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Encyclopedia > Satrap
Look up satrap in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
See also the related deity Satrapes.

Satrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces of ancient Median and Persian empires, including the Achaemenid Empire and in several of their heirs, such as the Sassanid Empire and the Hellenistic empires. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ... Satrapes was a god in the Palmyrene pantheon, the name occurring in Syrian inscriptions from Palmyra and the Hauran. ... Province is a name for a secondary, or subnational entity of government in most countries. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the old Persian homeland, and beyond in Western Asia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. ... The Achaemenid Empire (Persian: IPA: ) (559 BC–330 BC) was the first of the Persian Empires to rule over significant portions of Greater Iran. ... After Islamic Conquest  Modern SSR = Soviet Socialist Republic Afghanistan  Azerbaijan  Bahrain  Iran  Iraq  Tajikistan  Uzbekistan  This box:      The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: []) is the name used for the fourth Iranian dynasty, and the second Persian Empire (226–651). ... The term Hellenistic (derived from HéllÄ“n, the Greeks traditional self-described ethnic name) was established by the German historian Johann Gustav Droysen to refer to the spreading of Greek culture over the non-Greek people that were conquered by Alexander the Great. ...


Satrap is derived from the Old Persian khshathrapāvā ("protector of the province"), from khshathra ("realm" or "province") and pāvā ("protector"). In Biblical Hebrew, the word is spelled אֲחַשְׁדַּרְפָּן ahashdarpān (only in the plural אֲחַשְׁדַּרְפְּנִים ahashdarpenim). In Greek, the word was rendered as σατράπης, satrápēs, and was romanized as satrapes, from the Old Persian xšaθrapā(van)). In modern Persian it would be ساتراپ (keshvarban or shahrban). There is a link, via Sanskrit, to the warrior class of India, the kshatriya. Sketch of the first column of the Behistun Inscription Old Persian is the oldest attested Persid language. ... This article describes the Biblical dialects of Hebrew. ... Languages can be romanized in a variety of ways, as shown here with Mandarin Chinese In linguistics, romanization (or Latinization, also spelled romanisation or Latinisation) is the representation of a word or language with the Roman (Latin) alphabet, or a system for doing so, where the original word or language... It has been suggested that Scripts used for Persian be merged into this article or section. ... The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... For the Bollywood film of the same name see Kshatriya Kshatriya (Hindi: , from Sanskrit: , ) is one of the four varnas, or castes, in Hinduism. ...


The word satrap is also often used in modern literature to refer to world leaders or governors who are heavily influenced by larger world superpowers or hegemonies.

Contents

Medo-Persian satraps

The first large scale use of satrapies, or provinces, originates from the conception of the first Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great, beginning at around 530 BC. However, Provincial organization originated during the Median era from at least 648 BC. The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the old Persian homeland, and beyond in Western Asia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. ... Cyrus the Great (Old Persian: Kūruš,[1] modern Persian: کوروش بزرگ, Kurosh-e Bozorg) (c. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...


Up to the time of the conquest of Media by Cyrus the Great, Median emperors ruled their conquered territories as provinces, through client kings and governors. The chief difference was that in Persian culture the concept of kingship was indivisible from divinity: divine authority validated the divine right of kings. The twenty satraps established by Cyrus were never kings, but viceroys ruling in the king's name, although in political reality many grabbed any chance to carve themselves an independent power base. Darius I gave the satrapies a definitive organization, increased their number to twenty-three and fixed their annual tribute (Behistun inscription). Cyrus the Great (Old Persian: Kūruš,[1] modern Persian: کوروش بزرگ, Kurosh-e Bozorg) (c. ... According to the notion of client states, just as a client of a corporation remains dependent on the corporation for a continued supply of products, and just as it is in the companys interest to make expendable products which need to be replaced regularly, client states of the two... The Divine Right of Kings is a European political and religious doctrine of political absolutism. ... Seal of Darius I, showing the king hunting on his chariot, and the symbol of Ahuramazda Darius the Great (Pers. ... The Behistun Inscription, carved into a cliffside, gives the same text in three languages, telling the story of King Darius conquests, with the names of twenty-three provinces subject to him. ...


The satrap was the head of the administration of his province, and found himself surrounded by an all-but-royal court; he collected the taxes, controlled the local officials and the subject tribes and cities, and was the supreme judge of the province before whose "chair" (Nehemiah 3:7) every civil and criminal case could be brought. He was responsible for the safety of the roads (cf. Xenophon), and had to put down brigands and rebels.


He was assisted by a council of Persians, to which also provincials were admitted; and was controlled by a royal secretary and by emissaries of the king, especially the "eye of the king" who made an annual inspection and exercised permanent control.


There were further checks on the power of each satrap: besides his secretarial scribe, his chief financial official (Old Persian ganzabara) and the general in charge of the regular army of his province and of the fortresses were independent of him and reported directly to the shah, periodically, in person. But the satrap was allowed to have troops in his own service.

  • The great satrapies (provinces) were often divided into smaller districts, the governors of which were also called satraps and (by Greco-Roman authors) also hyparchs (actually Hyparkhos in Greek, 'vice-regents'). The distribution of the great satrapies was changed repeatedly, and often two of them were given to the same man.
  • As the provinces were the result of consecutive conquests (the homeland had a special status, exempt from provincial tribute), both primary and sub-satrapies were often defined by former states and/or ethno-religious identity. One of the keys to the Achaemenid success (as with most enduring great empires) was their open attitude to the culture and religion of the conquered people, so ironically the Persian culture was the one most affected as the Great King endeavoured to melt elements from all his subjects into a new imperial style, especially at his capital Persepolis.
  • Whenever central authority in the empire weakened, the satrap often enjoyed practical independence, especially as it became customary to appoint him also as general-in-chief of the army district, contrary to the original rule. "When his office became hereditary, the threat to the central authority could not be ignored" (Olmstead). Rebellions of satraps became frequent from the middle of the 5th century. The great usurper Darius I struggled with widespread rebellions in the satrapies, and under Artaxerxes II occasionally the greater part of Asia Minor and Syria was in open rebellion.

The last great rebellions were put down by Artaxerxes III. Persepolis aerial view. ... Europe in 450 The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... Seal of Darius I, showing the king hunting on his chariot, and the symbol of Ahuramazda Darius the Great (Pers. ... Artaxerxes II (c. ... Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to... Artaxerxes III ruled Persia from 358 BC to 338 BC. He was the son of Artaxerxes II and was succeeded by Arses of Persia (also known as Artaxerxes IV). ...


The term "Satrap" is found in the Old Testament (of the Holy Bible) in the books of Esther (3:12, 8:9 and 9:3), Ezra (8:36)and most commonly in Daniel (3:2,3:3,3:27,6:1,6:2,6:3).


Hellenistic satraps

The satrapic administration and title were retained—even for Greco-Macedonian incumbents—by Alexander the Great, who conquered the empire and even enlarged it, and by his successors, the diadochi (and their dynasties) who carved it up, especially in the Seleucid empire, where the satrap generally was designated as strategos; but their provinces were much smaller than under the Persians. They would ultimately be replaced by conquering empires, especially the Romans. In general Diadochi (in Greek Διάδοχοι, transcripted Diadochoi) means successors, such that the neoplatonic refounders of Platos Academy in Late Antiquity referred to themselves as diadochi (of Plato). ... The Seleucid Empire was one of several political states founded after the death of Alexander the Great, whose generals squabbled over the division of Alexanders empire. ...


Parthian and Sassanian satraps

In the Parthian Empire, the king's power rested on the support of noble families who ruled large estates, and supplied soldiers and tribute to the king. City-states within the empire enjoyed a degree of self-government, and paid tribute to the king. Administration of the Sassanid Empire was considerably more centralized than that of the Parthian Empire; the semi-independent kingdoms and self-governing city states of the Parthian Empire was replaced with a system of "royal cities" which served as the seats of centrally appointed governors called shahrabs as well as the location of military garrisons. Shahrabs ruled both the city and the surrounding rural districts. Parthian Empire at its greatest extent, c60 BCE. The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Parthia was the arch-enemy of the Roman Empire in the east and... After Islamic Conquest  Modern SSR = Soviet Socialist Republic Afghanistan  Azerbaijan  Bahrain  Iran  Iraq  Tajikistan  Uzbekistan  This box:      The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Dynasty (Persian: []) is the name used for the fourth Iranian dynasty, and the second Persian Empire (226–651). ...


Satraps today

  • By analogy, the word satrap is also used anachronistically for various governors, especially in the Orient, whose real title is etymologically independent, such as the shaknu and bel pihati in the earlier Assyrian (and consecutive [New] Babylonian?) empire, about the first of such size west of the Far East, which rather seems the model for the provincial concept.
  • It is also used in modern times to refer (usually derogatively) to the loyal, subservient lieutenants or clients of some powerful figure (with equal imprecision also styled mogul, tycoon, or the like), in politics or business.
  • In the Hungarian language a slightly changed version of the word, satrafa refers to old women, often mother-in-laws, who always quarrel and try to force their will on others.

For other uses, see Governor (disambiguation). ... In the Middle Bronze Age Assyria was a region on the Upper Tigris river, named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur (Akkadian: ; Hebrew: , Aramaic: ). Later, as a nation and empire that came to control all of the Fertile Crescent, Egypt and much of Anatolia, the term Assyria... Mogul may mean: a bump in the snow in alpine skiing, a Mongolian the Mughal empire, or any member of its ruling dynasty by extension, any ruler or powerful person, such as a industrial mogul or media mogul a railroad steam locomotive type called the Mogul the largest size light... A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a mogul, tycoon, or industrialist is a person who controls a large portion of a particular industry and whose wealth derives primarily from this control. ... Hungarian (magyar nyelv  ) is a Finno-Ugric language (more specifically an Ugric language) unrelated to most other languages in Europe. ... Pataphysics, an absurdist concept coined by the French writer Alfred Jarry, is the idea of a philosophy or science dedicated to studying what lies beyond the realm of metaphysics. ... Marcel Duchamp (pronounced ) (July 28, 1887 – October 2, 1968) was a French artist (he became an American citizen in 1955) whose work and ideas had considerable influence on the development of post-World War II Western art, and whose advice to modern art collectors helped shape the tastes of the... Jean Baudrillard (July 29, 1929 – March 6, 2007) (IPA pronunciation: [1]) was a French cultural theorist, philosopher, political commentator, and photographer. ... Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchy (father), Chico and Harpo. ...

References

  • A. T. Olmstead, History of the Persian Empire, 1948
  • Pauly-Wissowa (comprehensive encyclopaedia on Antiquity; in German)
  • Robert Dick Wilson. The Book of Daniel: A Discussion of the Historical Questions, 1917. Available on home.earthlink.net
  • Rüdiger Schmitt, "Der Titel 'Satrap'", in Studies Palmer ed. Meid (1976), 373–390.
  • This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Encyclopædia Britannica, the eleventh edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

See also


Suzerainty refers to a situation in which a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which allows the tributary some limited domestic autonomy but controls its foreign affairs. ... The Orontid Dynasty was the first Armenian dynasty. ...

Provinces of the Achaemenid Empire (Behistun and Daiva inscriptions)
Persia | Elam | Babylonia | Media | Sacae | Yauna | Macedon | Pamphylia | Paphlagonia | Cappadocia | Caria | Lydia | Thrace | Armenia | Cilicia | Taxila | Egypt | Gandara | Sattagydia | Gedrosia | Carmania | Maka | Drangiana | Arachosia | Bactria | Parthia | Aria | Chorasmia | Sogdia | Kush | Arabia | Hyrcania | Margu | Dahae | Libya | Eber-Nari
By district (Herodotus)
District I | District II | District III | District IV | District V | District VI | District VII | District VIII | District IX | District X | District XI | District XII | District XIII | District XIV | District XV | District XVI | District XVII | District XVIII | District XIX | District XX
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  Results from FactBites:
 
Satrap - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (941 words)
Satrap is derived from the Old Persian "khshathrapāvā" (protector of the province), based on khshathra- meaning protector and pāvā meaning realm or province.
Satrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces in ancient Median and Persian Achaemenid empires and in several of their heirs, as Sassanid and later hellenistic empires.
The satrap was the head of the administration of his province, and found himself surrounded by an all-but-royal court; he collected the taxes, controlled the local officials and the subject tribes and cities, and was the supreme judge of the province before whose "chair" (Nehemiah 3:7) every civil and criminal case could be brought.
satrap - definition of satrap in Encyclopedia (651 words)
By the earlier Greek authors (Herodotus, Thucydides and often in Xenophon) it is rendered by satrápēs "lieutenant, governor," in the documents--from Babylonia and Egypt and in Ezra and Nehemiah by pakha, "governor"; and the satrap Mazaeus of Cilicia and Syria in the time of Darius III and Alexander (Arrian iii.
There were checks on the power of the satraps: besides his secretarial scribe, his chief financial official (Old Persian ganzabara) and the general in charge of the regular army of his province and of the fortresses were independent of him and reported directly to the shah, periodically, in person.
The satrapic administration was retained by Alexander and his successors, especially in the Seleucid empire, where the satrap generally is designated assirategus; but their provinces were much smaller than under the Persians.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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