ancient Iranian goddess of royalty, war, and fertility; she is particularly associated with the last. Possibly of Mesopotamian origin, her cult was made prominent by Artaxerxes II, and statues and temples were set up in her honour throughout the Persian empire. A common cult of the various peoples of the empire at that time, it persisted in Asia Minor long afterward. In the Avesta she is called Ardvī Sūrā Anāhitā (“Damp, Strong, Untainted”); this seems to be an amalgam of two originally separate deities. In Greece Anāhiti was identified with Athena and Artemis.