CARMANIANS (R. V., CARMONIANS):
A people mentioned in II Esd. xv. 30. The Carmanians are represented as joining battle with the "nations of the dragons of Arabia." The dragons gain the upper hand, but are themselves defeated later (xv. 33). This has been taken to refer to the time of the Sassanids. Sapor I. (240-273) invaded Syria and took Antioch, but was repulsed by Odenathus and Zenobia. Zenobia was afterward defeated by Aurelian and taken captive.
The name is still preserved in "Kirman," a district in the southeastern part of Persia, on the shores of the Persian Gulf.
