Azo (Georgian history)
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For other uses, see Azo
Azo also known as Azon (აზონი) was a legendary ruler of Georgians
of ancient Kartli
(Iberia
of the Classical
authors) claimed by medieval Georgian
annals to have been installed by Alexander the Great, king of Macedon
(r.
336–323 BC).
, The Life of Kartli knows him as Azon and brands him a Macedonian outsider. Azo and Azon unquestionably represent the same figure and both sources credit his position to Alexander’s mythic expedition into inner Georgia.
According to The Conversion of Kartli, Azo was the son of an unnamed king of Arian-Kartli, who was brought, together with followers, to Kartli proper by Alexander and installed as the first king (mep'e, მეფე) at Mtskheta
after the conquest of this city. He also transplated the cults of Gatsi and Gaim
to Kartli. The Life of Kartli enshrines no such tradition. Rather, it maintains that Azon, son of Iaredos (unattested in The Conversion of Kartli), was neither a king nor even a Georgian. He is reported to have conquered Mtskheta with 100,000 Macedonians ("Romans"). In addition, Alexander commanded Azon to worship seven celestial bodies (the Sun
, the Moon
, and five "stars", i.e., planets) and to serve the "invisible God, the creator of the universe". This version has Azon, depicted as a tyrant, subsequently deposed and killed by Pharnavaz
, the member of the local ruling clan (P’arnavaziani
), whose father and uncle were killed by Azon.
Despite their differences, the two medieval traditions concur that kingship was established in Mtskheta in the early Hellenistic period
and this is verified in non-Georgian sources. The legend of Alexander's Iberian campaign has also been preserved in Armenian historical tradition, particularly in The History of the Armenians
by Moses of Chorene (probably the 5th century). Moses speaks of "Mithridates, satrap
of Darius
" (identifiable with Mithridates I of Pontus
) installed by Alexander to rule over the Georgians. Professor Giorgi Melikishvili
has drawn several parallels between the stories of the Azon of the Georgian chronicles and the Mithridates of the Armenian tradition.
Several modern scholars believe Azo’s story indirectly suggests the migration of the early Georgian tribes to the northwest and blending of Anatolia
n elements with the tribes living in Kartli proper. On the other hand, the version of The Life of Kartli, which anachronistically refers to Azon's entourage as "Romans", might well have reflected the Roman
activities in Iberia, presumably those of the Flavian
period (A.D. 69-96), which have surprisingly been ignored by the Georgian annals.
Some modern historians have also attempted to equate Azon (note that the name terminates in the Greek
suffix
–ου) with the Jason
of the Argonautic
cycle. According to the Roman
historian Tacitus
, the Iberians "claimed Thessalian origin, dating from the time when Jason, after leaving with Medea
and their children, returned to the empty palace of Aeëtes
and the kingless Colchians
".
Azo
Azo may refer to:* Azo compound, chemistry functional group and class of compounds, also used for CDs and DVDs* A urinary tract analgesic also known as phenazopyridine* the medieval Italian jurist, see Azo of Bologna...
Azo also known as Azon (აზონი) was a legendary ruler of Georgians
Georgians
The Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
of ancient Kartli
Kartli
Kartli is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari , on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role in ethnic and political consolidation of the Georgians in the Middle Ages...
(Iberia
Caucasian Iberia
Iberia , also known as Iveria , was a name given by the ancient Greeks and Romans to the ancient Georgian kingdom of Kartli , corresponding roughly to the eastern and southern parts of the present day Georgia...
of the Classical
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
authors) claimed by medieval Georgian
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
annals to have been installed by Alexander the Great, king of Macedon
Macedon
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
(r.
Reign
A reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation or of a people . In most hereditary monarchies and some elective monarchies A reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office...
336–323 BC).
Medieval tradition
His name and origin are differently given by the medieval Georgian chronicles. While The Conversion of Kartli calls him Azo(y) and makes him the scion of a preexisting dynasty in Arian-KartliArian-Kartli
Arian Kartli was a country claimed by the medieval Georgian chronicle "The Conversion of Kartli" to be the earlier homeland of the Georgians of Kartli ....
, The Life of Kartli knows him as Azon and brands him a Macedonian outsider. Azo and Azon unquestionably represent the same figure and both sources credit his position to Alexander’s mythic expedition into inner Georgia.
According to The Conversion of Kartli, Azo was the son of an unnamed king of Arian-Kartli, who was brought, together with followers, to Kartli proper by Alexander and installed as the first king (mep'e, მეფე) at Mtskheta
Mtskheta
Mtskheta , one of the oldest cities of the country of Georgia , is located approximately 20 kilometers north of Tbilisi at the confluence of the Aragvi and Kura rivers. The city is now the administrative centre of the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region...
after the conquest of this city. He also transplated the cults of Gatsi and Gaim
Gatsi and Gaim
Gatsi and Gaim were, according to the medieval Georgian chronicles, the deities in a pre-Christian pantheon of ancient Georgians of Kartli . The Georgian hagiographic work "The Life of St. Nino" reports that when St...
to Kartli. The Life of Kartli enshrines no such tradition. Rather, it maintains that Azon, son of Iaredos (unattested in The Conversion of Kartli), was neither a king nor even a Georgian. He is reported to have conquered Mtskheta with 100,000 Macedonians ("Romans"). In addition, Alexander commanded Azon to worship seven celestial bodies (the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
, the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, and five "stars", i.e., planets) and to serve the "invisible God, the creator of the universe". This version has Azon, depicted as a tyrant, subsequently deposed and killed by Pharnavaz
Pharnavaz I of Iberia
Pharnavaz I was the first king of Kartli, an ancient Georgian kingdom known as Iberia to the Classical sources, who is credited by the medieval Georgian written tradition with founding the kingship of Kartli and the Parnavaziani dynasty...
, the member of the local ruling clan (P’arnavaziani
Pharnabazid Dynasty
The Pharnabazid or P’arnavaziani is the name of the first dynasty of Georgian kings of Kartli preserved by the Georgian historical tradition. Their rule lasted, with intermissions, from the 3rd century BC to the 2nd century AD. The main male line is reported to have become extinct early on and...
), whose father and uncle were killed by Azon.
Modern interpretation
The identification of Azo/Azon is one of the most complex and contentious enigmas of early Georgian history. His rule is conventionally dated by the Georgian scholar Sergi Gorgadze to 330-272 BC, though this chronology lacks precision.Despite their differences, the two medieval traditions concur that kingship was established in Mtskheta in the early Hellenistic period
Hellenistic period
The Hellenistic period or Hellenistic era describes the time which followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. It was so named by the historian J. G. Droysen. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia...
and this is verified in non-Georgian sources. The legend of Alexander's Iberian campaign has also been preserved in Armenian historical tradition, particularly in The History of the Armenians
History of Armenia (Moses of Chorene)
The History of Armenia attributed to Moses Khorenatsi is an early account of Armenia, covering the mythological origins of the Armenian people as well as Armenia's interaction with Sassanid, Byzantine and Arsacid empires down to the 5th century....
by Moses of Chorene (probably the 5th century). Moses speaks of "Mithridates, satrap
Satrap
Satrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as the Sassanid Empire and the Hellenistic empires....
of Darius
Darius III of Persia
Darius III , also known by his given name of Codomannus, was the last king of the Achaemenid Empire of Persia from 336 BC to 330 BC....
" (identifiable with Mithridates I of Pontus
Mithridates I of Pontus
Mithridates I Ctistes was the founder of the kingdom of Pontus in Anatolia....
) installed by Alexander to rule over the Georgians. Professor Giorgi Melikishvili
Giorgi Melikishvili
Giorgi Melikishvili was a Georgian historian known for his fundamental works in the history of Georgia, Caucasia and the Middle East. He earned an international recognition for his research of Urartu....
has drawn several parallels between the stories of the Azon of the Georgian chronicles and the Mithridates of the Armenian tradition.
Several modern scholars believe Azo’s story indirectly suggests the migration of the early Georgian tribes to the northwest and blending of Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
n elements with the tribes living in Kartli proper. On the other hand, the version of The Life of Kartli, which anachronistically refers to Azon's entourage as "Romans", might well have reflected the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
activities in Iberia, presumably those of the Flavian
Flavian dynasty
The Flavian dynasty was a Roman Imperial Dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 and 96 AD, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian , and his two sons Titus and Domitian . The Flavians rose to power during the civil war of 69, known as the Year of the Four Emperors...
period (A.D. 69-96), which have surprisingly been ignored by the Georgian annals.
Some modern historians have also attempted to equate Azon (note that the name terminates in the Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
suffix
Suffix
In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns or adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs...
–ου) with the Jason
Jason
Jason was a late ancient Greek mythological hero from the late 10th Century BC, famous as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcus...
of the Argonautic
Argonauts
The Argonauts ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology who, in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, the Argo, which was named after its builder, Argus. "Argonauts", therefore, literally means...
cycle. According to the Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
historian Tacitus
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
, the Iberians "claimed Thessalian origin, dating from the time when Jason, after leaving with Medea
Medea
Medea is a woman in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, niece of Circe, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and later wife to the hero Jason, with whom she had two children, Mermeros and Pheres. In Euripides's play Medea, Jason leaves Medea when Creon, king of...
and their children, returned to the empty palace of Aeëtes
Aeëtes
In Greek mythology, Aeëtes , , , was a King of Colchis , son of the sun-god Helios and the Oceanid Perseis , brother of Circe and Pasiphae, and father of Medea, Chalciope and Apsyrtus...
and the kingless Colchians
Colchis
In ancient geography, Colchis or Kolkhis was an ancient Georgian state kingdom and region in Western Georgia, which played an important role in the ethnic and cultural formation of the Georgian nation.The Kingdom of Colchis contributed significantly to the development of medieval Georgian...
".