Nowruz

This well-balanced reference on ancient Persia demonstrates the region's contributions to the growth and development of human civilization from the 7th century BCE through the fall of the Persian Sasanian Empire in 651CE. Knowledge of ancient Persia is often gleaned from the writings of the ancient Greeks and Romans--two civilizations that viewed the Persians as enemies. This one-of-a-kind reference provides unbiased coverage of the cultural history of the Persian Empire, examining the Median, Achaemenid, Parthian, Kushan, and Sasanian dynasties and tracing the development and maturation of Iranian societies during a period of nearly 1,500 years. As one of the most comprehensive studies on the topic, this historical overview explores the region's rich past while providing insight into the cultures and civilizations the Persians came to rule and influence. Using primary sources written and inscribed by the ancient Persians themselves, the encyclopedia studies the pre-Islamic civilizations of Iran in the Middle East, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Incorporating contributions from scholars who discuss the rise and fall of various Persian dynasties, the work offers some 180 entries that cover such topics as religion, royal nobility, the caste system, and political assassinations. The content offers perspectives from a variety of disciplines--from anthropology to archaeology, geography, and art history, among other areas.

Critical approaches to the study of topics related to Persian literature and Iranian culture have evolved in recent decades. The essays included in this volume collectively demonstrate the most recent creative approaches to the study of the Persian language, literature, and culture, and the way these methodologies have progressed academic debate. Topics covered include; culture, cognition, history, the social context of literary criticism, the problematics of literary modernity, and the issues of writing literary history. More specifically, authors explore the nuances of these topics; literature and life, poetry and nature, culture and literature, women and literature, freedom of literature, Persian language, power, and censorship, and issues related to translation and translating Persian literature in particular. In dealing with these seminal subjects, contributors acknowledge and contemplate the works of Ahmad Karimi Hakkak and other pioneering critics, analysing how these works have influenced the field of literary and cultural studies. Contributing a variety of theoretical and inter-disciplinary approaches to this field of study, this book is a valuable addition to the study of Persian poetry and prose, and to literary criticism more broadly.

Holiday folklore expert, Waverly Fitzgerald, shares the information she has collected on the traditions and customs common to spring holidays from many cultures and religions. Learn how to decorate the Spring Feast table, whether you celebrate Easter, Passover, St. Joseph's or Nowruz (Iranian New Year), and the symbolic dishes served for these and other Spring festivals. Includes recipes for herb omelets, tansy puddings, hot cross buns, charoset, and more, as well as instructions for dyeing eggs with natural dyes, decorating eggs the Ukrainian way and playing egg games, like egg shackling and egg-rolling.

H'fiz is honored as the greatest lyric poet of Iran and the D'v'n-i H'fiz, his collected poetry, is without doubt one of the world's greatest literary achievements. Translated here from the edition of Parv'z N't'l Kh'nlar?, the 486 poems have been rendered as literally as possible while trying to convey some sense of the original poetry to the reader who lacks knowledge of Persian. The ghazals are introduced and presented with extensive annotation by one of today's most eminent scholars of Persian literature.

Translations of Goethe's poems about Arabia and Persia and his essays on Islamic culture. In West-East Divan (1819), Germany's greatest poet J. W. von Goethe offered a work of lasting appeal. Stimulated by the Divan ("Collection") by medieval pub poet Hafiz, Goethe blends his own identity with that of the Persian Sufi master who sang the delights of wine and tavern romance in a context of Qur'anic allusion. Martin Bidney accompanies his rendering with commentary poems; and Peter Anton von Arnim joins him to offer, as well, the first translation into English of Goethe's "Notes and Essays," a pioneering guide to the cultural history of the Middle East. Bidney's "Introduction" clarifies the transformation brought about in Goethe's thought by his Muslim mentor.

A free open access ebook is available upon publication. Learn more at www.luminosoa.org. Iran's particular system of traditional Persian art music has been long treated as the product of an ever-evolving, ancient Persian culture. In Music of a Thousand Years, Ann E. Lucas argues that this music is a modern phenomenon indelibly tied to changing notions of Iran's national history. Rather than considering a single Persian music history, Lucas demonstrates cultural dissimilarity and discontinuity over time, bringing to light two different notions of music-making in relation to premodern and modern musical norms. An important corrective to the history of Persian music, Music of a Thousand Years is the first work to align understandings of Middle Eastern music history with current understandings of the region's political history.

Sofreh is Persian for 'spread' - originally referring to the cloth used at feast days and religious ceremonies, now also including the colourful flower arrangements, condiments and objects of spiritual or cultural importance used as centrepieces. Book One focuses on the Persian New Year (Nowruz), which is celebrated on the first day of Spring. Book Two explores the elaborate settings for Persian marriage ceremonies (Aqd). AUTHOR: Maryam Khosrowshahi is an art enthusiast who has lived, worked and studied in Iran, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and Switzerland, where she now works on research and design of her personal projects. Dr Willem Floor is an independent scholar specialising in the social and economic history of Iran, and is the author of more than 250 books and articles on a wide range of subjects. Parviz Tanavoli is an internationally recognised contemporary Iranian sculptor, artist, collector and author with a profound knowledge of the history and material culture of Iran. His work is represented in important public and private collections around the world. SELLING POINTS: * Full-colour photographs capture the spirit of these ancient traditions in the modern day * Pays homage to ancient traditions, discussing the symbiosis of symbolism and culture * Detailed extracts from old manuscripts, antique woven textiles and embroideries 352 illustrations

Presents 240 classical and regional Iranian recipes. This book describes ancient and modern ceremonies, poetry, folk tales, travelogue excerpts, and anecdotes. It helps you learn how to cook rice, the jewel of Persian cooking, simply yet deliciously.

From the Biblical period and Classical Antiquity to the rise of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, aspects of Persian culture have been integral to European history. A diverse constellation of European artists, poets, and thinkers have looked to Persia for inspiration, finding there a rich cultural counterpoint and frame of reference. Interest in all things Persian was no passing fancy but an enduring fascination that has shaped not just Western views but the self-image of Iranians up to the present day. Persophilia maps the changing geography of connections between Persia and the West over the centuries and shows that traffic in ideas about Persia and Persians did not travel on a one-way street. How did Iranians respond when they saw themselves reflected in Western mirrors? Expanding on Jürgen Habermas's theory of the public sphere, and overcoming the limits of Edward Said, Hamid Dabashi answers this critical question by tracing the formation of a civic discursive space in Iran, seeing it as a prime example of a modern nation-state emerging from an ancient civilization in the context of European colonialism. The modern Iranian public sphere, Dabashi argues, cannot be understood apart from this dynamic interaction. Persophilia takes into its purview works as varied as Xenophon's Cyropaedia and Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Handel's Xerxes and Puccini's Turandot, and Gauguin and Matisse's fascination with Persian art. The result is a provocative reading of world history that dismantles normative historiography and alters our understanding of postcolonial nations.

Winner, ALA ALEX Award An urgent, groundbreaking and visually stunning new collection of graphic storytelling about the present Iranian revolution, using comics to show what would be censored in photos and film in Iran. Marjane Satrapi, author of Persepolis, returns to graphic art with this collaboration of over 20 activists, artists, journalists, and academics working together to depict the historic uprising, in solidarity with the Iranian people and in defense of feminism. On September 13th 2022, a young Iranian student, Mahsa Amini, was arrested by the morality police in Tehran. Her only crime was that she wasn't properly wearing the headscarf required for women by the Islamic Republic. At the police station, she was beaten so badly she had to be taken to the hospital, where she fell into a deep coma. She died three days later. A wave of protests soon spread through the whole country, and crowds adopted the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom"-words that have been chanted around the world during solidarity rallies. In order to tell the story of this major revolution happening in her homeland, Marjane Satrapi has gathered together an array of journalists, activists, academics, artists, and writers from around the world to create this powerful collection of full-color, graphic-novel-style essays and perspectives that bear witness- Contributing artists- Joann Sfar, Coco, Mana Neyastani, Catel, Pascal Rabate, Patricia Bolanos, Paco Roca, Bahareh Akrami, Hippolyte, Shabnam Adiban, Lewis Trondheim, Winshluss, Touka Neyastani, Bee, Deloupy, Nicolas Wild, and Marjane Satrapi. 3 expert perspectives on Iran- long-time journalist for Liberation and political scientist Jean-Pierre Perrin; researcher and Iran specialist Farid Vahid; and UC Berkeley historian Abbas Milani, Director of the Iranian Studies program at Stanford University. Woman, Life, Freedom demonstrates that this is not an unexpected movement, but a major uprising in a long history of women who have wanted to affirm their rights. It will continue.