Arachosia

Arachosia
𐏃𐎼𐎢𐎺𐎫𐎡𐏁 (Harauvatiš)
Ἀραχωσία (Arachōsíā)
Map of the easternmost Persian satrapies, including Arachosia
Map of the easternmost Persian satrapies, including Arachosia
Empire Achaemenid Persia
Depiction of Arachosian magi carrying various gifts and animals for ritual sacrifice at Persepolis

Arachosia (/ærəˈksiə/; Greek: Ἀραχωσία Arachōsíā), or Harauvatis (Old Persian: 𐏃𐎼𐎢𐎺𐎫𐎡𐏁 Harauvatiš), was a satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire.[1][2] Mainly centred around the Arghandab River,[3] a tributary of the Helmand River, it extended as far east as the Indus river.[4][5] The satrapy's Persian-language name is the etymological equivalent of Sárasvatī in Vedic Sanskrit.[1] In Greek, the satrapy's name was derived from Arachōtós, the Greek-language name for the Arghandab River.[1] Around 330 BCE, Alexander the Great commissioned the building of Alexandria Arachosia as Arachosia's new capital city under the Macedonian Empire. It was built on top of an earlier Persian military fortress after Alexander's conquest of Persia, and is the site of today's Kandahar in Afghanistan.[1]

  1. ^ a b c d Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica (14 May 2022). "Arachosia". iranicaonline.org.
  2. ^ Inc, IBP (1 August 2013). Afghanistan Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments. Lulu.com. p. 62. ISBN 978-1-4387-7372-8. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  3. ^ Howard, Michael C. (10 January 2014). Transnationalism in Ancient and Medieval Societies: The Role of Cross-Border Trade and Travel. McFarland. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-7864-9033-2. ... Arachosia (modern Arghandab district in Afghanistan and neighboring areas of southeastern Afghanistan and northern Pakistan).
  4. ^ Becking, Bob (4 August 2020). Identity in Persian Egypt: The Fate of the Yehudite Community of Elephantine. Penn State Press. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-64602-074-4. Arachosia is a mountainous area in which is now the border territory between Afghanistan and Pakistan...
  5. ^ Samad, Rafi U. (2011). The Grandeur of Gandhara: The Ancient Buddhist Civilization of the Swat, Peshawar, Kabul and Indus Valleys. Algora Publishing. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-87586-858-5. Arachosia, covering an area from Kandahar and Quetta to the western bank of the Indus, shared its northern boundary with Gandhara.

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