Aturpatakan is the ancient Old Persian name (also in Middle Persian "Adur Paiyigan.") of "Azarbaijan". It means "The Guardians of Fire"— a reference to the holy Zoroastrian fire that burned in the grand fire temple at Ganzak/Ganzaca (modern Takab)— the first capital of Azerbaijan/Media Minor. According to various sources cited in the Encyclopedia Iranica (p.206), the region of Azarbaijan was part of the Sassanid Azarbadegan satrap as far back as the 3rd century.(ibid p.206) The current ruins of Takht-i Suleiman in today’s West Azarbaijan province of Iran was the capital of the Azarbaijan Satrapy. The people of Aturpatakan spoke the Azari language, an Iranian language of western branch which is still in use by small villages distributed in the region.
