Kavadh

Kavadh, or Kāvād in Middle Persian, is a Persian given name associated with two rulers of the Sasanian Empire: Kavadh I and Kavadh II. The name is attested in Middle Persian sources and has been rendered in various forms, including Kawād and Kavād.

Kavadh I ruled the Sasanian Empire in the late 5th and early 6th centuries. Contemporary sources describe his reign as a period of renewed central authority amid ongoing conflicts with the Byzantine Empire and internal challenges. Details of his policies and reforms vary among sources, and the chronology of his reign is debated by historians.

Kavadh II, the son of Khosrow II, held the throne for a brief period around 628–629 CE. His accession followed the overthrow and killing of his father, and his short reign was followed by renewed political instability that preceded the Arab conquest of Persia.

In scholarship, Kavadh appears in Persian language histories, Armenian chronicles, and Byzantine accounts, with various transliterations such as Kawād or Kavād. The etymology of Kāvād is not definitively established, and the name is treated as a dynastic proper name rather than a term with a fixed meaning.