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Sauromatians
The Sauromatian culture (russian: Савроматская культура, Savromatskaya kulʹtura) was a Iron Age culture of horse nomads in the area of the lower Volga River in southern Russia, dated to the 6th to 4th centuries BCE. The name of this culture originates from the Sauromatians ( grc, Σαυρομάται, Sauromatai; Latin: ), an ancient Scythian people mentioned by Graeco-Roman authors, and with whom it is identified. Origins The Sauromatian culture evolved out of elements of the Bronze Age Srubnaya culture who cooperated closely with the neighbouring Andronovo culture. Location and identification The Sauromatian culture was divided into two main local groups: a Lower Volga group located between the Volga River, the Don River, and the Transvolga; and a Samara-Ural group. As can be inferred from their closeness, close kin connections existed between the Lower Volga and the Samara-Ural groups. The Lower Volga group The section of the Lower Volga group of the Sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scythians
The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Central Asia and Eastern Turkestan to distinguish them from the related Massagetae of the Aral region and the Scythians of the Pontic steppes. These tribes spoke Iranian languages, and their chief occupation was nomadic pastoralism." * : "Near the end of the 19th century V.F. Miller (1886, 1887) theorized that the Scythians and their kindred, the Sauromatians, were Iranian-speaking peoples. This has been a popular point of view and continues to be accepted in linguistics and historical science .. * : "From the end of the 7th century B.C. to the 4th century B.C. the Central- Eurasian steppes were inhabited by two large groups of kin Iranian-speaking tribes – the Scythians and Sarmatians .. * : "All contemporary historians, archeologists and li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarmatians
The Sarmatians (; grc, Σαρμαται, Sarmatai; Latin: ) were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th century AD. Originating in the central parts of the Eurasian Steppe, the Sarmatians were part of the wider Scythian cultures. They started migrating westward around the fourth and third centuries BC, coming to dominate the closely related Scythians by 200 BC. At their greatest reported extent, around 100 BC, these tribes ranged from the Vistula River to the mouth of the Danube and eastward to the Volga, bordering the shores of the Black and Caspian seas as well as the Caucasus to the south. In the first century AD, the Sarmatians began encroaching upon the Roman Empire in alliance with Germanic tribes. In the third century AD, their dominance of the Pontic Steppe was broken by the Germanic Goths. With the Hunnic invasions of the fourth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly applied to Iron Age Europe and the Ancient Near East, but also, by analogy, to other parts of the Old World. The duration of the Iron Age varies depending on the region under consideration. It is defined by archaeological convention. The "Iron Age" begins locally when the production of iron or steel has advanced to the point where iron tools and weapons replace their bronze equivalents in common use. In the Ancient Near East, this transition took place in the wake of the Bronze Age collapse, in the 12th century BC. The technology soon spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin region and to South Asia (Iron Age in India) between the 12th and 11th century BC. Its further spread to Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yasht
The Yashts are a collection of twenty-one hymns in the Younger Avestan language. Each of these hymns invokes a specific Zoroastrian divinity or concept. ''Yasht'' chapter and verse pointers are traditionally abbreviated as ''Yt.'' Overview The word ''yasht'' derives from Middle Persian 𐭩𐭱𐭲 yašt (“prayer, worship”) probably from Avestan ''𐬫𐬀𐬱𐬙𐬀'' (yašta, “honored”), from ''𐬫𐬀𐬰'' (yaz, “to worship, honor”), from Proto-Indo-European ''*yeh₂ǵ-'' or ''*Hyaǵ-'', and several hymns of the ''Yasna'' liturgy that "venerate by praise" are—in tradition—also nominally called ''yasht''s. These "hidden" Yashts are: the ''Barsom Yasht'' (''Yasna'' 2), another '' Hom Yasht'' in ''Yasna'' 9–11, the ''Bhagan Yasht'' of ''Yasna'' 19–21, a hymn to Ashi in ''Yasna'' 52, another Sarosh ''Yasht'' in ''Yasna'' 57, the praise of the (hypostasis of) "prayer" in ''Yasna'' 58, and a hymn to the Ahurani in ''Yasna'' 68. Since these are a part of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roxolani
The Roxolani or Rhoxolāni ( grc, Ροξολανοι , ; la, Rhoxolānī) were a Sarmatian people documented between the 2nd century BC and the 4th century AD, first east of the Borysthenes (Dnieper) on the coast of Lake Maeotis ( Sea of Azov), and later near the borders of Roman Dacia and Moesia. They are believed to be an offshoot of the Alans. Name The name ''Roxolani'' is generally interpreted as a compound formed with the Alanic root *''rox''- (modern Osset. or 'light, luminous'; Avest. ''raox''-''šna-'' 'luminous, shining') attached to the tribal name ''Alān''. This would make ''Roxolani'' an endonym translatable as the 'luminous' or the 'shining Alans'. The name could be linked to aspects of worship or the supernatural, as suggested by the modern Ossetian expression ''rūxsag ū'' ('may you be blessed'), addressed to the deceased, or the name ''Wacyrūxs'' ('divine light'), mentioned in the Nart sagas.' Historian George Vernadsky suggested that the ''Rocas'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aorsi
The Aorsi, known in Greek sources as the Aorsoi (Ἄορσοι), were an ancient Iranian people of the Sarmatian group, who played a major role in the events of the Pontic Steppe from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD. They are often regarded as connected to the contemporaneous Eurasian steppe state of ''Yancai'' (or ''Yentsai'') mentioned in ancient Chinese records. The Alans, first mentioned by Middle Eastern and European scholars in the 1st century AD, are regarded as successors of the Aorsi. Name The ethnonym ''Aorsi'' is generally linked to the Avestan ''auruša-'' and the Ossetic ''ūrs'' or ''ors'', meaning 'white'. The names '' Arsīyah'' and ''Arsā'', mentioned by Al-Masudi and Al-Garnati in the 10–12th century AD, may also be related. History The Aorsi and an associated tribe, the Siraces, are believed to have migrated during the late 5th century BC from Central Asia to areas north and west of the Caspian Sea. The territory of the Aorsi is believed to hav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ilek (river)
The Ilek ( kk, Елек, ''Elek'', russian: Илек) is a river in the Aktobe Region, Kazakhstan, and Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It is long, and has a drainage basin of . The river basin is of archeological significance. There are burial sites of ancient Kurgan (Indo-European) cultures. Course The Ilek is a left tributary of the Ural. It is a steppe river, flowing at the southern end of the Ural Mountains. It rises just south of Orsk, flows south a short distance and then flows westward south of and parallel to the river Ural, with many meanders and oxbow lakes, and joins the Ural about west of Orenburg. Two main cities lie on the banks of the Ilek River: Sol-Iletsk and Aqtöbe (alternate spelling: Aktöbe, Aktyubinsk). The Ilek remains the most polluted water body in the Ural-Caspian basin. The content of boron and chromium in the river is caused by the tailing ponds of former chemical plants via ground water. The pollution level varies from "polluted" to "very polluted"." ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the river Ural and northwestern Kazakhstan.Ural Mountains Encyclopædia Britannica on-line The mountain range forms part of the conventional boundary between the regions of and |
Kurgan
A kurgan is a type of tumulus constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into much of Central Asia and Eastern, Southeast, Western and Northern Europe during the 3rd millennium BC. The earliest kurgans date to the 4th millennium BC in the Caucasus, and a part of researchers associate these with the Indo-Europeans. Kurgans were built in the Eneolithic, Bronze, Iron, Antiquity and Middle Ages, with ancient traditions still active in Southern Siberia and Central Asia. Etymology According to the Etymological dictionary of the Ukrainian language the word "kurhan" is borrowed directly from the "Polovtsian" language ( Kipchak, part of the Turkic languages) and means: fortress, embankment, high grave. The word has two possible etymologies, either from the Old Turkic root ''qori-'' "to close, to block, to guard, to protect", or ''qur-'' " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scopasis
Scopasis ( grc, Σκώπασις ) was a 6th-century BC Scythian king of the Sauromatae tribe. The Greek historian Herodotus mentions him in his Histories, as he and the kings Taxakis and Idanthyrsus Idanthyrsus (Ancient Greek: , romanized: ; Latin: ) is the name of a Scythian king who lived in the 6th century BCE, when he faced an invasion of his country by the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Name and etymology The name () is the Hellenized fo ... commanded the three divisions of the Scythian forces, when Scythia was invaded by Darius I of Persia in between 520 and 507 BC (most likely in 513 BC). It was the contingent under the command of Scopasis that arrived at the Istros (Danube) river before Darius could reach it during his retreat. Scopasis defeated Darius' Ionian allies to destroy the bridge of boats over the river and thus ensure the destruction and defeat of the Persian forces. References *{{SmithDGRBM, wstitle=Scopasis Sarmatian rulers Scythian rulers 6th-cen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scythian Campaign Of Darius I
The Scythian campaign of Darius I was a military expedition into parts of European Scythia by Darius I, the king of the Achaemenid Empire, in 513 BC. The Scythians were an East Iranian-speaking people who had invaded Media, revolted against Darius and threatened to disrupt trade between Central Asia and the shores of the Black Sea as they lived between the Danube and Don Rivers and the Black Sea. The campaigns took place in parts of what is now the Balkans, Ukraine, and southern Russia. The Scythians managed to avoid a direct confrontation with the Persian army due to their mobile lifestyle and lack of any settlement (except Gelonus), while the Persians suffered losses due to the Scythians' scorched earth tactic. However, the Persians conquered much of their cultivated lands and damaged their allies, forcing the Scythians to respect the Persian force. Darius halted the advance to consolidate his gains, and built a defence line. The campaign Darius crossed the Black Sea at the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darius The Great
Darius I ( peo, 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 ; grc-gre, Δαρεῖος ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was a Persian ruler who served as the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his death in 486 BCE. He ruled the empire at its territorial peak, when it included much of Western Asia, parts of the Balkans (Thrace– Macedonia and Paeonia) and the Caucasus, most of the Black Sea's coastal regions, Central Asia, the Indus Valley in the far east, and portions of North Africa and Northeast Africa including Egypt (), eastern Libya, and coastal Sudan. Darius ascended the throne by overthrowing the legitimate Achaemenid monarch Bardiya, whom he later fabricated to be an imposter named Gaumata. The new king met with rebellions throughout his kingdom and quelled them each time; a major event in Darius' life was his expedition to subjugate Greece and punish Athens and Eretria for their participation in the Ionian Revolt. Alt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
