3rd-century Sasanian queen
Khwarranzem (Middle Persian: "Xwarranzēm") was a 3rd-century Sasanian queen ("banbishn"), married to Ardashir I or to Shapur I.
Biography.
The origins of her name is unknown, the name seems to suggest an Armenian or Georgian background. She is mentioned in Shapur I's inscription at the Ka'ba-ye Zartosht, where she is holding the title of "shahr banbishn" ("Queen of the empire"). According to the same inscription, she was the mother of a certain Gorazdukht.
Her husband is the subject of dispute amongst scholars; according to some, she was the wife of Ardashir I (r. 224 – 242), whilst others suggests that she was the wife of Ardashir's son and successor Shapur I (r. 240 – 270) and the mother of the latter's son and heir Hormizd I (r. 270 – 271). She may have been the same person as Gurdzad, who is mentioned as the wife of Shapur by the 10th-century historian Hamza al-Isfahani.
Sources.
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