Avestan geography

Avestan geography refers to the investigation of place names in the Avesta and the attempt to connect them to real-world geographical sites.^[1]^[2] It is therefore different from the cosmogony expressed in the Avesta, where place names refer to mythical events or a cosmological order.^[3] The geography of the Avesta is an important source for the reconstruction of Zoroastrian cosmology.

Identifying such connections is important for localizing the people of the Avesta and is therefore crucial for understanding the early history of Zoroastrianism and the Iranians.^[4]^[5]^[6] Sources for such geographical references are exclusively found in the younger Avestan portion of the text, in particular in the Vendidad and several of the Yashts. The identification of these Avestan place names with real locations is often supported by comparisons with references made in later Iranian sources.^[7]

A major challenge to establish these connections is the fact that the Iranian people often used the same name for different places. As a result, not all Avestan place names can be identified with certainty with present-day locations and therefore remain subject to debate. Modern scholarship, however, agrees that the place names in the Avesta are concentrated in the eastern regions of Greater Iran up to the Indo-Iranian border.^[1]

^ ^a ^b Gnoli 2011.
^ Eilers 1980.
^ Kreyenbroek 2011.
^ Grenet 2015.
^ Witzel 2013.
^ Skjaervø 1995, p. 158 "In view of the dearth of historical sources it is of paramount importance that one should evaluate the evidence of the Avesta, the holy book of the Zoroastrians, parts at least of which antedate the Old Persian inscriptions by several centuries.".
^ Vogelsang 2000, p. 50 "While many of the names in the list can be compared with names that occur in other sources (e.g. the Achaemenid inscriptions and classical sources), others remain to be convincingly identified.".

[FOOTNOTEGnoli2011-1] Gnoli 2011.

[FOOTNOTEEilers1980-2] Eilers 1980.

[FOOTNOTEKreyenbroek2011-3] Kreyenbroek 2011.

[FOOTNOTEGrenet2015-4] Grenet 2015.

[FOOTNOTEWitzel2013-5] Witzel 2013.

[FOOTNOTESkjaervø1995p._158_"In_view_of_the_dearth_of_historical_sources_it_is_of_paramount_importance_that_one_should_evaluate_the_evidence_of_the_Avesta,_the_holy_book_of_the_Zoroastrians,_parts_at_least_of_which_antedate_the_Old_Persian_inscriptions_by_several_centuries."-6] Skjaervø 1995, p. 158 "In view of the dearth of historical sources it is of paramount importance that one should evaluate the evidence of the Avesta, the holy book of the Zoroastrians, parts at least of which antedate the Old Persian inscriptions by several centuries.".

[FOOTNOTEVogelsang2000p._50_"While_many_of_the_names_in_the_list_can_be_compared_with_names_that_occur_in_other_sources_(e.g._the_Achaemenid_inscriptions_and_classical_sources),_others_remain_to_be_convincingly_identified."-7] Vogelsang 2000, p. 50 "While many of the names in the list can be compared with names that occur in other sources (e.g. the Achaemenid inscriptions and classical sources), others remain to be convincingly identified.".

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