“PARTHIA—The Forgotten Ancient Superpower”
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The Political Thought of Darius the Great (522- 486 B.C.), the Legislator of Achaemenid Empire (A Study Based on Achaemenid Inscriptions in Old Persian)
International Journal of Political Science ISSN: 2228-6217 Vol.3, No.6, Spring 2013, (pp.51-65) The Political Thought of Darius the Great (522- 486 B.C.), the Legislator of Achaemenid Empire (A Study Based on Achaemenid Inscriptions in Old Persian) Awat Abbasi* Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies Received: 5 Dec 2012 ; Accepted: 11 Feb 2013 Abstract: Darius offered the political order of “king of kings” to solve the political crisis of his era. He legitimized it based on an order of gods. In his belief, the nature of politics was based on a dualis- tic religious worldview that is the fight between true divinity and false divinity’s will and perfor- mance in the world. In addition, the chief true divinity’s law was introduced as the principle order in the world and eternal happiness in true divinity’s house. Therefore, it was considered as the pattern of political order following which was propagandized as the way to reach happiness in this world and salvation in next life. To protect this law, the chief true divinity bestowed the political power to the ruler. Therefore, what should be the political order and who should be the ruler, is justified in the context of the definitions of human, world, happiness and salvation. The sovereignty of the ruler and, therefore, the domination of the chief true divinity’s laws in politics were considered as justice. This definition of justice denied liberty and promoted absolutism. In justifying the ruler’s absolute power, even his laws and commands were considered as the dominant norms over the politics. -
The Satrap of Western Anatolia and the Greeks
University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2017 The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Eyal Meyer University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons Recommended Citation Meyer, Eyal, "The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks" (2017). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2473. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Abstract This dissertation explores the extent to which Persian policies in the western satrapies originated from the provincial capitals in the Anatolian periphery rather than from the royal centers in the Persian heartland in the fifth ec ntury BC. I begin by establishing that the Persian administrative apparatus was a product of a grand reform initiated by Darius I, which was aimed at producing a more uniform and centralized administrative infrastructure. In the following chapter I show that the provincial administration was embedded with chancellors, scribes, secretaries and military personnel of royal status and that the satrapies were periodically inspected by the Persian King or his loyal agents, which allowed to central authorities to monitory the provinces. In chapter three I delineate the extent of satrapal authority, responsibility and resources, and conclude that the satraps were supplied with considerable resources which enabled to fulfill the duties of their office. After the power dynamic between the Great Persian King and his provincial governors and the nature of the office of satrap has been analyzed, I begin a diachronic scrutiny of Greco-Persian interactions in the fifth century BC. -
The Politics of Parthian Coinage in Media
The Politics of Parthian Coinage in Media Author(s): Farhang Khademi Nadooshan, Seyed Sadrudin Moosavi, Frouzandeh Jafarzadeh Pour Reviewed work(s): Source: Near Eastern Archaeology, Vol. 68, No. 3, Archaeology in Iran (Sep., 2005), pp. 123-127 Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25067611 . Accessed: 06/11/2011 07:31 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. The American Schools of Oriental Research is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Near Eastern Archaeology. http://www.jstor.org The Parthians (174 BCE-224CE) suc- , The coins discussed here are primarily from ceeded in the the Lorestan Museum, which houses the establishing longest jyj^' in the ancient coins of southern Media.1 However, lasting empire J0^%^ 1 Near East.At its Parthian JF the coins of northern Media are also height, ^S^ considered thanks to the collection ruleextended Anatolia to M from ^^^/;. housed in the Azerbaijan Museum theIndus and the Valley from Ef-'?S&f?'''' in the city of Tabriz. Most of the Sea to the Persian m Caspian ^^^/// coins of the Azerbaijan Museum Farhang Khademi Gulf Consummate horsemen el /?/ have been donated by local ^^ i Nadooshan, Seyed indigenoustoCentral Asia, the ? people and have been reported ?| ?????J SadrudinMoosavi, Parthians achieved fame for Is u1 and documented in their names. -
The Achaemenid Legacy in the Arsakid Period
Studia Litteraria Universitatis Iagellonicae Cracoviensis 2019, special issue, pp. 175–186 Volume in Honour of Professor Anna Krasnowolska doi:10.4467/20843933ST.19.032.10975 www.ejournals.eu/Studia-Litteraria HTTP://ORCID.ORG/0000-0001-6709-752X MAREK JAN OLBRYCHT University of Rzeszów, Poland e-mail: [email protected] The Memory of the Past: the Achaemenid Legacy in the Arsakid Period Abstract The Achaemenid Empire, established by Cyrus the Great, provided a model looked up to by subsequent empires on the territory of Iran and the Middle East, including the empires ruled by Alexander of Macedonia, the Seleukids, and the Arsakids. Achaemenid patterns were eagerly imitated by minor rulers of Western Asia, including Media Atropatene, Armenia, Pontos, Kappadokia and Kommagene. The Arsakids harked back to Achaemenids, but their claims to the Achaemenid descendance were sporadic. Besides, there were no genealogical links between the Arsakids and Achaemenid satraps contrary to the dynastic patterns com- mon in the Hellenistic Middle East. Keywords: Iran, Cyrus the Great, Achaemenids, Arsakids, Achaemenid legacy In this article I shall try to explain why some rulers of the Arsakid period associa- ted their dynasty with the Achaemenids and what the context was of such declara- tions. The focus of this study is on the kings of Parthia from Arsakes I (248–211 B.C.) to Phraates IV (37–3/2 B.C.). The Achaemenids established the world’s first universal empire, spanning ter- ritories on three continents – Asia, Africa, and (temporary) Europe. The power of the Persians was founded by Cyrus the Great (559–530 B.C.), eulogised by the Iranians, Jews, Babylonian priests, and Greeks as well, who managed to make a not very numerous people inhabiting the lands along the Persian Gulf masters of an empire stretching from Afghanistan to the Aegean Sea, giving rise to the largest state of those times. -
2015, Vol. 1, No. 1
2015, Vol. 1, No. 1 ©2015 Jordan Center for Persian Studies DABIR 2015 1(1) University of California, Irvine http://www.dabirjournal.org/ www.dabirjournal.org Editor-in-Chief Touraj Daryaee Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture University of California, Irvine 1st Floor Humanities Gateway Irvine, CA 92697-3370 e-mail: [email protected] Editors Parsa Daneshmand (Oxford University) Arash Zeini (Independent scholar) Book Review Editor Shervin Farridnejad (Freie Universität Berlin) Editorial Assistants Ani Honarchian (UCLA) Sara Mashayekh (UCI) Advisory Board Samra Azarnouche (École pratique des hautes études) Dominic P. Brookshaw (Oxford University) Matthew Canepa (University of Minnesota) Ashk Dahlén (Uppsala University) Peyvand Firouzeh (Cambridge University) Leonardo Gregoratti (Durham University) Frantz Grenet (Collège de France) Wouter F.M. Henkelman (École Pratique des Hautes Études) Rasoul Jafarian (Tehran University) Nasir al-Ka‘abi (University of Kufa) Andromache Karanika (UC Irvine) Agnes Korn (Goethe Universität Frankfurt am Main) Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (University of Edinburgh) Jason Mokhtarain (University of Indiana) Ali Mousavi (UC Irvine) Mahmoud Omidsalar (CSU Los Angeles) Antonio Panaino (University of Bologna) Alka Patel (UC Irvine) Richard Payne (University of Chicago) Khodadad Rezakhani (Freie Universität Berlin) Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis (British Museum) M. Rahim Shayegan (UCLA) Rolf Strootman (Utrecht University) Giusto Traina (University of Paris-Sorbonne) Mohsen Zakeri (University of Göttingen) Logo design by Charles Li Layout and typesetting by Arash Zeini i xšnaoθrahe ahurahe mazdå Detail from above the entrance of Tehran’s fire temple, 1286š/1917–18. Photo by © Shervin Farridnejad ii Contents I Articles 1 1 A re-examination of two terms in the Elamite version of the Behistun inscription Saber Amiri Pariyan ............................................. -
Languages and Scripts in Graeco-Bactria and The
ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 Old Persian, Imperial Aramaic,. 16 LANGUAGES AND SCRIPTS IN GRAECO-BACTRIA AND THE SAKA KINGDOMS* J. Harmatta Contents Old Persian, Imperial Aramaic, Old Bactrian ...................... 386 The survival of Aramaic ................................ 390 The language of ancient Bactria ............................ 391 Greek language and script in Central Asia ....................... 394 The language of the Southern Sakas .......................... 398 Old Persian, Imperial Aramaic, Old Bactrian Script and writing appeared in eastern Iran long before the Yüeh-chih conquest of Bactria. Under Darius I, Old Persian administration and chancellery practice had probably been introduced into the eastern Achaemenid satrapies. This involved the use of the Old Per- sian language and cuneiform script, and the adoption of the Aramaic language and script as intermediary instruments of communication between administrative centres. The royal weight inscribed with an Old Persian cuneiform text from Bost (modern Qal‘a-i˘ Bist in Afghanistan) shows this development, even though it was prepared at the royal court in western Iran; and the borrowing by the Prakrit languages of such important terms as Old Persian dipi- (document), nipis- (to write) and nipistam. (inscription) clearly proves the use of Old Persian in the Indus territories belonging to the Achaemenid Empire at that time. * See Map 3. 386 ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 Old Persian, Imperial Aramaic,. The introduction and use of Aramaic chancellery practice was, however, of much greater importance for the spread of literacy in the Middle East. Although not a single Aramaic document from the Achaemenid period has so far come to light in eastern Iran, indirect evi- dence exists. -
The History of Parthia
1 962:151g The Parthians I. Introduction A. The Importance of the Parthians 1. The Persian Resurgence a) demonstrates continued vigor of Iranians b) unlike other Middle Eastern peoples, the Iranians maintain their identity and political power in the face of outside invasion (1) first, Greeks (2) then, Romans (3) then, Arabs (4) then, European imperialism and colonialism 2. They Were A Major Power for 470 Years: 247 BCE - 227 CE a) They destroyed the Seleucid kingdom b) They blocked Roman expansion into Mesopotamia and Armenia B. Sources of Information 1. Literary Sources Are Very Scanty a) almost nothing that is itself Parthian b) most comes from hostile or disdainful Greek and Roman writers 2. Epigraphic Material Is Limited a) Some Greek inscriptions from Parthia b) Some Parthian and Aramaic inscriptions on jewelry 3. There Is Minimal Archeological Material a) very little excavation in Iran prior to 1979 b) none at all since 1979 C. The Origins of the Parthians 1. The Name „Parthia‟ a) actually the Greek form of the Achaemenid name (Parthava) of a satrapy in northern Iran 2. The „Parni‟ a) their name for themselves b) members of a semi-nomadic Dahae confederacy north of Hyrcania, between the Caspian and Aral Seas II. The Rise of Arsacid Parthia A. The Establishment of the Parthian Kingdom 1. The Rebellion Against Seleucid Rule in 238 BCE a) led by their chieftain, Arsaces, the Parni expel Andragoras, the rebel Seleucid governor of Parthia, from his province (1) they then permanently occupy the district of Astavene (Astrabad) in the province of Parthia (2) the Seleucids were distracted and weakened at the time (a) dynastic civil war (b) Ptolemaic invasion of Babylonia 2 (3) eastern provinces in Afghanistan break away at this time under their Greek governor, Diodotus, who founds the Greek kingdom of Bactria b) Arsaces claims to be the successor of the Achaemenids B. -
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ANABASIS 5 (2014) STUDIA CLASSICA ET O RIE NTALIA Habib Borjian (Columbia University, USA) A PERSIAN VIEW OF THE STEPPE IRANIANS1 Keywords: Eurasian Steppes, Scythians, Sarmatians, Alans, Persian Empire, Iranian national traditions, Avesta, Shahnama By the turn of the second to first millennium BCE, the Iranian-speaking tribes of the Steppe Bronze Cultures had parted into two main groups: those who mi- grated south eventually into the plateau which bears their name to this date, and those who expanded their domain within the steppes, westward into the Volga and Pontic regions and beyond, and southward well into the Caucasus and Cen- tral Asia. These two main branches of the same people evolved in the very dif- ferent ways, characteristic to other societies living in the southern and northern Eurasia. Nevertheless, as South and North Iranians – even if separated by deserts and mountains – were often immediate neighbors, they kept influencing each other as long as the Iranian pastoralist riders ruled the Eurasian Steppes. After all, many of the vicissitudes undergone by Persia since the dawn of her history have been related to the Steppe warriors, and, on the other side of the coin, much of what we know today about the history of the Scythians, Sarmatians, and Alans are due to their interactions with the Iranian civilization in Western Asia. In addition to these two groups, which I shall call South and North Iranians for simplicity, we may yet identify a third group: those of Central Asia, whom are usually referred to as Eastern Iranians in scholarly literature. These consist of the settled Chorasmians, Sogdians, and Bactrians, among others, who were the immediate southern neighbors of the nomadic Sacae, Massagetae, Dahae, and Chionites of the area from the river Jaxartes up to the Kazakh Steppe. -
Long Distance Trade and the Parthian Empire: Reclaiming Parthian Agency from an Orientalist Historiography
Western Washington University Western CEDAR WWU Graduate School Collection WWU Graduate and Undergraduate Scholarship Spring 2018 Long Distance Trade and the Parthian Empire: Reclaiming Parthian Agency from an Orientalist Historiography Evan J. (Evan Jeffery) Jones Western Washington University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwuet Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Jones, Evan J. (Evan Jeffery), "Long Distance Trade and the Parthian Empire: Reclaiming Parthian Agency from an Orientalist Historiography" (2018). WWU Graduate School Collection. 692. https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwuet/692 This Masters Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the WWU Graduate and Undergraduate Scholarship at Western CEDAR. It has been accepted for inclusion in WWU Graduate School Collection by an authorized administrator of Western CEDAR. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Long Distance Trade and the Parthian Empire: Reclaiming Parthian Agency from an Orientalist Historiography By Evan Jones Accepted in Partial Completion of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in History ADVISORY COMMITTEE Dr. Steven Garfinkle, Chair Dr. Roger Thompson Dr. Tristan Goldman GRADUATE SCHOOL Dr. Gautam Pillay, Dean Master’s Thesis In presenting this thesis in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a master’s degree at Western Washington University, I grant to Western Washington University the non-exclusive royalty-free right to archive, reproduce, distribute, and display the thesis in any and all forms, including electronic format, via any digital library mechanisms maintained by WWU. I represent and warrant this is my original work and does not infringe or violate any rights of others. -
STATES in NORTH-WESTERN CENTRAL ASIA the Transition To
ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 The transition to sedentary culture 18 STATES IN NORTH-WESTERN CENTRAL ASIA* N. N. Negmatov Contents The transition to sedentary culture ........................... 432 Ethnic history ...................................... 433 Irrigation and agriculture ................................ 435 Mining and manufacture ................................ 436 The development of cities and urbanization ...................... 437 Development in Ferghana ................................ 442 Subsequent developments ................................ 444 The transition to sedentary culture The Aral and Syr Darya region of northern Central Asia has, in almost every period of its history, been the junction at which the advanced sedentary civilization of the south met the nomadic peoples of the boundless steppes to the north. It was the area where succes- sive waves of sedentary farming people from the Indus valley, Bactria, Parthia, Margiana, Sogdiana and neighbouring lands met and intermingled with similar movements from the pastoral societies of the Eurasian steppes. This far-flung Iranian-speaking population gave rise to the civilizations of Central Asia’s sedentary and nomadic peoples. There were a number of social, economic, political, ethnic and cultural processes under- way in the Aral and Syr Darya region at this time, the most important being the gradual * See Map 8. 432 ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 Ethnic history transition from a primeval tribal society to the formation of classes and early forms of state- hood, which involved the introduction and intensification of a farming economy, urbaniza- tion, the consolidation of ethnic communities and the emergence of the historical regions with a sedentary culture. Ethnic history In all these processes an important role was played by the changes that followed the intro- duction of iron. -
Abram the One from Beyond-The-River, and King Chedorlaomer of Elam (Genesis 14): Persia and the Formation of Judaean Ethnic Identity in a Late Patriarchal Narrative
religions Article Abram the One from Beyond-the-River, and King Chedorlaomer of Elam (Genesis 14): Persia and the Formation of Judaean Ethnic Identity in a Late Patriarchal Narrative Gard Granerød Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Department, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society, P.O. Box 5144 Majorstuen, N-0302 Oslo, Norway; [email protected] Abstract: The perception of Persia in Judaean/Jewish texts from antiquity contributed to the con- struction of a Judaean/Jewish identity. Genesis 14 gives an example of this; in it, Abra(ha)m wages war with a coalition headed by King Chedorlaomer of Elam. The article argues that Genesis 14 is one of the latest additions to the patriarchal narratives (Genesis 12–36), composed in the Persian or early Hellenistic period. It was conceived and used as an ethnic identity-forming story. The characters in the narrative represented groups and nations in the neighbourhood of the province of Judah. Abra(ha)m was perceived as the ancestor of the Judaeans and the inhabitants of the province Beyond-the-River. The King of Elam represented the Persian Empire. The article uses redaction criticism to argue that Genesis 14 is among the latest additions to the patriarchal narrative in the late Persian or Hellenistic period. Moreover, it uses a combination of philological and historical methods to argue that the description of Abra(ha)m as ha¯ ( ibrî (traditionally translated “the Hebrew,” Citation: Granerød, Gard. 2021. Gen 14: 13) characterises him as a person from the region Eber-nari¯ (Beyond-the-River). The arti- Abram the One from Beyond-the-River, cle uses similar methods to argue that the names of people and places in Genesis 14 referred to and King Chedorlaomer of Elam political entities in and around Judah. -
The Roman View of Parthia in the Early Principate
Defining the alter orbis: The Roman View of Parthia in the Early Principate. by Steven Hill University of Wales, Trinity Saint David Classics Department Under the Supervision of Dr. Kyle Erickson 5th April 2013 1 Master’s Degrees by Examination and Dissertation Declaration Form. 1. This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree. Signed… Steven Hill Date 5/04/2013……………………………………………………... 2. This dissertation is being submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of …Master of Arts…………………………………………................. Signed …… Steven Hill…………………………………………………………………. Date 5/04/2013………………………………………………………………..…………... 3. This dissertation is the result of my own independent work/investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by footnotes giving explicit references. A bibliography is appended. Signed candidate: …Steven Hill…………………………………………….………………. Date: 5/04/2013 …………………………………………………….………………………. 4. I hereby give consent for my dissertation, if accepted, to be available for photocopying, inter- library loan, and for deposit in the University’s digital repository Signed (candidate)…Steven Hill…………………………………….………….…………... Date…5/04/2013……………………………………………….…………….…………….. Supervisor’s Declaration. I am satisfied that this work is the result of the student’s own efforts. Signed: ………………………………………………………………………….. Date: ……………………………………………………………………………... 2 Table of Contents Abstract 4 Introduction 5 Chapter One: Knowledge 11 Chapter Two: Interpretation 24 Chapter Three: Effect 44 Conclusion 56 Bibliography 59 Index of Images 71 3 Abstract During the reign of Augustus the idea of Parthian Empire as an alter orbis was developed. For the Romans of the early Principate, the kingdom of the Arsacids represented the antithesis of their own values, embodying the vices of despotism and licentiousness.