The Satrapies of the Persian Empire

Abstract

Abstract This chapter discusses the history and the geography of Media and Armenia during the Persian imperial period, from the conquest of Media to the campaigns of Alexander the Great. From the very beginning, epigraphic evidence and literary sources connect Media and Armenia, and it is likely that the satrapy of Greater Media was subdivided into two main administrative units: Media (Old Persian Mada) and Armenia (Old Persian Armina). In turn, Armenia was subdivided into two further subunits: Western Armenia and Eastern Armenia. Whereas there is scanty evidence on Media, one can trace certain aspects of local power in Armenia, especially at the end of the fifth century bc with the rise of the Orontid rulers, which does not seem to result in the Persian Empire reconfiguring the satrapal system. However, in the course of fourth century bc, the ethnogenesis of the sub-Caucasian peoples profoundly changed the region’s geopolitical order.