Miwnay was a 4th-century

Sogdia Sogdia () or Sogdiana was an ancient Iranian peoples, Iranian civilization between the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, and in present-day Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Sogdiana was also a province of the Achaemen ...

n woman, who has been abandoned and left destitute in

Dunhuang Dunhuang () is a county-level city in northwestern Gansu Province, Western China. According to the 2010 Chinese census, the city has a population of 186,027, though 2019 estimates put the city's population at about 191,800. Sachu (Dunhuang) was ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, by her husband Nanai-dhat. Miwnay is known from Sogdian Ancient Letters (I and III). In the Ancient Letter No. 1, Miwnay writes to her mother, Chatis, and explains her and her child's (Shayn) situation. She says she has tried to find someone to take her to her mother's house, but nobody is willing to help, so ''“I depend on charity from the

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

priest.”'' The Ancient Letter No. 3 is addressed to her husband, Nanai-dhat. She complains to him how he never answers her letters or sends money. “I obeyed your command and came to Dunhuang and did not observe my mother's bidding nor that of my brothers. Surely the gods were angry with me on the day when I did your bidding!” At the end of the letter, Miwnay says ''“I would rather be a dog’s or a pig’s wife than yours!”''{{Cite web, url=https://sogdians.si.edu/ancient-letters/, title=Ancient Letters {{! The Sogdians, website=sogdians.si.edu, access-date=2019-08-03

References

Sogdians Sogdian people 4th-century Iranian people 4th century in China Dunhuang 4th-century women