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King of kings in Media and Urartu (1)

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01 Religious and ideological doctrines and imagery



 		Keywords
idioms
Persian language
Period
Neo-Assyrian Empire 		Channel
Iranian culture

Text
The title ‘king of kings’ was occasionally used in Mesopotamia under the Babylonian or Assyrian kings. An active use of the title also appears among other titles of protocol in Urartu where the ruler is sometimes called ‘king of kings’ in Assyrian (šar šarrāni) or in Urartian inscriptions. The details of the political organization of the Medes are unknown, but it is possible that this title was used in Media as well and accordingly much of the protocol and symbolism of rule was borrowed by the Medes from Urartu or directly from Mesopotamia. The title ‘king of kings’ occurs also in Old Persian. It is probable that the Achaemenids took the title from the Medes, for the Old Persian form xšāyathiya xšāyathiyānam is Median in form.

Bibliography

Frye 1964, 36-37Frye, R. N. “The Charisma of Kingship in Ancient Iran.” Iranica Antiqua 6 (1964) 36-54.
Frye 1972, 85Frye, R. N. “The Institutions.” In: Gerold Walser (ed.). Beiträge zur Achämenidengeschichte. Historia Einzelschriften 18. Wiesbaden: Steiner 1972, 1972.

Andrea Piras


URL for this entry: http://www.aakkl.helsinki.fi/melammu/database/gen_html/a0000720.php

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