The Medes were an Iranian people of Aryan origin who lived in the western and north-western portion of present-day Iran. During the 8th century BC they were dominated by the nomadic group of the Scythians. By the 6th century BC (prior to the Persian invasion) the Medes were able to establish an empire which stretched from Aran (the modern-day Republic of Azerbaijan) to Central Asia and Afghanistan.
The people of the Mada, Medes (the Greek form "Μηδοί" is Ionian for Madot) appear in history first in 836 BC, when the Assyrian conqueror Shalmaneser II. in his wars against the tribes of the Zagros received the tribute of the Amadai (this form, with prosthetic a-, which occurs only here, has many analogies in the names of Iranian tribes). His successors undertook many expeditions against the Medes (Madai). SargonSamaria Sargon II (721-705 BC) was an Assyrian King. He took the throne from Shalmanassar V in 722. It is not sure if he was the son of Tiglatpilesar III or a usurper unrelated to the Royal family. In his inscriptions, he styles himself as a new man, rare in 715 BCCenturies: 9th century BC 8th century BC 7th century BC Decades: 760s BC 750s BC 740s BC 730s BC 720s BC 710s BC 700s BC 690s BC 680s BC 670s BC 660s BC Events and Trends Judah, Tyre and Sidon revolt against Assyria 719 BC Zhou Huan Wang of the Zhou Dynas and 713 BCCenturies: 9th century BC 8th century BC 7th century BC Decades: 760s BC 750s BC 740s BC 730s BC 720s BC 710s BC 700s BC 690s BC 680s BC 670s BC 660s BC Events and Trends Judah, Tyre and Sidon revolt against Assyria 719 BC Zhou Huan Wang of the Zhou Dynas subjected them "to the far mountain Bikni," i.e. the Elburz (Demavend) and the borders of the desert. They were divided into many districts and towns, under petty local chieftains; from the names which the Assyrian inscriptions mention, we learn that they were an Iranian tribe and that they had already adopted the religionZoroastrianism was adapted from an earlier, polytheistic faith by Zarathushtra ( Zoroaster) in Persia between 1400 and 1200 BC (although, in the absence of written records, some scholars estimate as late as 600 BC). Its alternative name, Mazdaism comes fr of ZoroasterZoroaster was one of the great teachers of the East and the founder of Zoroastrianism, which was the national religion of the Perso-Iranian people from the time of the Achaemenidae to the close of the Sassanid period. The name Ζωρο&. In spite of different attempts by some chieftains to shake off the Assyrian yoke (cf. the information obtained from prayers to the Sun-god for oracles against these rebels: Knudtzon, Assyrische Gebete an den Sonnengott), Media remained tributary to Assyria under Sargon's successors, Sennacheribchariot Sennacherib (In akkadian Sin-ehhe-erib " Sin (the moon god) has taken the place of brothers to me") was the king of the Assyrian Empire ( 705 681 BC). His reign was tested several times by revolts each of which was brought down. Then in 701 BC an, EsarhaddonEsarhaddon ( 681 669 BC) was a king of Assyria, the son of Sennacherib and the Aramaic queen Naqi'a/Zakitu, Sennacheribs second wife. When his father named him as successor although he was the youngest son, his brothers tried to get him into miscredit. and Assur-bani-pal.
Herodotus, i. 101, gives a list of six Median tribes (ytvta), among them the Paraetaceni, the inhabitants of the mountainous highland of Paraetacene, the district of Isfahan, and the Magoi, i.e. the Magians, the hereditary caste of the priests. Many historians (like Igor Diakonoff, Richard N. Frye and James Darmesteter) accept that the Medians were Indo-European peoples.
Josephus relates the Medes to the biblical character, Madai, son of Japheth. "Now as to Javan and Madai, the sons of Japhet; from Madai came the Madeans, who are called Medes, by the Greeks" Antiquities of the Jews, I:6
