The administrative division of Achaemenid Persia is still a matter of debates.

 The administrative division of Achaemenid Persia is still a matter of debates.

Most scholars agree that satrapic system was a hierarchic one. There were main and minor satrapies, where the latter was ruled by the former. In Bisitun inscription 23 lands are mentioned, which usually are assumed to be main satrapies during the Darius reign. Herodotus list of 20 satrapies is an incomplete recount of both main and minor satrapies where there is a clear bias toward western regions of empire. While the eastern regions are very little reperesented.

Khorikyan discuss those questions and based on his papers i made a map of main satrapy Armenia mentioned in Bisitun and other subsatrapies mentioned in Herodotus.

Saspeirs, Saspir or Sapirs. According Herodotus was located between Colchis and Media. For this reasin if was placed in modern Armenia. However if modern Azerbaijan was part of Medes main satrapy ( map 3) then a location in Eastern Georgia is also possible. Locating Saspeirs in modern Armenia has no any arguments. Neither in Urartian period or later Armenian period there is no single toponym that can be linked to Saspeir in modern Armenia. While such a toponym exists in Georgia. It is the Iberia. Some scholars had proposed a theory that sa- is a Georgian prefix for land like in Sakartvelo and the true root in Saspeirs/Sapirs is the *speir or *pir which can be the proto form of Greek Iberia and Latin Hiberia.

From genetic point of view we know that Iberian related ancestry had already formed in eastern Georgia in early antiquity. So some early Georgian polity must have existed there in Achaemenid period. Saspeirs can be the precursor of Iberia.

Matiene. Another obscure tribe mentioned with Saspeirs. Matiene existed in many places. In Anatolia and northwestern Iran. Khorikyan cites at last one Greek source where Matiene is mentioned in Caucasian context and based on this he place it in the headwaters of Kur river.

From genetic point of the presence of R1a and Q2 in ancient Samtskhe region is remarkable. It could be related to Persian rule there but can be a different influence from Iranian plateau. The Matiene being a,plausible candidate.

Not much is known about Alarodi. Only two sentences. So its localization will remain speculative.

In sum Khorikyan propose the the 18th satrapy was in north of Armenia rather in East Armenia.

Finally the Pactyuce mentioned alongside Armenians is in most likelihood a corrupted form of Patuka. A Luwian or Hittite term peda meaning "land" from which Katpatuka is derived. Which means lower land. A village Patuk is attested near Kharberd Elyazig city.

The third map shows main satrapies according Jacobs. While the second map shows the temporal expansion of the empire by Mladiov.