page_title: Mah
hierarchical_section_title: Mah
caption_attribution_description: English: Taq-e Bostan - High relief: investiture scene; from left to right: Anahita, Khosrow II, Ahura Mazda
context_page_description: Mångha is the Avestan for "Moon, month", equivalent to Persian Māh.
  It is the name of the lunar deity in Zoroastrianism. The Iranian word is feminine, and consequently the personification of the Moon is a goddess, as in Greco-Roman tradition but in marked contrast both to Vedic religion and to her Mesopotamian predecessor Sin. Although Mah is not a prominent deity in the Avestan scripture, her crescent was an important symbol of royalty throughout the Parthian and Sassanid periods.
  The Iranian word is cognate with the English moon, from PIE *mēns; its equivalent is recorded as the Sanskrit word for "month", but is not used as a name of the Indo-Aryan lunar deity.
context_section_description: Mångha (måŋha) is the Avestan for "Moon, month",  equivalent to Persian Māh (Old Persian māha).
  It is the name of the lunar deity in Zoroastrianism. The Iranian word is feminine, and consequently the personification of the Moon is a goddess, as in Greco-Roman tradition but in marked contrast both to Vedic religion and to her Mesopotamian predecessor Sin. Although Mah is not a prominent deity in the Avestan scripture, her crescent was an important symbol of royalty throughout the  Parthian and Sassanid periods.
  The Iranian word is cognate with the English moon, from PIE *mēns; its equivalent is recorded as the Sanskrit word for "month" (māsa), but is  not used as a name of the Indo-Aryan lunar deity.
caption: Monumental rock relief at Taq-e Bostan, depicting Khosrow II (r. 591–628). The king is flanked by Anahita and Ahura Mazda, and crowned by a crescent, shown both as part of his crown and as hovering above his head.
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