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Are the "Romans" meant to be the Orthodox Christians of Europe, based on the fact that the Byzantine Church was Orthodox?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The Byzantines (Rum), in the understanding of ancient Arabs, were the Christians of Europe who held its dominion and rule, along with their followers. They were nicknamed "Banu al-Asfar" (Children of the Yellow) due to their fair complexion. Their borders extended eastward and northward to the Turks, Khazars, and Russians, southward to Syria and Alexandria, and westward to the sea and Andalusia. This name predominantly referred to a mixed nation composed of Greeks, Slavs, and Romans, who formed a kingdom occupying parts of Europe and Asia Minor. Constantine founded the new city of Rome (Constantinople) in ancient Byzantium in 324 CE, where he established a large church (Hagia Sophia). This church became known as the Greek Orthodox Church, which differed from the Egyptian Church regarding the nature of Christ. It agreed with the Western Catholic Church that Christ has two natures and two wills, and it includes the churches of Jerusalem, Greece, Russia, and Eastern Europe.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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