Achaemenid army in the context of "Ionians"

⭐ In the context of ancient Greek populations, the geographical scope of those identified as "Ionians" could extend beyond the region of Ionia in Asia Minor to include settlements established by Ionian colonists in which other areas?

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⭐ Core Definition: Achaemenid army

The Achaemenid Empire (/əˈkiːmənɪd/ ə-KEE-mə-nid; Old Persian: 𐎧𐏁𐏂, Xšāça, lit. 'The Empire' or 'The Kingdom') was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. At peak, its territorial extent was roughly 5.5 million square kilometres (2.1 million square miles), making it the largest empire of its time. Based in the Iranian plateau, it stretched from the Balkans and Egypt in the west to modern day Pakistan in the east, including Anatolia, Cyprus, Mesopotamia, the Levant, parts of Eastern Arabia, and large parts of Central Asia.

By the 7th century BC, the region of Persis, located in the southwestern part of the Iranian plateau, had been settled by Persians. From Persis, Cyrus rose and defeated Media, Lydia, and the Neo-Babylonian Empire, thus marking the establishment of a new imperial polity in the ancient Near East. While its conquests were largely successful in most regions, the Achaemenid Empire's attempts to expand into Greece proved extremely difficult over the course of decades of wars and multiple kings, ultimately resulting in its defeat in the Greek mainland.

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👉 Achaemenid army in the context of Ionians

The Ionians (/aɪˈoʊniənz/; Greek: Ἴωνες, Íōnes, singular Ἴων, Íōn) were one of the traditional four major tribes of Ancient Greece, alongside the Dorians, Aeolians, and Achaeans. The Ionian dialect was one of the three major linguistic divisions of the Hellenic world, together with the Dorian and Aeolian dialects.

When referring to populations, "Ionian" defines several groups in Classical Greece. In its narrowest sense, the term referred to the region of Ionia in Asia Minor. In a broader sense, it could be used to describe all speakers of the Ionic dialect, which in addition to those in Ionia proper also included the Greek populations of Euboea, the Cyclades, and many cities founded by Ionian colonists. Finally, in the broadest sense it could be used to describe all those who spoke languages of the East Greek group, which included Attic.

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Achaemenid army in the context of Lydians

The Lydians (Greek: Λυδοί; known as Sparda to the Achaemenids, Old Persian cuneiform 𐎿𐎱𐎼𐎭) were an Anatolian people living in Lydia, a region in western Anatolia, who spoke the distinctive Lydian language, an Indo-European language of the Anatolian group.

Questions raised regarding their origins, reaching well into the 2nd millennium BC, continue to be debated by language historians and archeologists. A distinct Lydian culture lasted, in all probability, until at least shortly before the Common Era, having been attested the last time among extant records by Strabo in Kibyra in south-west Anatolia around his time (1st century BC).

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Achaemenid army in the context of Carians

The Carians (/ˈkɛəriənz/; Ancient Greek: Κᾶρες, Kares, plural of Κάρ, Kar) were the ancient inhabitants of Caria in southwest Anatolia, who spoke the Carian language.

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Achaemenid army in the context of Persian Immortals

Immortals (Greek: Ἀθάνατοι, Athánatoi), or Persian Immortals, was the name given by the Greek historian Herodotus to a 10,000-strong unit of elite heavy infantry in the Achaemenid army. They served in a dual capacity, operating as an imperial guard and contributing to the ranks of the standing army. The force mainly consisted of Persians, along with Medes and Elamites. Essential questions regarding the unit's history and organization remain unanswered due to the lack of authoritative sources.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Ionians ← Lydians ← Lydian people ← Carians ← Persian Immortals
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Old Persian language → Ancient Iran → Cyrus the Great → Achaemenid dynasty → List of largest empires → Iranian plateau → Balkans → Achaemenid Egypt → Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley → Anatolia → Ancient history of Cyprus → Mesopotamia → Levant → Eastern Arabia → Central Asia → Persis → Ancient Iranian peoples → Median kingdom → Lydia → Neo-Babylonian Empire → Ancient Near East → Ancient Greece → Greco-Persian Wars → Greek mainland →