Da·ri·us /dəˈraɪəs/
 大流士
 Darius
    the holder or supporter, the name of several Persian kings. (1.)
    Darius the Mede (Dan. 11:1), "the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed
    of the Medes" (9:1). On the death of Belshazzar the Chaldean he
    "received the kingdom" of Babylon as viceroy from Cyrus. During
    his brief reign (B.C. 538-536) Daniel was promoted to the
    highest dignity (Dan. 6:1, 2); but on account of the malice of
    his enemies he was cast into the den of lions. After his
    miraculous escape, a decree was issued by Darius enjoining
    "reverence for the God of Daniel" (6:26). This king was probably
    the "Astyages" of the Greek historians. Nothing can, however, be
    with certainty affirmed regarding him. Some are of opinion that
    the name "Darius" is simply a name of office, equivalent to
    "governor," and that the "Gobryas" of the inscriptions was the
    person intended by the name.
      (2.) Darius, king of Persia, was the son of Hystaspes, of the
    royal family of the Achaemenidae. He did not immediately succeed
    Cyrus on the throne. There were two intermediate kings, viz.,
    Cambyses (the Ahasuerus of Ezra), the son of Cyrus, who reigned
    from B.C. 529-522, and was succeeded by a usurper named Smerdis,
    who occupied the throne only ten months, and was succeeded by
    this Darius (B.C. 521-486). Smerdis was a Margian, and therefore
    had no sympathy with Cyrus and Cambyses in the manner in which
    they had treated the Jews. He issued a decree prohibiting the
    restoration of the temple and of Jerusalem (Ezra 4:17-22). But
    soon after his death and the accession of Darius, the Jews
    resumed their work, thinking that the edict of Smerdis would be
    now null and void, as Darius was in known harmony with the
    religious policy of Cyrus. The enemies of the Jews lost no time
    in bringing the matter under the notice of Darius, who caused
    search to be made for the decree of Cyrus (q.v.). It was not
    found at Babylon, but at Achmetha (Ezra 6:2); and Darius
    forthwith issued a new decree, giving the Jews full liberty to
    prosecute their work, at the same time requiring the Syrian
    satrap and his subordinates to give them all needed help. It was
    with the army of this king that the Greeks fought the famous
    battle of Marathon (B.C. 490). During his reign the Jews enjoyed
    much peace and prosperity. He was succeeded by Ahasuerus, known
    to the Greeks as Xerxes, who reigned for twenty-one years.
      (3.) Darius the Persian (Neh. 12:22) was probably the Darius
    II. (Ochus or Nothus) of profane history, the son of Artaxerxes
    Longimanus, who was the son and successor of Ahasuerus (Xerxes).
    There are some, however, who think that the king here meant was
    Darius III. (Codomannus), the antagonist of Alexander the Great
    (B.C. 336-331).
 Darius, he that informs himself