6th-century BC Iranian people

Anacharsis (; ) was a Scythian prince and philosopher of uncertain historicity who lived in the 6th century BC.

Cyaxares was the third king of the Medes. He ascended to the throne in 625 BC, after his father Phraortes lost his life in a battle against the Assyrians, probably Ashurbanipal. Assyrian allies, the Scythians then ruled Media for 28 years before Cyaxeres overthrew Scythian domination and became king.

Astyages was the last king of the Median kingdom, reigning from 585 to 550 BCE. The son of Cyaxares, he was dethroned by the Persian king Cyrus the Great.

King of Anshan in Iran from c. 580 to 559 BC and the father of Cyrus the Great

The third king of the Achaemenid kingdom (625–580 BC)

Atossa (Old Persian: Utauθa, or Old Iranian: Hutauθa; 550–475 BC) was an Achaemenid empress. She was the daughter of Cyrus the Great, the sister of Cambyses II, the wife of Darius the Great, the mother of Xerxes the Great and the grandmother of Artaxerxes I. Atossa was undoubtedly the most prominent woman in the history of Iran. During her husband's reign, she had a direct role in state affairs as queen. She played an important role history of Iran, serving at the court of Darius the Great. She was a poet and a scholar, teaching Persian literature to young people, and played a leading role in

6th century BC Persian strap of Bactria and Persis

Ariaramnes (Old Persian: 𐎠𐎼𐎡𐎹𐎠𐎼𐎶𐎴 Ariyāramna; "peace of the Arya") was a great-uncle of Cyrus the Great and the great-grandfather of Darius I, and perhaps the king of Parsa, the ancient core kingdom of Persia. __NOTOC__ Ariaramnes was most likely the brother of Cyrus I of Anshan and son of Teispes, but this is not certain. In any case, he was a member of the Achaemenid House. As supported by the relief at Behistun he was the first king of a separate Achaemenid branch that ran parallel to the reigns of Cyrus I and his son Cambyses I. As the great-grandfather of Darius the Great, this li

thumb|left|Position of Arsames in the Achaemenid lineage according to Darius the Great in the [[Behistun inscription.]] Arsames ( Aršāma, modern Persian:،آرسام، آرشام‎ Arshām, Greek: ) was the son of Ariaramnes and the grandfather of Darius I. He was traditionally claimed to have briefly been king of Persia during the Achaemenid dynasty, and to have given up the throne and declared loyalty to his relative Cyrus II of Persia before retiring to his family estate in the Persian heartland of Parsa, living there peacefully for the rest of his life, perhaps nominally exercising the duties of a "

thumb|General Harpagus, behind Cyrus the Great (18th century tapestry). Harpagus, also known as Harpagos (Ancient Greek Ἅρπαγος; Akkadian: Arbaku), was a Median general during the 6th century BC, credited by Herodotus as having put Cyrus the Great on the throne through his defection during the Battle of Pasargadae.

princess of Media and Queen consort of Cambyses I of Anshan and mother of Cyrus the Great

Artystone (; ; Elamite , ) also known as Irtašduna in the Fortification tablets, was an Achaemenid princess, daughter of king Cyrus the Great, and sister of Cambyses II, Atossa and Smerdis. Along with Atossa and her niece Parmys, Artystone married king Darius I. It is argued that by marrying the female offspring of Cyrus, the founder of the empire, the new king aimed to prevent his rule from being contested, since Darius himself was not of royal blood.

daughter or granddaughter of the king Cyaxares, and the wife of Nebuchadnezzar II

Hydarnes (), also known as Hydarnes the Elder, was a Persian nobleman, who was one of the seven conspirators who overthrew the Pseudo-Smerdis. His name is the Greek transliteration of the Old Persian name , which may have meant "he who knows the guilt/wrong".

Aryenis (; ) was, according to Herodotus, the daughter of the Lydian king Alyattes and the sister of the Lydian king Croesus.

Cassandane or Cassandana (; died 538 BC) was an Achaemenian queen and the wife of king Cyrus the Great, the mother of Cambyses II and Atossa and the grandmother of Xerxes I.

Persian satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia (c. 565-497 BCE)

thumb|Zopyrus from Promptuarium Iconum Insigniorum|Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum thumb|The Babylonians deriding Darius, before Zopyrus devised his stratagem Zopyrus (; ) (died 484/3 BC) was a Persian nobleman mentioned in Herodotus' Histories.

Intaphrenes (, ) (died c.520BCE) was one of the seven who in September 522 BCE helped Darius I usurp the throne from Bardiya, following Bardiya’s alleged usurping of the throne of the Achaemenid Empire from Cambyses II. Intaphrenes then became Darius's bow carrier, a high position in which he is depicted in the Behistun Inscription.

thumb|300px|Megabazus became satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia. Megabazus (Old Persian: Bagavazdā or Bagabāzu; ), son of Megabates, was a highly regarded Persian general under Darius, to whom he was a first-degree cousin. Most information about Megabazus comes from The Histories by Herodotus.

Brother of and advisor to Achaemenid king Darius I

Dadarsi was a Persian general of Armenian origin and satrap of Bactria, who served under Persian king Darius I the Great (522–486 BCE). He was tasked with suppressing a revolt in Margiana.

Skunkha (Old Persian: ), was king of the Massagetae| ("Saka who wear pointed caps"), a group of the Saka, in the 6th century BC.

Mazares (Median: Mazdara, ) was a Median general who defected to Cyrus the Great when the latter overthrew the Median king Astyages and formed the Persian Empire. Mazares is mentioned by Herodotus as a Median general in the service of Cyrus the Great who died while putting down a revolt in Asia Minor.

Parmys (Old Persian: (H)uparviyā, Elamite: Uparmiya) was a Persian princess, the only daughter of Bardiya (Smerdis), son of Cyrus the Great.

Aryandes (Old Iranian: Aryavanda or Arvanta, Ancient Greek: Ἀρυάνδης) was the first Achaemenid satrap of ancient Egypt between 525 BCE and 496 BCE, during the early 27th Dynasty of Egypt.

thumb|Oroetus attending the crucifixion of Polycrates (17th century painting, by [[Salvator Rosa).]]

thumb|Aspathines on the tomb of Darius I. Aspathines ( ; ) (born and died sometime between 550 BC and 450BC) was a senior official under Darius the Great and Xerxes I of Persia.

Tattenai (or Tatnai or Sisinnes; Tattǝnay; Tâttannu or 𒋺𒄨𒉡 Tattannu) was a biblical character named as the Persian governor of the province west of the Euphrates River during the time of Zerubbabel and the reign of Darius I.

daughter of Astyages, Queen of the Persian Achaemenid Empire

thumb|“Cyrus Defeats Spargapises,” from The Story of Cyrus, Adapted from designs by Michiel Coxie (1499–1592), Woven at the workshop of Albert Auwercx (1629–1709) thumb|Queen Tomyris learns that her son Spargapises has been taken alive by Cyrus, by Jan Moy (1535-1550). Spargapises (Saka: ; ; ; ) was the son of queen Tomyris of the Massagetai.

wife of Abradatas

thumb|upright|Behistun relief of Tritantaechmes. Label "This is Tritantaechmes. He lied, saying "I am king of Sagartia, from the family of Cyaxares."" Tritantaechmes (, Elamite: Ṣi-iš-šá-an-tak-ma, Babylonian: Ši-it-ra-an-taḫ-ma) was a king of the Sagartians, who ruled in Arbela (521 BCE). He claimed to be a descendant of the king Cyaxares of Media.

Persian judge, son of Sisamnes

Artembares () was a Median man of noble rank who lived around the 6th century BCE. His son, according to a story about the youth of Cyrus the Great, was one of the playmates of Cyrus, who at the time was presenting himself as if he were the lowly son of a cowherd.

thumb|Location of Hellespontine Phrygia, and the provincial capital of Dascylium, in the Achaemenid Empire, thumb|Coinage of Hellespontine Phrygia at the time of Mitrobates, Kyzikos, [[Mysia. Circa 550-500 BC]] thumb|Coinage of Hellespontine Phrygia at the time of Mitrobates, Kyzikos, [[Mysia. Circa 550-500 BCE]] Mitrobates (; ); (fl.c. 525 - 520 BC) was an Achaemenid satrap of Daskyleion (Hellespontine Phrygia) under the reigns of Cyrus the Great, who nominated him for the role, and Cambyses. After Cambyses died, and during the struggles for succession that followed, he is said to have been

Prexaspes () was a prominent Persian during the reign of Cambyses II (530–522 BC), the second King of Kings of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. According to Herodotus, when Cambyses ordered his trusted counselor Prexaspes to kill Bardiya (also known as Smerdis), the King's own brother, Prexaspes loyally carried out his order. Herodotus provides two versions of the murder. After moving from Egypt (where he was stationed) to Susa, Prexaspes either killed Bardiya in a hunting field near Susa, or drowned him in the Erythrean Sea.

Phaedymia (or Phaedyme, Phædima; ) was the daughter of Otanes, a nobleman of the Achaemenid Persian court in the early 6th century BCE. She was married, successively, to Cambyses II, then Bardiya (or Galatia), and then Darius I.

thumb|Tabalus was the first satrap of Lydia, with his capital in [[Sardis.]] thumb|Remains of the acropolis of [[Sardis where Tabalus took refuge from the Lydian revolt.]] Tabalus the Persian ,, was the first Persian satrap of Sardis. Cyrus the Great of Persia put him in place after conquering Lydia and annexing it into the Persian Empire in 546 BC. Herodotus mentions him in his histories (Hdt 1. 153-4):

Irdabama (fl. early 5th-century BC), was an Ancient Persian businesswoman during the reign of Darius the Great (r. 522–485 BC). She is the most well known and wealthiest businesswoman attested to in the records of the Achaemenid Empire at Persepolis. According to Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (2013), recently uncovered texts in Persepolis indicate that Darius' mother was Irdabama.

Anaphas () was a Persian noble said to have been one of the seven Persians who slew the usurper Bardiya in 522 BCE, and to have been lineally descended from Atossa, the sister of Cambyses, who was the father of Cyrus the Great. The kings of Cappadocia traced their origin to Anaphas, who received the government of Cappadocia, free from taxes. Anaphas was succeeded by his son of the same name, and the latter by Datames.

son of Bubares, 5th-century BC Persian official of Macedonian noble descent

thumb|Bagaeus delivering his messages to the Persian guards. 19th century illustration. Bagaeus (Old Iranian: Bagaya) (fl. circa 520-517 BCE), son of Artontes, was an Achaemenid nobleman, who was ordered by Darius I to kill the rebellious satrap of Lydia, Oroetes. Oroetes was accused of having killed Mitrobates, the satrap of Daskyleion (Hellespontine Phrygia) and his son, but is best known as the murderer of Polycrates of Samos. Herodotus recounts how Bagaeus used written orders from Darius in order to assure himself of the obedience of the bodyguards of Oroetes to the orders of Darius, and w

Adusius (Old Persian ', Ancient Greek ') was, according to the account of Xenophon in his Cyropaedeia, sent by Cyrus the Great with an army into Caria, to put an end to the feuds which existed in the country. He afterwards assisted Hystaspes in subduing Phrygia, and was made satrap of Caria, as the inhabitants had requested.