Cyrus (pronounced /ˈsaɪrəs/) is the given name of a number of Persian kings. Most notably it refers to Cyrus the Great. Cyrus is also the name of Cyrus I of Anshan (ca. 650 BC), King of Persia the grandfather of Cyrus the Great; and Cyrus the Younger (died 401 BC), brother to the Persian King Artaxerxes II of Persia.
Cyrus, as a word in English, is derived, via Latin, from Ancient Greek: κνρος, from Old Persian:𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 (IPA: [kʰuːrʰuʃ], Kūruš)[1]. Etymology of Cyrus has been and continues to be a topic of discussion amongst historians, linguists, and scholars of Iranology. The name has been interpreted in various forms from "the sun", "like sun", "young", "hero" to "humiliator of the enemy in verbal contest".
The name has appeared on many monuments and inscriptions in old Persian.[2] There is also the record of a small inscription in Morghab (southwestern Iran) on which there is the sentence (adam kūruš xšāyaƟiya haxāmanišiya) in Old Persian meaning (I am Cyrus the Achaemenian King)[3]. After a questionable[4] proposal by the German linguist F. H. Weissbach that Darius the Great was the first to inscribe in Persian, it had previously been concluded by some scholars that the inscription in Morghab refers to Cyrus the Younger. This proposal was the result of a false interpretation of a passage in paragraph 70 of Behistun inscription by Darius the Great.[5] Based on many arguments[6], the accepted theory among modern scholars is that the inscription does belong to Cyrus the Great.[7].
There are interpretations of name of Cyrus by classical authors identifying with or referring to the Persian word for “sun”. The Historian Plutarch (46 - 120) states that "the sun, which, in the Persian language, is called Cyrus"[8] Also the Physician Ctesias who served in the court of the Persian king Artaxerxes II of Persia writes in his book Persica as summarized by Photios that the name Cyrus is from Persian word "Khur" (the sun).[9] These are however not accepted by modern scholars.[1]
Linguists have proposed various etymologies based on Iranian languages as well as non-Indo-European ones.[10] One proposal is discussed by the linguist Janos Harmatta and others that refers to the common root "kur-" (be born) of many words in Old, middle, and new Iranian languages. Accordingly the name Kūruš means "young, youth,..". [11] Other Iranian etymologies have been proposed and preferred. One accepted theory is the suggestion of Karl Hoffmann that "Cyrus" means "humiliator of the enemy in verbal contest"[1].
See also
- Cyrus the Great
- Cyrus Cylinder
- Cyrus in the Judeo-Christian tradition and Cyrus the Great in the Quran
Notes
- ^ a b c Rüdiger Schmitt (i. The name).
- ^ Max Mallowan (chapter 7, Cyrus the Great)
- ^ Tolam p. 55.
- ^ Tolam p. 82.
- ^ Max Mallowan (chapter 7, Cyrus the Great), p. 395.
- ^ for example Ghirshman p. 246
- ^ Rüdiger Schmitt (vi. Cyrus the Younger)
- ^ Plutarch, Artoxerxes in (Parallel lives).
- ^ Epitome of Ctesias' Persica 52.
- ^ Iranica in the Achaemenid Period p. 528
- ^ J. Harmatta pp. 5-6
References
- Ghirshman, R. (1965). "A propos de l'ecriture cuneiforme vieux-perse". JNES 24 (3): pp. 244–250. doi:.
- Schmitt, Rüdiger; Shahbazi, A. Shapur; Dandamayev, Muhammad A.; Zournatzi, Antigoni. "Cyrus". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Vol. 6. ISBN 0939214784. http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/unicode/v6f5/v6f5a026.html.
- Tavernier, Jan (2007). Iranica in the Achaemenid Period (ca. 550-330 B.C.): Linguistic Study of Old Iranian Proper Names and Loanwords, Attested in Non-Iranian Texts. Peeters Publishers. ISBN 9042918330.
- Tolman, Herbert Cushing (1908). Ancient Persian Lexicon. American Book Company. ISBN 0790526131.
- Cambridge History of Iran: Vol. 2 ; The Median and Achaemenian periods. Cambridge University Press. 1985. ISBN 0521200911.
- Harmatta, János (1971). "The Rise of the Old Persian Empire — Cyrus the Great". Acta Antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 19: 1–15.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
