Media
（
Μηδία). An important country of Asia above Persia, and
bounded on the north by the Araxes, on the west and southwest by the range of mountains called
Zagros and Parachoatras (Mountains of Kurdistan and Louristan), which divided it from the
Tigris and Euphrates valley, on the east by the Desert, and on the northeast by the Caspii
Montes (Elburz Mountains). It was a fertile country, well peopled, and one of the most
important provinces of the ancient Persian Empire. After the Macedonian conquest it was
divided into two parts—Great Media and Atropatené. See
Atropatené.
The earliest history of Media is involved in much obscurity. Herodotus reckons only four
kings of Media, namely:
1.
Deioces, B.C. 710-657;
2.
Phraortes, 657-635;
3.
Cyaxares, 635-595;
4.
Astyages, 595-560. The last king was dethroned by a revolution, which transferred the
supremacy to the Persians, who had formerly been the subordinate people in the united
Medo-Persian Empire. (See
Cyrus.) The Medes made more
than one attempt to regain their supremacy; the usurpation of the Magian pseudo-Smerdis was
no doubt such an attempt (see
Smerdis); and another
occurred in the reign of Darius II., when the Medes revolted, but were soon subdued (B.C.
408). With the rest of the Persian Empire, Media fell under the power of Alexander; it next
formed a part of the kingdom of the Seleucidae, from whom it was conquered by the Parthians
in the second century B.C., from which time it belonged to the Parthian, and then to the
later Persian Empire. See
Persia, with bibliography
there given.
It is important to notice the use of the names Medus and Medi by the Roman poets for the
nations of Asia east of the Tigris in general and for the Parthians in particular.
