Avestan geography
Encyclopedia
Avestan geography, is the geographical references in the Avesta
, which are limited to the regions on the eastern Iranian plateau
(of which mostly including today's Afghanistan
) up to Indo
-Iranian border. It was common among the Indo-Iranians
to identify concepts or features of traditional cosmography—mountains, lakes, rivers, etc.—with their concrete historical and geographical situation as they migrated and settled in various places.
. This consists of a list of sixteen districts (asah- and šōiθra-) created by Ahura Mazdā
and threatened by a corresponding number of counter-creations that Angra Mainyu
set up against them (paityāra-).
The list is as follows:
10.13-14, where the whole region inhabited by the Aryans (airyō.šayana-) is described. The description begins with Mount Harā, the peak of which is reached by Mithra
as he precedes the immortal sun: The entire Aryan homeland, according to this passage, consisted of the districts of Iškata and Peruta, Margiana and Areia, Gava, Sogdiana, and Chorasmia. The names of Sogdiana, Sux’əm, and Chorasmia, Xᵛāirizəm, appear here, in Medo
-Iranian forms; this suggests that they were later additions. The geographical extension of Mihr Yasht
, covered the eastern part of the Iranian territory, the central part being occupied by the regions of the Hindu Kush
, represented by Mount Harā, Iškata (Kūh-e Bābā
?), Paruta (Ghūr?), the district of Herodotus
’s Aparútai (3.91) or Ptolemy
’s Paroûtai or Párautoi (6.17.3).
Like the Mihr Yasht, the Farvardīn Yasht
also contains some passages of use in the reconstruction of Avestan geography, in particular Yt. 13.125 and Yt. 13.127, where some characters are mentioned because of their venerable fravashi
. For each of these the birthplace is given: Mužā, Raoždyā, Tanyā, Aŋhvī, Apaxšīrā. Only the first of these place-names can perhaps be identified because Mužā recalls the Sanskrit
Mūjavant, which should be in a region between the Hindu Kush and the Pamir
. But it should be borne in mind that the character related to the land of Apaxshīrā, Parshaṱ.gav, may be connected with a Sīstāni
tradition and that the passage in Yt. 13.125 is dedicated to the fravashi of members of the family of Saēna, the son of Ahūm.stūṱ, who also had connections with Sīstān.
The Zamyād Yasht
, dedicated to Xᵛarənah, is of very great importance for Avestan geography as it provides a surprisingly well-detailed description of the hydrography of the Helmand region, in particular of Hāmūn-e Helmand. In Yt. 19.66-77 nine rivers an mentioned: Xᵛāstrā, Hvaspā, Fradaθā, Xᵛarənahvaitī, Uštavaitī, Urvaδā, Ǝrəzī, Zurənumaitī, and Haētumant; six of these are known from the Tārīkh-e Sīstān. Other features of Sīstāni geography recur in the same yasht, like the Kąsaoya lake (Pahlavi Kayānsih) or Mount Uši.’ām (Kūh-e Khᵛāǰa
), both closely bound up with Zoroastrian] eschatology
, so that with the help of comparisons with Pahlavi and classical sources, mainly Pliny
and Ptolemy
, we can conclude that the Zamyād Yasht describes Sīstān with great care and attention. In Avestan geography no other region has received such treatment. There is an echo of Sīstān’s importance in Avestan geography in the brief Pahlavi treatise Abdīh ud sahīgīh ī Sagastān.
Yet another reference to Sīstān is to be found it another passage of the great yashts, Yt. 5.108, in which Kavi Vīštāspa
, prince and patron of Zoroaster, is represented in the act of making sacrifice to Arədvī Sūrā Anāhitā near Frazdānu, the Frazdān of Pahlavi literature, that is, one of the wonders of Sīstān; it can probably be identified with Gowd-e Zera
.
One of the old, thorny problems in studies on Avestan geography is represented by Airyana Vaēǰah (Pahlavi: Ērānwēz), “the area of the Aryans” and first of the sixteen districts in Vd. 1, the original name of which was airyanəm vaēǰō vaŋhuyā dāityayā, “the Aryan extension of Vaŋuhī Dāityā”, where Vaŋuhī Dāityā “the good Dāityā” is the name of a river connected with the religious “law” (dāta-). The concept of Airyana Vaēǰah is not equivalent to that of airyō.šayana- in Yt. 10.13, or to the group of airyā daiŋ́hāvā “the Aryan lands” which is recurrent in the yashts; this, in fact, refers to just one of the Aryan lands, as the first chapter of the Vidēvdād clearly shows. It does not designate “the traditional homeland” or “the ancient homeland” of the Iranians. These definitions perpetuate old interpretations of the Airyana Vaēǰah as “Urheimat des Awestavolkes” (Geiger, op. cit., p. 32), “Urland” of the Indo-Iranians (F. Spiegel, Die arische Periode und ihre Zustände, Leipzig, 1887, p. 123), “Wiege aller iranischen Arier” (J. von Prášek, Geschichte der Meder und Perser bis zur makedonischen Eroberung I, Gotha, 1906, p. 29), drawing from the texts more than the contents really warrant. Airyana Vaēǰah is only the homeland of Zoroaster and of Zoroastrianism. According to Zoroastrian tradition Ērānwēz is situated at the center of the world; on the shores of its river, Weh Dāitī (Av. Vaŋuhī Dāityā), there were created the gāw ī ēw-dād (Av. gav aēvō.dāta) “uniquely created bull” and Gayōmard (Av. Gayō.marətan) “mortal life,” the first man; there rises the Chagād ī Dāidīg, the “lawful Summit,” the Peak of Harā, in Avestan also called hukairya “of good activity”; the Chinvat Bridge
is there, and there too, Yima and Zoroaster became famous. Taken all together, these data show that Zoroastrianism superimposed the concept of Airyana Vaēǰah onto the traditional one of a center of the world where the Peak of Harā rises. The fact that Airyana Vaēǰah is situated in a mountainous region explains its severe climate (Vd. 1.2.3) better than does its supposed location in Chorasmia (Markwart, Ērānshahr, p. 155). This is not surprising if we consider the analogy between the Iranian concept of the peak of Harā with the Indian one of Mount Meru or Sumeru. The Manicheans identified Aryān-waižan with the region at the foot of Mount Sumeru that Wishtāsp
reigned over, and the Khotanese texts record the identification of Mount Sumeru in Buddhist mythology with the Peak of Harā (ttaira haraysä) in the Avestan tradition. All this leads us to suppose that the concept of Airyana Vaēǰah was an invention of Zoroastrianism which gave a new guise to a traditional idea of Indo-Iranian cosmography. At any rate, identifications of Airyana Vaēǰah with Chorasmia are quite unfounded, whether this is understood to refer to Khwārazm
itself or to a “greater Chorasmia”. As for the river of Religious Law, it is not at all easy to identify: The most likely hypotheses seem to be those that identify it with the Oxus, or rather the Helmand, which at times appears to be in a curious “competition” with the Oxus in the Zoroastrian tradition.
Avesta
The Avesta is the primary collection of sacred texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language.-Early transmission:The texts of the Avesta — which are all in the Avestan language — were composed over the course of several hundred years. The most important portion, the Gathas,...
, which are limited to the regions on the eastern Iranian plateau
Iranian plateau
The Iranian plateau, or Iranic plateau, is a geological formation in Southwest Asia. It is the part of the Eurasian Plate wedged between the Arabian and Indian plates, situated between the Zagros mountains to the west, the Caspian Sea and the Kopet Dag to the north, the Hormuz Strait and Persian...
(of which mostly including today's Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
) up to Indo
Ancient India
Ancient India may refer to:* The ancient history of India, which generally includes the ancient history of the Asian Subcontinent, including:*Science and technology in ancient India**Indian mathematics**Astronomy**List of Indian inventions...
-Iranian border. It was common among the Indo-Iranians
Indo-Iranians
Indo-Iranian peoples are a linguistic group consisting of the Indo-Aryan, Iranian, Dardic and Nuristani peoples; that is, speakers of Indo-Iranian languages, a major branch of the Indo-European language family....
to identify concepts or features of traditional cosmography—mountains, lakes, rivers, etc.—with their concrete historical and geographical situation as they migrated and settled in various places.
Vendidad references
The main Avestan text of geographical interest is the first chapter of the VidēvdādVendidad
The Vendidad or Videvdat is a collection of texts within the greater compendium of the Avesta. However, unlike the other texts of the Avesta, the Vendidad is an ecclesiastical code, not a liturgical manual.-Name:...
. This consists of a list of sixteen districts (asah- and šōiθra-) created by Ahura Mazdā
Ahura Mazda
Ahura Mazdā is the Avestan name for a divinity of the Old Iranian religion who was proclaimed the uncreated God by Zoroaster, the founder of Zoroastrianism...
and threatened by a corresponding number of counter-creations that Angra Mainyu
Angra Mainyu
Angra Mainyu is the Avestan-language name of Zoroastrianism's hypostasis of the "destructive spirit". The Middle Persian equivalent is Ahriman.-In Zoroaster's revelation:...
set up against them (paityāra-).
The list is as follows:
- Airyana VaēǰahAiryanem VaejahAiryanəm Vaējah, which approximately means "expanse of the Aryans, i.e. Iranians" is the "mythical homeland" of early Iranians and a reference in the Zoroastrian Avesta Airyanəm Vaējah, which approximately means "expanse of the Aryans, i.e. Iranians" is the "mythical homeland" of early Iranians and...
= the homeland of ZoroasterZoroasterZoroaster , also known as Zarathustra , was a prophet and the founder of Zoroastrianism who was either born in North Western or Eastern Iran. He is credited with the authorship of the Yasna Haptanghaiti as well as the Gathas, hymns which are at the liturgical core of Zoroastrianism...
and ZoroastrianismZoroastrianismZoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster and was formerly among the world's largest religions. It was probably founded some time before the 6th century BCE in Greater Iran.In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil...
, near the provinces of SogdianaSogdianaSogdiana or Sogdia was the ancient civilization of an Iranian people and a province of the Achaemenid Empire, eighteenth in the list on the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great . Sogdiana is "listed" as the second of the "good lands and countries" that Ahura Mazda created...
, Margiana, BactriaBactriaBactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
, etc., listed immediately after it. According to SKJæRVøProds Oktor SkjaervoProds Oktor Skjaervo ) is an Agha Khan Professor of Iranian studies at department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations in Harvard University.-Recent Books:-See also:...
, and Gnoli it was situated between the Helmand RiverHelmand RiverThe Helmand River is the longest river in Afghanistan and the primarily watershed for the endorheic Sistan Basin....
and the Hindu Kush MountainsHindu KushThe Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
; - Gava = SogdianaSogdianaSogdiana or Sogdia was the ancient civilization of an Iranian people and a province of the Achaemenid Empire, eighteenth in the list on the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great . Sogdiana is "listed" as the second of the "good lands and countries" that Ahura Mazda created...
; - Mōuru = Margiana;
- Bāxδī = BactriaBactriaBactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
; - Nisāya = a district between Margiana and Bactria, perhaps Maimana;
- Harōiva = Areia, HeratHeratHerāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
; - Vaēkərəta = GandhāraGandharaGandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
; - Urvā = probably the GhazniGhazniFor the Province of Ghazni see Ghazni ProvinceGhazni is a city in central-east Afghanistan with a population of about 141,000 people...
region; - Xnənta = a region defined as vəhrkānō.šayana- ”the dwelling place of the Vəhrkāna,” where Marquart placed the Barkánioi of Ctesias, an ethnicon analogous with that of Old Persian Varkāna, the inhabitants of HyrcaniaHyrcaniaHyrcania was the name of a satrapy located in the territories of present day Gilan, Golestan, Mazandaran and part of Turkmenistan, lands south of the Caspian Sea. To the Greeks, the Caspian Sea was the "Hyrcanian Sea".-Etymology:...
, the present GorgānGorganGorgan Some east of Gorgan is the Golestan National Park. The city has a regional airport and several universities. Gorgan Airport was opened in September 2005.-Etymology:...
or, less probably, Hyrcania; - Haraxᵛaitī = ArachosiaArachosiaArachosia is the Latinized form of the Greek name of an Achaemenid and Seleucid governorate in the eastern part of their respective empires, around modern-day southern Afghanistan. The Greek term "Arachosia" corresponds to the Iranian land of Harauti which was between Kandahar in Afghanistan and...
; - Haētumant = the region of Helmand roughly corresponding to the Achaemenian DrangianaDrangianaDrangiana or Zarangiana was a historical region of the Achaemenid Empire. This region comprises territory around lake Hâmûn, wetlands in endorheic Sīstān basin on the Irano-Afghan-Pakistan border, and its primary watershed Helmand river in nowadays southwestern Afghanistan and the "Nok Kondi" of...
(Zranka); - Raγa = a district north of Haraxᵛaitī and Haētumant in the direction of the district of Čaxra, to be distinguished, given its position in the list from Median Ragā and probably also from Raγa zaraθuštri- of Yashts 19.18;
- Čaxra = Čarx between Ghaznī and Kabul, in the valley of LōgarLogarLogar may refer to:* Logar Province, Afghanistan* Logar River in Afghanistan* Logar Valley, Slovenia-People:* Eva Logar , Slovenian ski jumper* Lojze Logar, Slovenian artist* Tine Logar, Slovenian linguist...
, not Māzandarān, as Christensen thought; - Varəna = BunērBunerChinglai Buner may refer to:* Buner Valley in Pakistan.* Buner District in Pakistan....
, the VarṇuVarnuVarnu was an ancient town located in what is now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is associated with the modern day city of Bannu. In 602 CE the Chinese pilgrim Hsüan-tsang travelled from Varnu to Jaguda in Ghazni....
of the MahāmāyūrīMahamayuriMahamayuri , is one of the Wisdom Kings in the Buddhist Pantheon. Mahamayuri is a peaceful personification, in contrast to the wrathful attitudes of male personifications of the Wisdom Kings...
, the ʿAornosAornosAornos was the site of Alexander the Great's last siege, "the climax to Alexander's career as the greatest besieger in history" according to Alexander's biographer Robin Lane Fox. The siege took place in the winter of 327–326 BCE...
of Alexander the Great, the homeland of FerΘraētaona/Frēdōn/AfrīḏūnFereydunFereydūn also pronounced Farīdūn or Afrīdūn , also called Apam Napat, "Son of the Waters", is the name of an Iranian mythical king and hero who is an emblem of victory, justice and generosity in the Persian literature.-Etymology:All of the forms of...
; - Hapta Həndu = Sapta Sindhavaḥ, the land of seven rivers knowns as the region of Panjab;
- Raŋhā = RasāRasa- Indian culture :* Rasa , a concept in the Indian performing arts* Rasa , a concept of taste or emotional rapture related to Krishna devotion* Rasā, a mythical river mentioned in the Rigveda...
in VedicVedicVedic may refer to:* the Vedas, the oldest preserved Indic texts** Vedic Sanskrit, the language of these texts** Vedic period, during which these texts were produced** Vedic pantheon of gods mentioned in Vedas/vedic period...
geography, at times mentioned together with Kubhā (Kabul) and Krumu (KurramKurramKurram can refer to either:*Kurram River - a river on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan*Kurram Valley - the valley of the Kurram River which runs from Afghanistan to the Indus River....
), a river situated in a mountainous area, probably connected with the Indus, not with the Jaxartes or with the Volga.
Yasht references
There is further geographical interest to be found in another passage from the Avesta YashtYasht
The s are a collection of twenty-one hymns in Younger Avestan. Each of these hymns invokes a specific Zoroastrian divinity or concept. Yasht chapter and verse pointers are traditionally abbreviated as Yt....
10.13-14, where the whole region inhabited by the Aryans (airyō.šayana-) is described. The description begins with Mount Harā, the peak of which is reached by Mithra
Mithra
Mithra is the Zoroastrian divinity of covenant and oath. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of Truth, and the guardian of cattle, the harvest and of The Waters....
as he precedes the immortal sun: The entire Aryan homeland, according to this passage, consisted of the districts of Iškata and Peruta, Margiana and Areia, Gava, Sogdiana, and Chorasmia. The names of Sogdiana, Sux’əm, and Chorasmia, Xᵛāirizəm, appear here, in Medo
Median language
The Median language was the language of the Medes. It is an Old Iranian language and classified as belonging to the northwestern Iranian subfamily which includes many other languages such as Azari, Zazaki, Gilaki, Mazandarani, Kurdish and Baluchi.-Attestation:Median is only attested by numerous...
-Iranian forms; this suggests that they were later additions. The geographical extension of Mihr Yasht
Yasht
The s are a collection of twenty-one hymns in Younger Avestan. Each of these hymns invokes a specific Zoroastrian divinity or concept. Yasht chapter and verse pointers are traditionally abbreviated as Yt....
, covered the eastern part of the Iranian territory, the central part being occupied by the regions of the Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
, represented by Mount Harā, Iškata (Kūh-e Bābā
Koh-i-Baba
The Baba mountain range is a western extension of the Hindu Kush, and the origin of all three of Afghanistan’s major river systems, the Kabul, the Hilmand-Arghandab, and the Hari River. It is crowned by Foladi peak rising 4951 m; 16,244 ft...
?), Paruta (Ghūr?), the district of Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
’s Aparútai (3.91) or Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
’s Paroûtai or Párautoi (6.17.3).
Like the Mihr Yasht, the Farvardīn Yasht
Yasht
The s are a collection of twenty-one hymns in Younger Avestan. Each of these hymns invokes a specific Zoroastrian divinity or concept. Yasht chapter and verse pointers are traditionally abbreviated as Yt....
also contains some passages of use in the reconstruction of Avestan geography, in particular Yt. 13.125 and Yt. 13.127, where some characters are mentioned because of their venerable fravashi
Fravashi
A fravashi is the guardian spirit mentioned in the Avesta of an individual, who sends out the urvan into the material world to fight the battle of good versus evil...
. For each of these the birthplace is given: Mužā, Raoždyā, Tanyā, Aŋhvī, Apaxšīrā. Only the first of these place-names can perhaps be identified because Mužā recalls the Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Mūjavant, which should be in a region between the Hindu Kush and the Pamir
Pamir
Pamir may refer to:* a pamir, a U-shaped grassy valley in the Pamir Mountains**Great Pamir, a high valley in the Wakhan on the border of Afghanistan and Tajikistan**Little Pamir, a high valley in the Wakhan, Afghanistan...
. But it should be borne in mind that the character related to the land of Apaxshīrā, Parshaṱ.gav, may be connected with a Sīstāni
Sistan
Sīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...
tradition and that the passage in Yt. 13.125 is dedicated to the fravashi of members of the family of Saēna, the son of Ahūm.stūṱ, who also had connections with Sīstān.
The Zamyād Yasht
Yasht
The s are a collection of twenty-one hymns in Younger Avestan. Each of these hymns invokes a specific Zoroastrian divinity or concept. Yasht chapter and verse pointers are traditionally abbreviated as Yt....
, dedicated to Xᵛarənah, is of very great importance for Avestan geography as it provides a surprisingly well-detailed description of the hydrography of the Helmand region, in particular of Hāmūn-e Helmand. In Yt. 19.66-77 nine rivers an mentioned: Xᵛāstrā, Hvaspā, Fradaθā, Xᵛarənahvaitī, Uštavaitī, Urvaδā, Ǝrəzī, Zurənumaitī, and Haētumant; six of these are known from the Tārīkh-e Sīstān. Other features of Sīstāni geography recur in the same yasht, like the Kąsaoya lake (Pahlavi Kayānsih) or Mount Uši.’ām (Kūh-e Khᵛāǰa
Mount Khajeh
Mount Khwaja or Mount Khwajeh is a flat-topped black basalt hill rising up as an island in the middle of Lake Hamun, in the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan....
), both closely bound up with Zoroastrian] eschatology
Eschatology
Eschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come...
, so that with the help of comparisons with Pahlavi and classical sources, mainly Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
and Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
, we can conclude that the Zamyād Yasht describes Sīstān with great care and attention. In Avestan geography no other region has received such treatment. There is an echo of Sīstān’s importance in Avestan geography in the brief Pahlavi treatise Abdīh ud sahīgīh ī Sagastān.
Yet another reference to Sīstān is to be found it another passage of the great yashts, Yt. 5.108, in which Kavi Vīštāspa
Vishtaspa
Vishtaspa is the Avestan-language name of a figure of Zoroastrian scripture and tradition, portrayed as an early follower of Zoroaster, and his patron, and instrumental in the diffusion of the prophet's message...
, prince and patron of Zoroaster, is represented in the act of making sacrifice to Arədvī Sūrā Anāhitā near Frazdānu, the Frazdān of Pahlavi literature, that is, one of the wonders of Sīstān; it can probably be identified with Gowd-e Zera
Godzareh depression
The Godzareh depression is the lowest part of an inland drainage basin covering large parts of southern Afghanistan and Iran known as the Sistan Basin. The Sistan Basin is an endorheic basin and encompasses a complex system of rivers, shallow lakes, marshes and wetlands as its watershed, draining...
.
Conclusion
If we compare the first chapter of the Vidēvdād with the passages of geographical interest that we come across mainly in the great yashts, we can conclude that the geographical area of Avesta was dominated by the Hindu Kush range at the center, the western boundary being marked by the districts of Margiana, Areia, and Drangiana, the eastern one by the Indo-Iranian frontier regions such as Gandhāra, Bunēr, the land of the “Seven Rivers.” Sogdiana and, possibly, Chorasmia (which, however, is at the extreme limits) mark the boundary to the north, Sīstān and Baluchistan to the south.One of the old, thorny problems in studies on Avestan geography is represented by Airyana Vaēǰah (Pahlavi: Ērānwēz), “the area of the Aryans” and first of the sixteen districts in Vd. 1, the original name of which was airyanəm vaēǰō vaŋhuyā dāityayā, “the Aryan extension of Vaŋuhī Dāityā”, where Vaŋuhī Dāityā “the good Dāityā” is the name of a river connected with the religious “law” (dāta-). The concept of Airyana Vaēǰah is not equivalent to that of airyō.šayana- in Yt. 10.13, or to the group of airyā daiŋ́hāvā “the Aryan lands” which is recurrent in the yashts; this, in fact, refers to just one of the Aryan lands, as the first chapter of the Vidēvdād clearly shows. It does not designate “the traditional homeland” or “the ancient homeland” of the Iranians. These definitions perpetuate old interpretations of the Airyana Vaēǰah as “Urheimat des Awestavolkes” (Geiger, op. cit., p. 32), “Urland” of the Indo-Iranians (F. Spiegel, Die arische Periode und ihre Zustände, Leipzig, 1887, p. 123), “Wiege aller iranischen Arier” (J. von Prášek, Geschichte der Meder und Perser bis zur makedonischen Eroberung I, Gotha, 1906, p. 29), drawing from the texts more than the contents really warrant. Airyana Vaēǰah is only the homeland of Zoroaster and of Zoroastrianism. According to Zoroastrian tradition Ērānwēz is situated at the center of the world; on the shores of its river, Weh Dāitī (Av. Vaŋuhī Dāityā), there were created the gāw ī ēw-dād (Av. gav aēvō.dāta) “uniquely created bull” and Gayōmard (Av. Gayō.marətan) “mortal life,” the first man; there rises the Chagād ī Dāidīg, the “lawful Summit,” the Peak of Harā, in Avestan also called hukairya “of good activity”; the Chinvat Bridge
Chinvat bridge
The Chinvat Bridge in Zoroastrianism is the bridge which separates the world of the living from the world of the dead. All souls must cross the bridge upon death....
is there, and there too, Yima and Zoroaster became famous. Taken all together, these data show that Zoroastrianism superimposed the concept of Airyana Vaēǰah onto the traditional one of a center of the world where the Peak of Harā rises. The fact that Airyana Vaēǰah is situated in a mountainous region explains its severe climate (Vd. 1.2.3) better than does its supposed location in Chorasmia (Markwart, Ērānshahr, p. 155). This is not surprising if we consider the analogy between the Iranian concept of the peak of Harā with the Indian one of Mount Meru or Sumeru. The Manicheans identified Aryān-waižan with the region at the foot of Mount Sumeru that Wishtāsp
Vishtaspa
Vishtaspa is the Avestan-language name of a figure of Zoroastrian scripture and tradition, portrayed as an early follower of Zoroaster, and his patron, and instrumental in the diffusion of the prophet's message...
reigned over, and the Khotanese texts record the identification of Mount Sumeru in Buddhist mythology with the Peak of Harā (ttaira haraysä) in the Avestan tradition. All this leads us to suppose that the concept of Airyana Vaēǰah was an invention of Zoroastrianism which gave a new guise to a traditional idea of Indo-Iranian cosmography. At any rate, identifications of Airyana Vaēǰah with Chorasmia are quite unfounded, whether this is understood to refer to Khwārazm
Khwarezm
Khwarezm, or Chorasmia, is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, which borders to the north the Aral Sea, to the east the Kyzylkum desert, to the south the Karakum desert and to the west the Ustyurt Plateau...
itself or to a “greater Chorasmia”. As for the river of Religious Law, it is not at all easy to identify: The most likely hypotheses seem to be those that identify it with the Oxus, or rather the Helmand, which at times appears to be in a curious “competition” with the Oxus in the Zoroastrian tradition.
See also
- ArianaArianaAriana was a region of the eastern countries of ancient Iran, next to India.Ariana may also refer to:* Ariana In places:*Ariana Governorate, a governorate in Tunisia*Ariana, Tunisia*Lake Ariana, a lake in Sofia, Bulgaria...
- Aryans
- Ancient Iranian peoplesAncient Iranian peoplesIranian peoples first appear in Assyrian records in the 9th century BCE. In Classical Antiquity they were found primarily in Scythia and Persia...
- Seven Old Iranian climes
Further reading
- G. Gnoli, “Airyō.šayana,” RSO 41, 1966.
- G. Gnoli, Zoroaster’s Time and Homeland, Naples, 1980.
- G. Gnoli, Ricerche storiche sul Sīstān antico, Rome, 1967.
- G. Gnoli, De Zoroastre à Mani. Quatre leçons au Collège de France, Paris, 1985.
- R. N. Frye, The History of Ancient Iran, Munich, 1984.
- M. Boyce, A HISTORY OF ZOROASTRIANISM, Handbuch der Orientalistik, Leiden, 1975.
- A. Christensen, Le premier chapitre du Vendidad et l’histoire primitive des tribus iraniennes, Copenhagen, 1943.
- M. Witzel, “THE HOME OF THE ARYANS,”, Harvard University.
- M. Witzel, “Early Eastern Iran and the Atharvaveda,” Persica 9, 1980.
- W. B. Henning, Zoroaster, Politician or Witch-doctor?, London, 1951, pp. 44f.
- W. B. Henning, “Two Manichaean Magical Texts,” BSOAS 12, 1947, pp. 52f.
- W. B. Henning, “The Book of the Giants,” BSOAS 11, 1943, pp. 68f.
- J. Markwart, A Catalogue of the Provincial Capitals of Ērānshahr, ed. G. Messina, Rome, 1931.
- J. Markwart, Wehrot und Arang, ed. H. H. Schaeder, Leiden, 1938.
- D. Monchi-Zadeh, Topographisch-historische Studien zum iranischen Nationalepos, Wiesbaden, 1975.
- W. Eilers, Geographische Namengebung in und um Iran, Munich, 1982.
- W. Eilers, “Der Name Demawend,” Archiv Orientální 22, 1954.
- I. Gershevitch, The Avestan Hymn to Mithra, Cambridge, 1959.
- I. Gershevitch, “Zoroaster’s Own Contribution,” JNES 23, 1964.
- E. Benveniste, “L’Ērān-vḕ et l’origine legendaire des iraniens,” BSOAS 7, 1933-35, pp. 269f.
- E. Herzfeld, Zoroaster and His World, Princeton, 1947.
- E. Herzfeld, “Zarathustra. Teil V. Awestische Topographie,” AMI 2, 1930.
- H. S. Nyberg, Die Religionen des alten Iran, German tr. H. H. Schaeder, Leipzig, 1938, pp. 324ff.
- J. Marquart, Ērānšahr nach der Geographie des Ps. Moses Xorenacʿi, Berlin, 1901.
- J. Marquart, Untersuchungen zur Geschichte von Eran I, Göttingen, 1896, II, Göttingen, 1905.
- J. Marquart, Die Assyriaka des Ktesias, Göttingen, 1892.
- H. W. Bailey, Indo-Scythian Studies. Khotanese Texts IV, Cambridge, 1961.
- H. W. Bailey, Dictionary of Khotan Saka, Cambridge, 1979, p. 467.
- H. W. Bailey, “Iranian Studies I & IV,” BSOAS 6, 1930-32.
- P. Tedesco, Dialektologie der westiranischen Turfantexte,” Le Monde Oriental 15, 1921, pp. 184ff.
- G. Morgenstierne, Report on a Linguistic Mission to Afghanistan, Oslo, 1926, pp. 29f.
- K. Hoffmann, “Altiranisch,” in HO I, 4: Iranistik 1, Linguistik, Leiden and Cologne, 1958, p. 6.
- W. Kirfel, Die Kosmographie der Inder nach den Quellen dargestellt, Bonn and Leipzig, 1920, pp. 1ff., 178ff., 208ff.
- G. M. Bongard-Levin and E. A. Grantovskij, De la Scythie à l’Inde. Ēnigmes de l’histoire des anciens Aryens, French tr. Ph. Gignoux, Paris, 1981.
- B. Utas, “The Pahlavi Treatise Avdēh u sahīkēh ī Sakistān,” Acta Antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 28, 1983, pp. 259-67.
- Vayu I, Lund, 1942, pp. 202ff.
- M. Molé, “La structure du premier chapitre du Videvdat,” JA 229, 1951, pp. 283-98.
- F. Altheim, Geschichte der Hunnen IV, Berlin, 1975, 2nd ed., pp. 166-82.
- W. Geiger, Ostiranische Kultur im Altertum, Erlangen, 1982, p. 31 n. 1.
- S. Levi, “Le catalogue géographique des Yakṣa dans la Mahāmāyūrī,” JA 5, 1915, pp. 67ff.
- Photius, Bibliotheca, Cod. 72, 36b-37a.
- H. Humbach, “Al-Bīrunī und die sieben Strome [sic] des Awesta,” Bulletin of the Iranian Culture Foundation I, 2, 1973.
- H. Lommel, “Rasā,” ZII 4, 1926.
- T. Burrow, “The Proto-Indoaryans,” JRAS, 1973.
- A. Stein, “Afghanistan in Avestic Geography,” Indian Antiquary 15, 1886.
- A. V. W Jackson, Zoroastrian Studies, New York, 1928.
- F. Spiegel, Die arische Periode und ihre Zustände, Leipzig, 1887, p. 123.
- J. von Prášek, Geschichte der Meder und Perser bis zur makedonischen Eroberung I, Gotha, 1906, p. 29.
- F. Justi, Beiträge zur alten Geographie Persiens, Marburg, 1869.
- W. Tomaschek, “Zur historischen Topographie von Persien,” Sb. d. Wiener Akad. d. Wiss., Phil.-hist. Kl., 102, 1883, pp. 146-231; 108, 1885, pp. 583-652 (repr. Osnabrück, 1972).
- W. Geiger, “Geographie von Iran,” in Geiger and Kuhn, Grundr. Ir. Phil. II, 3, pp. 371-94.
- H. Lommel, “Anahita-Sarasvati,” in Asiatica. Festschrift Friedrich Weller, Leipzig, 1954, pp. 15-32.
- H. Humbach, “Die awestische Landerliste,” Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde Süd- und Ostasiens 4, 1960, pp. 34-46. Idem, “Ptolemaios-Studien,” ibid., 5, 1961, pp. 68-74.
- G. Gnoli, “ʾAριανη′. Postilla ad Airyō.šayana,” RSO 41, 1966, pp. 329-34. Idem, “More on the Sistanic Hypothesis,” East and West 27, 1977, pp. 309-20.
- H. Humbach, “A Western Approach to Zarathushtra,” Journal of the K. R. Cama Oriental Institute 51, Bombay, 1984, pp. 15-32.
- W. Barthold, Istoriko-geograficheskiĭ obzor Irana, Moscow, 1971;
- Eng. tr. S. Soucek, An Historical Geography of Iran, Princeton, New Jersey, 1984.