccio's On Famous Women (Latin: De Mulieribus Claris) follows Josephus in calling the Queen of Sheba, Nicaula. Boccaccio goes on to explain that not only was she the Queen of Ethiopia and Egypt, but also the queen of Arabia. She also is related to have had a grand palace on "a very large island" called Meroe, located someplace near the Nile river, "practically on the other side of the world." From there Nicaula crossed the deserts of Arabia, through Ethiopia and Egypt, and up the coast of the Red Sea, to come to Jerusalem to see "the great King Solomon".^[14]

Christine de Pizan's The Book of the City of Ladies continues the convention of calling the Queen of Sheba, Nicaula. Piero della Francesca's frescoes in Arezzo (ca 1466) on the Legend of the True Cross, contain two panels on the visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon. The legend links the beams of Solomon's palace (adored by Queen of Sheba) to the wood of the crucifixion. The Renaissance continuation of the metaphorical view of the Queen of Sheba as an analogy to the gifts of the Magi also is clearly evident in the Triptych of the Adoration of the Magi (c. 1510), by Hieronymus Bosch. Bosch chooses to depict a scene of the Queen of Sheba and Solomon in an ornately decorated collar worn by one of the Magi.^[15]

Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus refers to the Queen of Sheba as Saba, when Mephistopheles is trying to persuade Faustus of the wisdom of the women with whom he supposedly shall be presented every morning.^[16]

Theories concerning the origin of the account[link]

Possible Egyptian derivation[link]

Josephus says in his Antiquity of the Jews, book 8 chapter 6, that it was the "queen of Egypt and Ethiopia" who visited King Solomon.

Recent archaeological discoveries[link]

Recent archaeological discoveries in Mareb, Yemen support the view that the Queen of Sheba ruled over southern Arabia, with evidence suggesting that the area was the capital of the Kingdom of Sheba.

A team of researchers funded by the American Foundation for the Study of Man (AFSM) and led by University of Calgary archaeology professor, Dr. Bill Glanzman, has been working to "unlock the secrets of a 3,000-year-old temple in Yemen." "We have an enormous job ahead of us," said Glanzman in 2007. "Our first task is to wrest the sanctuary from the desert sands, documenting our findings as we go. We're trying to determine how the temple was associated with the Queen of Sheba, how the sanctuary was used throughout history, and how it came to play such an important role in Arab folklore."^[17]

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Queen of Sheba

Look up Queen of Sheba in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Sheba
• Minaean
• King Solomon
• Old Testament
• Teleportation in Islam
• Bilocation
• Biblical narratives and the Qur'an

Bibliography[link]

References[link]

• Budge, E. A. Wallis, The Queen of Sheba and her only son Menelik, London 1932.
• Jankowski, A., Die Königin von Saba und Salomo, Hamburg 1987.
• Joseph, Antiquitates iudaicae, viii.6.2.
• Pliny the Elder, Naturalis historia, vi.32.154.
• Makeda, Queen of Sheba by Torrey Philemon.
• Queen of Sheba Temple restored (2000, BBC)
• The Queen Of Sheba by Michael Wood and the BBC.
• The Queen of Sheba, web directory with thumbnail galleries
• Jewish Encyclopedia with information on Jewish and Muslim traditions
• "Queen of Sheba mystifies at the Bowers" — Gladys Rama's review of a museum exhibit for UC Irvine's 'New U' publication
• Alessandro de Maigret. Arabia Felix, translated Rebecca Thompson. London: Stacey International, 2002. ISBN 1-900988-07-0
• Andrey Korotayev. Ancient Yemen. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-19-922237-1.

Footnotes[link]

Vybz Kartel
Background information
Birth name	Adidja Palmer
Born	(1976-01-07) 7 January 1976 (age 36) Kingston, Jamaica
Origin	Portmore, Jamaica
Genres	Reggae, Dancehall, Reggae fusion
Occupations	Deejay, songwriter, entrepreneur, lyricist, producer
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Adidjaheim Records
Associated acts	Beenie Man, Aidonia, Elephant Man, Ninjaman, The Alliance, Portmore Empire, Major Lazer & Popcaan, Kano, Vanessa Bling
Website	www.vybzkartel.co.uk

Adidja Palmer (born 7 January 1976)- ^[1][2][3] better known as Vybz Kartel, is a Jamaican dancehall artist, songwriter and businessman. He has many nicknames, including: Addi, The Teacher, World Boss, Kartel, Vybz, Gaza General and Gaza Don.

Biography[link]

Adidja Palmer began his career as a teenager in 1993 with his first recording "Love Fat Woman", released on Alvin Reid's label "One Heart", using the moniker "Adi Banton", a homage to Buju Banton.^[4] Palmer was later part of the three-member group "Vybez Cartel", keeping the slightly altered name after group split up, and became a protege of Bounty Killer, for whom he claims to have written nearly 30 songs, including "Gal Clown".^[5]

Vybz Kartel rose to prominence in 2003 after a string of hits in Jamaica. The year culminated in a pre-planned on-stage clash with Ninjaman at the annual dancehall festival Sting in Kartel's hometown of Portmore. The clash turned violent when Kartel's crewmembers, as well as Kartel himself, threw punches and assaulted Ninjaman onstage.^[6] While Kartel's manager initially blamed Ninjaman for the fracas,^[6] Kartel himself quickly apologised to Ninjaman and Sting organizers for the fracas.^[7] Four days after the incident, the two artists appeared before the press to announce a settlement of their differences and to end any animosity.^[8]

He established his own label Adidjahiem/Notnice Records with his business partner and producer Ainsley "Notnice" Morris.^[9] In 2010, he released his album Pon Di Gaza 2.0 on Adidjahiem/Notnice Records in collaboration with Tads Record Inc.^[10] In Spring 2011, Vybz Kartel released an album entitled 'Kingston Story' with Brooklyn hip hop/electro producer Dre Skull.^[11]

Kartel has worked on collaborations and remixes with hip hop and R&B musicians Jay-Z, Rihanna, Missy Elliott, Busta Rhymes, M.I.A, Pharrell, Kardinal Offishall, Akon, Jim Jones, Lil Wayne and Eminem.

In 2009 he had succeeded internationally with his hit song featuring a popular female Jamaican Deejay 'Spice' - "Ramping Shop" debuting on the Billboard Top 100 Singles charts,^[12] and "Dollar Sign" being in regular rotation on urban radio stations in the US.^[13] His 2010 single "Clarks" was one of his biggest international successes, remaining in the top 3 Reggae Singles gaining the most radio plays in North America for 40 weeks.^[14] "Clarks" was also featured on the TV series So You Think You Can Dance Canada,^[15] and on a CNN segment on dancehall dance.^[16] MTV's Vice Guide to Dancehall featured Kartel at his weekly dance party, Street Vybz Thursday.^[17]

After splitting with Bounty Killer-led Alliance in 2006, Kartel founded the Portmore Empire, a group of dancehall deejays and singers from his Portmore neighborhood that he signed to his newly founded Adidjahiem/Notnice Records. Members of the group as of 2011 were: Popcaan, Shawn Storm, Sheba, Gaza Indu, Tommy Lee, Singing Maxwell, Singa Blinga, Lenny Mattic. Former members include Lisa Hype,^[18] Gaza Kim,^[19] Black Ryno,^[20] Jah Vinci, Dosa Medicine and Merital Family^[21].

Feud with Mavado[link]

Towards the end of 2006, Vybz Kartel left The Alliance. Tensions arose following Kartel's continued association with Bounty Killer's longtime enemy, Beenie Man, including Kartel attending Beenie Man's wedding to Bounty Killer's ex-girlfriend D'Angel.^[22] Due to Kartel's defection from The Alliance and his 'parring' (fraternising) with Beenie Man, a series of songs and counteraction songs ensued - the main proponents being Kartel and Mavado.

A very public feud between Vybz Kartel and former collaborator Mavado arose towards the end of 2006, stemming from Vybz' much publicized departure from the dancehall conglomerate group The Alliance. The feud resulted in numerous diss tracks released, in which each artist dissed the other and their associates over popular dancehall rhythms.^[23] In a police-overseen press conference in March 2007, both Mavado and Vybz Kartel publicly announced an end to hostilities and apologized to fans.^[24]

However, by the summer of 2008, tensions flared with a renewal of "diss tracks" from each artist, and a lyrical clash between the two at Sting 2008 left mixed views as to the "winner".^[25][26] Most of 2009 saw a continuation of the public feud, which dominated Jamaican media and, to a certain extent, Jamaican culture, with the two artists' factions, Gaza (Kartel) and Gully (Mavado), being adopted by Jamaican youth, in some cases leading to street violence.^[27][28]

On 8 December 2009, Kartel and Mavado met with Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding in an attempt to end the feud, which had by that time fueled mob attacks in some of the inner-city neighborhoods of Kingston.^[29] The two had performed together on-stage the previous night in a sign of goodwill at the West Kingston Jamboree, a concert promoted by drug lord^[30] Christopher "Dudus" Coke.^[23] After the truce in December 2009, the two artists were scheduled to perform a unity concert March 2010 in Barbados, which was later cancelled by the prime minister of that country.^[31]

Business[link]

In 2008, Vybz Kartel launched his own liquor line Street Vybz Rum. He hosts a weekly dance party Street Vybz Thursday, at the Building, Kingston nightclub he manages with Street Vybz Rum business partner Corey Todd.^[32] The rum is officially distributed by Vybz Distillers Limited. The same year, he also released his own condom line, Daggering Condoms.^[33] Kartel's goal for 2011 is to release his own shoe line named Addi's, as well as his own line of "cake soap".^[34]

When his singles "Clarks", "Clarks 2 (Clarks Again)" and "Clarks 3 (Wear Weh Yuh Have)" featured the British shoe brand Clarks in 2010, its sales numbers and prices in Jamaica increased considerably.^[35]

Vybz Kartel has also hosted his own reality television show "Teacha's Pet" on CVM Jamaica broadcast channel, the first reality television show hosted by a dancehall artist in Jamaica. The premise of "Teacha's Pet" finds 20 women living in a Kingston house vying for the artist's affection; the show's lascivious content elicited condemnation of its sponsor, telecommunications company LIME. The show came to a halt with the artist's arrest on murder charges in September 2011.

Controversies[link]

Whitening[link]

Vybz Kartel's Skin before and after he bleached his skin

Kartel has come under controversy over perceived skin whitening, or "bleaching", leading him to claim to the use of "cake soap" to lighten his skin.^[36][37] The Blue Power Group, Jamaican manufacturer of the popular cake soap (or "blue soap"), has refuted claims it changes skin color.^[38] Kartel then stated the soap used to lighten his skin was his own brand, which he intends to release on the local market.^[34]

Airwave Ban[link]

In September 2011 the National Communications Network of Guyana banned Vybz Kartel from the airwaves—the first such action against a specific artist. His music contained "obscene lyrics" and brought "nothing positive" to the entertainment industry, said NCN spokesman Martin Goolsarran (Wednesday, Sept 21st) after a week of internal debate. He said NCN was reviewing the lyrics of other musicians and could ban them as well. In fact the government had no problem with Kartel, its Tourism Ministry inviting him to an August music festival, but he angered it and Guyanese promoters when he failed to show up.^[39]

Murder charge[link]

Vybz Kartel being arrested in October 2011

On 29 September 2011, Kartel was arrested by police. Jamaica's Major Investigation Taskforce (MIT) charged him with murder, conspiracy to murder and illegal possession of a firearm. The deceased was Barrington 'Bossie' Burton, a 27-year-old businessman and music promoter based in the Kingston suburb of Portmore. They first visited Kingston's Norbrook community where the DJ resides, then went to a property on Swallowfield Avenue in Kingston's Havendale area. That residence was the scene of a fire several weeks ago; a scorched computer hard-drive and several boxes were removed. They then drove to Portmore to a home purportedly owned by Kartel's mother, where a number of items were similarly confiscated. Kartel was detained for the weekend in relation to a partially burned, decomposing body found inside the Swallowfield Avenue home.^[40]

Kartel was granted bail for the Burton murder 23 March 2012 for JD$3,000,000, but currently remains jailed in connection on a second murder, of one Clive 'Lizzard' Williams.^[41]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• 2003: Up 2 Di Time
• 2004: More Up 2 Di Time
• 2005: J.M.T.
• 2009: Most Wanted
• 2010: Pon di Gaza 2.0
• 2011: Kingston Story

Singles[link]

Guest appearances[link]

Awards[link]

Kartel has had several collaborations with international hip hop and pop stars. He has released two albums for the UK/US based label Greensleeves Records. He was also nominated for the Source,^[43] VIBE and UK MOBO awards, although his 2004 UK MOBO award nomination was withdrawn amidst controversy over homophobic content of his lyrics.^[44]

• 2003
  • Stone Love's 30th Anniversary
    • DJ of the Year 2005

• 2008
  • CUMA (Caribbean Urban Music Awards)

• 2009
  • EME Awards^[45]
    • Male DJ of the Year
    • Lyricist/Songwriter of the Year
    • Song of the Year (Romping Shop ft. Spice)

• 2010
  • EME Awards^[46]

References[link]

Eva Longoria
Longoria in 2011
Born	Eva Jacqueline Longoria (1975-03-15) March 15, 1975 (age 37) Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
Other names	Eva Longoria Christopher Eva Longoria Parker
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2000–present
Salary	$13 million (2010–11)[1]
Spouse	Tyler Christopher (2002–2004) Tony Parker (2007–2011)

Eva Jacqueline Longoria^[2] (born March 15, 1975)^[3] is an American actress, best known for portraying Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. Longoria received a nomination for the 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for her performance on Desperate Housewives.

Longoria first rose to fame on television for portraying Isabella Braña on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless from 2001 to 2003. She became nationally recognized in the 2000s after appearing in several high-profile advertising campaigns and numerous men's magazines, reaching #14 in the FHM "Sexiest Women 2008" poll, and having appeared on the cover of various international women's magazines including Vogue, Marie Claire and Harper's Bazaar.^[4] Longoria has also starred in films such as Harsh Times (2005), The Sentinel (2006) and Over Her Dead Body (2008).

Early life[link]

Eva Jacqueline Longoria was born in Corpus Christi, Nueces County, Texas, the youngest of four daughters born to Mexican-Americans Enrique Longoria, Jr. and Ella Eva Mireles.^[2][5][6] She was raised Roman Catholic.^[7] The Longoria family originated in Spain and has resided in Texas since before the creation of the United States, predating the English-speaking settlers.

She received her Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology at nearby Texas A&M University-Kingsville.^[8] During this time, she won the title of Miss Corpus Christi, USA in 1998. After completing college, Longoria entered a talent contest that led her to Los Angeles, California; shortly after, she was spotted and signed by a theatrical agent.^[9]

Career[link]

Longoria landed her first television role in 1999 after meeting Executive Producer Gary Ghiaey at a political reception in Los Angeles. Ghiaey hired her to host the weekend destination segment of his television show "L.A. In A Day".^{[citation needed]} Longoria went on to guest star in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210.^[10] Another guest appearance in General Hospital the same year brought her big break on the popular American soap opera The Young and the Restless, in which she played psychotic Isabella Braña Williams from 2001 to 2003.^[11]

In 2006 at the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Pan's Labyrinth.

After leaving The Young and the Restless, she was seen on the now-cancelled Dick Wolf revival of Dragnet. Following Dragnet, she starred in two ill-fated productions - Señorita Justice, a poorly received direct-to-video film, and a television film titled The Dead Will Tell.^{[citation needed]}

In 2004, Longoria landed the role as adulteress Gabrielle Solis in the worldwide break-out ABC hit Desperate Housewives. She has never considered her career to have jumped off so suddenly: "I think it's funny when people say I’m an overnight sensation, because I’ve been working at it for 10 years."^[12]

Shortly after her debut on Desperate Housewives, Longoria starred in a poorly received direct-to-video film titled Carlita's Secret, for which she was also co-producer.^{[citation needed]} In 2006, she was rewarded for her performance as Gabrielle Solis in Desperate Housewives when she was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy along with her co-stars.^{[citation needed]} She was awarded the ALMA Award and named entertainer of the year that year. She also starred opposite Michael Douglas and Kiefer Sutherland in the 2006 thriller The Sentinel, which was her first major role in a theatrical movie. In 2006, she played the character Sylvia in Harsh Times starring Freddy Rodriguez and Christian Bale.

She has expressed "confusion" over fellow Housewives actress Nicolette Sheridan's lawsuit against the Desperate Housewives series creator Marc Cherry.^[13]

People en Español listed her among its "Most Beautiful People" for 2003.^{[citation needed]} Longoria continues to be included in lists of Hollywood's Most Beautiful and was listed #1 in Maxim's Hottest Female Stars of 2005 and 2006, becoming the first woman to top the list in two consecutive years.^[14] She was ranked #9 in the magazine's Hot 100 of 2007 list.^[15] In honor of Maxim's 100th issue in 2006, Longoria was featured on a 75-by-110-foot (23 by 34 m) vinyl mesh replica of its January 2005 cover located in a Clark County, Nevada desert.^[16]

In January 2007, Longoria was chosen to be the first face of Bebe Sport.^[17] She appeared in the Spring/Summer 2007 campaign, photographed by Greg Kadel.^[18] The actress also holds model contracts with L'Oréal and Hanes, New York & Co.^[19] Longoria also has a contract with Magnum Ice-Cream,^[20] and Heineken.^[21][22] She is a part of Microsoft's "I'm A PC" ad campaign,^[23] and she and Tony Parker have appeared together in campaigns for London Fog.^[24]

Eva Longoria became a spokesperson for L'Oréal Paris in 2005 and has continued to feature in L'Oréal TV commercials and print ads until the year 2010.^[25] Eva Longoria stated that she found a "generous spirit" ^[26] at L'Oréal. She continues to say "L'Oréal Paris wants beauty to be free, without borders or prejudices….Working together was just meant to be." ^[26] In the summer of 2010 Longoria served as a judge on The Next Food Network Star.^[27] In October, Longoria hosted the MTV Europe Music Awards 2010 in Madrid, Spain.^[28][29] Based on her earnings within June 1, 2009 to June 1, 2010 Longoria was ranked No. 4 on Forbes Prime Time's 10 Top-Earning Women with an estimated $12 million.^[30] More recently, she was ranked #14 of People's Most Beautiful 2011.^[31]People named her one of 2012 Most Beautiful at Every Age.^[32]

After Desperate Housewives Longoria's first project is an independent drama titled Long Time Gone, in which she will play a mistress. Sarah Siegel-Magness, who produced the award-winning 2009 film Precious, will direct the film. Then, In Who Gets the Dog Longoria will play a woman named Olive who is at war with her ex over who keeps their beloved poodle. Besides starring in the film, she has also signed on as a producer for the comedy. Longoria will also star alongside Brendan Fraser as his wife in Four Kings, a historical drama set during the French and Indian War, which took place from 1754–1763. The drama, directed by Damian Lee, is about a wealthy British man who hopes to create a utopian society with his wife by backing the war between Great Britain and France. And then there is an animated series by Hulu, titled Child Support, in which Longoria will lend her voice to the lead role. Longoria's character is Marley Wiener—an irresponsible suburban mother who basically improvises her way through parenting.^[33] Eva Longoria topped the Forbes magazine's list of the highest-paid TV actresses for 2011.^[34]

Business activities[link]

Longoria at a book signing for her book Eva's Kitchen in April 2011

Eva Longoria opened the restaurant Beso (in Spanish: "Kiss") in Hollywood, along with partner and celebrity chef Todd English, in March 2008. The restaurant is located on Hollywood Boulevard and is accompanied by Kiss, a Victorian-themed nightclub above the restaurant.^[35] The Hollywood Beso was scheduled to be the focus of a pilot episode for a tentative reality series called Beso: Waiting on Fame which would air on VH1 in late 2010.^[36]

In 2009, Longoria and various investor-partners opened a Beso restaurant, with a nightclub called Eve above it, in the Crystals retail and entertainment district of CityCenter in Las Vegas.^[35]

In 2011, the corporation Beso LLC, owner of the Vegas restaurant-and-nightclub venture, with listed assets of about $2.5 million and Eva Longoria as a 32 percent shareholder, filed for Chapter 11 protection, entering bankruptcy proceedings, in order to restructure nearly $5.7 million in debt and other liabilities.^[37] Longoria stated, on the occasion, that she's looking "forward to a more pro-active, hands-on approach in the coming years" with her Las Vegas business interests.^[38] On 28 July 2011, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Nevada, following a request filed by Beso investor Mali Nachum and her husband Ronen, who have been litigating against Longoria and other Beso investors in multiple courts, ordered Eva Longoria to appear in Las Vegas on the 20th of August in order to be examined about the bankrupt restaurant's finances.^[39]

Longoria released the fragrance "EVA by Eva Longoria", a "clean citrus-floral eau de parfum", in April 2010. She stated she wanted a fragrance she could wear: "I am allergic to most fragrances. There was nothing I could wear without my eyes watering, my nose starting to itch or sneezing." ^[40] In the spring of 2011 she launched her signature fragrance, Eva by Eva Longoria, in major department stores.^[27]

Her first book, Eva's Kitchen: Cooking with Love for Family and Friends hit bookstores on April 12, 2011.^[27]

Personal life[link]

Relationships[link]

Longoria was married to General Hospital star Tyler Christopher from 2002 to 2004.^[41]

Longoria met Spurs point guard Tony Parker in November 2004, and on November 30, 2006, the couple became engaged.^[42] They were married in a civil service on Friday, July 6, 2007, at a Paris city hall. It was followed by a full Roman Catholic wedding ceremony at the Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois Church in Paris on Saturday, July 7, 2007.^[43]

Longoria with then-husband Tony Parker at the 2008 Emmy Awards.

On November 17, 2010, Longoria filed for divorce from Parker in Los Angeles, citing "irreconcilable differences".^[44] In the divorce petition, Longoria, who had taken Parker's last name, requested her maiden name be restored. She also sought spousal support from Parker.^[45] The couple had a prenuptial agreement that was signed in June 2007, the month before their wedding, and amended two years later in June 2009.^[46]

The same day as the divorce filing, Longoria confirmed to her friend Mario Lopez that she had discovered hundreds of text messages from another woman on her husband's phone.^[47] Extra identified the other woman as Erin Barry, the former wife of Brent Barry, Parker's former teammate, and revealed that the Barrys were also in the process of divorcing.^[48] Lopez further stated that Longoria believed Parker had cheated on her earlier in the marriage with another woman, with whom he had kept in touch via Facebook.^[49] In light of the divorce, Longoria cancelled her scheduled appearance at the 2010 American Music Awards.^[47] On November 19, 2010, Parker filed for divorce from Longoria in Bexar County, Texas^[50] on the grounds of "discord or conflict of personalities", thus establishing a legal battle over where the divorce case would be heard. Unlike Longoria's divorce petition, Parker's did not mention a prenuptial agreement and claimed that the parties would "enter into an agreement for the division of their estate".^[51] The divorce was finalized in Texas on January 28, 2011, the same day Longoria's lawyer filed papers to dismiss her Los Angeles petition.^[52]

Longoria dated Eduardo Cruz, the younger brother of Penelope Cruz, from February 2011 to March 2012.^[53]

Ancestry[link]

According to research done by Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., of Harvard University, in 2010 for the PBS series Faces of America, Longoria's Spanish ancestry can be traced back to her ninth great-grandfather, Lorenzo Suarez de Longoria (b. Oviedo, 1592), who in 1603 emigrated to the Viceroyalty of New Spain, which became modern-day Mexico, and whose family originated from a small village called Llongoria, Belmonte de Miranda, Asturias, Spain. Longoria is the Spanish spelling of the surname. Through the generations, Longoria's ancestors moved north to the modern US-Mexico border. In 1767, her 7th great-grandfather received almost 4,000 acres (16 km²) of land along the Rio Grande in a land grant from the King of Spain. This land stayed in the family for over a century, enduring through the influx of Anglo settlers in the aftermath of the Mexican-American War and American Civil War.^[54]

Her DNA test results were: 70% European, 27% Asian/Indigenous, and 3% African.^[55] Specifically, her indigenous American ancestry is Mayan.^[56] After a computer compared the DNA results of Gates's dozen guests, test showed that is possible she is genetically related to cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who is of Chinese heritage, though this was never proved.^[55]

Philanthropy[link]

In 2006, Longoria founded Eva's Heroes, a charity which helps developmentally disabled children.^[57] She is the national spokesperson for PADRES Contra El Cancer.^[58] She signed shoes for the Spirit of Women Red Shoe Celebrity Auction.^[59] Longoria also supports the Clothes Off Our Back Foundation, OmniPeace, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the National Stroke Association, Project HOME and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.^[60] Longoria is an executive producer of Shine Global Inc.'s documentary The Harvest (documentary) which is focused on the 500,000 child migrant farm workers in the U.S.^[61] and promote awareness and support to enact the Children's Act for Responsible Employment (CARE Act).^[62][63]

Longoria was named Philanthropist of the year by the Hollywood Reporter for 'her commitment to Latino causes and giving back to the community.^[64] She appeared on Fort Boyard in 2009, making over €20,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.^[65]

In 2009, Longoria enrolled in a Master's program in Chicano Studies and Political Science at Cal State University, Northridge. According to Eva, "because of my involvement with the NCLR and my charity work, I really wanted a better, more authentic understanding of what my community has gone through so I can help create change."^[66]

In September 2009, Longoria was appointed to a bi-partisan commission issued with the task of determining the feasibility of the creation of a National Museum of the American Latino.^[67]

Politics[link]

In 2009, Longoria enrolled in the Chicano Studies master's program at California State University, Northridge.^[68] She has called Arizona's SB 1070 immigration law unconstitutional.^[69] In 2012, she was one of seven Californians named to the "largely ceremonial" post of co-chair of Barack Obama's re-election campaign.^[70]

Filmography[link]

Longoria at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]