Names of Parthian and Early Sasanid Women
While not all of the personal names below may belong to Scythian women specifically, the relative dearth of ancient women's names from Eurasia means that some additional options/alternatives may be worth considering for related personas.
See also: Women's Personal Names from Achaemenid Persia.
The information below is based largely on information in the following sources:
- Bigwood, J.M. (2008). Some Parthian queens in Greek and Babylonian documents. Iranica Antiqua, 43, pp. 235-274. doi:10.2143/IA.43.0.2024050.
- Cereti, C.G. (2021). Narseh, Armenia, and the Paikuli inscription. Electrum, 28, pp. 69-87. doi:10.4467/20800909EL.21.007.13365.
- Weber, U. (2022.) ŠKZ: V. Liste der Frauen in der Šābuhr-Inschrift. Prosopographie des Sāsānidenreiches im 3. Jahrhundert n.Chr. https://www.dr-ursula-weber.de/Prosopographie/web/viewer.php?file=ShKZ_V.pdf.
Title/Relationship-based Honorifics
The following list of titles & relationship-based terms/honorifics is included in case any seem of potential interest in someone seeking a relatively useful alternate form of a title or the like for SCA purposes.
Note: Bigwood argues that no evidence suggests any goddess/cult-worship connotations of the terms used below in Parthian contexts that are mentioned as having deity-based origins/usages by Greeks/Seleukids/etc.
| Title | Translation/Notes |
|---|---|
| AMA-šu | mother |
| Aššatu | wife (Seleukid term?) |
| Banbishn | queen (Sasanian term) |
| Basilissa | queen (Greek term for wife or mother of a king, sometimes used by Parthians) |
| Bēltu | lady (Seleukid term? often used for deities) |
| DAM-šu | wife |
| GAŠAN | lady/queen |
| Gunē | wife (Greek, “woman”) |
| Hīrtu | king’s consort (Seleukid term? often used for deities: “heavenly queen”) |
| Kuria | lady (Greek) |
| M[Í.LUGAL] | woman of the king (constructed suggested by editors, cf. Bigwood p. 251) |
| MR’TY / MRATY | lady |
| NIN-šu | sister |
| Šarratu | queen (Seleukid term? often used for deities) |
Personal Names of Parthian Women
Note: many of the following are referred to as “queens” in the documents where their names are found regardless of each woman’s specific relationship to a king (e.g., mother, sister, wife). A small number are mentioned with a king plurally as “kings” whether intentionally referred to as co-rulers/regents or not (see Bigwood’s article for more on this).
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| [...]-Ištar | mother of Phraates III |
| Anzaza | queen of Elymais with Kamnaskires III |
| Aryazate-Automa | daughter of Tigranes and wife of an unknown king |
| Asi'abatar | wife of Gotarzes I |
| Azate | compaternal sister and wife of an unknown king |
| Basierta | connected to Phraates IV; Bigwood suggests the name is likely non-Iranian |
| Bistheibanap- | connected to Phraates IV; Bigwood suggests the name is likely non-Iranian |
| Ispubarza | sister of Orodes I |
| Kleopatra | connected to Phraates IV |
| Laodike | wife of Orodes II |
| Mousa / Musa | wife of Phraates IV and Phraatakes; Italian in origin |
| Olenneieire | connected to Phraates IV; Bigwood suggests the name is likely non-Iranian |
| Paš \ pšH | name of a woman in a collection of documents from Nisa ca. 1st c. BCE |
| Piriustana | wife of Phraates III? |
| Rangodeme | wife of Tanlismaidates / Tanlis Mardates, a governor |
| Rhodogune | daughter of Mithradates I and sister of Phraates II |
| Ri-[x]-nu / Rinnu | mother of Phraates II |
| Siake | sister of an unknown king |
| Teleonike | connected to Phraates III |
| Ubulna | connected to Phraates II or successor |
Personal Names of Women in Early Sasanian Records
Most of the following names appear in the Šābuhr (Shapur) inscriptions; different spellings come from different attempts at translation & transliteration.
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Ādur-Anāhīd | daughter of Šābuhr |
| Čašmag / Casmag / Chashmak | connected to Narseh |
| Dēnag / Denag / Denak | mother of Pabag |
| Farmaya / Ifra | wife of Hormizd II |
| Gorazdukht / Warānduxt / Warāzduxt / Varazdukht | daughter of Xwarrānzēm |
| Hormizddukhtak / Ohrmezd[d]uxtag | named as “daughter of the king of Sakas” |
| Mahdokht | daughter of Pholar of Dorsas |
| *Murrōd / Murrod / Myrod / Mirdut | mother of Šābuhr |
| Narsehduxt | named as "lady of the Sakas" |
| Rambehesht | another name for Dēnag |
| Rōdag / Rodag | mother of Ardashir |
| Rōdduxt / Rud-dukhtak | daughter of Anōšag |
| Šābuhrduxtag / Shapurdukhtak | named as "queen of the Sakas" and wife of Narseh; another was wife of Bahram II |
| Staxryād / Stahyrad | queen of Hormezdag |
| Xwarrānzēm / Khwarranzem | named as “queen of the empire” |
| Yazdan-Friy | wife of Shapur II |