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Parthian empire

Parthian Empire
247 BC–224 AD
The Parthian Empire at its greatest extent
Capital Ctesiphon,Ecbatana, Hecatompylos, Susa, Mithradatkirt, Asaak, Rhages
Languages Greek (official),Parthian, Persian, Aramaic (lingua franca),Akkadian
Religion Zoroastrianism
Babylonian religion
Government Feudal monarchy
Shahanshah
 •  247–211 BC Arsaces I (first)
 •  208–224 AD Artabanus V (last)
Legislature Megisthanes
Historical era Classical antiquity
 •  Established 247 BC
 •  Disestablished 224 AD
Area
 •  0 2,800,000 km² (1,081,086 sq mi)
Currency Drachma
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Seleucid Empire
Sasanian Empire
Kushan Empire

The Parthian Empire (/ˈpɑːrθiən/; 247 BC – 224 AD), also known as the Arsacid Empire (/ˈɑːrsəsɪd/), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran and Iraq. Its latter name comes from Arsaces I of Parthia who, as leader of the Parni tribe, founded it in the mid-3rd century BC when he conquered the region of Parthia in Iran's northeast, then a satrapy (province) in rebellion against the Seleucid Empire. Mithridates I of Parthia (r. c. 171–138 BC) greatly expanded the empire by seizing Media and Mesopotamia from the Seleucids. At its height, the Parthian Empire stretched from the northern reaches of the Euphrates, in what is now central-eastern Turkey, to eastern Iran. The empire, located on the Silk Road trade route between the Roman Empire in the Mediterranean Basin and the Han Empire of China, became a center of trade and commerce.


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