Nectanebo I
4th-century BC Egyptian pharaoh
Nectanebo I (Egyptian: Nḫt-nb.f; Ancient Greek: Νεκτάνεβις Nectanebis; died 361/360 BC) was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, founder of the last native dynasty of Egypt, the 30th.
Name
Nectanebo's Egyptian personal name was Nḫt-nb.f (Nakhtnebef), which means "the strong one of his lord". Greek sources rendered the name as Νεκτάνεβις (Nectanebis). The writings of Manetho which have been preserved by George Syncellus spell it Νεκτανέβης (Nectanebēs), but this is probably only based on a phonetic approximation due to iotacism. Although convention in English assigns identical names to him and his grandson, Nectanebo II, the two in fact had different names.
Reign
Accession and family
Nectanebo was an army general from Sebennytos, son of an important military officer named Djedhor and of a lady whose name is only partially recorded, [...]mu. A stele found at Hermopolis provides some evidence that he came to power by overthrowing, and possibly putting to death, the last pharaoh of the 29th Dynasty Nepherites II. It has been suggested that Nectanebo was assisted in the coup by the Athenian general Chabrias. Nectanebo carried out the coronation ceremony in c. 379/378 BC in both Sais and Memphis, and shifted the capital from Mendes to Sebennytos.
The relationships between Nectanebo and the pharaohs of the previous dynasty are not entirely clear.
“Nectanebo I” enters the record as 4th-century BC Egyptian pharaoh. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Nectanebo, 4th-century and Egyptian can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Nectanebo I” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Nectanebo, 4th-century and Egyptian provides the most credible route into that argument.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 28, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q175775. VIAF identifies the subject as 2174436987710931586. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Nectanebo I”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Nectanebo I primary sources, Nectanebo I archive and Nectanebo research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Nectanebo I”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Nectanebo I” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.