Part 2: Airyan in Eurasia and on the Iranian Plateau

Michael Hoshang Momeni, PhD

The thesis of this work was to explore the consequence of the climatic changes during the last 100,000 years on Airya, one group of Homo sapiens. The basic motivation for this work was to identify factors and environmental conditions promoting migration of Airyan people to move once again from the Iranian Plateau to Eurasia and Europe.

This work is divided among the following investigations:

1. The climate from 100,000 years ago to 2000 years ago;
2. The genesis of Airya;
3. Migration of The Airya people;
4. Geophysical environments leading to the development of language, and culture in Airyana.

The word Airya is the designation for Iranic (Iranian) people (Airyan, or Aryan).

Airyana is the land of all Airyan people. Iran is the present homeland of Airyan (Aryan) people.

·       Where did they come from?

·       How climatic changes compelled Airyan migration?

·     How Airyan people are related to the other Indo-Iranic-European populations?

Figure 1: The earliest epigraphical reference to the word Airya was carved about 2600 years ago about Darius I the Great's inscription. Mount Bisotoun (Behistun) is in the Kermanshah Province, western Iran.  Khosrow and Shirin, an epic story created about 1000 AD, is centered on Mount Behistun.

 

Genetic and fossil evidence suggests that early Homo sapiens evolved to anatomically modern humans between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago in East Africa (Fig.2).  But, modern humans have a remnant of common genome ancestor with both Neanderthals and Homo erectus.  

Figure 2: Evolution of modern human started about 3 million years ago.

Homo sapiens have been present on the Iranian plateau for the last 100,000 years. Pieces of evidence of human presence on the Iranian plateau are from the Bakhtaran valley in the Zagros Mountains of western Iran (Fig. 1). The first well-documented evidence of human habitation was discovered in several excavated caves and rock-shelter sites dated to about 100,000 years ago.

Section 1 of this report: Glaciation, Caspian Sea, Persian Gulf, European-Eurasian Glaciation, provides a description of the climate during the last 100,000 years. 

Homo sapiens passages out of Africa to the Iranian Plateau and the Mediterranean Sea includes the following three regions (Figs. 3, 4):

1.     the Red Sea crossing at the Bab-al-Mandab Strait separating present-day Yemen from Djibouti into the Arabian Peninsula and Iranian Plateau. The Persian Gulf was a shallow valley during the Glaciation and post the Glaciation Maximum up to 6000 years ago.

2.     Homo sapiens could have followed the Persian Gulf Valley along the both the northern and the southern shore of the present Persian Gulf entering the Iranian Plateau by Zagros Mountain.  Then, they had followed the both the Eastern and the Western sections of the Zagros into Iranian and Anatolian Plateaus.

3.     Home sapiens had followed the northern coast of Red Sea into the Western coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Suez Canal, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, was Opened 17 November 1869.

Figure 3:  Eurasia, the Iranian Plateau, and Eastern North Africa

Once they crossed into southern Iran, they rapidly moved into and settled in coastal areas around the Indian Ocean. During a short temperate period of the last ice age about 40,000 to 60,000 years ago, they migrated to Europe, steppes of Central Asia, Southeast Asia and arrived in Australia by about 50,000 years ago (Figs. 3, 4). 

Figure 4: Human migration path (National Geographic)

Once the temperate climate period changed colder again, about 40,000 years ago, the glaciation advanced once more and covered most of the northern and the central regions of Europe and Asia. The herbivores and humanoids following food and pastures moved back from Central and Northern Europe and Asia to more temperate zones on the Iranian Plateau and coastal regions of the Mediterranean Sea and temperate zones in southern Asia. 

The temperature remained very cold from about 40,000 years ago to about 22,000 years ago (The Glaciation Maximum).  During this cold period, the Northern and the Central Regions of Europe and Asia could not support most herbivores and humanoids.  The population of Homo sapiens decreased and disappeared in some cold regions.

Hunter-Gatherer Life

The Homo sapiens were nomadic hunter-gatherers formed into small groups; they were continually searching for food. The nomadic pastoralists lifestyle still persisted for some human population up to very modern time (Fig. 5).

Figure 5. Nomadic Sheepherding still is being practiced in Iran.

A small percentage of Bakhtiari are still nomadic pastoralists, migrating between summer quarters (sardsīr or yaylāq) and winter quarters (garmsīr or qishlāq).  Another nomadic pastoralists tribe on the Iranian Plateau is Qashqai.  They were originally nomadic pastoralists and some continue to be today. The traditional nomadic Qashqai traveled with their flocks each year from the summer highland pastures north of Shiraz roughly 480 km or 300 miles south to the winter pastures on lower (and warmer) lands near the Persian Gulf, to the southwest of Shiraz.

Pre-history of Airyan culture

The first dynasty of Airyan people is recorded in the Shahnameh, Avesta, and Iranian mythology. The prehistory of Airya is recorded in the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta (in particular the Zamyad Yasht 19), in Middle Persian texts, in the poet Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh or Book of Kings, and in the Hindu Scriptures, the Vedas.

Pishdadian dynasty was the first dynasty to rule Airyana.  Hōshang was the second king to rule the Airyana. During his reign, many new crafts were discovered:  

·       They discovered  fire;

·       They discovered iron and the principles of iron-working using fire;

·       The methods of agriculture and irrigation;

·       They learned how to domesticate certain beasts as livestock and for use as draught animals;

·       They learned how to make clothing from the furs of hunted animals.

Feridoon assigned responsibility for his empire between his three sons: Tur, Iraj, and Salm. To his eldest son, Tur was assigned the eastern lands with its capital in Turan.  Iraj was assigned Airan and Hind (the Indus lands. Previously, King Jamshid had expanded Airyana into the upper Indus). Salm was assigned the western kingdoms that stretched from Iran to present-day Eastern Turkey. 

The transition from Nomadic to Agriculture

Part I of this report provides evidence for the prevailing environment on the Iranian Plateau and regions near the Persian Gulf for the period from 22,000 to 6,000 years ago. About 12,000 years ago, the early practice of agriculture was discovered. The practice transformed the social structure of some human groups, creating non-nomadic societies living in larger groups in villages and towns. 

They changed their environment by clearing areas (deforestation) for planting and watering the plants ( irrigation).  They were capable to produce surplus food to support densely populated settlements.  They created the rights to ownership of land. They created the specialization for works ( the division of labor) and created centralized administrations and political structures.
 

The oldest prehistoric village in the Middle East is from Sahneh in the west of Kermanshah, in Kermanshah province, dated to about 12,000 years ago. The evidence for early non-nomadic life during 10, 000 to 9,000 years ago was discovered at Jarmo, Sarāb, upper Ali Kosh, and upper Gūrān of the Zagros Mountain region.

The hunter-gatherers on Western Iran survived the cold by living in the caves of the Zagros Mountains. The melting of the ice after the Glacial maximum had a consequential effect on available water and revegetation. The Zagros region has been home to a rich and complex flora. Remnants of the originally widespread oak-dominated woodland can still be found. The ancestors wheat, barley, lentil, almond, walnut, pistachio, apricot, plum, pomegranate, and grape can be found growing wild throughout the mountains. 

The hunting and gathering practice gradually was replaced with farming.  The farming was the first step toward a better supply of foods; it created social stability and village-tribe communities.  Oral communication was advanced and lead to the formation of common language. It expedited the transfer of experience between the members of tribe-village societies.  Tribes, a social division of the population, consisted of families and communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties. They developed a common culture and dialect and had a recognized leader. City-States were created consisting of culturally homogeneous tribes sharing a common language, institutions, religion, and historical experience.

Figure 6: The Fertile Crescent 

Archaeological data indicates that the domestication of various types of plants and animals evolved in separate locations worldwide, starting around 12,000 years ago.  In Western Iran, about 10,000 years ago, agricultural communities such as Chogha Bonut (the earliest village in Susiana) were created in western Iran. Evidence of transition creating non-nomadic societies was excavated at Āsīāb, Gūrān, Ganj Dareh (Ganj Darreh), and Ali Kosh in western Iranian, and at Karīm Shahīr and Zawi Chemi–Shanidar on the western side of Zagros Mountains.

Figure 6 shows the region called the Fertile Crescent. Some of the earliest human civilizations evolved in the Fertile Crescent because of availability of water and optimum temperature for agriculture.  The Fertile Crescent has been designated as the Cradle of Civilization, the birthplace of agriculture, urbanization, writing, trade, and science.

These pattern of agricultural and village lifestyles were practiced over much of the Iranian plateau by about 8000 years ago.  Evidence of fairly sophisticated patterns of agricultural life had been identified in the following regions: lowland regions of Khūzestān. Tepe Sabz in Khūzestān, Hajji Firuz in Azerbaijan, Godin Tepe in northeastern Lorestān, Tepe Sialk on the rim of the central salt desert, and Tepe Yahya. In general, similar beginnings of settled village life had happened in Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Central Asia.

The effect of climate on agriculture and migration

The Central Iranian Plateau has an average elevation of about 900 meters (2,953 ft.). Some of the mountains exceed 3,000 meters (9,843 ft). The eastern part of the plateau is covered by two salt deserts, the Dasht-e Kavir, and the Dasht-e Lut.  

 

Figure 7: Topographic map of the Iranian Plateau

At that time, the Asian monsoon rain reached deep into the central Iranian Plateau (Fig. 7), bringing heavy summer rains that formed numerous lakes.  Some of these lakes had water up to about 3,000 years ago. At present time these regions are desolate except for some scattered oases.

The favorable climate during 15,000 years to 7,000 years ago created an environment for the expansion of agriculture.  Similarly, increased pastures and available vegetation permitted expansion of the range throughout the Iranian Plateau and the central region of Asia. 

Figure 8 shows the approximate extent of Caspian Sea about 17,000 to 14,000 years ago.

Figure 8: Caspian Sea, Black Sea and Ural Sea following the last glaciation. 

The African Humid Period, from 11,000 to 5,000 years ago, was ended abruptly, with Sahara drying back into desert within a span of one to two centuries.  About 7,000 years ago the climatic changed in North Africa through Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and Indian Subcontinent adversely decreased the rainfall and precipitation in these regions.  The transition to today's arid environment occurred in several periods: from 6,700 to 5,500 years ago, and again a severe change from 4,000 to 3,600 years ago. The climate adversely affected the ancient civilizations in these regions; about 5,200 years ago, the population in these regions abandoned the towns-villages and migrated to cooler regions with adequate water and precipitation.

About 2,200 years ago another abrupt change in the climate had adverse effects on the biomes. According to carbon-14 dating, summer temperatures sharply increased, and precipitation decreased.  A major consequence of these adverse climate changes decreased in food production for the entire Fertile Crescent, Central Iranian Plateau, creating famine and disrupted socioeconomics development.  The decrease in vegetation created stress on herbivores and available pastures for nomadic people.  These people in search of food and pasture had to abandon areas severely affected by the adverse change in their climate, migrating toward the northern regions of the Iranian Plateau, Eurasia and the Eastern regions of the Caspian Sea and the Russian Steppe (Fig. 9).  These migrants brought along their skills; before migration, they were soldiers, farmers, pastoral nomadic people, and urban dwellers. 

Figure 9: The map of Eurasia, the Iranian Plateau, and the Arabic Plateau. 

The nomadic people expanded from the region near the West-Central region of the Iranian plateau to the north of the Caspian Sea Basin, and from the Zagros Mountains to the to the Eastern Afghanistan and Tajikistan.  

These Airya tribes had certain common characteristics:

·       These nomadic  tribes, mostly equestrian herdsmen, lived in voluntary confederated  associations to regulate use of pastures;
·       They organized a common defense against common threats;
·       Often products from their domesticated animals exceeded their communal nomadic needs, but they needed supplemental agricultural products they could not produce. They developed alliances with non-nomadic villages and towns, and exchanged their excesses;
·       They provided military protection to each other and their confederated non-nomadic people.

The Early Civilizations in the Southern and Southwestern Iranian plateau  

The Southern Iranian Plateau on the Persian Gulf was on the crossing point from Africa to Asia (Fig. 7).  The Persian Gulf was a shallow dry valley up to 18,000 years ago.  The valley had several small shallow lakes. The Arvand Rud, the river formed by the Kārun, the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers provided water to these lakes.  

The Persian Gulf valley had a thriving population. The valley may have supported early humans for over 100,000 years. These people could have been the ancestors of the Elamite, Jiroft,  Dravidians and other cultures flourished on the Southern Iran, Baluchistan, and Pakistan.  Elam  (Fig. 10, 11) is one of the oldest recorded civilizations (4,700 years ago) on the Iranian Plateau. But, Elam was not an Airyan civilization.

The northern territories of Elam extended to the Central Iranian Plateau.  The village of Sedezh (Sedegh), “ meaning the Three Forts”, near Gabae, at the present location of Isphan (Isfahan), was one of the several military summer camps for the Elam’s Northern territory.

Elam kingdoms centered in Anshan(Fig. 10).  Elam culture influenced Achaemenid dynasty that succeeded Elam (about 2540 years ago).  The Elamite language remained among the official languages used during the Achaemenid period.  Elamite is generally identified as a language isolate.

Figure 10:  The regional extent of territories of the kingdoms: Elam, Media, Akkad, Sumer, and Assyria.

The four periods of the history of Elam are:

• Proto-Elamite:  5200  – 4700 years ago (Proto-Elamite script in Susa)
• Old Elamite period:  4700 – 3600 years ago (earliest documents until the Eparti dynasty)
• Middle Elamite period:  3500 BC – 3100 years ago (Anzanite dynasty until the Babylonian invasion of Susa)
• Neo-Elamite period:  3100 BC – 2540 BC (characterized Assyrian and Median influence.
• Elam lost its independence about 2540 years ago,  after Persis and Media it becomes the third "province" of the Achaemenid empire.
  

Figure 11: The location of Elam relative to the Zagros Mountains and the Persian Gulf.

Figure 12: Relief of a woman being fanned by an attendant while she holds what may be a spinning device before a table with a bowl containing a whole fish.

 

       Figure 13: Silver cup with the linear-Elamite inscription on it,      National Museum of Iran.

The Early Civilizations in the North Western Regions of the Iranian Plateau  

The timelines for some of the Airya cultures in Eurasia  and the North Western region of the Iranian Plateau:

•           Cimmerians 320 to 2700 years ago,

•           Saka (Scythians) 2800 to 2400 years ago;

•           Sarmatians 2500 to 2000 years ago;

•           Alans 2500 to 1100 years ago. 

The Airya tribes expanded into Anatolian Plateau, the Crimean Peninsula and the Pontic-Caspian steppe once the climate had moderated after The Last glaciation Maximum.  Several smaller communities and civilizations evolved based on Hunter-Gatherer culture.  One of these tribes established was the Hittite empire on Hattusa in north-central Anatolian plateau about 3600 years ago.  the historical perspective of this time period can be summarized by:

• About 2800 years ago, Cimmerians started migration out of the Pontic-Caspian steppe into Anatolia due to Saka incursion into their territories.   
• The Airya Sarmatians originated in Central Asia.  They started their westward migration around the 6th century BC. They were closely related to Saka.
• Saka people were known to Greeks as Scythians; by the 2nd century BC, they dominated the Saka.
• In 215-250 AD Saka lost Pontic Steppe to the Goths.   
• Hunnic defeated the Goths in 375 AD.  
• Many of the Alans, another of the Airya tribes originating in Central Asia, migrated to the western and central regions of  Europe.  They were absorbed into European City-States over several centuries (Fig. 15).
•  The descendants of the Alans, who live in republics of Russia and Georgia, speak one of the Northeastern Iranian branches, the Ossetian language.

Figure 14: Saka (Scythia) dominated Eurasia 

Figure 15 shows the path of migration for the Airya Alans.  During the 4th–5th centuries AD, they migrated from their homeland in the North Caucasus and spread throughout Europe.

Figure 15: The migrations of the Alans.  Major settlement areas are shown in yellow color.  The civilian migration routes are shown in red color, and the military campaigns routes are shown in orange.

Acknowledgment and Dedication

This work is a brief synthesis of works published by scientists in many interrelated fields.  I am dedicating this work to them.  I am hoping this work would elicit additional areas of future research. I have listed the reference for some of their works in this publication.

References
http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/aryans/airyanavaeja.htm
https://drakenberg.weebly.com/scythians.html