The city of Susa was one of the oldest in the ancient world. It was capital of the ancient Mesopotamian kingdom of Elam. When Elam was absorbed by Persia, Susa became capital of Persia, and remained so throughout the era of the Persian Empire (Ezra 4:9; Nehemiah 1:1; Esther 1:2; Esther 1:5; Esther 4:8; Esther 8:14; Daniel 8:2; see PERSIA).