Xwaršēd Nigerišn and Its Zoroastrian Burial Customs in Greater Khurāsān

摘要: Archaeological data and literary sources provide information on Xwaršēd Nigerišn and Zoroastrian burial traditions in Greater Khurāsān. Thanks to archaeological data and classical texts, we know that Xwaršēd Nigerišn in Greater Khurāsān dates back to the Iron age and was continued to the Islamic period. In the geographical context of Greater Khurāsān, this burial custom was practiced at 1) surface graves, 2) secondary burials, 3) transportable ossuaries, 4) Naus, 5) dakhmas and 6) South Central Asian regions such as Khwārazm, Sogdia, Samarqand, Bactria, Margiana, Chach and Farghana, where scattered fragments of human bones are documented. This paper has tried to investigate the conceptual and historical evolution of Xwaršēd Nigerišn and study social organization and religious beliefs of human societies in Central Asia. Furthermore, the present research has represented the archaeological data …