History of the Caucasus
The history of the Caucasus region may be divided by geography into the history of the North Caucasus (Ciscaucasia), historically in the sphere of influence of Scythia and of Southern Russia (Eastern Europe), and that of the South Caucasus (Transcaucasia; Caucasian Albania, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan) in the sphere of influence of Persia, Anatolia, and (for a very brief time) Assyria. Throughout history, Southern Caucasus and the Southeastern portion of the North Caucasus have come under the control of various empires, including the Achaemenid, Neo-Assyrian Empire, Parthian, Roman, Sassanian, Byzantine, Mongol, Ottoman, and successive Iranian (Safavid, Afsharid, and Qajar).