Egypt was conquered in 618 by the prominent Sasanian military leader
Shahrbaraz, who governed the province briefly until he appointed
Shahralanyozan as the new governor. Sahralanyozan held the title of karframan-idar ("steward of the court") and was the most powerful Iranian in Egypt. Besides being governor of Egypt, he was also the tax-collector of the province, and most likely resided in
Faiyum.[1] In
Middle Persian texts, the country is known as Agiptus and is described as follows: agiptus būm kē misr-iz xwānēnd 'the land of Agiptus which is also called Misr'.[a] The
Nile is termed as rōd ī nīl. Several cities of the country are mentioned, such as Touphis, Kynon,
Babylon, including some others, which displays the subjugation of the Sasanians in the area.[2]
Although Egypt suffered much damage during its invasion by the Sasanians, after the conquest was complete, peace, toleration and rehabilitation followed. Furthermore, the Sasanians retained the same administrative structure as the
Byzantine Empire.[3] The Sasanians did not try to force the population of Egypt to renounce their religion and practise
Zoroastrianism. They did, however, persecute the
Byzantine Church whilst supporting the
Monophysite Church. The
Copts took advantage of the circumstances and obtained control over many of the Orthodox churches.[4] There were numerous Sasanian stations in the country, which included
Elephantine, Herakleia,
Oxyrhynchus, Kynon,
Theodosiopolis,
Hermopolis,
Antinopolis, Kosson, Lykos, Diospolis, and
Maximianopolis. The assignment of those stations was to collect taxes and get supplies for the military. Several
papyrus papers mentions the collection of taxes by the Sasanians, which shows that they used the same method of the Byzantines for collecting taxes.[5] Another papyrus mentions an Iranian and his sister, which indicates that some families had settled in Egypt along with the soldiers.[6]
In 626, Shahrbaraz quarrelled with the Sasanian king
Khosrow II (r. 590–628) and mutinied against him. It is not known whom Sahralanzoyan supported, since he is not mentioned in any source thereafter and Shahrbaraz is described as the ruler of the province.[7] Following the end of the
Byzantine–Sasanian war in 628, by 630/1, Egypt had returned to Byzantine hands.[8][7] Although Sasanian rule in Egypt wasn't long compared to that of the Byzantines, some marks of their influences is still present today; the Coptic New Year celebration called
Nayrouz, where martyrs and confessors are honoured, stems from the Iranian New Year celebration
Nowruz.[9] Another commemoration which is related to the Sasanians is the
Holy Cross Day, that celebrates the discovery of the cross that
Jesus was crucified on and its homecoming to
Jerusalem in 628. Furthermore, Sasanian influence on
Coptic art is also apparent.[10]
Egypt was conquered in 618 by the prominent Sasanian military leader
Shahrbaraz, who governed the province briefly until he appointed
Shahralanyozan as the new governor. Sahralanyozan held the title of karframan-idar ("steward of the court") and was the most powerful Iranian in Egypt. Besides being governor of Egypt, he was also the tax-collector of the province, and most likely resided in
Faiyum.[1] In
Middle Persian texts, the country is known as Agiptus and is described as follows: agiptus būm kē misr-iz xwānēnd 'the land of Agiptus which is also called Misr'.[a] The
Nile is termed as rōd ī nīl. Several cities of the country are mentioned, such as Touphis, Kynon,
Babylon, including some others, which displays the subjugation of the Sasanians in the area.[2]
Although Egypt suffered much damage during its invasion by the Sasanians, after the conquest was complete, peace, toleration and rehabilitation followed. Furthermore, the Sasanians retained the same administrative structure as the
Byzantine Empire.[3] The Sasanians did not try to force the population of Egypt to renounce their religion and practise
Zoroastrianism. They did, however, persecute the
Byzantine Church whilst supporting the
Monophysite Church. The
Copts took advantage of the circumstances and obtained control over many of the Orthodox churches.[4] There were numerous Sasanian stations in the country, which included
Elephantine, Herakleia,
Oxyrhynchus, Kynon,
Theodosiopolis,
Hermopolis,
Antinopolis, Kosson, Lykos, Diospolis, and
Maximianopolis. The assignment of those stations was to collect taxes and get supplies for the military. Several
papyrus papers mentions the collection of taxes by the Sasanians, which shows that they used the same method of the Byzantines for collecting taxes.[5] Another papyrus mentions an Iranian and his sister, which indicates that some families had settled in Egypt along with the soldiers.[6]
In 626, Shahrbaraz quarrelled with the Sasanian king
Khosrow II (r. 590–628) and mutinied against him. It is not known whom Sahralanzoyan supported, since he is not mentioned in any source thereafter and Shahrbaraz is described as the ruler of the province.[7] Following the end of the
Byzantine–Sasanian war in 628, by 630/1, Egypt had returned to Byzantine hands.[8][7] Although Sasanian rule in Egypt wasn't long compared to that of the Byzantines, some marks of their influences is still present today; the Coptic New Year celebration called
Nayrouz, where martyrs and confessors are honoured, stems from the Iranian New Year celebration
Nowruz.[9] Another commemoration which is related to the Sasanians is the
Holy Cross Day, that celebrates the discovery of the cross that
Jesus was crucified on and its homecoming to
Jerusalem in 628. Furthermore, Sasanian influence on
Coptic art is also apparent.[10]