# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/masinissa
# Generated: 2026-09-01T14:47:30.696Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/masinissa"
name: "Masinissa"
slug: "masinissa"
description: "He bet on Rome when Carthage still looked unbeatable, switched sides mid-war, and spent the next half-century turning a patchwork of Berber tribes into the kingdom that buried his former masters and fed an empire."
tagline: "First king of Numidia from 202 BC to 148 BC"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Coin_depicting_Masinissa%2C_the_first_king_of_Numidia%2C_who_reigned_from_202_BCE-148_BC%2C_Archaeological_Museum_of_Setif%2C_Algeria_(52651623101).jpg?width=1200"
gender: "male"
category:
  name: "Historical Figures"
  slug: "historical-figures"
profileType:
  name: "Historical Figure"
  slug: "historical-figure"
  entityType: "https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2798645"
birthDate: "-238"
deathDate: "-148"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           55.02
  momentum:             0
  historical:           21.982408
  currentAttention:     0
  sourceConfidence:     60
  profileCompleteness:  60
  trendDirection:       "STABLE"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
tags:
  - name: "Politicians"
    slug: "politicians"
  - name: "Historical Figure"
    slug: "historical-figure"
  - name: "Royalty"
    slug: "royalty"
  - name: "Politics"
    slug: "politics"
  - name: "Ancient History"
    slug: "ancient-history"
sources:
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinissa"
    title: "Wikipedia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q314685"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"
  - url: "https://pantheon.world/profile/person/Masinissa"
    title: "Pantheon 2.0"
    type:  "DATABASE"
  - url: "https://arz.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%B3%D8%A7"
    title: "ماسينيسا"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B0%D1%81%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B8%D1%81%D0%B0"
    title: "Масиниса"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://br.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa_de_Num%C3%ADdia"
    title: "Massinissa de Numídia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinissa"
    title: "Masinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%9C%CE%B1%CF%83%CF%83%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%AC%CF%83%CE%B7%CF%82_%CE%91%CE%84_%CF%84%CE%B7%CF%82_%CE%9D%CE%BF%CF%85%CE%BC%CE%B9%CE%B4%CE%AF%CE%B1%CF%82"
    title: "Μασσανάσης Α΄ της Νουμιδίας"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masiniso"
    title: "Masiniso"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinisa"
    title: "Masinisa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinisa"
    title: "Masinisa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinissa"
    title: "Masinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ha.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinissa"
    title: "Masinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%9E%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%99%D7%A1%D7%94"
    title: "מסיניסה"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinisa"
    title: "Masinisa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masszinissza"
    title: "Masszinissza"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hy.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D5%84%D5%A1%D5%BD%D5%AB%D5%B6%D5%AB%D5%BD%D5%BD%D5%A1"
    title: "Մասինիսսա"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masinissa"
    title: "Masinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massinissa"
    title: "Massinissa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%B3%D8%A7"
    title: "ماسينيسا"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ary.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%B3%D8%A7"
    title: "ماسينيسا"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Born around 238 BC to a Numidian chieftain allied with Carthage, Masinissa fought for them in the Second Punic War until he concluded Rome would win and changed sides. With Roman backing he united the eastern and western Numidian tribes into a single kingdom, fought at Zama in 202 BC in the battle that broke Carthage, and allowed his wife Sophonisba — a Carthaginian noblewoman who'd worked against him — to take poison rather than face Roman triumph. Over 54 years he expanded Numidia into the dominant power in northwest Africa, deliberately provoking Carthage into the war that ended in its total destruction in 146 BC. He led troops until his death at 90, fathered 44 sons, and transformed land the Greeks had written off as barren into what would become Rome's breadbasket. Polybius called him "the best man of all the kings of our time."