| Spāhān | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Province of the Sasanian Empire | |||||||||
| 224–642 | |||||||||
 Map of Spahan | |||||||||
| Capital | Spahan | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
| Historical era | Antiquity | ||||||||
• Established | 224 | ||||||||
| 642 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | Iran | ||||||||
Spahan, also known as Parthau was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, that lay within central Iran, almost corresponding to the present-day Isfahan Province in Iran.
Spahān is attested in various Middle Persian seals and inscriptions, including that of Zoroastrian priest Kartir. [1] The present-day name (Isfahan) is the Arabicized form of Ispahan (unlike Middle Persian, New Persian does not allow initial consonant clusters such as sp [2] ). The region appears with the abbreviation GD (Gay, Southern Media) on Sasanian numismatics. In Ptolemy's Geographia it appears as Aspadana, translating to "place of gathering for the army". It is believed that Spahān derives from spādānām 'the armies', Old Persian plural of spāda (from which derives spāh 'army' in Middle Persian). The province is called Parthau on Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht. [3]
Spahan became a part of the Sasanian Empire in 224, after Ardashir I (r. r. 224–242) seized its capital and killed its ruler, Shadh-Shapur. During the reign of Ardashir's son and successor Shapur I (r. 240-270), a certain Varzin was appointed as the governor of the province. [1] [4]
In 642, the battle of Spahan took place, where it was fought between the Rashidun Arabs and the Sasanians. The Arabs were victorious during the battle, where they reportedly killed the prominent Mihran commander Shahrvaraz Jadhuyih. After the battle, the Arabs made peace with Fadhusfan, the governor of the city. According to an Arab historian, many civilians were killed or enslaved after the battle. [5]
Hormizd-Ardashir, better known by his dynastic name of Hormizd I, was the third Sasanian King of Kings (shahanshah) of Iran, who ruled from May 270 to June 271. He was the third-born son of Shapur I, under whom he was governor-king of Armenia, and also took part in his father's wars against the Roman Empire. Hormizd I's brief time as ruler of Iran was largely uneventful. He built the city of Hormizd-Ardashir, which still remains a major city today in Iran. He promoted the Zoroastrian priest Kartir to the rank of chief priest (mowbed) and gave the Manichaean prophet Mani permission to continue his preaching.
Bahram IV, was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 388 to 399. He was likely the son and successor of Shapur III.
Shapur I was the second Sasanian King of Kings of Iran. The dating of his reign is disputed, but it is generally agreed that he ruled from 240 to 270, with his father Ardashir I as co-regent until the death of the latter in 242. During his co-regency, he helped his father with the conquest and destruction of Arab city of Hatra, whose fall was facilitated, according to Islamic tradition, by the actions of his future wife al-Nadirah. Shapur also consolidated and expanded the empire of Ardashir I, waged war against the Roman Empire and seized its cities of Nisibis and Carrhae while he was advancing as far as Roman Syria. Although he was defeated at the Battle of Resaena in 243 by Roman emperor Gordian III, he was the following year able to win the Battle of Misiche and force the new Roman Emperor Philip the Arab to sign a favorable peace treaty that was regarded by the Romans as "a most shameful treaty".
Ardashir I or Ardeshir I, also known as Ardashir the Unifier, was the founder of the Sasanian Empire. He was also Ardashir V of the Kings of Persis, until he founded the new empire. After defeating the last Parthian shahanshah Artabanus IV on the Hormozdgan plain in 224, he overthrew the Parthian dynasty and established the Sasanian dynasty. Afterwards, Ardashir called himself "shahanshah" and began conquering the land that he called Iran.
Persis, better known in English as Persia, or Persia proper, is the Fars region, located to the southwest of the modern Iran, now a province. The Persians are thought to have initially migrated either from Central Asia or, more probably, from the north through the Caucasus. They would then have migrated to the current region of Persis in the early 1st millennium BC. The country name Persia was derived directly from the Old Persian Parsa.
Sakastan was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, that lay within the kust of Nemroz. The province bordered Kirman in the west, Spahan in the north west, Kushanshahr in the north east, and Turan in the south east. The governor of the province held the title of marzban. The governor also held the title of "Sakanshah" until the title was abolished in ca. 459/60.
Mazun was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, which corresponded to modern day Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, and the northern half of Oman. The province served as a Sasanian outpost, and played an important role in the Sasanian efforts to gain control over the Indian Ocean trade, and to establish their dominance in the wealthy regions of Hadramaut and Yemen.
The Sasanian or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians, and also called the Neo-Persian Empire by historians, was the last Persian imperial dynasty before the Muslim conquest in the mid-7th century AD. Named after the House of Sasan, it endured for over four centuries, from 224 to 651 AD, making it the longest-lived Persian dynasty. The Sasanian Empire succeeded the Parthian Empire, and re-established the Iranians as a major power in late antiquity alongside its neighbouring arch-rival, the Roman-Byzantine Empire.
The Battle of Misiche, Mesiche (Μεσιχή), or Massice was fought between the Sasanians and the Romans in Misiche, Mesopotamia.
Pabag, was an Iranian prince who ruled Istakhr, the capital of Pars, from 205 or 206 until his death sometime between 207–210. He was the father or stepfather of Ardashir I, the founder of the Sasanian Empire. He was succeeded by his eldest son Shapur.
Ardashir-Khwarrah was one of the four administrative divisions of the Sasanian province of Pars. The other administrative divisions were Shapur-Khwarrah, Istakhr and Darabgerd, while a fifth named Arrajan was founded in the early 6th century by Kavadh I.
Balāsagān, also known as Bazgan, was a region located in the area of the Kura and Aras rivers, adjacent to the Caspian Sea. To the south, it bordered Atropatene/Adurbadagan and Gilan. It roughly corresponded to the Armenian province of Paytakaran, albeit extending farther into the north. It has been suggested that under the Sasanians the region extended as far as the stronghold of Derbent, albeit this remains disputed. The heartland of Balasagan was the Dasht i-Bałasakan which corresponds to the Mughan plain. During the late Sasanian era, Balasagan was included in the northern quadrant (kust) of Adurbadagan.
Meshan was a province of the Sasanian Empire. It consisted of the Parthian vassal kingdoms of Mesene and Characene and reached north along the Shatt al-Arab river and then the lower Tigris to Madhar and possibly further. Its inhabitants included Babylonians, Arabs, Iranians, and even some Indians and Malays. The province was very fertile, the best place for barley according to Strabo, and contained many date palms. It was also an important trading province along the Persian Gulf.
Padishkhwārgar was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, which almost corresponded to the present-day provinces of Mazandaran and Gilan. The province bordered Adurbadagan and Balasagan in the west, Gurgan in the east, and Spahan in south. The main cities of the province were Amol and Rasht.
Adurbadagan was a Sasanian province located in northern Iran, almost corresponded to the present-day Iranian Azerbaijan. Governed by a marzban ("margrave"), it functioned as an important frontier region against the neighbouring country of Armenia.
Turan was a province of the Sasanian Empire located in present-day Pakistan. The province was mainly populated by Indians, and bordered Paradan in the west, Hind in the east, Sakastan in the north, and Makuran in the south. The main city and bastion of the province was Bauterna (Khuzdar/Quzdar). The province was originally a kingdom, before submitting to the first Sasanian monarch Ardashir I. It was governed by the Sakanshah, the first notable one being Ardashir I's grandson, Narseh. The province is mentioned in Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht.
Shadh-Shapur was an Iranian king who ruled Spahan and its surroundings as a vassal of the Parthian Empire in the early 3rd-century. In 224, the Sasanian king Ardashir I seized the city and killed him.
Pars was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, which almost corresponded to the present-day province of Fars. The province bordered Khuzestan in the west, Kirman in the east, Spahan in the north, and Mazun in the south.
Kirman was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, which almost corresponded to the present-day province of Kerman. The province bordered Pars in the west, Abarshahr and Sakastan in the northeast, Paradan in the east, Spahan in the north, and Mazun in the south. The capital of the province of Shiragan.
Khuzistan or Huzistan was a Sasanian province in Late Antiquity, which almost corresponded to the present-day province of Khuzestan. Its capital was Gundeshapur. During the late Sasanian era, the province was included in the southern quadrant (kust) of Nemroz.
Provinces of the Sasanian Empire | ||
|---|---|---|
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* indicates short living provinces | ||
