The Yazuqaeans ( myz, ࡉࡀࡆࡅࡒࡀࡉࡉࡀ, translit=Iazuqaiia) are a religious group mentioned by the

Mandaeans Mandaeans ( ar, المندائيون ), also known as Mandaean Sabians ( ) or simply as Sabians ( ), are an ethnoreligious group who are followers of Mandaeism. They believe that John the Baptist was the final and most important prophet. They ...

in the ''

Ginza Rabba The Ginza Rabba ( myz, ࡂࡉࡍࡆࡀ ࡓࡁࡀ, translit=Ginzā Rbā, lit=Great Treasury), Ginza Rba, or Sidra Rabba ( myz, ࡎࡉࡃࡓࡀ ࡓࡁࡀ, translit=Sidrā Rbā, lit=Great Book), and formerly the Codex Nasaraeus, is the longest ...

'', the central religious text of

Mandaeism Mandaeism (Classical Mandaic: ࡌࡀࡍࡃࡀࡉࡉࡀ ; Arabic: المندائيّة ), sometimes also known as Nasoraeanism or Sabianism, is a Gnostic, monotheistic and ethnic religion. Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, S ...

. The Yazuqaeans are mentioned in Books 3 and 9.1 of the

Right Ginza The Right Ginza is one of the two parts of the Ginza Rabba, the longest and the most important holy scripture of Mandaeism. The other part of the Ginza Rabba is the Left Ginza. Summaries of each book (or tractate), based mostly on Häberl (2007 ...

Identity

Shapira (2004) identifies the Yazuqaeans with the Zoroastrians of the

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...

. The Yazuqaeans are typically described as "fire worshippers" in the ''Ginza Rabba'' (''see also''

Atar Atar, Atash, or Azar ( ae, 𐬁𐬙𐬀𐬭, translit=ātar) is the Zoroastrian concept of holy fire, sometimes described in abstract terms as "burning and unburning fire" or "visible and invisible fire" (Mirza, 1987:389). It is considered to b ...

). They are also associated with

Shamish In Mandaeism, Shamish or Šamiš ( myz, ࡔࡀࡌࡉࡔ) is the Mandaic name for the Sun.Müller-Kessler, Christa (2018). "Šamaš, Sîn (Sahra, Sira), Delibat (Ištar, al-‘Uzzā), und Kēwān (Kajjamānu) in den frühen mandäischen magischen T ...

, an allusion to

Mithra Mithra ( ae, ''Miθra'', peo, 𐎷𐎰𐎼 ''Miça'') commonly known as Mehr, is the Iranian deity of covenant, light, oath, justice and the sun. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing ...

. However, some passages ascribe Christian characteristics to them, while other passages mention the Jews as having originated from the Yazuqaeans. Shapira suggests that the Mandaeans later associated the Yazuqaeans with the Christians when Zoroastrian influence began to decline.

Etymology

Shapira (2004) proposes an

Iranian Iranian may refer to: * Iran, a sovereign state * Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran * Iranian lan ...

etymology for the term, suggesting: * *Iazwaqaiia (*yaz-wak) 'speech of worship' * *Iazdwaqaiia (*yazd-wak) 'speech of god . Possible variants: *Iazdqaiia < *yazd 'belonging to god' or *Iazzodaiia (*yaz zad) 'born of god , etc.)

References

Zoroastrianism and other religions Mandaeism Religion in the Sasanian Empire {{Zoroastrianism-stub