Argishti I of Urartu

Argishti I (Armenian: Արգիշտի Ա), was the sixth known king of Urartu, reigning from 786 BC to 764 BC. He founded the citadel of Erebuni in 782 BC, which is the present capital of Armenia, Yerevan.[1] Alternate transliterations of the name include Argishtis, Argisti, Argišti, and Argishtish. Although the name is usually rendered as Argišti (read: Argishti), some scholars argue that Argisti is the most likely pronunciation. This is due to the belief that the Urartians used the cuneiform symbol š to voice an s-sound, as opposed to representing the diagraph sh.[2]

Argishti I
Monument of Argishti in Yerevan, Armenia
King of Urartu
Reign	786–764 BC
Predecessor	Menua
Successor	Sarduri II
Born	c. 827 BC
Died	c. 764 BC
Issue	Sarduri II
Father	Menua
Mother	Tariria

A son and the successor of Menua, he continued the series of conquests initiated by his predecessors. He was involved in a number of inconclusive conflicts with the Assyrian king Shalmaneser IV. He conquered the northern part of Syria and made Urartu the most powerful state in post-Hittite Asia Minor. He also expanded his kingdom north to Lake Sevan, conquering much of Diauehi and the Ararat Valley.[3] Argishti built the Erebuni Fortress in 782 BC, and the fortress of Argishtikhinili in 776 BC.

He was succeeded by his son Sarduri II.

Linguists believe that the name Argishti has Indo-European etymology (Armenian).[4] Compare Armenian արեգ (translit. areg) – “sun deity”, “sun”, Phrygian ΑΡΕJΑΣΤΙΝ (translit. Areyastin) - “epithet of the great mother” and Ancient Greek αργεστής (translit. argestes) - “shining”, “brilliant”, “white”, “bright”. Ti (Di) meant "god" in proto-Armenian (compare with Classical Armenian Dik').