iv. Armenian Aždahak Aždahak is the Armenian form, borrowed from Parthian (cf. Man. Parth. ʾjdhʾg), of the name of the Avestan…

ii. Armenian Bat In Armenian Bat is the name of the nahapet “family head” of the Šaharuni dynastic house in…

ATRUŠAN, the Armenian word for “fire temple,” a loan-word from Parthian (see H. Hübschmann, Armen. Etymologie, p. 110 and more…

ARMENIA and IRAN iii. Armenian Religion The Armenian people, whose language is related probably to the Thraco-Phrygian branch of the…

ARA THE BEAUTIFUL (Arm. gełecʿik), son of Aram, mythical king of Armenia. According to Movsēs Xorenacʿi (5th-8th century A.D.), Šamiram…

ĀL, a folkloric being that personifies puerperal fever; the name apparently derives from Iranian āl “red.” Although belief in a…

ANUŠAWAN, grandson of Ara, legendary king of Armenia, called sawsanuēr “devoted to the plane tree” (Arm. saws-i; for a derivation…

AČAṘEAN, HRAČʾEAY YAKOBI, Armenian linguist, born 8 March 1876 (O. S.; 20 March N. S.) at Constantinople. He studied general…

HYMN OF THE PEARL, or Hymn of the Soul, a Syriac poem, of which an early Greek translation also exists,…

ARTAXIAS I (Arm. Artašēs), reigned 189-160 B.C., founder of the Artaxiad dynasty in Greater Armenia (Mec Haykʿ). At the end…

ARLEZ, (Arm. aralez or yaralez), term for a supernatural creature in Armenian, of uncertain etymology. Arlezkʿ (plur.) were believed to…

CUPBEARER, Parthian tkrpty, loanword in Ar­menian takarāpet (cf. Pers. taḡār “trough,” Arm. takaṟ “barrel”; Hübschmann, Armenische Grammatik, p. 251 no….

EKEŁEACʿ, Gk. Akilisēnē, region along the Euphrates in northwest Armenia. Here stood the temple and estate of Anahit at Erēz…

DENŠAPUH, short form of Vehdenšapuh (Mid. Pers. *Wehdēnšābuhr), Sasanian hambārakapet (quartermaster; Faustus, tr. Garsoian, p. 530) involved in the campaign…

CHRISTIANITY i. In Pre-Islamic Persia: Literary Sources In Middle Persian there are three terms used for Christians: KLSTYDʾN and NʾCLʾY…

BURIAL iii. In Zoroastrianism The Zoroastrian faith teaches that the earth, one of the seven holy creations, belongs to the…

FAUSTUS, Arm. Pʿawstos (Latin, “fortunate”), fifth-century author of the Patmutʿiwn Hayocʿ (History of the Armenians) or Buzandaran. He is surnamed…

EZNIK OF KOŁB (KOŁBACʿI), Armenian Christian theologian and cleric. He was born ca. 374-80 in the province of Taykʿ. His…

COCK, the male of the subfamily Phasianinae (pheasants), usually having a long, often tectiform tail with fourteen to thirty-two feathers….

CEDRENUS, GEORGIUS, twelfth-century Byzantine historian who edited the Synopsis Historiōn of John Skylitzēs (text ed. by I. Bekker, Georgius Cedrenus…

CAMA, KHARSHEDJI RUSTAMH (b. 11 Novem­ber 1831, d. 20 August 1909; Figure 1), Parsi Zoroastrian scholar and community leader. His…

ČĀDOR, a loose female garment covering the body, sometimes also the face (Figure 1). The etymology of the word is…

BURDAR, Pahl. burdār “carrier, sustainer, bring­er,” attested in Armenian as a proper name. According to an Armenian tradition, St. Gregory…

BOZPAYIT, Middle Persian name attested only in Armenian of a Zoroastrian school or body of religious teaching in the Sasanian…

BĪNAMĀZĪ, NPers. “the state of being without prayer,” term for the state of a menstruant woman. i.In Zoroastrianism. ii. In…

BEHDĪN (Av. vaŋuhī daēnā, Pahl., weh dēn) “the Good Religion,” i.e., Zoroastrianism, or one of its adherents, in modern usage,…