The Date of Zoroaster

Summary

This article attempts to determine the period in which Zoroaster (Zarathustra), the founder of Zoroastrianism, lived. It surveys ancient Iranian texts, Greek accounts and linguistic evidence to compile various proposed dates ranging from 1500 BC to 600 BC. The author discusses the sequence of Avestan and Old Persian language stages, noting that certain forms in the Gathas appear archaic even by Vedic standards. References to historical figures and events in the Younger Avesta and Classical sources are scrutinised to narrow the chronology. The article also considers astronomical clues and synchronisms with Mesopotamian history. After weighing the evidence, the author argues that a date in the 15th or 14th century BC is most plausible, as later dates conflict with linguistic and philological considerations. The study thus positions Zoroaster well before the emergence of the Achaemenid empire and suggests that his reforms influenced Iranian religion for over a millennium.