View source for Cyrus

{{Hatgrp|
{{Other uses}}
{{Distinguish|Cyprus}}
}}
{{Infobox given name
| name = Cyrus
| image= 
| imagesize= 
| caption= 
| pronunciation= {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|aɪ|r|ə|s}}
| gender = Male
| meaning = "Sun", "One who bestows care"
| origin = [[Persian language|Persian]]
| alternative spelling =[[Kourosh]], [[Kurush (disambiguation)|Kurush]], [[Koresh (disambiguation)|Koresh]] 
| related names = [[Ciro (given name)|Ciro]]
| footnotes =  
| wikt = 
|derivation={{Langx|peo|𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁|label=none}}&nbsp;({{Transliteration|peo|Kūruš}})|region=[[History of Iran|Persia]]}}

'''Cyrus''' ({{Langx|fa|کوروش|rtl=yes}}) is a Persian-language masculine [[given name]]. It is historically best known as the name of several [[List of monarchs of Iran|Persian kings]], most notably including [[Cyrus the Great]], who founded the [[Achaemenid Empire]] in 550 BC. It remains widespread among [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrians]], particularly in [[Zoroastrianism in India|India]], and is also relatively common in the [[Anglophone world]].

== Etymology ==
Cyrus, as a word in English, is the [[Latin]]ized form of the [[Greek language|Greek]] [[wikt:Κῦρος|Κῦρος]], ''Kȳros'', from [[Old Persian]] {{lang|peo|[[wikt:𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁|𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁]]}} ''Kūruš''.<ref name=cyrusthename>{{harv|Schmitt|1996a}}</ref> According to the inscriptions, the name is reflected in [[Elamite]] ''Kuraš'', [[Akkadian language|Babylonian]] ''Ku(r)-raš/-ra-áš'' and [[Imperial Aramaic]] ''kwrš''. The modern Persian form of the name is ''[[Kourosh|Kūroš]]''.

The etymology of Cyrus has been and continues to be a topic of discussion amongst [[historians]], [[linguists]], and scholars of [[Iranology]]. The Old Persian name "kuruš" has been interpreted in various forms such as "the Sun", "like Sun", "young", "hero," and "humiliator of the enemy in verbal contest" and the Elamite "kuraš" has been translated as one "who bestows care".

The name has appeared on many monuments and inscriptions in Old Persian.<ref name=chicyrus>{{harv|Gershevitch|1985|pp=392–5}}</ref> There is also the record of a small inscription in Morghab (southwestern Iran) on which there is the sentence (''adam kūruš xšāyaθiya haxāmanišiya'') in [[Old Persian]] meaning (''I am Cyrus the [[Achaemenian#Achaemenid kings and leaders|Achaemenian]] King'').<ref name=murghabinscription>{{harv|Tolman|1908|p=55}}</ref> After a questionable<ref name=kurusname>{{harv|Tolman|1908|p=82}}</ref> proposal by the German linguist F. H. Weissbach that [[Darius the Great]] was the first to inscribe in [[Old Persian|Persian]], it had previously been concluded by some scholars that the inscription in Morghab refers to Cyrus the Younger. This proposal resulted from a false interpretation of a passage in paragraph 70 of the [[Behistun inscription]] by Darius the Great.<ref>{{harv|Gershevitch|1985|p=395}}</ref> Based on many arguments,<ref>{{harv|Ghirshman|1965|p=246}}</ref> the accepted theory among modern scholars is that the inscription does belong to Cyrus the Great.<ref name=cyrustheyounger>{{harv|Schmitt|1996b}}</ref>

There are interpretations of the name of Cyrus by classical authors identifying with or referring to the Persian word for "Sun". The Historian [[Plutarch]] (46–120) states that "the sun, which, in the [[Old Persian|Persian language]], is called  Cyrus".<ref>[[Plutarch]], [http://classics.mit.edu/Plutarch/artaxerx.html ''Artoxerxes''] in [[Parallel Lives|(Parallel lives)]]</ref> Also, the Physician [[Ctesias]] who served in the court of the Persian king [[Artaxerxes II of Persia]] writes in his book ''Persica'' as summarized by [[Photios I of Constantinople#Writings|Photios]] that the name Cyrus is from the Persian word "Khur" (the sun).<ref>Epitome of [[Ctesias]]' Persica [https://www.livius.org/ct-cz/ctesias/photius_persica3.html 52] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161123225926/http://www.livius.org/ct-cz/ctesias/photius_persica3.html |date=2016-11-23 }}.</ref> These are, however, not accepted by modern scholars.<ref name=cyrusthename/>

Regarding the etymology of Old Persian ''kuruš'', linguists have proposed various etymologies based on Iranian languages as well as non-[[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] ones.<ref name=Tavernier>{{harv|Tavernier|2007|p=528}}</ref> According to Tavernier, the name ''kuraš'', attested in Elamite texts, is likely "the original form" as there is no Elamite or Babylonian spelling ''ku-ru-uš'' in the transcriptions of Old Persian ''ku-u-r(u)-u-š''. That is, according to Tavernier, ''kuraš'' is an Elamite name and means "to bestow care".<ref name=Tavernier/> Others, such as Schmitt, Hoffmann maintain that the Persian ''Kuruš'', which according to Skalmowsky, may be connected to (or borrowing from) the [[Proto-Indo-European language|IE]] ''Kúru-'' from [[Old Indic]] can give an etymology of the Elamite ''kuraš''.<ref name=cyrusthename/><ref name=Tavernier/> In this regard, the Old Persian ''kuruš'' is considered with the following etymologies: One proposal is discussed by the linguist [[Janos Harmatta]] that refers to the common Iranian root "kur-" (be born) of many words in Old, middle, and new [[Iranian languages]] (e.g. [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]]). Accordingly, the name Kūruš means "young, youth...".<ref name=harmatta>{{harv|Harmatta|1971|pp=5–6}}</ref> Other Iranian etymologies have been proposed. The Indian proposal of Skalmowsky goes down to "to do, accomplish". Another theory is the suggestion of [[Karl Hoffmann (German historian)|Karl Hoffmann]] that ''kuruš'' goes down to a ''-ru'' derivation from the IE root ''*(s)kau'' meaning "to humiliate"<ref name=Tavernier/>  and accordingly "kuruš" (hence "Cyrus") means "''humiliator'' (of the enemy in verbal contest)".<ref name=cyrusthename/>

==People==
===Given name===
====Ancient world====
*[[Cyrus I]] ({{circa|650|lk=no}} BC), King of Anshan
*[[Cyrus the Great]]  ({{circa|600|lk=no}} BC or 576 BC–530 BC) – also known as Cyrus II – the grandson of Cyrus I, an Achaemenid ruler and founder of the Great Persian Empire
*[[Cyrus the Younger]] (died 401 BC), brother to the Persian King Artaxerxes
*[[Cyrus (architect)]], 1st century Greek architect who worked in Rome
*Saint Cyrus (see [[Cyrus and John]]), 4th century Coptic saint
*[[Cyrus I of Edessa]], bishop (died 396)
*[[Cyrus II of Edessa]], bishop (died 498)
*[[Cyrus of Alexandria]] (died 642), Melkite Patriarch and co-founder of Monothelism
*[[Cyrus of Panopolis]], 5th-century Byzantine writer and official

====Modern era====
*[[Cyrus Leroy Baldridge]] (1889–1977), American artist, illustrator, author and adventurer
*[[Cyrus Townsend Brady]] (1861–1920), American journalist, historian and adventure writer
*[[Cyrus Broacha]] (born 1971), MTV India VJ
*[[Cyrus Ramone Pattinson]] (born 1994), Team GB Boxer
*[[Cyrus S. Ching]] (1876–1967), Canadian-American industrialist, civil servant, and union mediator
*[[Cyrus Christie]] (born 1992), professional footballer who plays as right back for Hull City A.F.C
*[[Cyrus Chothia]] (1942–2019), British scientist
*[[Cyrus Edwin Dallin]] (1861–1944), American sculptor
*[[Cyrus S. Eaton]] (1883–1979), Canadian-American banker, investor and philanthropist
*[[Cyrus Edwards]] (1793–1877), American politician and lawyer
*[[Cyrus West Field]] (1819–1892), American businessman who successfully laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable
*[[Cyrus Frisch]] (born 1969), Dutch film director
*[[Cyrus Herzl Gordon]] (1908–2001) was an American scholar of Near Eastern cultures and ancient languages
*[[Cyrus Hamlin (general)]] (1839–1867), Union general during American Civil War, son of Vice President Hannibal Hamlin
*[[Cy Hungerford]] (1889–1983), American editorial cartoonist
*[[Cyrus Kabiru]] (born 1984), Kenyan visual artist
*[[Cy Kendall]] (1898–1953), American actor
*[[Cyrus B. Lower]] (1843–1924), American Civil War Medal of Honor recipient
*[[Cyrus McCormick]] (1809–1884), American inventor who developed the modern mechanical reaper
*[[Cyrus Pallonji Mistry]] (born 1968), Irish-Indian businessman and Chairman of Indian conglomerate Tata Group
*[[Cyrus Mistry (writer)]] (born 1956), Indian author and playwright
*[[Cyrus Patell]] (born 1961), American literary and cultural critic
*[[Cyrus Peirce]] (1790–1860), founder of first public normal school (teachers' college) in the United States
*[[Cyrus Poncha]] (born 1976), national squash coach in India
*[[Cyrus S. Poonawalla]] ({{floruit|1966–present}}), Indian businessman
*[[Cyrus Redding]] (1785–1870), British journalist and wine writer
*[[Cyrus Rollocks]] (born 1998), Canadian soccer player
*[[Cyrus Sahukar]] (born 1980), MTV India VJ
*[[C. R. Smith]] (1899–1990), longtime CEO of American Airlines
*[[Cyrus Vance|Cyrus Vance Sr.]] (1917–2002), American politician and lawyer, [[U.S. Secretary of the Army]] under [[President of the United States|Presidents]] [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], [[U.S. Secretary of Defense]] under Lyndon B. Johnson and [[U.S. Secretary of State]] under [[Jimmy Carter]]
**[[Cyrus Vance Jr.]] (born 1954), American politician and lawyer, son of Cyrus Sr. and former  [[Manhattan]] [[New York County District Attorney|District Attorney]] (2010–2021)
*[[Cyrus Villanueva]], Australian singer who won ''The X Factor Australia'' in 2015

===In literature===
* ''[[The Garden of Cyrus]]'', a discourse by the English physician-philosopher [[Thomas Browne]]

==Fictional characters==
*Cyrus, from [[James Riley (writer)#The Revenge of Magic series|''The Revenge of Magic'']] book series by James Riely
*Cyrus Beene, from the television series [[Scandal (TV series)|''Scandal'']]
*Cyrus Trask, from [[John Steinbeck]]'s novel ''[[East of Eden (novel)|East of Eden]]''
* Cyrus Spitama, the grandson of [[Zoroaster]] and main character of [[Gore Vidal]]'s novel [[Creation (novel)|''Creation'']].
* [[Cyrus Borg]], a character in ''[[Ninjago (TV series)|Ninjago]]''
* [[Cyrus Bortel]], from the animated TV series ''Kim Possible''
* [[Cyrus Goodman]], from ''[[Andi Mack]]'' and [[Disney Channel]]'s first gay main character
* [[Cyrus Lupo]], a detective from ''Law & Order''
* [[Cyrus Simpson]], the brother of Abraham Simpson in ''The Simpsons''
* Cyrus, from the TV series ''[[Trailer Park Boys]]''
* Cyrus, from the animated series ''[[Sonic Underground]]''
* Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, in the 1997 film ''[[Con Air]]'', played by [[John Malkovich]]
* Cyrus, a gang leader in the 1979 film ''[[List of characters in The Warriors#Cyrus|The Warriors]]''
* [[Cyrus (Pokémon)|Cyrus]], the leader of Team Galactic and the main antagonist of [[Pokémon Diamond and Pearl|''Pokémon Diamond'', ''Pearl'']], and [[Pokémon Platinum|''Platinum'']]
* Cyrus Gold, the DC Comics character [[Solomon Grundy (character)|Solomon Grundy]]
* [[Cyrus Smith]], the leading character in Jules Verne's novel ''[[Mysterious Island]]''
* Cyrus, a vampaneze from the novel ''[[The Vampire Prince]]'' by Darren Shan
* [[Cyrus (Chrono Trigger)|Cyrus]], in the video game ''Chrono Trigger''
* Cyrus, a Redguard pirate and hero in the video game ''[[The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard]]''
* Cyrus Albright, one of the eight main protagonists of the video game ''[[Octopath Traveler]]''
* Cyrus, an NPC in the video game ''[[Genshin Impact]]''
* Cyrus, an alpaca NPC introduced in ''[[Animal Crossing: New Leaf]]''

==See also==
* [[Persian name]]
* [[Syrus|Syrus (Greek mythology)]]

== Citations ==
{{Reflist}}

== General and cited references ==
{{refbegin}}
* {{citation|last=Ghirshman|first=R.|author-link = Roman Ghirshman|title=A propos de l'ecriture cuneiforme vieux-perse|doi=10.1086/371818|journal=[[Journal of Near Eastern Studies]]|year=1965|pages=244–250|volume=24|issue=3|s2cid=162253058}}
* {{Citation  | last = Schmitt  | first = Rüdiger  | author-link = Rüdiger Schmitt  | contribution = Cyrus i. The Name  | editor-last = Yarshater  | editor-first = Ehsan  | title = Encyclopaedia Iranica  | volume = 6  | pages = 515–16  | publisher = Routledge & Kegan Paul  | place = London  | year = 1996a  | contribution-url = http://www.iranica.com/cyrus-i-name  | title-link = Encyclopaedia Iranica  }}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
* {{Citation  | last = Schmitt  | first = Rüdiger  | author-link = Rüdiger Schmitt  | contribution = Cyrus vi. Cyrus the Younger  | editor-last = Yarshater  | editor-first = Ehsan  | title = Encyclopaedia Iranica  | volume = 6  | pages = 518  | publisher = Routledge & Kegan Paul  | place = London  | year = 1996b  | contribution-url = http://www.iranica.com/cyrus-vi-younger  }}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
* {{citation|last=Tavernier|first=Jan| title=Iranica in the Achaemenid Period (ca. 550-330 B.C.): Linguistic Study of Old Iranian Proper Names and Loanwords, Attested in Non-Iranian Texts |publisher=Peeters Publishers |year=2007|isbn=978-90-429-1833-7}}
* {{citation | last=Tolman | first=Herbert Cushing| year=1908 | title=Ancient Persian Lexicon| publisher=American Book Company|isbn=978-0-7905-2613-3}}
*{{citation| publisher = Cambridge University Press| isbn = 978-0-521-20091-2| last = Gershevitch| first = Ilya| title = The Cambridge History of Iran Vol. 2: The Median and Achaemenian periods| year = 1985| title-link = The Cambridge History of Iran}}
* {{citation |last=Harmatta |first= János |author-link=Janos Harmatta |year=1971 |title=The Rise of the Old Persian Empire — Cyrus the Great |journal= Acta Antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae|volume= 19|pages=1–15 }}
{{refend}}

{{given name|type=both}}

[[Category:English masculine given names]]
[[Category:Masculine given names]]