Editing Ahasuerus (section)

===Identification of "Ahasuerus" as Artaxerxes II===
Some have speculated that the king was [[Artaxerxes II]]. In his ''Chronography'', the 13th century Syriac historian [[Bar Hebraeus]] also identifies Ahasuerus as Artaxerxes II citing the sixth century AD historian [[John of Ephesus]].<ref>E. A. W. Budge, ''The Chronography of Bar Hebraeus'', Gorgias Press, reprinted 2003</ref><ref>Jan Jacob van Ginkel, ''John of Ephesus. A Monophysite Historian in Sixth-century Byzantium'', Groningen, 1995</ref> [[Plutarch]] in his ''Lives'' (AD 75) records alternative names ''Oarses'' and ''Arsicas'' for Artaxerxes II Mnemon given by [[Deinon]] (c. 360–340 BC<ref>Wolfgang Felix, "Dinon", in ''Encyclopaedia Iranica'', 1996–2008</ref>) and [[Ctesias]] (Artexerxes II's physician<ref>Jona Lendering, ''Ctesias of Cnidus''; Livius, ''Articles on Ancient History'', 1996–2008</ref>{{clarify|reason=Is this two separate sources (Lendering and Livy)? If so, use separate ref tags for each|date=December 2024}}) respectively.<ref>John Dryden, Arthur Hugh Clough, ''Plutarch's Lives'', Little, Brown and Company, 1885</ref> These derive from the Persian name ''Khshayarsha'' as do "Ahasuerus" ("(Arta)Xerxes") and the [[hypocorism]] "Arshu" for Artaxerxes II found on a contemporary inscription (''LBAT'' 162<ref>M. A. Dandamaev, W. J. Vogelsang, ''A Political History of the Achaemenid Empire'', BRILL, 1989</ref>). These sources thus arguably identify Ahasuerus as Artaxerxes II in light of the names used in the Hebrew and Greek sources and accords with the contextual information from Pseudo-Hecataeus and [[Berossus]]<ref name="Hosch">Jacob Hoschander, ''The Book of Esther in the Light of History'', Oxford University Press, 1923</ref> as well as agreeing with Al-Tabari and Masudi's placement of events.