Short answers, pulled from the story.
Richard Foltz is a Canadian scholar born in 1961 who earned degrees in Persian literature and applied linguistics from the University of Utah. He completed a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern History at Harvard University before becoming a full professor in the Department of Religions and Cultures at Concordia University in Montreal.
Richard Foltz argues that premodern trans-Asian trade networks were driven primarily by Iranian traders including Sogdians, Parthians, and Persians rather than Chinese civilization. His perspective appears in his book titled Religions of the Silk Road published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2010.
Richard Foltz expands the scope to include Judaism, Buddhism, and Christianity to demonstrate how Iranian concepts influenced these diverse traditions. This approach treats Iranian civilization as a foundational identity for many Asian peoples similar to the role of Classical Greece and Rome within Western culture.
Richard Foltz argued that cosmic dualism within Zoroastrianism conflicts with modern ecological understanding because he believed all species play vital roles in ecosystems rather than existing in opposition. He cited fatalism and pro-natalist attitudes as obstacles to developing an ethic within contemporary Muslim societies.
The Ossetes: Modern-Day Scythians of the Caucasus was published by Bloomsbury on the 1st of January 2021. A revised second edition of his Tajik history appeared in London on the 1st of January 2023.