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Background
The Achaemenids were an ancient Persian civilisation whose empire arose in the 6th century BC, originating from the Achaemenid kingdom in the 8th century BC. At the height of its power, it reached from the Balkans in Eastern Europe to the Indus Valley. The empire was notable for its successful incorporation of conquered peoples of different origins, as well as its centralised bureaucracy. The language of the Achaemenid Empire was Elamite under the reigns of Cyrus the Great, its founder, and Darius I, under whom the empire reached its greatest extent, but the peoples under the empire's control spoke many languages, such as Old Persian, Aramaic, Greek, Egyptian and many others. Religious toleration was also a notable feature of the Achaemenids, although Zoroastrianism became accepted by the rulers of the empire and strongly influenced Achaemenid culture, with not just the formalization of the traditional Iranian pantheon, but also important concepts such as free will. Although the Achaemenid Empire declined in the 4th century BC, it left a lasting impact on the culture of Asia, Europe and the Middle EAst.
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