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Scythians | |
|---|---|
| c. 9th-8th century BC–c. 3rd century BC | |
 The maximum extent of the Scythian kingdom in West Asia | |
 The maximum extent of the Scythian kingdom in the Pontic steppe | |
| Location | Central Asia (9th-7th centuries BC) West Asia (7th–6th centuries BC) |
| Capital | Kamianka (c. 6th century BC - c. 200 BC) |
| Common languages | Scythian Akkadian (in West Asia) Thracian (in Pontic Steppe) |
| Religion | Scythian religion
Ancient Mesopotamian religion (in West Asia) Thracian religion (in Pontic Steppe) |
| Demonym(s) | Scythians |
| Government | Monarchy |
| King | |
• unknown-679 BC | Išpakaia |
• 679-c. 665 BC | Bartatua |
• c. 658/9-625 BC | Madyes |
• c. 610 BC | Spargapeithes |
• c. 600 BC | Lykos |
• c. 575 BC | Gnouros |
• c. 550 BC | Saulios |
• c. 530-c. 510 BC | Idanthyrsus |
• c. 490-c. 460 BC | Ariapeithes |
• c. 460-c. 450 BC | Scyles |
• c. 450-c. 430 BC | Octamasadas |
• c. 360s-339 BC | Ateas |
• c. 310 BC | Agaros |
| Dependency of the Neo-Assyrian Empire (from c. 672 to c. 625 BC) | |
| Historical era | Iron Age:
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• Scythian migration from Central Asia to Caucasian Steppe | c. 9th-8th century BC |
• Scythian alliance with the Neo-Assyrian Empire | c. 672 BC |
• Scythian conquest of Media | c. 652 BC |
• Scythian defeat of Cimmerians | c. 630s BC |
• Median revolt against Scythians | c. 625 BC |
| c. 620 BC | |
| c. 614-612 BC | |
• Expulsion of Scythians from West Asia by Medes | c. 600 BC |
| 513 BC | |
• War with Macedonia | 340-339 BC |
| c. 4th century BC | |
• Sarmatian invasion of Scythia | c. 3rd century BC |
| Today part of | Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Romania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Iran |
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The Scythians (/ˈsɪθiən/ or /ˈsɪðiən/) or Scyths (/ˈsɪθ/, but note Scytho- (/ˈsaɪθʊ/) in composition) and sometimes also referred to as the Pontic Scythians,[7][8] were an ancient Eastern Iranic equestrian nomadic people who had migrated during the 9th to 8th centuries BC from Central Asia to the Pontic Steppe in modern-day Ukraine and Southern Russia, where they remained established from the 7th century BC until the 3rd century BC.
Skilled in mounted warfare, the Scythians replaced the Agathyrsi and the Cimmerians as the dominant power on the western Eurasian Steppe in the 8th century BC. In the 7th century BC, the Scythians crossed the Caucasus Mountains and frequently raided West Asia along with the Cimmerians.
After being expelled from West Asia by the Medes, the Scythians retreated back into the Pontic Steppe in the 6th century BC, and were later conquered by the Sarmatians in the 3rd to 2nd centuries BC. By the 3rd century AD, last remnants of the Scythians were overwhelmed by the Goths, and by the early Middle Ages, the Scythians were assimilated and absorbed by the various successive populations who had moved into the Pontic Steppe.
After the Scythians' disappearance, authors of the ancient, mediaeval, and early modern periods used their name to refer to various populations of the steppes unrelated to them.
- ^ a b Tokhtasyev 2005a, p. 68-84.
- ^ Tokhtasyev 2005b, p. 296.
- ^ Davis-Kimball, Jeannine; Bashilov, Vladimir A.; Yablonsky, Leonid T. [in Russian], eds. (1995). Nomads of the Eurasian Steppes in the Early Iron Age (PDF). Berkeley: Zinat Press. p. IX, Map 1. ISBN 978-1-885979-00-1.
- ^ O'Brien, Patrick K.; et al., eds. (2007) [2002]. Concise Atlas of World History (Revised ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-19-521921-0.
- ^ Fauve, Jeroen (2021). The European Handbook of Central Asian Studies. Ibidem Press. p. 403. ISBN 978-3-8382-1518-1.
- ^ Haywood, John (1997). Atlas of World History. New York: Barnes & Noble Books. Map 22. ISBN 978-0-7607-0687-9.
- ^ Jacobson 1995, p. 32.
- ^ Cunliffe 2019, p. 42.