Amir Zamani
Abstract
The Persepolis Fortification archive provides new insights into the study of Old Iranian, particularly regarding the debate over the "Median language". The archive contains numerous Iranian names in Elamite transcription, allowing for the identification of phonetic differences between Old Persian and ...
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The Persepolis Fortification archive provides new insights into the study of Old Iranian, particularly regarding the debate over the "Median language". The archive contains numerous Iranian names in Elamite transcription, allowing for the identification of phonetic differences between Old Persian and Median names. The high frequency of certain names enables detailed prosopographic analyses, revealing that individuals with varying spellings of their names may in fact be the same person. This is illustrated by the case of Ziššawiš, a vice director and deputy satrap in Persepolis. The variations in the spelling of his name suggest dialectal differences within the Persian heartland. While the accuracy of spelling was likely high, all variations were allowed, indicating that Median should be viewed as a dialect rather than a separate language.
Nathan Decety
Abstract
The existence of the Sasanian Kingdom is considered an important facet of the Roman Empire’s downfall because it is believed the Sasanians were more competent or powerful than their predecessors - the Parthian Kingdom. This paper compares the total power of the Parthian and Sasanian kingdoms and ...
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The existence of the Sasanian Kingdom is considered an important facet of the Roman Empire’s downfall because it is believed the Sasanians were more competent or powerful than their predecessors - the Parthian Kingdom. This paper compares the total power of the Parthian and Sasanian kingdoms and concludes they are not dissimilar. In contrast, the total power of the Roman Empire decreased. Thus, I argue that while the Sasanian Kingdom contributed to the Roman Empire’s downfall, its advent should not be seen as a major cause.
Ketevan Ramishvili; Helen Giunashvili
Abstract
In addition to the many realms of fine arts, the issues of Georgian-Iranian cultural interactions of pre-Islamic periods that merit our particular interest were adequately expressed in such a minor form of arts as glyptic, beginning from the Achaemenian days up to the Sasanian period. Glyptic artifacts, ...
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In addition to the many realms of fine arts, the issues of Georgian-Iranian cultural interactions of pre-Islamic periods that merit our particular interest were adequately expressed in such a minor form of arts as glyptic, beginning from the Achaemenian days up to the Sasanian period. Glyptic artifacts, which demonstrate part of Iranian culture, were discovered during various archaeological excavations in Georgia. While some of these items were imported, others were produced locally under the influence of Iran. The discovery of metal shield rings in Georgia, particularly in the eastern region that was once part of ancient Iberia, has posed a significant challenge for historians. These artifacts are believed to be locally produced and some may reflect artistic patterns associated with the Achaemenid kingdom. The majority of the Sasanian artifacts discovered in Georgia are excellent seals. They began to arrive in East Georgia mainly from the 4th century AD. Due to the beginning of intensive trade with Sasanian Iran and the gradual strengthening of Iran's political positions in the South Caucasus, which was followed by the dissolution of the Kartli kingdom in 532, the widespread use of Sasanian seals started in the second half of the 5th century and continued during the 6th and 7th centuries. Nearly all of the common themes and subjects found in Sasanian glyptics can be observed in the glyptic artifacts in Georgia. These include depictions of nobility, deities, animal-versus-hero fights, fantastical creatures, humans, birds, and plants, as well as monograms. While some of these artifacts were imported, others were crafted under the influence of Sasanian art and became distinguished examples of local productions.
Enrique Quintana Cifuentes
Abstract
In this paper, the focus is on examining astrological aspects related to Elam, particularly from the Mesopotamian perspective, emphasizing Assyrian and Babylonian texts from the 1st Millennium BC. This brief exploration encompasses a diverse array of texts, including oracles, prophecies, and astrological ...
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In this paper, the focus is on examining astrological aspects related to Elam, particularly from the Mesopotamian perspective, emphasizing Assyrian and Babylonian texts from the 1st Millennium BC. This brief exploration encompasses a diverse array of texts, including oracles, prophecies, and astrological predictions concerning Elam, its king, and the Elamite people. The discussed texts forecast significant events such as the demise of the Elamite king, Elam’s defeat in battles, its destruction, and other catastrophic social occurrences.
Berta González Saavedra; Juan Antonio Álvarez-Pedrosa
Abstract
During the last years of the Republic, the image that the Romans had, regarding the Parthian population, was that of threat and hostility (Cicero’s Letters). However, the relationship between the two peoples changed over time, and in Tacitus and Suetonius’ texts, we find that the Parthian ...
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During the last years of the Republic, the image that the Romans had, regarding the Parthian population, was that of threat and hostility (Cicero’s Letters). However, the relationship between the two peoples changed over time, and in Tacitus and Suetonius’ texts, we find that the Parthian characters are treated individually. This is due to the fact that, from 30 BC to AD 180, some members of the Arsacid Royal Family lived in Rome as hostages, while members of other royal families from the East were hosted in the capital of the Empire. The reason for this “people exchange” was to build friendship treaties and to forge links between the Roman Republic and Empire and the royal families of the Eastern kingdoms. However, it is clear that this was used by the Roman Empire to highlight its political superiority over the Parthian Kingdom, because no member of the Roman Imperial Family was hosted elsewhere.But which language was spoken in these encounters? Did the hostages leave any trace of their mother tongue in Rome? What do we know about the many emissaries sent by the Romans to negotiate with the Parthian Kingdom? In this paper, we will try to analyze the contexts of the linguistic exchanges we can find in the authors of that period, combining them with other information available to us, such as inscriptions and archeological data, in order to reconstruct the linguistic contacts in a multilingual community.
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