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GLOSSARY
A note on terminological usage. Throughout the series, the terms "Roman" and "Greek" are used in a way which is perhaps confusing to readers who are not very familiar with the historical setting. So a brief explanation may be helpful.
By the sixth century A.D., the only part of the Roman Empire still in existence was what is usually called by modern historians the Eastern Roman Empire, whose capital was in Constantinople. The western lands in which the Roman Empire originatedincluding Rome itself and all of Italyhad long since fallen under the control of barbarian tribes like the Ostrogoths.
The so-called "eastern" Roman Empire, however, never applied that name to itself. It considered itselfand did so until its final destruction at the hands of the Ottoman Turks in 1453 A.D.as the Roman Empire. And thus, when referring to themselves in a political sense, they continued to call themselves "Romans."
Ethnically speaking, of course, there was very little Latin or Roman presence left in the Roman Empire. In terms of what you might call its "social" content, the Roman Empire had become a Greek empire in all but name. In Justinian's day, Latin was still the official language of the Roman Empire, but it would not be long before Greek became, even in imperial decrees and political documents, the formal as well as de facto language of the Empire. Hence the frequency with which the same people, throughout the course of the series, might be referred to (depending on the context) as either "Roman" or "Greek."
Loosely, in short, the term "Roman" is a political term; the term "Greek" a social, ethnic or linguistic oneand that is how the terms are used in the series.
Places
- Adulis: a city on the western coast of the Red Sea; the kingdom of
Axum's major port; later, the capital city of the Ethiopians.
- Ajmer: the major city of Rajputana.
- Alexandria: the major city of Roman Egypt, located on one of the
mouths of the Nile.
- Amaravati: the former capital of the Empire of Andhra, located on the
Krishna river in south India; sacked by the Malwa; Shakuntala taken into
captivity after her family is massacred.
- Anatha: an imperial villa in Mesopotamia; site of the first major
battle between Belisarius and the Malwa.
- Axum: the name refers both to the capital city in the highlands and
the kingdom of the Ethiopians.
- Babylon: ancient city in Mesopotamia, located on the Euphrates; site
of a major siege of the Persians by the Malwa.
- Barbaricum: the major port in the Indus delta; located near present
day Karachi.
- Begram: the major city of the Kushans.
- Bharakuccha: the major port of western India under Malwa control;
located at the mouth of the Narmada river.
- Charax: Persian seaport on the Persian Gulf.
- Chowpatty: Malwa naval base on the west coast of India; located at
the site of present day Mumbai (Bombay).
- Constantinople: capital of the Roman Empire; located on the Bosporus.
- Ctesiphon: capital of the Persian empire; located on the Tigris river
in Mesopotamia.
- Deccan: southern India.
- Deogiri: a fortified city in central Majarashtra; established by
Shakuntala as the new capital of Andhra.
- Gwalior: location of Venandakatra's palace in north India where
Shakuntala was held captive.
- Hindu Kush: the mountains northwest of the Punjab. Site of the Khyber
Pass.
- Kausambi: capital of the Malwa empire; located in north India, at the
junction of the Ganges and Jamuna rivers.
- Majarashtra: literally, "the Great Country." Land of the Marathas,
one of India's major nationalities.
- Marv: an oasis city in Central Asia; located in present day
Turkmenistan.
- Mindouos: a battlefield in Mesopotamia where Belisarius fought the
Persians.
- Muziris: the major port of the kingdom of Kerala in southeastern
India.
- Nehar Malka: the ancient canal connecting the Euphrates and Tigris
rivers; scene of a battle between Belisarius and the Malwa.
- The Pass: a pass in the Zagros mountains separating Mesopotamia from
the Persian plateau; site of a battle between Belisarius and Damodara; called
The Battle of the Mongoose by the Rajputs.
- Peshawar: located in the Vale of Peshawar, between the Punjab and the
Khyber Pass.
- Punjab: the upper Indus river valley.
- Rajputana: the land of the Rajputs, one of India's major
nationalities.
- Sind: the lower Indus river valley.
- Sukkur: a major city on the Indus; north of the city is the "Sukkur
gorge" which marks the boundary between Sind and the Punjab.
- Suppara: a port city on India's west coast, to the north of
Chowpatty.
- Tamraparni: the island of Ceylon; modern day Sri Lanka.
- Vindhyas: the mountain range which marks the traditional boundary
between northern India and southern
India.
Terms
- Anvaya-prapta sachivya: members of the Malwa royal clan.
- Aqabe tsentsen: literally, "keeper of the fly-whisks." The highest
ranked official in the Axumite government.
- Azadan: literally, "men of noble birth." Refers to a class of people
in the Persian empire roughly analogous to medieval European knights.
- Cataphract: the heavily armed and armored mounted archer and lancer
who formed the heart of the Roman army. Developed by the Romans as a copy of the
dehgan.
- Dawazz: a slave assigned as adviser to Ethiopian princes,
specifically for the purpose of deflating royal self-aggrandizement.
- Dehgan: the Persian equivalent of a cataphract.
- Dromon: a Roman war galley.
- Kushans: originating as a barbarian tribe from the steppes, the
Kushans became civilized after conquering Central Asia and were the principal
support for Buddhism in the early centuries of the Christian Era; later
subjugated by the Malwa.
- Negusa nagast: "King of Kings." Ruler of Axum, the kingdom of the
Ethiopians.
- Nika: the name of the insurrection against Justinian and Theodora
engineered by the Malwa.
- Peshwa: roughly translates as "vizier." Top civilian official of the
Empire of Andhra.
- Sahrdaran: the highest ranked nobility in the Persian empire, next in
status to the emperor. Traditionally consisted of seven families, of which the
"first among equals" were the Suren.
- Sarwe: a regiment of the Axumite army. The plural is "sarawit."
Individual soldiers are called "sarwen."
- Spatha: the standard sword used by Roman soldiers; similar to the
ancient Roman short sword called the gladius, except the blade is six
inches longer.
- Vurzurgan: "grandees" of the Persian empire. Noblemen ranked between
the azadan and the sahrdaran.
- Ye-tai: a barbarian tribe from central Asia incorporated into the
Malwa governing structure. Also known as "Ephthalites" or "White
Huns."
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