The Fifteenth Dynasty was a foreign dynasty of ancient Egypt. It was founded by Salitis, a Hyksos from West Asia whose people had invaded the country and conquered Lower Egypt. The 15th, 16th, and 17th Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, Second Intermediate Period. The 15th Dynasty dates approximately from 1650 to 1550 BC.
Dynastic history
The kings of the Fifteenth Dynasty are said to have been Canaanite. Pharaoh Kamose is known to have referred to Apophis, one of the kings of the dynasty, as "Chieftain of Retjenu (i.e. Caanan)". The dynasty probably lasted for a period of about 108 years.
The first king, also described as a Hyksos (ḥḳꜣw-ḫꜣswt, a "shepherd" according to Africanus), led his people into an occupation of the Nile Delta area and settled his capital at Avaris. These events put an end to the Fourteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Subsequent relations with Egyptian polities, however, were marked with violent conflict.
Identity
The people of Avaris in the Nile Delta were called Aamu by the Egyptians, which was also the term used to designate the inhabitants of Syria, or the enemies of Ramses II at the battle of Kadesh. This has generally been translated as "Western Asiatics" by Egyptologists.
The term Hyksos was traditionally used to designate foreign chieftains, and more specifically "rulers of the Asiatics", already before the Fifteenth Dynasty and also after it. It was not an official title of the rulers of the Fifteenth dynasty, and is never encountered together with royal titulature, except in one rare instance in an inscription from Tell el-Dab'a mentioning an unknown king and describing him as a Hyksos. In another instance, Khyan is thought to have used the title "Hyksos" early in his reign, and then abandoned it for traditional Egyptian titulature when he invaded the whole of Egypt.
The Fifteenth Dynasty at one point, after a period of about 20 years since its foundation, extended its rule as far south as Thebes, entering into conflict with Pharaoh Neferhotep III. All of this is contested however. For Alexander Ilin-Tomich, the territory directly ruled by the Hyksos kings of Avaris was likely confined to the eastern Delta and the nature and extent of their control over Middle Egypt remains unclear.
The Fifteenth Dynasty eventually ended with the conquest of Avaris by the Pharaoh Ahmose I. Trade with Canaan is said to have been "intensive", especially with many imports of Canaanite wares, and may have reflected the Canaanite origins of the dynasty.
Religion
The relation of the Fifteenth Dynasty to Egyptian religious traditions was ambiguous, and they are said by commentators from the Eighteenth Dynasty that "they ruled without ackowledging Re".
Rulers
Known rulers of the 15th Dynasty are as follows:
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; width:60%;"
|+Fifteenth Dynasty
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! Name
! Image
! Dates and comments
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| Salitis
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| Mentioned by Manetho as first king of the dynasty; currently unidentified with any known archaeologically attested person. Ruled for 19 years according to Manetho, as quoted by Josephus.
|-
| Semqen
|50px
| According to Ryholt, he was an early Hyksos ruler, possibly the first king of the dynasty;
|-
| Aperanat
| 50px
| According to Ryholt, he was an early Hyksos ruler, possibly the second king of the dynasty;
|-
| Yanassi
|left|59x59px
| Khyan's eldest son, possibly at the origin of the mention of a king Iannas in Manetho's Aegyptiaca
|-
| Sakir-Har
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| Named as an Hyksos king on a doorjamb found at Avaris. Regnal order uncertain.
|-
| Apophis
|50px
| c. 1590?–1550 BC<br>Ruled 40+ years. This is also supported by this king's employment of a third prenomen during his reign: Nebkhepeshre. Apophis likely employed different prenomens over the course of several periods of his reign. This scenario is not without precedent or parallel, since several kings, including Mentuhotep II, the famous Ramesses II, and Seti II, are known to have used two different prenomens during their reigns.
Comparison of regnal lists
The fifteenth dynasty was often excluded from Egyptian king lists due to being perceived as usurpers by Egyptians in later times. The Turin King List originally listed six "rulers of foreign lands", but the list itself is in a very fragmentary state and much of the information is now lost. Manetho's now-lost work Aegyptiaca, as quoted by Sextus Julius Africanus, originally listed six "shepherd kings from Phoenicia" and gave individual reign lengths of each king.
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |Historical Pharaoh
! rowspan="2" |Turin King List
! rowspan="2" |Manetho