King of the seven climes : a history of the ancient Iranian world (3000 BCE-651 CE) / edited by Touraj Daryaee.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Daryaee, Touraj, 1967- editor.

Series:

Ancient Iran series ; Volume 4.

Ancient Iran Series ; Volume 4

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Achaemenid dynasty--559-330 B.C--Historiography.

Achaemenid dynasty.

Arsacid dynasty--247 B.C.-224 A.D--Historiography.

Arsacid dynasty.

Seleucids--History.

Seleucids.

Physical Description:

1 online resource.

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : UCI Jordan Center for Persian Studies, [2017]

Summary:

In a Middle Persian text known as Khusro and the Page , one of the most famous kings of the ancient Iranian world, Khusro I Anusheruwan, is called haft kiswar xawadāy ("the King of the Seven Climes"). This title harkens back to at least the Achaemenid period when it was in fact used, and even further back to a Zoroastrian/Avestan world view. From the earliest Iranian hymns, those of the Gāthās of Zarathushtra, through the Younger Avesta and later Pahlavi writings, it is known that the ancient Iranians divided the world into seven climes or regions. Indeed, at some point there was even an aspiration that this world should be ruled by a single king. Consequently, the title of the King of the Seven Climes, used by Khusro I in the sixth century CE, suggests the most ambitious imperial vision that one would find in the literary tradition of the ancient Iranian world. Taking this as a point of departure, the present book aims to be a survey of the dynasties and rulers who thought of going beyond their own surroundings to forge larger polities within the Iranian realm. This volume was previously published by the Jordan Center for Persian Studies, University of California - Irvine.

Contents:

Preliminary Material / Touraj Daryaee

Introduction / Touraj Daryaee

Map / Touraj Daryaee

The Kingdom of Elām / Kamyar Abdi

The Median Confederacy / Hilary Gopnik

The Achaemenid Empire / Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones

Seleucid Iran / Omar Coloru

The Arsacid Empire / Leonardo Gregoratti

The Sasanian Empire / Authors: Touraj Daryaee and Khodadad Rezakhani

From the Kushans to the Western Turks / Khodadad Rezakhani

Contributors / Touraj Daryaee.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

90-04-46064-0

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789004460645 DOI