Escitas (griego: Σκύθης Scýthēs o Σκύθοι Scýthoi) era el nombre dado en la Antigüedad a los miembros de un grupo de pueblos de origen iranio, caracterizados por una cultura basada en el pastoreo nómada y la cría de caballos de monta. Durante la Antigüedad clásica, los escitas dominaron la estepa póntica, la cual recibió el nombre de Escitia.Su idioma sería el antecesor del moderno osetio. En la Antigüedad tardía fueron sometidos por los sármatas, un pueblo culturalmente afín que terminó sustituyéndolos como amos de las estepas. La mayor parte de lo que se conoce sobre los escitas procede de fuentes extranjeras, concretamente griegas y latinas. Las principales de ellas son el libro IV de la Historia de Heródoto (440 a. C.), la Geografía de Estrabón y el poema de Ovidio Epístola desde el Ponto, que describe principalmente la Escitia Menor, ambos de la misma época (circa 13 d. C.) La arqueología ha descubierto testimonios de la cultura escita en los montículos funerarios de Ucrania y el sur de Rusia. El etnónimo “escita” también ha sido usado para referirse a otros pueblos de costumbres similares o que ocuparon las regiones de Rusia, Ucrania y Asia Central, conocidas durante largo tiempo como Escitia. Se sabe que tuvieron sus antecedentes desde el año 2000 a. C., pero su primera aparición en la historia es una alianza con los asirios en el siglo VII a. C.Siglos más adelante colaboraron con los medos —tribu irania emparentada con los persas— para desmembrar al Imperio asirio.

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The Scythians (/ˈsɪθi.ən/ or /ˈsɪði.ən/; from Greek Σκύθης, Σκύθοι), also known as Scyth, Saka, Sakae, Sacae, Sai, Iskuzai, or Askuzai, were a large group of Iranian Eurasian nomads who were mentioned by the literate peoples surrounding them as inhabiting large areas in the central Eurasian steppes from about the 9th century BC until about the 1st century BC. The Scythian languages belonged to the Eastern branch of the Iranian languages. The "classical Scythians" known to ancient Greek historians were located in the northern Black Sea and fore-Caucasus region. Other Scythian groups documented by Assyrian, Achaemenid and Chinese sources show that they also existed in Central Asia, where they were referred to as the Iskuzai/Askuzai, Saka (Old Persian: Sakā; New Persian: ساکا; Greek: Σάκαι; Armenian: սկյութները; Latin: Sacae, Sanskrit: शक Śaka), and Sai (Chinese: 塞; Old Chinese: *sˤək), respectively. Modern scholars however usually use the term Saka to refer to Iranian-speaking tribes who inhabited the Eastern Steppe and the Tarim Basin. The relationships between the peoples living in these widely separated regions remains unclear. The term "Scythian" is used by modern scholars in an archaeological context for finds perceived to display attributes of the "Scytho-Siberian" culture, usually without implying an ethnic or linguistic connotation. The term Scythic may also be used in a similar way, "to describe a special phase that followed the widespread diffusion of mounted nomadism, characterized by the presence of special weapons, horse gear, and animal art in the form of metal plaques". Their westernmost territories during the Iron Age were known to classical Greek sources as Scythia. The Scythians were among the earliest peoples to master mounted warfare. In the 8th century BC they possibly raided Zhou China. Soon after they expanded westwards and dislodged the Cimmerians from power on the Pontic Steppe. At their peak, Scythians came to dominate the entire steppe zone, stretching from the Carpathian Mountains in the west to central China (Ordos culture) and the south Siberia (Tagar culture) in the east, creating what has been referred to as the first Central Asian nomadic empire. Based in what is modern-day Ukraine, Southern European Russia, and Crimea, the western Scythians were ruled by a wealthy class known as the Royal Scyths. The Scythians established and controlled a vast trade network connecting Greece, Persia, India and China, perhaps contributing to the contemporary flourishing of those civilizations. Settled metalworkers made portable decorative objects for the Scythians. These objects survive mainly in metal, forming a distinctive Scythian art. In the 7th century BC the Scythians crossed the Caucasus and frequently raided the Middle East along with the Cimmerians, playing an important role in the political developments of the region. Around 650–630 BC, Scythians briefly dominated the Medes of the western Iranian Plateau, stretching their power all the way to the borders of Egypt. After losing control over Media the Scythians continued intervening in Middle Eastern affairs, playing a leading role in the destruction of the Assyrian Empire in the Sack of Nineveh in 612 BC. The Scythians subsequently engaged in frequent conflicts with the Achaemenid Empire. The western Scythians suffered a major defeat against Macedonia in the 4th century BC, and were subsequently gradually conquered by the Sarmatians, a related Iranian people from Central Asia. The Eastern Scythians of the Asian Steppe (Saka) were attacked by the Yuezhi, Wusun and Xiongnu in the 2nd century BC, prompting many of them to migrate into South Asia, where they became known as Indo-Scythians. At some point, perhaps as late as the 3rd century AD after the demise of the Han dynasty and the Xiongnu, Eastern Scythians crossed the Pamir Mountains and settled in the western Tarim Basin, where the Scythian Khotanese and Tumshuqese languages are attested in Brahmi scripture from the 10th and 11th centuries AD. In Eastern Europe, by the early Medieval Ages, the Scythians and their closely related Sarmatians were eventually assimilated and absorbed (e.g. Slavicisation) by the Proto-Slavic population of the region. Scythians kept herds of horses, cattle, and sheep, lived in tent-covered wagons, and fought with bows and arrows on horseback. They developed a rich culture characterized by opulent tombs, fine metalwork, and a brilliant art style.

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