1.
Armenian language
–
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenians. Like Hellenic Greek, it has its own branch in the language tree. It is the language of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. It has historically been spoken throughout the Armenian Highlands and today is spoken in the Armenian diaspora. Armenian has its own script, the Armenian alphabet, introduced in 405 AD by Mesrop Mashtots. Armenian is an independent branch of the Indo-European languages and it is of interest to linguists for its distinctive phonological developments within that family. Armenian exhibits more satemization than centumization, although it is not classified as belonging to either of these subgroups, Armenia was a monolingual country by the 2nd century BC at the latest. Its language has a literary history, with a 5th-century Bible translation as its oldest surviving text. Its vocabulary has been influenced by Western Middle Iranian languages, particularly Parthian, and to an extent by Greek, Persian. There are two standardized modern literary forms, Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian, with which most contemporary dialects are mutually intelligible and he is also credited by some with the creation of the Caucasian Albanian alphabet. In The Anabasis, Xenophon describes many aspects of Armenian village life and he relates that the Armenian people spoke a language that to his ear sounded like the language of the Persians. W. M. However, unlike shared innovations, the retention of archaisms is not considered conclusive evidence of a period of common isolated development. Some of the terms he gives admittedly have an Akkadian or Sumerian provenance, loan words from Iranian languages, along with the other ancient accounts such as that of Xenophon above, initially led linguists to erroneously classify Armenian as an Iranian language. Scholars such as Paul de Lagarde and F. Müller believed that the similarities between the two meant that Iranian and Armenian were the same language. The distinctness of Armenian was recognized when philologist Heinrich Hübschmann used the method to distinguish two layers of Iranian loans from the older Armenian vocabulary. Meillets hypothesis became popular in the wake of his Esquisse, eric P. Hamp supports the Graeco-Armenian thesis, anticipating even a time when we should speak of Helleno-Armenian. Nevertheless, as Fortson comments, by the time we reach our earliest Armenian records in the 5th century AD, graeco--Aryan is a hypothetical clade within the Indo-European family, ancestral to the Greek language, the Armenian language, and the Indo-Iranian languages. Graeco-Aryan unity would have divided into Proto-Greek and Proto-Indo-Iranian by the mid-third millennium BC
Armenian language
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Armenian manuscript, 5th–6th century.
Armenian language
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regions where Armenian is the language of the majority
Armenian language
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The Four Gospels, 1495, Portrait of St Mark Wellcome with Armenian inscriptions
Armenian language
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First Armenian language Bible.
2.
Armenia
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Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a sovereign state in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia. The Republic of Armenia constitutes only one-tenth of historical Armenia, Armenia is a unitary, multi-party, democratic nation-state with an ancient cultural heritage. Urartu was established in 860 BC and by the 6th century BC it was replaced by the Satrapy of Armenia, in the 1st century BC the Kingdom of Armenia reached its height under Tigranes the Great. Armenia became the first state in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion, in between the late 3rd century to early years of the 4th century, the state became the first Christian nation. The official date of adoption of Christianity is 301 AD. The ancient Armenian kingdom was split between the Byzantine and Sasanian Empires around the early 5th century, under the Bagratuni dynasty, the Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia was restored in the 9th century. Declining due to the wars against the Byzantines, the fell in 1045. An Armenian principality and later a kingdom Cilician Armenia was located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea between the 11th and 14th centuries. By the 19th century, Eastern Armenia had been conquered by the Russian Empire, during World War I, Armenians living in their ancestral lands in the Ottoman Empire were systematically exterminated in the Armenian Genocide. By 1920, the state was incorporated into the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, in 1936, the Transcaucasian state was dissolved, transforming its constituent states, including the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, into full Union republics. The modern Republic of Armenia became independent in 1991 during the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Republic of Armenia recognises the Armenian Apostolic Church, the worlds oldest national church, as the countrys primary religious establishment. The unique Armenian alphabet was invented by Mesrop Mashtots in 405 AD, Armenia is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, the Council of Europe and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Armenia supports the de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, which was proclaimed in 1991, the native Armenian name for the country is Հայք. The name in the Middle Ages was extended to Հայաստան, by addition of the Persian suffix -stan, the further origin of the name is uncertain. It is also postulated that the name Hay comes from one of the two confederated, Hittite vassal states—the Ḫayaša-Azzi. The exonym Armenia is attested in the Old Persian Behistun Inscription as Armina, the ancient Greek terms Ἀρμενία and Ἀρμένιοι are first mentioned by Hecataeus of Miletus. Xenophon, a Greek general serving in some of the Persian expeditions, describes many aspects of Armenian village life and he relates that the people spoke a language that to his ear sounded like the language of the Persians. According to the histories of both Moses of Chorene and Michael Chamchian, Armenia derives from the name of Aram, a descendant of Hayk
Armenia
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Reconstruction of
Herodotus ' world map c. 450 BC, with Armenia shown in the center
Armenia
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Flag
Armenia
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The Armenian pagan
Temple of Garni, probably built 1st century AD, is the only "Greco-Roman
colonnaded building" in Armenia and the entire
former Soviet Union.
Armenia
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The
Etchmiadzin Cathedral, Armenia's Mother Church traditionally dated 303 AD, is considered the oldest cathedral in the world.
3.
Anahit
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Anahit was the goddess of fertility and healing, wisdom and water in Armenian mythology. In early periods she was the goddess of war, by the 5th century BC she was the main deity in Armenia along with Aramazd. The Armenian goddess Anahit is related to the similar Old Persian goddess Anahita, Anahits worship, most likely borrowed from the Iranians during the Median invasion or the early Achaemenid period, was of paramount significance in Armenia. Unlike Iranians, Armenians incorporated idol-worship into the cult of Anahit, artaxias I erected statues of Anahit, and promulgated orders to worship them. According to Strabo, the Armenians shared in the religion of the Perses and this practice may again reveal Semitic syncretic influences, and is not otherwise attested in other areas. Pliny reports that Mark Antonys soldiers smashed a statue of the divinity made of solid gold. Also according to Pliny, supported by Dio Cassius, Acilisene eventually came to be known as Anaïtica, Dio Cassius also mentions that another region along the Cyrus River, on the borders of Albania and Iberia, was also called the land of Anaïtis. In Armenia, Anahit-worship was established in Erez, Armavir, Artashat and Ashtishat, a mountain in Sophene district was known as Anahits throne. The entire district of Erez, in the province of Akilisene, was called Anahtakan Gavar, according to Plutarch, the temple of Erez was the wealthiest and the noblest in Armenia. During the expedition of Mark Antony in Armenia, the statue was broken to pieces by the Roman soldiers, no. answered the general, on the contrary, I have to‑day the good fortune of treating you with one part of the hip of that gold statue. The Armenians erected a new statue of Anahit in Erez. The annual festivity of the month Navasard, held in honor of Anahit, was the occasion of great gatherings, attended with dance, music, recitals, competitions, the sick went to the temples in pilgrimage, asking for recovery. The symbol of ancient Armenian medicine was the head of the gilded statue of the goddess Anahit. According to Agathangelos, King Trdat extolls the great Lady Anahit, mother of all chastity, and issue of the great and valiant Aramazd. The historian Berossus identifies Anahit with Aphrodite, while medieval Armenian scribes identify her with Artemis, though according to Strabo, Anahits worship included rituals of sacred prostitution, there is no proof of this, and Christian polemicists do not refer to the custom. The name corresponds to Avestan Anahita, a divine figure. Satala Aphrodite Anahita Aramazd Astghik Vahagn Hayk Anat Sarpanit Vahagni Tsnunde Vishapakax Armenian Mythology from the Tour Armenia site
Anahit
–
Armenian stamp with the image of the cast bronze head (mid-4th century BC), larger than life-size, once belonging to a
statue. It was found in the 19th century near
Satala, located close to the Armenian district of Erez/Yerznka. It is usually interpreted as representing either Anahit or Aphrodite. Now held in the
British Museum.
Anahit
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Commemorative coin issued by the Central Bank of Armenia devoted to Goddess Anahit
4.
Greek mythology
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It was a part of the religion in ancient Greece. Greek mythology is explicitly embodied in a collection of narratives. Greek myth attempts to explain the origins of the world, and details the lives and adventures of a variety of gods, goddesses, heroes, heroines. These accounts initially were disseminated in a tradition, today the Greek myths are known primarily from ancient Greek literature. The oldest known Greek literary sources, Homers epic poems Iliad and Odyssey, focus on the Trojan War, archaeological findings provide a principal source of detail about Greek mythology, with gods and heroes featured prominently in the decoration of many artifacts. Geometric designs on pottery of the eighth century BC depict scenes from the Trojan cycle as well as the adventures of Heracles, in the succeeding Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic periods, Homeric and various other mythological scenes appear, supplementing the existing literary evidence. Greek mythology has had an influence on the culture, arts. Poets and artists from ancient times to the present have derived inspiration from Greek mythology and have discovered contemporary significance and relevance in the themes, Greek mythology is known today primarily from Greek literature and representations on visual media dating from the Geometric period from c. Mythical narration plays an important role in every genre of Greek literature. Nevertheless, the only general mythographical handbook to survive from Greek antiquity was the Library of Pseudo-Apollodorus and this work attempts to reconcile the contradictory tales of the poets and provides a grand summary of traditional Greek mythology and heroic legends. Apollodorus of Athens lived from c, 180–125 BC and wrote on many of these topics. His writings may have formed the basis for the collection, however the Library discusses events that occurred long after his death, among the earliest literary sources are Homers two epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey. Other poets completed the cycle, but these later and lesser poems now are lost almost entirely. Despite their traditional name, the Homeric Hymns have no connection with Homer. They are choral hymns from the part of the so-called Lyric age. Hesiods Works and Days, a poem about farming life, also includes the myths of Prometheus, Pandora. The poet gives advice on the best way to succeed in a dangerous world, lyrical poets often took their subjects from myth, but their treatment became gradually less narrative and more allusive. Greek lyric poets, including Pindar, Bacchylides and Simonides, and bucolic poets such as Theocritus and Bion, additionally, myth was central to classical Athenian drama
Greek mythology
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Bust of
Zeus,
Otricoli (Sala Rotonda,
Museo Pio-Clementino,
Vatican).
Greek mythology
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Greek Mythology
Greek mythology
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Prometheus (1868 by
Gustave Moreau). The myth of Prometheus first was attested by
Hesiod and then constituted the basis for a tragic trilogy of plays, possibly by Aeschylus, consisting of
Prometheus Bound,
Prometheus Unbound, and
Prometheus Pyrphoros.
Greek mythology
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The Roman poet
Virgil, here depicted in the fifth-century manuscript, the
Vergilius Romanus, preserved details of Greek mythology in many of his writings.
5.
Heracles
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Heracles, born Alcaeus or Alcides, was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson and half-brother of Perseus. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, a paragon of masculinity, the ancestor of clans who claimed to be Heracleidae. In Rome and the modern West, he is known as Hercules, with whom the later Roman emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximian, often identified themselves. The Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged, details of his cult were adapted to Rome as well. Extraordinary strength, courage, ingenuity, and sexual prowess with both males and females were among the characteristics commonly attributed to him, together with Hermes he was the patron and protector of gymnasia and palaestrae. His iconographic attributes are the skin and the club. These qualities did not prevent him from being regarded as a figure who used games to relax from his labors. By conquering dangerous archaic forces he is said to have made the safe for mankind. Many popular stories were told of his life, the most famous being The Twelve Labours of Heracles and his figure, which initially drew on Near Eastern motifs such as the lion-fight, was widely known. Heracles was the greatest of Hellenic chthonic heroes, but unlike other Greek heroes, the core of the story of Heracles has been identified by Walter Burkert as originating in Neolithic hunter culture and traditions of shamanistic crossings into the netherworld. Heracles role as a hero, whose death could be a subject of mythic telling, was accepted into the Olympian Pantheon during Classical times. Around him cries of the dead rang out like cries of birds scattering left, in Christian circles a Euhemerist reading of the widespread Heracles cult was attributed to a historical figure who had been offered cult status after his death. The ancient Greeks celebrated the festival of the Heracleia, which commemorated the death of Heracles, what is believed to be an Egyptian Temple of Heracles in the Bahariya Oasis dates to 21 BCE. A reassessment of Ptolemys descriptions of the island of Malta attempted to link the site at Ras ir-Raħeb with a temple to Heracles, several ancient cities were named Heraclea in his honor. A major factor in the tragedies surrounding Heracles is the hatred that the goddess Hera. A full account of Heracles must render it clear why Heracles was so tormented by Hera, Heracles was the son of the affair Zeus had with the mortal woman Alcmene. Zeus made love to her after disguising himself as her husband, Amphitryon, thus, Heracles very existence proved at least one of Zeus many illicit affairs, and Hera often conspired against Zeus mortal offspring as revenge for her husbands infidelities. His twin mortal brother, son of Amphitryon, was Iphicles, Hera did this knowing that while Heracles was to be born a descendant of Perseus, so too was Eurystheus
Heracles
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One of the most famous depictions of Heracles, originally by
Lysippos (Marble, Roman copy called Hercules Farnese, 216 CE)
Heracles
–
Greek Mythology
Heracles
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Heracles capturing the
Cretan bull.
Heracles
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The Origin of the Milky Way by
Jacopo Tintoretto
6.
Orontid Dynasty
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The Orontid dynasty, also known by their native name Eruandid or Yervanduni, was a hereditary Armenian dynasty and the rulers of the successor state to the Iron Age kingdom of Urartu. The Orontids established their supremacy over Armenia around the time of the Scythian and Median invasion in the 6th century BC, the Orontids are the first of the three royal dynasties that successively ruled the ancient Kingdom of Armenia. Little is known about the origins of the Orontid dynasty, some historians believe that the Orontid kings were of Armenian or Urartian origin. In addition, historians believe the dynasty may have had Iranian origin through a relation to the Achaemenids. The name Orontes is the Hellenized form of a name of Iranian origin. The name is attested in Greek. Its Avestan connection is Auruuant and Middle Persian Arwand, some have suggested a continuity with the Hittite name Arnuwanda. Various Greek transcriptions of the name in Classical sources are spelled as Orontes, Aruandes or Ardoates, the presence of this dynasty is attested from at least 400 BC, and it can be shown to have ruled originally from Armavir and subsequently Yervandashat. Xenophon mentions an Armenian king named Tigranes in his Cyropaedia and he was an ally of Cyrus the Great with whom he hunted. His elder son was also named Tigranes, upon the outbreak of hostilities between Medes and Babylonians, Tigranes had renounced his treaty obligations to the Medes. As a successor of Astyages, Cyrus demanded to be paid the same tribute, strabo corroborates this in his Geography. In 521 BC, with the disturbances that occurred after the death of Cambyses and the proclamation of Smerdis as King, the Armenians revolted. Darius I of Persia sent an Armenian named Dâdarši to suffocate the revolt, around the same time, another Armenian by the name of Arakha, son of Haldita, claimed to be the son of the last king of Babylon, Nabonidus, and renamed himself Nebuchadnezzar IV. His rebellion was short-lived and was suppressed by Intaphrenes, Darius bow carrier and these events are described in detail within the Behistun inscription. After the administrative reorganization of the Persian Empire, Armenia was converted into several satrapies, Armenian satraps regularly intermarried with the family of the King of Kings. These satraps provided contingents to Xerxes invasion of Greece in 480 BC, herodotus says that the Armenians in the army of Xerxes were armed like the Phrygians. In 401 BC Xenophon marched through Armenia with an army of Greek mercenaries as part of the March of the Ten Thousand. Xenophon mentions two individuals by the name Orontes, apparently both Persian, tiribaz is mentioned as hipparchos of Armenia under Orontes, who later became satrap of Lydia
Orontid Dynasty
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An Armenian tribute bearer carrying a metal vessel with griffin handles. 5th century BC
Orontid Dynasty
–
The
Satrapy of Armenia under the Orontid Dynasty.
Orontid Dynasty
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Silver Rhyton, Yerznka, Armenia, 5th century BC.
7.
Moses of Chorene
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Movses Khorenatsi was a prominent Armenian historian from the period of Late Antiquity and the author of the History of Armenia. Khorenatsi is credited with the earliest known work on the history of Armenia written in Armenian, but was also a poet, or hymn writer. The History of Armenia was written at the behest of Prince Sahak of the Bagratuni dynasty and has had an impact on Armenian historiography. It was used and quoted extensively by later medieval Armenian authors, Khorenatsi is considered to be the father of Armenian history, and is sometimes referred to as the Armenian Herodotus. Khorenatsis work became the first attempt of a history of Armenia. Movses identified himself as a disciple of Mesrop Mashtots, inventor of the Armenian alphabet. Movses was believed to have born in the village of Khorni in the Armenian province of Taron or Turuberan sometime in 410. However, some contend that if he was born here. They instead move the location of his birth from Taron to the Armenian province of Syunik and he received his education in Syunik and was later sent to be taught under the auspices of Mesrop Mashtots, the creator of the Armenian alphabet, and Catholicos Sahak Partev. The students left Armenia sometime between 432 and 435, first they went to Edessa where they studied at the local libraries. Then they moved towards Jerusalem and Alexandria, after studying in Alexandria for five to six years, Movses and his classmates returned to Armenia, only to find that Mesrop and Sahak had died. Given this atmosphere and persecution by the Persians, Movses went into hiding in a village near Vagharshapat and lived in relative seclusion for several decades. Gyut, Catholicos of All Armenians, one day met Movses while traveling through the area and, unaware of his true identity, Movses was initially silent, but after Gyuts students encouraged him to speak, Movses made a marvelous speech at the dinner table. One of the Catholicos students was able to identify Movses as a person Gyut had been searching for, it was understood that Gyut was one of Movses former classmates. Gyut embraced Movses and, being either a Chalcedonian Christian, or, at least, tolerant of them, brought his back from seclusion. Movses agreed to do so and he finished his book sometime in 482 and his work is a first historical record that covered the whole history of Armenia from a very ancient period until the death of the historian. His History served as a textbook to study the history of Armenia until the eighteenth century, Movses lived for several more years, and he died sometime in the late 490s. Three possible early references to Movses in other sources are usually identified, but there is no indication in Parpetsi that this Movses had composed any historical works
Moses of Chorene
–
A painting of Movses Khorenatsi by
Hovnatan Hovnatanian (1730-1801)
Moses of Chorene
–
Movses depicted in a 14th-century Armenian manuscript.
8.
Vishap
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The Vishap is a dragon in Armenian mythology closely associated with water, similar to the Leviathan. It is usually depicted as a snake or with a combination of elements from different animals. Mount Ararat was the home of the Vishap. The volcanic character of the Araratian peak and its earthquakes may have suggested its association with the Vishap, sometimes with its children, the Vishap used to steal children or toddlers and put a small evil spirit of their own brood in their stead. According to ancient beliefs, the Vishap ascended to the sky or descended therefrom to earth, causing thunderous storms, whirlwinds, absorption of the sun. The dragon was worshipped in a number of Eastern countries, symbolising the element of water, fertility and wealth, according to ancient legends, the dragon fought to Vahagn the Dragon Slayer
Vishap
–
A vishap
9.
Baal-shamin
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Lord of Heaven, was a Northwest Semitic god and a title applied to different gods at different places or times in ancient Middle Eastern inscriptions, especially in Canaan/Phoenicia and Syria. The title was most often applied to Hadad, who is often titled just Ba‘al. Baalshamin was one of the two gods and the sky god of pre-Islamic Palmyra in ancient Syria. There his attributes were the eagle and the bolt, and he perhaps formed a triad with the lunar god Aglibol. Baalshamin and Baal Šamem are the most frequently used terms, as a Syrian god and as a Phoenician god and this name was originally a title of Baal Hadad, in the 2nd millennium BC, but came to designate a distinct god circa 1000 BC. The earliest known mention of this god or title is in a treaty of the 14th century BC between Suppiluliumas I, King of the Hittites, and Niqmaddu II, King of Ugarit. Although this could be a reference to Baal Hadad, and again when the name appears in a Phoenician inscription by King Yeḥimilk of Byblos, the god Baal-malage is otherwise unexplained. Baal-saphon here and elsewhere seems to be Baal Hadad, whose home is on Mount Ṣaphon in the Ugaritic texts, but interpreters disagree as to whether these are here three separate gods or three aspects of the same god, a god who causes stormy weather on the sea. In any case, inscriptions show that the cult of Baal Šamem continued in Tyre from Esarhaddons day until towards the end of the 1st millennium BC, in Sanchuniathons main mythology the god he calls in Greek Uranus/Sky has been thought by some to stand for Baal Šamem. Sky is here the actual father of Baal Hadad, as in Greek mythology and Hittite mythology, Sky is castrated by his son, who is in turn destined to be opposed by the thunder god. In Sanchuniathons story, Sky also battles Sea, Sky finds himself unable to prevail, in Nabatean texts in Greek, Baal Shamin is regularly equated with Zeus Helios, that is Zeus as a sun-god. Unfortunately, it is not clear whether Baalshamin is here regarded as a sun-god, writers in Syriac refer to Baalshamin as Zeus Olympios. Temple of Baalshamin Stuart Whatling, Arabia Syria, Palmyra — Some pictures of the temple of Baal-Shamin at Palmyra
Baal-shamin
–
The temple of Baalshamin in Palmyra before its destruction in August 2015.
Baal-shamin
–
Aglibol, Baalshamin (center), and
Malakbel (1st century; found near
Palmyra,
Syria)
10.
Mithra
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Mithra is the Zoroastrian angelic Divinity of Covenant and Oath. In addition to being the Divinity of Contracts, Mithra is also a figure, an all-seeing Protector of Truth, and the Guardian of Cattle. The Romans attributed their Mithraic mysteries to Persian sources relating to Mithra, since the early 1970s the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities, and the mysteries are now considered a distinct Roman product formed, at most, by Roman perceptions of Zoroastrian ideas. Together with the Vedic common noun mitra, the Avestan common noun miθra derives from proto-Indo-Iranian *mitra, from the root mi- to bind, thus, etymologically mitra/miθra means that which causes binding, preserved in the Avestan word for Covenant, Contract, Oath. In Middle Iranian languages, miθra became mihr, from which New Persian مهر mihr, Wanetsi and Wazirwola mērə/myer, as a member of the Iranian ahuric triad, a feature that only Ahura Mazda and Ahura Berezaiti also have, Mithra is an exalted figure. Together with Rashnu Justice and Sraosha Obedience, Mithra is one of the three judges at the Chinvat Bridge, the Bridge of Separation that all Souls must cross, unlike Sraosha, Mithra is not however a Psychopomp, a guide of souls to the place of the dead. Should the Good Thoughts, Words and Deeds outweigh the Bad, as the Divinity of Contract, Mithra is undeceivable, infallible, eternally watchful, and never-resting. Mithra is additionally the protector of cattle, and his epithet is of Wide Pastures. He is Guardian of the waters and ensures that those pastures receive enough of it, the lack of Mithras presence in the texts was once a cause of some consternation amongst Iranists. An often repeated speculation of the first half of the 20th century was that the lack of any mention of Mithra in these texts implied that Zoroaster had rejected Mithra and this ex silentio speculation is no longer followed. The Avestan Hymn to Mithra is the longest, and one of the best preserved, Mithra is described in the Zoroastrian Avesta scriptures as Mithra of Wide Pastures, of the Thousand Ears, and of the Myriad Eyes, the Lofty, and the Everlasting. We sacrifice to Mithra, The Lord of all countries, Whom Ahura Mazda created the most glorious, Of the Supernatural Yazads. So may there come to us for Aid, Both Mithra and Ahura, Mithra is invoked in the inscriptions of two Achaemenid emperors. Boyce suggests that the reason for this was that Artaxerxes had chosen Anahita, Mithra is invoked again in the single known inscription of Artaxerxes III, A3Pa, found at Persepolis. In that inscription, that emperor too appeals to Ahuramazda and the God Mithra preserve me, my country, in the Zoroastrian calendar, the sixteenth day of the month and the seventh month of the year are dedicated to, and under the protection of, Mithra. The day on which the day-name and month-name dedications intersect is dedicated to the divinity of that day/month, in the case of Mithra, this was Jashan-e Mihragan, or just Mihragan in short. In Zoroastrian scripture, Mithra is distinct from the divinity of the Sun, however, in Zoroastrian tradition, Mithra evolved from being an all-seeing figure into a divinity co-identified with the Sun itself, effectively taking over Hvare. khshaetas role. How or when or why this occurred is uncertain, but it is attributed to conflation with Babylonian Shamash and/or Greek Apollo
Mithra
–
Investiture of
Sassanid emperor
Ardashir I or
II (3rd century CE bas-relief at
Taq-e Bostan,
Iran. On the left stands the yazata Mithra with raised
barsom, sanctifying the investiture.
11.
Verethragna
–
Verethragna is an Avestan language neuter noun literally meaning smiting of resistance. Representing this concept is the divinity Verethragna, who is the hypostasis of victory, the neuter noun verethragna is related to Avestan verethra, obstacle and verethragnan, victorious. In Zoroastrian Middle Persian, Verethragna became Warahran, from which Vahram, Vehram, Bahram, Behram, the once-followed theory that Verethragna had Indo-Iranian origins is no longer followed today. The name and, to some extent, the deity has correspondences in Armenian Vahagn and Vram, Buddhist Sogdian Wshn, Manichaen Parthian Wryhrm, Yasht 14, the hymn of praise to Verethregna, though ill-preserved, contains what seem very archaic elements. There, Verethragna is described as the most highly armed, the best equipped with might, with effervescent glory, has conquering superiority, Verethragna is not exclusively associated with military might and victory. So, for instance, he is connected with sexual potency and confers virility, has the ability to heal, many of these incarnations are also shared with other divinities, for instance, the youth, the bull and the horse are also attributed to Tishtrya. Likewise, the bird, the camel and the wind to Vayu-Vata, together with Čistā, Verethragna is a principal companion of Mithra. Several sections of the Bahram Yasht also appear in hymns dedicated to other divinities, in the Zoroastrian calendar instituted during the late Achaemenid era, the twentieth day of the month is dedicated to Bahram. In the later middle Persian texts Bahram is especially venerated as the seventh of the Amesha Spentas, in the astronomical and calendrical reforms of the Sassanids, the planet Mars was named Bahram. Zaehner attributes this to the influences of the Chaldean astral-theological system. According to Boyce, the present-day expression Atash-Behram as the name of the most sacred class of fires is a confusion of the adjectival Victorious Fire with Fire of Bahram. The former is the way it appears in Middle Persian inscriptions such as the Kartir inscription at Kabah-i Zardusht, gnoli attributes the change to natural misunderstanding abetted in Islamic times by a progressive decay in Zoroastrian priestly teaching. The only evidence of a cult appears in the first century account of Strabo, who reports, probably on authority of Nearchus and that this was Bahram/Verethragna is unlikely if, as per Strabo, he was their only god. However, the account does reveal that divinities of war were not unknown to the people who were not of the Iranian plateau, evidence for which also comes from Herodotus. Under the Seleucids and Arsacids, that is, in the Empires influenced by Hellenic culture and this syncretism is well attested in statuary and iconography, most notably in that of the inscription of Antiochus I Theos of Commagene, in which all three names occur together. That Bahram was considered the patron divinity of travelers is reflected by the life-size rock sculpture of the divinity on the main highway at Behistun. There Bahram reclines with a goblet in his hand, a club at his feet, in the early Sassanid period Bahram is still represented as the Greek Heracles. In the relief of Ardeshir I at Naqs-e Rajab III, Bahram appears as one of the two smaller figures between Ahura Mazda and the king, there, he has a lions skin in his left hand and brandishes a club in his right
Verethragna
–
The
Faravahar, believed to be a depiction of a
fravashi
12.
Avesta
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The Avesta /əˈvɛstə/ is the primary collection of religious texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the otherwise unrecorded Avestan language. The Avesta texts fall into different categories, arranged either by dialect. The principal text in the group is the Yasna, which takes its name from the Yasna ceremony, Zoroastrianisms primary act of worship. The most important portion of the Yasna texts are the five Gathas and these hymns, together with five other short Old Avestan texts that are also part of the Yasna, are in the Old Avestan language. The remainder of the Yasnas texts are in Younger Avestan, which is not only from a stage of the language. Extensions to the Yasna ceremony include the texts of the Vendidad, the Visperad extensions consist mainly of additional invocations of the divinities, while the Vendidad is a mixed collection of prose texts mostly dealing with purity laws. Even today, the Vendidad is the liturgical text that is not recited entirely from memory. Some of the materials of the extended Yasna are from the Yashts, unlike the Yasna, Visperad and Vendidad, the Yashts and the other lesser texts of the Avesta are no longer used liturgically in high rituals. Aside from the Yashts, these lesser texts include the Nyayesh texts, the Gah texts, the Siroza. Together, these texts are conventionally called Khordeh Avesta or Little Avesta texts. When the first Khordeh Avesta editions were printed in the 19th century, the term Avesta is from the 9th/10th-century works of Zoroastrian tradition in which the word appears as Zoroastrian Middle Persian abestāg, Book Pahlavi ʾpstʾkʼ. In that context, abestāg texts are portrayed as received knowledge, the literal meaning of the word abestāg is uncertain, it is generally acknowledged to be a learned borrowing from Avestan, but none of the suggested etymologies have been universally accepted. The surviving texts of the Avesta, as they exist today and that master copy, now lost, is known as the Sassanian archetype. The oldest surviving manuscript of an Avestan language text is dated 1323 CE, summaries of the various Avesta texts found in the 9th/10th century texts of Zoroastrian tradition suggest that about three-quarters of the corpus has since been lost. A pre-Sasanian history of the Avesta, if it had one, is in the realm of legend, the oldest surviving versions of these tales are found in the ninth to 11th century texts of Zoroastrian tradition. The legends run as follows, The twenty-one nasks of the Avesta were created by Ahura Mazda, supposedly, Vishtaspa or another Kayanian, Daray, then had two copies made, one of which was stored in the treasury, and the other in the royal archives. Following Alexanders conquest, the Avesta was then supposedly destroyed or dispersed by the Greeks after they translated the scientific passages that they could make use of, the Denkard also transmits another legend related to the transmission of the Avesta. In that story, credit for collation and recension is given to the early Sasanian-era priest Tansar, who had the works collected
Avesta
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Yasna 28.1 (Bodleian MS J2)
13.
Avestan language
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The Yaz culture of Bactria-Margiana has been regarded as a likely archaeological reflection of the early Eastern Iranian culture described in the Avesta. Avestans status as a language has ensured its continuing use for new compositions long after the language had ceased to be a living language. It is closely related to Vedic Sanskrit, the oldest preserved Indo-Aryan language, Avestan, which is associated with northeastern Iran, and Old Persian, which belongs to the southwest, together constitute what is called Old Iranian. The Old Iranian language group is a branch of the Indo-Iranian language group, Iranian languages are traditionally classified as eastern or western, and within this framework Avestan is classified as eastern. But this distinction is of limited meaning for Avestan, as the developments that later distinguish Eastern from Western Iranian had not yet occurred. Avestan does not display some typical Western Iranian innovations already visible in Old Persian, Old Avestan is closely related to Old Persian and also in some extent close in nature to Vedic Sanskrit. It is believed that it might be close to a dialect of Pashto as well. The Avestan language is attested in two forms, known as Old Avestan and Younger Avestan. Younger Avestan did not evolve from Old Avestan, the two not only in time, but are also different dialects. Every Avestan text, regardless of whether originally composed in Old or Younger Avestan, Karl Hoffmann traced the following stages for Avestan as found in the extant texts. In roughly chronological order, The natural language of the composers of the Gathas, the Yasna Haptanghaiti, the script used for writing Avestan developed during the 3rd or 4th century AD. By then the language had been extinct for centuries. As is still the case today, the liturgies were memorized by the priesthood, the script devised to render Avestan was natively known as Din dabireh religion writing. It has 53 distinct characters and is written right-to-left and these symbols, like those of all the Pahlavi scripts, are in turn based on Aramaic script symbols. Avestan also incorporates several letters from other writing systems, most notably the vowels, a few letters were free inventions, as were also the symbols used for punctuation. Also, the Avestan alphabet has one letter that has no corresponding sound in the Avestan language, Avestan script is alphabetic, and the large number of letters suggests that its design was due to the need to render the orally recited texts with high phonetic precision. The correct enunciation of the liturgies was considered necessary for the prayers to be effective, the Zoroastrians of India, who represent one of the largest surviving Zoroastrian communities worldwide, also transcribe Avestan in Brahmi-based scripts. Today, Avestan is most commonly typeset in Gujarati script, some Avestan letters with no corresponding symbol are synthesized with additional diacritical marks, for example, the /z/ in zaraϑuštra is written with j with a dot below
Avestan language
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Yasna 28.1,
Ahunavaiti Gatha (Bodleian MS J2)
14.
Arsacid Empire
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The Parthian Empire, also known as the Arsacid Empire, was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran and Iraq. Mithridates I of Parthia greatly expanded the empire by seizing Media and Mesopotamia from the Seleucids, at its height, the Parthian Empire stretched from the northern reaches of the Euphrates, in what is now central-eastern Turkey, to eastern Iran. The empire, located on the Silk Road trade route between the Roman Empire in the Mediterranean Basin and the Han Empire of China, became a center of trade and commerce. The Parthians largely adopted the art, architecture, religious beliefs, and royal insignia of their culturally heterogeneous empire, which encompassed Persian, Hellenistic, and regional cultures. For about the first half of its existence, the Arsacid court adopted elements of Greek culture, the court did appoint a small number of satraps, largely outside Iran, but these satrapies were smaller and less powerful than the Achaemenid potentates. With the expansion of Arsacid power, the seat of government shifted from Nisa to Ctesiphon along the Tigris. The earliest enemies of the Parthians were the Seleucids in the west, however, as Parthia expanded westward, they came into conflict with the Kingdom of Armenia, and eventually the late Roman Republic. Rome and Parthia competed with other to establish the kings of Armenia as their subordinate clients. The Parthians soundly defeated Marcus Licinius Crassus at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC, however, Mark Antony led a counterattack against Parthia, although his successes were generally achieved in his absence, under the leadership of his lieutenant Ventidius. Also, various Roman emperors or their appointed generals invaded Mesopotamia in the course of the several Roman-Parthian Wars which ensued during the few centuries. The Romans captured the cities of Seleucia and Ctesiphon on multiple occasions during these conflicts, native Parthian sources, written in Parthian, Greek and other languages, are scarce when compared to Sassanid and even earlier Achaemenid sources. These include mainly Greek and Roman histories, but also Chinese histories, Parthian artwork is viewed by historians as a valid source for understanding aspects of society and culture that are otherwise absent in textual sources. The Parni most likely spoke an eastern Iranian language, in contrast to the northwestern Iranian language spoken at the time in Parthia, the latter was a northeastern province, first under the Achaemenid, and then the Seleucid empires. Why the Arsacid court retroactively chose 247 BC as the first year of the Arsacid era is uncertain, Bivar concludes that this was the year the Seleucids lost control of Parthia to Andragoras, the appointed satrap who rebelled against them. Hence, Arsaces I backdated his regnal years to the moment when Seleucid control over Parthia ceased, however, Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis asserts that this was simply the year Arsaces was made chief of the Parni tribe. It is unclear who immediately succeeded Arsaces I, Bivar and Katouzian affirm that it was his brother Tiridates I of Parthia, who in turn was succeeded by his son Arsaces II of Parthia in 211 BC. Yet Curtis and Brosius state that Arsaces II was the successor of Arsaces I, with Curtis claiming the succession took place in 211 BC. Bivar insists that 138 BC, the last regnal year of Mithridates I, is the first precisely established regnal date of Parthian history, due to these and other discrepancies, Bivar outlines two distinct royal chronologies accepted by historians
Arsacid Empire
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The Parthian Empire at its greatest extent
Arsacid Empire
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The silver
drachma of
Arsaces I of Parthia (r. c. 247–211 BC) with a
Greek-alphabet inscription of his name (ΑΡΣΑΚΟΥ)
Arsacid Empire
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Parthia, shaded yellow, alongside the
Seleucid Empire (blue) and the
Roman Republic (purple) around 200 BC
15.
Middle Persian
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Middle Persian is classified as a Western Iranian language. It descends from Old Persian and is the ancestor of Modern Persian. Middle Persian consisted of dialects and variants. One of these variants was called Pahlavīk which stands for Parthian, another variant of Middle Persian, known locally as Pārsik, was the official language of the Sasanian Empire. Most scholars refer to the variant when using the term Middle Persian. The native name for Middle Persian was Pārsīk translating to language of Pārs and it consists of Pārs + adjective suffix -īk. The word is consequently the origin of the name for the Modern Persian language—Parsi or Fārsī. Manichaean Middle Persian texts were written in the Manichaean alphabet, which derives from Aramaic. The ISO639 language code for Middle Persian is pal, which reflects the post-Sasanian era use of the term Pahlavi to refer to the language, many tenses began to be formed from a composite form The modern-day descendant of Middle Persian is New Persian. The changes between late Middle and Early New Persian were very gradual, and in the 10th-11th centuries, the earliest texts in Zoroastrian Middle Persian were probably written down in late Sasanian times, although they represent the codification of earlier oral tradition. The surviving manuscripts are usually 14th-century copies, below is transcription and translation of the first page of the facsimile known as Book of Arda Viraf, originally written in a Pahlavi script. ōy petyārag ī wad-baxt ī ahlomōγ ī druwand ī anāg-kardār *aleksandar hrōmāyīg mu/zrāyīg-mānišn abar āwurd ud be sōxt, in the name of God Thus they have said that once the righteous Zoroaster accepted a religion, he established it in the world. After/Within the period of 300 years religion remained in holiness and the people were in peace and that wretched, ill-fated, heretic, evil/sinful Alexander, The Roman, who was dwelling in Egypt, and he burned them up. Shapur, the king of kings, son of Hormizd, induced all countrymen to orient themselves to god by disputation, and put forth all oral traditions for consideration and examination. There are a number of affixes in Middle Persian that did not survive into Modern Persian, the long vowels of Middle Persian did not survive in many present-day dialects. Also, initial consonant clusters were very common in Middle Persian, however, New Persian does not allow initial consonant clusters, whereas final consonant clusters are common. 1 Since many long vowels of Middle Persian did not survive, for example, šir and šer, meaning milk and lion, respectively, are now both pronounced šir. In this case, the pronunciation has been preserved in Kurdish
Middle Persian
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Geography
16.
Sparapet
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Sparapet was a hereditary title of supreme commander of the armed forces in ancient and medieval Armenia. Sparapet was the equivalent of the Parthian Spahbed, the title of Sparapet was traditionally held by the representatives of the House of Mamikonian since the beginning of the rule of the Arsacid kings of Armenia. Later in history, the title was held by the Bagratuni and Artsruni dynasties, the 18th century commander Mkhitar Sparapet led the Armenian efforts for independence in Syunik region. The title Sparapet of Syunik was held by the Garegin Nzhdeh, as commander of the Republic of Mountainous Armenia. The title is used for the Grand Commander of the Knights of Vartan. The title was held by Alex Manoogian during his leadership of that organization, vazgen Sargsyan, Armenias Defense Minister in 1991-92 and 1995-99, is often informally referred to as Sparapet in recognition of his leadership during the Nagorno-Karabakh War
Sparapet
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v
17.
Hayk
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Hayk or Hayg, also known as Haik Nahapet is the legendary patriarch and founder of the Armenian nation. His story is told in the History of Armenia attributed to the Armenian historian Moses of Chorene, the name of the patriarch, Հայկ Hayk is not exactly homophonous with the name for Armenia, Հայք Hayk’. Հայք Hayk’ is the plural in Classical Armenian of հայ. Some claim that the etymology of Hayk from Hayk is impossible, nevertheless, Hayk and Haig are usually connected to hay and hayer, the self-designation of the Armenians. Armen Petroyan believes that the name Hayk can very plausibly be derived from the Indo-European *poti- ‘master, lord, master of the house, Hayk would then be an etiological founding figure, like e. g. Asshur for the Assyrians, etc. One of Hayks most famous scions, Aram, settled in Eastern Armenia from the Mitanni kingdom, Armenian historiography of the Soviet era connected Hayk with Hayasa, mentioned in Hittite inscriptions. The Armenian word haykakan or haigagan finds its stem in this progenitor, Moses of Chorene gave Hayks genealogy as Japhet, Gomer and Tiras, Torgom. Hayks descendants are given as Amasya, Ara, Aram, Aramais, Armanak, Gegham, Hayk was also said to be the founder of the Haykazuni Dynasty. Some of the prominent Armenian royal houses such as the Arran, Bagratuni, Bznuni, Khorkhoruni, Manavazian, Syuni, according to Juansher Hayk. was prince of the seven brothers and stood in service to the giant Nimrod who first ruled the entire world as king. In Moses of Chorenes account, Hayk son of Torgom had a child named Armanak while he was living in Babylon, after the arrogant Titanid Bel made himself king over all, Hayk emigrated to the region near Mount Ararad. Hayk relocated near Mount Ararat with a household of at least 300 and settled there. On the way he had left a detachment in another settlement with his grandson Kadmos, Bel sent one of his sons to entreat him to return, but was refused. Bel decided to march against him with a force. He assembled his own army along the shore of Lake Van and told them that they must defeat and kill Bel, or die trying to do so, rather than become his slaves. In his writings Moses states that, Hayk and his men soon discovered Bels army positioned in a mountain pass, with the king in the vanguard. At Dyutsaznamart, near Julamerk southeast of Lake Van, on August 11,2492 BC or 2107 BC, Hayk slew Bel with an impossible shot using a long bow. The hill where Bel with his warriors fell, Hayk named Gerezmank meaning tombs and he embalmed the corpse of Bel and ordered it to be taken to Hark where it was to be buried in a high place in the view of the wives and sons of the king. Soon after, Hayk established the fortress of Haykaberd at the battle site and he named the region of the battle Hayk, and the site of the battle Hayots Dzor
Hayk
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Statue of Haik Nahapet in Yerevan, Armenia.
Hayk
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"Hayk" by Mkrtum Hovnatanian (1779–1846). The legendary founder of the Armenian nation, standing next to the tomb of Bel, with Hayk's arrow still in Bel's chest. The map depicts the
Lake Van region and
Mount Ararat, with Noah's ark.
Hayk
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Hayk defeats Bel with an arrow.
18.
Ishtar
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Ishtar is the Mesopotamian East Semitic goddess of fertility, love, war, sex, and power. She is the counterpart to the earlier attested Sumerian Inanna, and the cognate for the later attested Northwest Semitic Aramean goddess Astarte, and the Armenian goddess Astghik. Ishtar was an important deity in Mesopotamian religion which was extant from c.3500 BCE, Ishtar symbolizes love, including that between human and animals, its power, and its danger. Ishtar was the daughter of Anu and she was particularly worshipped in the Upper Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria, particularly at the cities of Nineveh, Ashur and Arbela, and also in the south Mesopotamian city of Uruk. Besides the lions on her gate, her symbol is an eight-pointed star, in the Babylonian pantheon, she was the divine personification of the planet Venus. Ishtar had many lovers, however, as Guirand notes, Woe to him whom Ishtar had honoured, the fickle goddess treated her passing lovers cruelly, and the unhappy wretches usually paid dearly for the favours heaped on them. Animals, enslaved by love, lost their native vigour, they fell into traps laid by men or were domesticated by them, thou has loved the lion, mighty in strength, says the hero Gilgamesh to Ishtar, and thou hast dug for him seven and seven pits. Thou hast loved the steed, proud in battle, and destined him for the halter, the goad, even for the gods Ishtars love was fatal. In her youth the goddess had loved Tammuz, god of the harvest and her cult may have involved sacred prostitution, though this is debatable. Guirand referred to her holy city Uruk as the town of the sacred courtesans, one of the most famous myths about Ishtar describes her descent to the underworld. I will bring up the dead to eat the living, and the dead will outnumber the living. The gatekeeper hurried to tell Ereshkigal, the Queen of the Underworld, Ereshkigal told the gatekeeper to let Ishtar enter, but according to the ancient decree. The gatekeeper let Ishtar into the underworld, opening one gate at a time, at each gate, Ishtar had to shed one article of clothing. When she finally passed the seventh gate, she was naked, in a rage, Ishtar threw herself at Ereshkigal, but Ereshkigal ordered her servant Namtar to imprison Ishtar and unleash sixty diseases against her. After Ishtar descended to the underworld, all activity ceased on earth. The god Papsukal reported the situation to Ea, the king of the gods, Ea created an intersex being called Asu-shu-namir and sent them to Ereshkigal, telling them to invoke the name of the great gods against her and to ask for the bag containing the waters of life. Ereshkigal was enraged when she heard Asu-shu-namirs demand, but she had to them the water of life. Asu-shu-namir sprinkled Ishtar with this water, reviving her, then, Ishtar passed back through the seven gates, getting one article of clothing back at each gate, and was fully clothed as she exited the last gate
Ishtar
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Old Babylonian period
Queen of Night relief, often considered to represent an aspect of Ishtar.
Ishtar
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Ishtar holding her symbol,
Louvre Museum
Ishtar
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One type of depiction of Ishtar/Inanna
Ishtar
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The lion was her symbol (detail of the
Ishtar Gate)
