The Heroic Legend of Arslan - Actual Historical References

Actual Historical References

The events of The Heroic Legend of Arslan are based on Iranian history, and on an epic poem dating from the mid-19th century, which is itself loosely based on the Shahnama. The anime story displays many other Persian historical, mythical, and religious icons, entities, and events. Listed below are some of the more notable cases:

• Andragoras: In the year 245 CE, the satrap of Parthia—the Persian equivalent of a viceroy—revolted against the newly crowned Seleucid emperor, Seleucus II. The satrap was named Andragoras. Andragoras openly defied the Seleucid emperor by issuing coinage displaying his own image wearing the royal diadem. As it happens, his rebellion spelled out his own doom. The Parni, a nomadic tribe native to the region, took advantage of the chaos created by Ecbatana's revolt against the empire and invaded the nation. Two years after the original revolt, the Parni tribe successfully took Parthia, killing Andragoras in the process.
• Arislan: The epic poem itself, titled "Amir Arsalan", was told to the Shah of Persia by a naqqal (storyteller) named Muhammad 'Ali Naqib al-Mamālik. Muhammad never transcribed the poem himself, but the daughter of the Shah, who also loved the tale, eventually transcribed it and preserved it for history. The story begins with the Banu of Rum ("Lady of Constantinople" in Persian). Rum (also called Arz-e-Rum) is the name Persians used in medieval times to refer to Anatolia. It is still used today as a geographical name in Turkey as the province of Erzurum. In the story, Rum is conquered by European invaders, and its pregnant Banu forced to flee for her life. She becomes wedded to an Egyptian merchant and gives birth to her child, Arsalan. The merchant claims the child as his own. Eventually of course, Arsalan learns of his royal origins and takes it in his mind to reclaim his throne.
• "Arislan" refers to Arsalan.
• "Arslan" (or Aslan) is the Turkish word for 'Lion'. It is also used in the Chronicles of Narnia, straightforwardly, as the name of the lion.
• "Bachman" refers to Bahman, a character from Shahnama.
• "Bahador" refers to the Bahador in the Shahnama.
• "Daryoon" refers to the great general Darius.
• "Demavand": In the story, "Mount Demavand" where "Lord Silvermask" seeks the mythical sword to destroy his enemies. In the Shahnama, the sword refers to the weapon used by Fereydun to slay Zahak The Dragon King. In Persian mythology, Zahak was buried at Mount Damavand.
• "Dilam" (the port where the blind "Mariam" lands) refers to the south caspian coast of Deylam for whom the Deylamid dynasty were named after.
• Ecbatana: In 245 BCE, the region of what is now Iran was ruled by a kingdom known as Parthia. Parthia, whose capitol was Ecbatana (now known as Hamadan), was a loosely centralized kingdom. It dominated the region between 150 BCE and 226 CE, and is known for being one of the region's major pre-Islamic empires. In its original form however, Parthia was a far smaller area, composed of the northernmost areas of Iran (centered at Nysa), and was a part of the Seleucid Empire.
• "Ectabahana" refers to Ecbatana.
• "Jon Bodan" refers to the 16th-century French scholar and philosopher Jean Bodin, who advocated the use of torture in the course of rooting out suspected witches.
• "Lusitania" is an ancient name for a region of the Iberian peninsula including Portugal. Alternatively, given that many place-names in the mythos often rhyme with their actual historical counterparts, Lusitania may refer to the nemesis of the Achaeminid Persian Empire: Macedonia.
• "The second Mani" (Narsis) refers to Mani; the wise prophet, renowned in Persian tradition as a great artist.
• "Misra" refers to Mithra.
• "Palse" refers to the name "Pars", which is a province in Iran and origin of the word Persia used to refer to Iran.
• "Peshawal" refers to Peshawar.
• "Pharangese" refers to Farangis, a character from Shahnama.
• "Tahamineh" refers to Tahmineh, a character from Shahnama.
• "Yaldabor" refers to Yaldabaoth, a gnostic deity.
• "Zabol" refers to Zabol.
• The crystal ball used by the sorcerers of "Lord Silvermask" for scrying refers to the Persian mythical Cup of Jamshid, where wizards would use the magical object to observe the seven heavens with it.
• In the final episodes, an actual Zoroastrian chant is heard in Persian language with the Towers of silence in Yazd in the background.
• The "Great Continental Road" refers to the Achaemenid Royal Road. It may also refer to the transcontinental Silk Route.
• The burning of books can refer to more than one incident. The library of Persepolis which contained royal inscriptions of the Avesta was burned by Alexander The Great as he entered Persepolis. During the Islamic Conquest of Persia, the Arab conquerors reportedly burnt the Persian royal library, as recounted in Haji Khalifa's book "Kashful Zunoon."
• The map that "Narsis" draws for "Arislan" is a correct depiction of the ancient Persian empire.
• The head gear of the "Lusitanians" may speculatively refer to the Arab Army during the Islamic conquest of Persia.
• The mass suicide by the zealots and followers of Jon Bodan may refer to the mass suicide committed by the Jews of Qumran at Massada during a Jewish revolt against the occupying Romans.