Today, Assyria is considered as the geographic region located in Asia, where Assyrian Empire and its people lived. Indeed, it is still the same place where most of the Assyrians live. Assyrian kingdom came into being from late 25th BC to 605 BC. Assyrian Empire was located at the centre of the northern Mesopotamia, which is the present day Iraq. At the time, Assyrian Kingdom was highly advanced compared to the other kingdoms. It had civilized agriculture, law, recordkeeping, mathematics and military. In fact, by 100 BC they had shown great interest in zoology and botany. Like Assyria, Persian Empire was located in the Western Asia, current Asia continent. It is argued that Persian Empire was the biggest ever seen. This is because it ruled over numerous parts of the world, including Indus Valley, Macedon, Greece as well as Egypt. Unlike the Assyrian Empire which was bounded by upper River Tigres, Persian Empire was bounded on the West and Persian Gulf. The Empire was ruled by a number of monarchs who participated in the civilization and advancement of the Empire. The geographical location, timing and rule of the two Empires have prompted many historians to draw comparisons. Indeed, there are notable similarities and contrasts which left lasting legacies for the two Empires (Parpola, 61).
Assyrian Empire was ruled by Kings, and it was divided by historians into three rules. The first is Early Assyria which was dominated by King Tudiya. Indeed, amongst the earliest kings, he is known for the trading activities which he initiated. Nevertheless, all the early kings of the Assyrian Empire were influential in promoting urbanization. Indeed, the current city state of Ashur is attributed to their earlier efforts. In the city state of Ashur, the kings established oligarchy rule. In addition, they established colonies which enabled them to form ports. The formation of colonies, taxation and trading generated income for the dynasty. In fact, it is these revenues that they used to build the city of Isin, Larsa, Ur and Kish. Furthermore, the colonies they formed with their rivals, Hurrians and Haitians, Gutians, Amorites and Sumero-Akkadian and Elamites developed into the current Iran and Syria (Parpola, 38).
On the other hand, Persian Empire is known for its monarch rule. These monarchs focused more on unifying the nationalities and tribes under their leadership. Indeed, they achieved this and managed to foster development. All the monarchs worked towards construction of complex road networks which led to the rapid development and spread of trade. Persian Empire built today’s nations like the Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, Jordan and Macedonia, Turkey, Libya and old Egypt. Persian Empires, unlike, the Assyrian, were more organized and invested in unity. Conversely, they encouraged language unification throughout the dynasty. Thus, the official language communicated was Aramaic, and this contributed to faster development due to ease of communication. In addition, the Empire established a centralized bureaucratic leadership. However, their attempts to delegate power to the local governments, led to the weakening of the Kings power. Nevertheless, it contributed to the spread of resources to the local governments. Indeed, Darius the great promoted oligarchy, center for government and ceremonial centre. His style of leadership was adopted by other kings. Thus as a ceremonial center, the preceding leaders promoted festivals, hunting, heroism, natural themes as well as gift giving. Thus, unlike the Assyrian culture, Persian Empire was more civilized.
In both dynasties, the rulers left legacies of hard work and determination. They worked day and night to foster trade and improve oneness. Indeed, their determination to form colonies and expand their dynasties was driven by desire for oneness. Thus, their legacy in promoting unity and peace amongst their subjects must be appreciated. In addition, Persian rulers were determined to promote infrastructure development. In fact, the current nations like Israel inherited this development oriented mind from the Persian culture, thus, it is a great legacy that will not be forgotten.
Work Cited
Parpola, Simo. "National and Ethnic Identity in the Neo-Assyrian Empire and Assyrian Identity in Post-Empire Times" (PDF). Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies (JAAS). 2004, pp. 37-67.
