Transoxiana and Sogdiana: A Discussion of Interchangeable Terms pt. 1

While researching Sogdians and their origins, one is likely to come across two names to identify the Sogdian homeland: Sogdiana and Transoxiana. These terms seem to be used interchangeably to refer to the place of origin of the Sogdian people. It was my theory, from my research, that Transoxiana referred to a larger area than just that of Sogdiana. This entry will discuss my investigation and research into this topic.

When tackling a topic dealing with Geography, the go-to item anyone would want to look for are maps. Now, I'm not an expert on maps. And, while I am fairly adept at Political Geography, I am not a Geographer and I do not possess an extensive knowledge of map terminology. But, what I am here to tell you is that finding good, authoritative maps of Transoxiana and Sogdiana is not easy. In the Age of the Internet, anyone can create maps for Wikipedia, and the researcher investigating a topic like this will often find maps of unknown origin, with no citation for the original creator of the map or even an idea of what the creator used to inform their creation of the map. One hopes it is scholarly, but that cannot be ascertained with any certainty unless the artist creating it cites the sources of their information.

There is also the problem of the types of maps produced. Some will be historic maps displaying the topography of the region and giving the historic city and regional names. Others will show modern political borders with no names and a colored in area where the historic region was located. Here are some examples below: 

MAP 1

The map of Sogdiana found on Wikipedia's Sogdiana page. It yields few clues about the modern countries the region of Sogdiana straddled, and gives no topography to indicate the rivers that were so important as the natural boundaries of Sogdiana. Source: Wikimedia Commons

MAP 2

This map can be found on Wikipedia's Transoxiana page. Despite being on the Transoxiana page, the map does nothing to indicate where Transoxiana might be located, nor does it even display the name of Transoxiana. Granted, this map does show the general, historic area of Transoxiana, but without any kind of naming or names of other places of classical period in question, one is at a loss to derive any information from the map except the route of the Amu Darya, the major towns along the Amu Darya, and the modern country names of that region. The file name, as given on Wikimedia Commons, indicates this is a map of the Amu Darya basin and makes no mention of Transoxiana. 

MAP 3

And this map seems to indicate that Sogdiana is part of a larger Transoxiana area, but there are no borders of modern countries to overlap for border comparisons. This map also comes from a site with no reputable sources, nor does it seem to be associated with any sort of well-known academic community or higher education institution. Therefore, while it is probably one of the most helpful maps I have found on the topic, I cannot confirm its authoritative nature without an original source.

But, wait! There's more! I chose three scholarly texts for my research of the topic, and the maps included in the texts only add to the confusion:

MAP 4

This is one map from Valerie Hansen's Silk Road: A New History and it is slightly confusing. It places the label for Sogdiana on the other side of the Amu Darya (Oxus), with a line indicating where Sogdiana is (just north of Balkh on this map). I don't like this and I haven't really seen a map drawn like this before. Usually mapmakers can fit Sogdiana into its proper spot, but it looks like the space where the name Sogdiana would usually fit is occupied by the Kizil Kum desert, Samarkand, and the trade route lines. It's a busy map, but it is also somewhat frustrating to look at with Sogdian research in mind.

This map, also from Valerie Hansen's Silk Road: A New History, places Sogdiana back in its proper area, between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya (Oxus and Jaxartes). I actually like this map because it shows classical names for ancient areas while also showing modern country names and political borders. However, if this map had gone the extra mile and just thrown a Transoxiana in there, that would have been great. There is no mention in the index of the Transoxiana place name, so I am going to go out on a limb and just assume Dr. Hansen uses the term Sogdiana as a catch all.

MAP 6

This map from Richard Foltz's Spirituality in the Land of the Noble shows historic borders of the various empires around Iran in the 6th century CE. This map uses neither the name "Sogdiana" or "Transoxiana", but uses the word "Sogdians" around their historical homeland. This is actually very interesting, because using the term "Sogdiana" implies that there is some kind of organized, central authority ruling over some sort of a Sogdian Empire or Sogdian Kingdom, which is just not the case. Sogdian authority was very decentralized, and while regional rulers may have paid homage to a few, far more powerful individuals who ruled larger areas, generally there is no one Sogdian Empire to speak of.

MAP 6

Christopher Beckwith's map from his text Empires of the Silk Road is perhaps the most interesting, since it, like the other found on the internet above, uses the names Transoxiana and Sogdiana. This map seems to identify Sogdiana as part of the larger area of Transoxiana. The map also claims to show pre-modern Central Eurasia. With its authoritative source, this map lends credibility to the other map found online that displayed both Transoxiana and Sogdiana.

So, as we can see from the examples above, trying to determine just what Transoxiana and Sogdiana are in relation to each other based on available maps is murky at best. But what can be done to solve problem of when to use "Transoxiana" and "Sogdiana", and how can we know if the two are completely interchangeable?? I will discuss that in my next post, where I will share my thoughts and conclusions on this topic. 
Continued in Part 2

Sources

Map 1 
Source: Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sogdiana-300BCE.png. Found on Wikipedia Entry: Sogdiana

Map 2
Source: Wikimedia Commons https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transoxiana 
Found on Wikipedia Entry: Transoxiana

Map 3
Source: Paradise on Earth: Encyclopedia of Countries and Cities- Transoxiana http://allworldtowns.com/cities/transoxiana.html 

Map 4

Thiede, Alice. The Main Routes Across Eurasia [map]. 1" = 1000 miles. In: Valerie Hansen.  The Silk Road: A New History. Illustrated edition. New York: Oxford, 2012, inside cover.

Map 5 

Thiede, Alice. The Main Routes of the Taklamakan [map]. 1" = 300 miles. In: Valerie Hansen. The Silk Road: A New History. Illustrated edition. New York: Oxford, 2012, back inside cover.

Map 6

Unknown. Iran and its neighbors in the 6th century CE [map]. 1/2" = 250 miles. In: Richard C. Foltz. Spirituality in the Land of the Noble: How Iran Shaped the World's Religions. Oxford: OneWorld, 2008, xviii.

Map 7

Unknown. Premodern Central Eurasia [map]. no scale. In: Christopher I. Beckwith. Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009, inside cover.