English

Alternative forms

• Zarathustra (directly from Avestan)

Proper noun

Zoroaster ‎(uncountable)

1. Ancient Iranian prophet after whom indigenous Iranian ethnic religion is named Zoroastrianism
2. Pseudepigraphic name used by various Ancient Greek and Latin authors of late antiquity to lend their opinions weight.
3. (Can we clean up⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) Ostensible source/founder of Mithraism, the "mysteries" of the Roman Mysteriae Mithrae ("Mysteries of Mithras", "Mithraic Mysteries"), an astrology-centric, middle-platonic mystery cult of the 1st-4th century Roman Empire whose adherents worshiped in "caves" (i.e. Mithraea) in imitation of "Zoroaster". (Porphyry, De Antro Nympharum 6)

Translations

See also

• Zoroastrian