Kingdom of Gordyene: Map & History
Gordyene or Corduene was an ancient historical region, located on the upper course of the Tigris, south of Lake Van, in present-day southeastern Turkey.
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Gordyene or Corduene was an ancient historical region, located on the upper course of the Tigris, south of Lake Van, in present-day southeastern Turkey.
Modern Countries Once Part of Kingdom of Gordyene
At its mapped extent, Kingdom of Gordyene covered territory in 1 present-day country. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Kingdom of Gordyene's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Kingdom of Gordyene in Depth
History
Gordyene originated as the territory of Karduchoi (or Carduchii), a tribe first mentioned in the Anabasis of Xenophon, an eyewitness account of the retreat of the Greek mercenary army of the Ten Thousand to the Black Sea in 401 BC. Gordyene is explicitly identified with the Karduchoi in the works of Strabo (died 24 AD) and Pliny the Elder (23/24–79 AD). According to Xenophon's account, the Karduchoi inhabited the mountainous region south of the Kentrites River (today's Botan) and north of the modern-day city of Cizre. Xenophon indicates that the Karduchoi were economically sufficient; they had their own crafts and lived off of agriculture in the mountain valleys. They were a warlike mountain people who specialized in archery and guerrilla warfare.
Geography
The original territory of the Karduchoi was the mountainous region south of the Botan River (a tributary of the Tigris) and north of the modern-day city of Cizre, on the Tigris, in southeastern Turkey. After 401 BC, the Karduchoi expanded into the Upper Tigris valley located between the Batman and Khabur rivers. According to historian Michał Marciak, the Botan formed the western limit of Gordyene's presence in the Tigris valley for most of its ancient history. Before 95 BC, Gordyene expanded west of the Botan into the region later known as Arzanene; but, the two regions were separate again in the late 3rd and 4th centuries AD. Gordyene bordered Adiabene to the east; Marciak tentatively places the eastern border on the Little Khabur.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Gordyene (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Kingdom of Gordyene Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Kingdom of Gordyene appears, with the other states of the time.
Kingdom of Gordyene Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 14,297 km² in 25 CE.
Kingdom of Gordyene: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Kingdom of Gordyene exist?
The Kingdom of Gordyene is dated to 63 BCE – 259 CE, in the Classical Antiquity era.
How large was the Kingdom of Gordyene at its peak?
At its peak in 25 AD the Kingdom of Gordyene covered about 14,297 km².
How did the map of the Kingdom of Gordyene change over time?
The Kingdom of Gordyene appears on 2 dated world maps in the atlas, from 1 CE to 200 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.