Polity · 239 BCE – 237 CE
Parthian Empire
- Peak recorded area
- 3,053,610 km²
- 161 CE
- Rulers on record
- 2
- from 2 BCE
- Data series
- 22
- 200 BCE–200 CE
Overview
The Parthian Empire, also known as the Arsacid Empire, was a major Iranian political and cultural power centered in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conquering the region of Parthia in Iran's northeast, then a satrapy (province) under Andragoras, who was rebelling against the Seleucid Empire. Mithridates I greatly expanded the empire by seizing Media and Mesopotamia from the Seleucids.
Lead section from Wikipedia, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article.
Territory
26 dated territorial extents on record from Cliopatria. Areas are measured off the recorded polygons; the line steps because each extent holds until the next one is recorded — nothing is interpolated.
The record
The best-attested series in each category; where several projects publish the same quantity, the one with the most observations is shown. Each row is the most recent value the record holds at or before 237 CE, shown with the year that value belongs to. Some statistical series also publish forward projections — the year column is the honest guide. Nothing on this page is interpolated or estimated by us.
People
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Population5 obs · 200 BCE–200 CE | 5Mpersons200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Largest Settlement Pop4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 30Kpersons200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Polity Population4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 6.7score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Economy
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Agricultural Sophistication4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 0.7757score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Monetary Complexity4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 0.8333score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Military
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Military Levels2 obs · 95 BCE–41 CE | 6levels41 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Military Sophistication2 obs · 100 BCE–1 BCE | 1score1 BCE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Territory & resources
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Territory km²5 obs · 200 BCE–200 CE | 1.8Msq km200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Polity Territory4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 6.26score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Governance
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Admin Levels2 obs · 95 BCE–41 CE | 5.5levels41 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Religious Hierarchy2 obs · 95 BCE–41 CE | 3levels41 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Development
6 of 11 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Government Complexity4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 0.6222score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Hierarchy Levels4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 5.33score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Information Complexity4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 0.8385score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Infrastructure4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 0.9167score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Largest Settlement Pop4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 4.48score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
| Religious Levels4 obs · 100 BCE–200 CE | 3score200 CE · Seshat Equinox 2020 |
Rulers
2 on record with dated reigns. Reign years follow the house convention: BCE years are negative.
- Musa of ParthiaKing of Kings2 BCE – 4 CE
- GondopharesKing of Kings19 CE – 49 CE
Language & currency
- Official & national languages
- Aramaic, Babylonian, Koine Greek, Middle Persian, Parthian
- Currency
- Parthian coins
Sources
Every figure above comes from one of these. Nothing on this page is estimated, interpolated or model-generated.
Seshat Global History Databank. Cliopatria: a historical basemap of polity borders (cliopatria.geojson).
Seshat Equinox 2020Equinox 2020
Turchin, P. et al. Seshat Global History Databank, Equinox 2020 release.
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Wikipedia contributors. Article lead sections, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Parthian Empire is one of the polities with a sourced record deep enough to publish.