The charming name Anahit bears the imprint of noble antiquity. According to some versions, it translates as "a breath of goodness", and the meaning of the name Anahit is closely related to love and femininity. The Iranians, however, argue that his genuine translation from Persian is "impeccable." One way or another, the meaning of the name Anahit, her fate and character are closely connected with the names of two powerful ancient goddesses, who represented a single entity, expressed in different forms. It is worth telling more about them.
The meaning of the name Anahit
This name comes from the ancient Persian word "anāhitā", which means "impeccable, immaculate." Anahit (in Armenian: Անահիտ) was the goddess of fertility and healing, wisdom and water in Armenian mythology, and the meaning of the name Anahit for the girl is closely connected with this goddess. In the early years, she was the goddess of war. By the 5th century BC, she was the main deity in Armenia along with Aramaz. According to Plutarch, the temple of Eres was the richest and most noble in Armenia. During the expedition of Mark Anthony to Armenia, the statue of the goddess was defeated by Roman soldiers.
Anahita - the ancient Persian form of the name of the Iranian goddess, appears in full and earlier form as Aredvi Sura Anahita (Aredvi Sura Anahita). The Avestan name for the Indo-Iranian cosmological figure is revered as the deity of Water (Aban) and, therefore, is associated with fertility, healing and wisdom. The meaning of the name Anahit and the fate of her immaculate, but imperious goddess are closely interconnected and underlie all mythological plots associated with her. But confusion can occur due to the fact that the same goddess is present in both Armenian and Persian mythology under several different names.
Goddess Anahit
According to Strabo, "the Armenians shared the religion of the Persians and the Medes and especially revered Anahit." The kingdoms of ancient Armenia were “unshakable worshipers,” and Tiridat III officially converted to the Aramad-Anahit-Vahagn triad before he converted to Christianity, but, as they say, showed special devotion to the “great lady Anahit ... the benefactress of all mankind, the mother of all knowledge , daughter of the great Aramazd. " According to Agafangelos, the tradition required that the kings of Armenia go once a year to the temple in Eriz (Erez) in Atzilisen to celebrate the festival of divinity. The Tiridates made this journey in the first year of their reign, where they sacrificed both wreaths and knots. The temple in Eriz seems to have been especially famous, "the richest and most venerable in Armenia," staffed by priests and priestesses, the latter coming from prominent families, who were forced to serve in the church until they married. This practice can again reveal the Semitic syncretic influences on ancient Iranian pagan beliefs. Pliny reports that the soldiers of Mark Anthony, as mentioned earlier, smashed a huge statue of the great goddess, made of solid gold, and then divided the pieces between themselves. Also, according to Pliny, whose words were confirmed by Dio Cassius, the city of Atzilisene eventually became known as Anaitika. Dio Cassius also mentions that another region along the Cyrus River, on the borders of Albania and Iberia, was also called “Anahit land”.
Historical evidence of the goddess Anahit
According to Agafangelos, King Tiridat extols "the great lady Anahit, the glory of our nation and the nurse, the mother of all chastity and the daughter of the great and valiant Aramazd." Historian Berous identifies Anahit with Aphrodite, while medieval Armenian scribes identify her with Artemis. According to Strabo, Anahit worship included the rituals of "sacred prostitution", but later Christian writers, however, did not mention this custom.
Persian goddess Anahita
Anahita is an ancient Persian form of the name of the Iranian goddess, which in an earlier era was known as Aredvi Sura Anahita (Arəvvī Sūrā Anāhitā). She was known as Aredvi Surah Anahita - Ardvisur Anahid or Nahid in Middle and Modern Persian, and Anahit in Armenian. The famous cult of the shrine of Aredvi Surah Anahita, along with other cults of shrines, appeared, apparently, in the 4th century BC and continued until it disappeared in connection with the iconoclastic movement organized by the Muslim Sassanids.
Greek and Roman historians of classical antiquity either mention it under the name Anaitis, or identify with one of the goddesses of their own pantheons. 270 Anahita, an S-type silicon asteroid, is named after her.
Anahit and Anahita Connection
The Armenian cult of Anahit, as well as the pre-Christian Armenian religion as a whole, were very closely connected with Persian Zoroastrianism, but also had significant distinctive features stemming from local pagan traditions, as well as from non-Zoroastrian foreign cults. In modern Armenia, the memory of the Anahit cult is perceived as part of the historical mythological heritage of the nation, and because of its significance, the name Anahit is popular in this country. In 1997, the Central Bank of Armenia issued a commemorative gold coin with the image of the goddess Anahit on the obverse.
The name Anahit in Iran
Due to the theocratic Islamic regime in Iran, as well as due to its pagan significance, the name Anahit is not very popular among local women. As, however, and all the other names, somehow related to the pre-Islamic heritage of this country.
Name Anahit in the West
Anahit is a common name among immigrants from Iran, but it is very rarely used in Western countries by people of non-immigrant origin. However, sometimes it is found among representatives of the large Armenian diaspora abroad, because the meaning of the name Anahit for the girl is associated with such character traits as kindness, tenderness and complaisance.