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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Kia, Mehrdad, author.
Title: The Persian empire : a historical encyclopedia / Mehrdad Kia.
Description: Santa Barbara : ABC-CLIO, 2016. | Series: Empires of the world | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2015039283 | ISBN 9781610693905 (hardback) | ISBN 9781610693912 (ebook) | ISBN 9781440845680 (vol 1) | ISBN 9781440845697 (vol 2)
Subjects: LCSH: Iran—History—To 640—Encyclopedias. | Iran—Civilization—To 640—Encyclopedias. | BISAC: HISTORY / Europe / Eastern.
Classification: LCC DS275 .K53 2016 | DDC 935/.7003—dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015039283
ISBN: 978-1-61069-390-5 (set)
978-1-4408-4568-0 (vol. 1)
978-1-4408-4569-7 (vol. 2)
EISBN: 978-1-61069-391-2
20 19 18 17 16 1 2 3 4 5
This book is also available as an eBook.
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For my mother, Kiadokht Kia
CONTENTS
VOLUME 1
Preface
Introduction
Chronology of Ancient Iran
Ancient Cities, Historical Places, and Archaeological Sites
Overview Essay
Asaac
Bibi Shahrbanu
Bishapur
Bisotun Inscription
Bokhara
Dura Europos
Ecbatana
Ganj Nameh
Ka’ba of Zoroaster
Kangavar and the Temple of Anahita (Anahid)
Kuh-e Khwaja (Mount of Khwaja)
Naqsh-e Rajab
Naqsh-e Rostam
Nisa
Oxus Treasure
Panjkand
Pasargadae
Persepolis
Ray
Samarqand
Sar Mashhad
Taq-e Bostan
Ancient Provinces and Geographical Regions
Overview Essay
Abar Shahr
Abarkavan
Adiabene
Alborz
Anshan
Arachosia
Aria
Azerbaijan
Bactria
Chorasmia
Elymais
Fars (Parsa, Persis)
Hyrcania
Parthia
Sogdiana
Transoxiana
Cultures, Calendars, and Festivals
Overview Essay
Ab, Aban, Aban Mah
Aparni
Bahmanjaneh
Chaharshanbeh Suri
Education
Iranian Cuisine
Iranian Languages
Iranian Months
Middle Persian
Nowruz
Old Persian
Parthian
Persian Gardens
Sadeh
Saffron
Sports
Kings and Queens of the Achaemenid Dynasty
Overview Essay
Achaemenes
Arsames
Arses
Artaxerxes I
Artaxerxes II
Artaxerxes III
Cambyses I
Cambyses II
Cyrus II the Great
Cyrus the Younger
Darius I
Darius II
Darius III
Sogdianos
Teispes
Vishtaspa (Father of Darius I)
Xerxes I
Xerxes II
Kings and Queens of the Arsacid/Parthian Dynasty
Overview Essay
Arsaces I
Arsaces II
Artabanus I
Artabanus II
Artabanus III
Artabanus IV
Gotarzes I
Gotarzes II
Mithridates I
Mithridates II
Mithridates III
Orodes I
Orodes II
Orodes III
Pacorus
Phraates I
Phraates II
Phraates III
Phraates IV
Phraates V
Priapatius
Sinatruces
Vologeses I
Vologeses II
Vologeses III
Vologeses IV
Vologeses V
Vologeses VI
Vonones I
Kings and Queens of the Median Dynasty
Overview Essay
Astyages
Cyaxares/Huvakhshtra
Deioces
Mandane
Phraortes
Kings and Queens of the Sasanian Dynasty
Overview Essay
Ardashir I
Ardashir II
Ardashir III
Azarmidokht
Babak
Bahram I, Bahram II, Bahram III
Bahram IV
Bahram V
Bahram VI Chobin
Balash
Boran (Puran)
Hormozd I
Hormozd II
Hormozd III
Hormozd IV
Jamasp
Kavad I
Kavad II Shiruya
Khosrow I Anushiravan
Khosrow II Parvez
Narseh
Peroz
Shapur I
Shapur II
Shapur III
Yazdegerd I
Yazdegerd II
Yazdegerd III
Kings and Queens of the Seleucid Dynasty
Overview Essay
Alexander Balas
Antiochus I Soter
Antiochus II Theos
Antiochus III
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Antiochus V Eupator
Antiochus VII Sidetes
Apame/Apama
Demetrius I Soter
Demetrius II Nicator
Seleucus I Nicator
Seleucus II Callinicus
Seleucus III Soter
Seleucus IV Philopator
Index
VOLUME 2
Legendary Kings, Heroes, and Villains
Overview Essay
Afrasiyab
Arash
Bahman
Esfandiyar
Faramarz
Faranak
Farangis
Fereydun
Gayomard
Gēv
Goshtasp
Hushang
Iraj
Jamshid
Katayun
Kaveh
Kay Kavus
Kay Khosrow
Kay Qobad
Lohrasp
Manuchehr
Pishdadian
Rostam
Simorgh
Siyavash
Tahmures
Zab/Zav
Zahhak
Zal
Peoples, Empires, Administrations, and Military Organizations
Overview Essay
Achaemenid Army
Achaemenid Empire
Administration
Alans
Alexander of Macedon (the Great)
Ariobarzanes
Arsacid Army
Arsacid (Parthian) Empire
Arsacids
Bessus
Hephthalites
Iranian Society and Power Structure (Arsacids/Parthians and Sasanians)
Kushan Empire
Media, Medes, and the Median Empire
Parthian Stations
Royal Road
Sasanian Empire
Scythians
Seleucids
Shahrestanha-ye Eranshahr
Spitaman
Prophets, Poets, Scientists, Historians, and Artists
Overview Essay
Agathias
Barbad
Borzuye
Ctesias of Knidos
Cyropaedia
Ferdowsi
Herodotus
Kartir
Mani
Mazdak
Xenophon
Religion, Religious Beliefs, and Gods and Goddesses
Overview Essay
Adur
Aeshma
Ahriman
Ahura Mazda
Airyanem Vaejah
Ameretat
Amesha Spentas
Anahita
Asha and Asha Vahishta
Ashi Vanguhi
Astvihad
Avesta
Bahram
Bushyasta
Fravashis and Fravardigan
Gathas
Haoma
Haurvatat
Khshathra Vairya
Khvarnah
Magi
Mithra
Sacred Birds
Saoshyant
Spenta Armaiti
Tishtrya
Vayu
Vendidad
Vohu Manah
Yazatas
Zurvan
Primary Documents
1.The Gathas of Zarathustra from the Zoroastrian Avesta
2.The Lands of the Ancient Iranians from the Avesta
3.Veneration of Natural Forces: Hymn to the River Goddess Aredvi Sura Anahita
4.Hymn to the Shining Sun
5.Excerpt from Plutarch’s “Isis and Osiris” Describing the Teachings of Zarathustra
6.Description of the Rise of Media during the Reign of King Cyaxares from Herodotus’s Histories
7.Description from the Babylonian Chronicles of the Conquest of the Assyrian Capital, Nineveh, by the Medes and Babylonians
8.A Neo-Babylonian Inscription Describing the Conquest of Babylon by Cyrus II the Great
9.Excerpts from the Cyrus Cylinder Discovered in Babylon in 1879
10.Cyrus II the Great in the Old Testament: Passages from the Books of Ezra and Isaiah
11.Inscription of Darius I at Bisotun
12.Inscription of Darius I at Naqsh-e Rostam
13.Descriptions of the Administrative Structure of the Persian Achaemenid Empire from Xenophon’s Oeconomicus and Herodotus’s Histories
14.Persian Engineering: Description of the Construction of the Royal Road from Herodotus’s Histories and of the Suez Canal from an Inscription of Darius I
15.Inscription of Darius I at Susa
16.Inscriptions of Xerxes at Persepolis
17.Religion of the Achaemenid Kings from an Inscription of Artaxerxes II
18.Plutarch’s Account of the Battle of Cunaxa between Artaxerxes II and Cyrus the Younger
19.An Account from Quintus Curtius Rufus’s History of Alexander of the King and the Persian Army on the March
20.Excerpts from Various Writers Describing the Women of the Achaemenid Royal House
21.Excerpts from Various Writers Describing Iranian Customs and Practices
22.Persian Menu and an Excerpt Relating to Persian Dining
23.Parthia and the Rise of the Arsacid (Parthian) Dynasty According to Classical Sources
24.Personality and Campaigns of the Arsacid King Mithridates I in Western Sources
25.Diodorus Siculus’s Account of the Victory of Arsacid King Phraates II over the Seleucid King Antiochus VII
26.Two Accounts of the Parthian Empire
27.Excerpt from Parthian Stations by Isidore of Charax
28.Plutarch’s Account of the Battle of Carrhae between the Romans Commanded by Crassus and the Parthians Commanded by Surena (Suren)
29.Parthia, Rome, and Armenia: An Excerpt from Tacitus’s Annals of Imperial Rome
30.Parthian Identity and Customs: An Excerpt from Tacitus’s Annals of Imperial Rome
31.The Fall of the Arsacid (Parthian) Empire and the Rise of the Sasanian Dynasty in Cassius Dio’s Roman History
32.Rise of the Sasanian Dynasty under Ardashir I and the Onset of the Persian-Roman Wars: An Excerpt from Herodian’s History of the Roman Empire
33.Excerpt from Nameh-ye Tansar [Letter of Tansar]
34.Inscription of the Zoroastrian High Priest Kartir at Naqsh-e Rostam on the Ka’ba-ye Zardosht (Ka’ba of Zoroaster)
35.Descriptions of Shapur II as a Leader and a Diplomat
36.The Reign of Khosrow Anushiravan (531–579 CE): Excerpts from The History of Tabari
37.Superpower Diplomacy on the Silk Road: Sogdian Merchants and the Sasanian, Byzantine, and Turk Empires in Menander’s History of Menander the Guardsman
38.Bahram Chobin: An Excerpt from The History of Theophylact Simocatta
Appendix: Dynasties of Pre-Islamic Greater Iran
Glossary of Selected Terms
Selected Bibliography
About the Author
Index
PREFACE
The Persian Empire: A Historical Encyclopedia is primarily focused on the great dynasties of pre-Islamic Iran, namely the Medes, the Achaemenids, the Seleucids, the Arsacids (Parthians), and the Sasanians. Also included are entries on the legendary royal houses of Greater Iran, specifically the Pishdadian and the Kayanian dynasties, as well as on the important personages who served and fought for them. Throughout this two-volume encyclopedia, the terms “Iran” and “Greater Iran” are used as equivalent to the term “Persia” to refer to the ancient culture and society that produced the Median, Achaemenid, Arsacid, and Sasanian Empires. The reason for this is simple. In antiquity as today, the term “Persia” merely referred to a province within Greater Iran, namely the southern Iranian province of Parsa (Persis in Greek) and not the entire Iranian world, which contained a variety of Iranian- and non-Iranian-speaking peoples. Persians were one group among numerous Iranian groups, which included the non-Persian-speaking Medes, Parthians, Chorasmians, Bactrians, Sogdians, Scythians, and many others. These groups were Iranian by culture, and language, but they were not Persian. Thus, the word “Persia” is not equivalent to the word “Iran” but only refers to a province and a subculture within the Iranian universe. Two of Greater Iran’s ancient dynasties—the Medes and the Arsacids—were Iranian but not Persian, while the Achaemenids and the Sasanians were Persian in their origin and language.
It is important to note that when speaking of Iran we are not referring to the present-day country of Iran. In ancient times, Iran constituted a vast political and cultural domain, and Iranian-speaking people inhabited a much larger territory. Present-day Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Azerbaijan as well as parts of Mesopotamia and Asia Minor served as the home for this rich civilization and culture. In other words, the Greater Iran of ancient times incorporated modern Iran but was not confined to it.
All of the Iranian empires of the pre-Islamic era contained a mosaic of ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups. Each group possessed its own history,
culture, language, religious customs, and traditions. The Iranian groups included the Persians, the Medes, the Parthians, the Hyrcanians, the Arians, the Chorasmians, the Sogdians, the Bactrians, the Arachosians, the Drangians, and others, while non-Iranian groups included Armenians, Assyrians, Arabs, Greeks, Jews, Babylonians, and others. No account of ancient Iran can therefore claim to be comprehensive unless it covers the history and cultures of all peoples and communities who contributed to the diversity, growth, and prosperity of Greater Iran’s pre-Islamic empires. The present volumes make no pretense of providing a thorough and all-inclusive synopsis of ancient Iran’s history and culture. Far from it, this encyclopedia, comprising 241 individual entries, is designed as an introductory outline, providing high school and college students as well as general readers who might not have prior knowledge or expertise on the subject with a broad overview and a general understanding of some of the main ideas, religious concepts, personages, and events in the rich history of ancient Iran.
The Persian Empire is designed as a research tool dedicated to the study of the pre-Islamic civilization of Greater Iran. Because no other encyclopedia of ancient Iran has been written for the exclusive use of high school and university undergraduate students, this reference source will fill a significant gap presently encountered by those who plan to study or research the history of the ancient Near East. The Persian Empire will benefit not only high school and university students but also the general reader interested in Iranian life and culture. Now more than ever, it is critical for us to understand the history of this ancient civilization and teach our students its place and role in world history. This encyclopedia will therefore provide a timely resource for understanding the history and culture of the Iranian-speaking peoples. The geographical focus of this encyclopedia will be limited to regions that were populated by ancient Iranians in antiquity as well as to countries and territories ruled by the empires of the Medes, Achaemenids, Seleucids, Arsacids (Parthians), and Sasanians. The time span covered extends from the arrival of ancient Iranians on the Eurasian steppes and the Iranian plateau in antiquity to the fall of the Sasanian Empire in 651 CE. The text has been supplemented with photographs, maps, and cross-references as well as a chronology of major events, a glossary, a bibliography of print and electronic resources suitable for both university undergraduate and high school student research, a selection of primary document excerpts, an appendix listing the dynasties of pre-Islamic Iran, and a detailed subject index, making this encyclopedia a useful addition to existing reference collections.
INTRODUCTION
The Persian Empire, compared with what preceded it, was a miracle. It brought peace, … from outside attack. … It brought justice; though the famously just Royal Judges make no appearance in our book. … It brought prosperity, for the Persians devoted themselves (as Xenophon in the Oeconomicus stresses) to the improvement of agriculture. The Persians were the great gardeners of antiquity. Cyrus [the Younger] declared to an astounded Lysander that he gardened daily when not on campaign and had himself laid out a park at Sardis, his “paradise” (to give the Greek version of the Old Persian word for a garden, firdu). In similar spirit they attended to agriculture in general, both maintaining carefully the ancient canals of Babylonia … and making improvements in irrigation throughout the empire, as the prophet of Isaiah XL–LV foretold. Likewise with communications. The great roads they built were for the movement of armies, … but they served the purposes of peace as well. The Suez canal was built by Darius I purely for trade; the whole of empire from India to the Aegean was to be linked by sea as well as by land. All in all, Persia was one of the chief civilizing forces of history, and the Greeks in calling them “barbarians,” as they called all who did not speak Greek, have greatly misled posterity.