The 13th Volume of “Index Iranicus” published

8/21/2023 15:01

Volume XIII of “Index Iranicus”, one of the enduring achievements of Iraj Afshār, was published with the assistance and perseverance of Iran-Nāz Kāshīān.

GIE: The 13th volume of “Index Iranicus” or “Index of Persian Articles on Iranian Studies”, one of the enduring achievements of Iraj Afshār, was published with the assistance and perseverance of Iran-Nāz Kāshīān.

This new volume, released by the Department of Iranian and Islamic Research Studies at the Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia (CGIE), contains the list of 11608 Farsi articles which were published in Persian periodical literature in the years 1397 and 1398 SH (2018-2020).

“Index Iranicus is an impressive undertaking of the late Iraj Afshār, who single-handedly commenced its compilation over sixty years ago; its use, its value in sharing knowledge and its significant role in the research studies on Iran is being recognized and appreciated day by day. Making such an index and constantly publishing it in his lifetime was a laborious task; however, he always longed for the continuation of its compilation and hoped for its appropriate publication. Today, we declare with delight that his lifelong ambition is being realized since the Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia has published the first six volumes of this index under his own supervision during his lifetime and has continued to release the remaining ones after his passing despite the financial challenges in the recent years”, Kāẓim Mūsavī Bojnurdī, CEO of the Centre for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia, mentioned in the foreword of this volume.

He went on to refer to the compiler of this volume, Ms. Iran-Nāz Kāshīān, who is the head of the Scientific Files Unit of this Department at the CGIE and added, “We are first and foremost deeply indebted to her sustained efforts since she was the one who persisted in editing and publishing the “Index Iranicus”; She has done her best to surmount all the difficulties and complete this groundbreaking assignment.” He also expressed the hope that this multi-volume index would be the most useful and beneficial reference book for all the researchers and Iranologists.”

Volume XIII of “Index Iranicus” consists of 16 chapters: “General Information” subdivided into the research method, revision and review of texts, Iranology and orientalism, Iranologists and orientalists, societies and institutes, literary, scientific and cultural societies, congresses, interviews with the literati and artists of Iran, book production (paper, bookbinding, design and writing), book publication, publishers, editing, critical reviews, copyright, etc., journalism and periodicals, libraries, bibliography, manuscripts, book reviews; “Sciences and Technologies” subdivided into the introduction, astronomy and mathematics, astronomers and mathematicians, chronology, medicine, contemporary Iranian scientists; “philosophy” subdivided into the introduction, topics, philosophers and researchers; “Religions” subdivided into the introduction, Iranian religions, Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) and his religion, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sufism, mysticism, futuwwāt (spiritual chivalry), and other religions; “Ethnology, Anthropology and Sociology” subdivided into the introduction, beliefs, traditions and customs, women and family, education, festivals and ceremonies, games, sports, cities, towns and villages, bazaar, water, qanāt (a network of underground water canals), agriculture, flora, migration and animal husbandry, fictions, stories, anecdotes, tales, folk medicine, waqf (a charitable endowment held in trust), waqf-nameh (endowment letter); “Art” subdivided into the introduction, handicrafts, music, tʿaziyyeh and Shabīh-Khānī (passion plays performed to reenact events surrounding Imām Ḥusayn’s martyrdom), theater and other performing arts, cinema, calligraphy, painting, graphic, photography, sculpture, handwoven materials and weaving (rugs, kilims, mats and clothes), pottery, tiles, metalwork, lacquer work, carpentry, seals, jewelry, rosary, throne, flag, museum, exhibition, collections, architecture, city planning, garden or landscape design, monumental works; “Geography” subdivided into the introduction, travelling and travelogues, historical geography, ancient civilizations geography, historical and cultural territory of Iran; “Archeology” subdivided into the introduction, pre-Islamic period, post-Islamic period, mosque, non-Iranian monuments, church, synagogue, inscriptions and coins; “History” subdivided into the introduction and general information, historiography, historians, myths, historical relations, history of Iran, social, economic and civil history, modernism, nationality, intellectualism, deeds and documents, memories and dialogues, families and family groups biographies, biography of the dignitaries, photos, history of the ancient nations, history of the neighboring countries; “Language and linguistics” subdivided into the introduction, the ancient languages of Iran, Persian language, the cultural domination of Persian language, Farhangistān (academy), dialects, Persian vocabulary, idioms and expressions, grammar, linguistic research studies, writing system, spelling rules, handwriting improvement, proverbs and sayings, translation; “Literature, from the Past to the Present ” subdivided into the general information about literature, literary sciences, comedy, Arabic language and literature, Turkish language and literature, Persian poetry, the biography of the poets and men of letters; “Literature in the Contemporary Period” subdivided into the Iranian contemporary literature, story writing, contemporary poems, modern poetry, poems, literary men and cultural researchers; “Texts” subdivided into the texts with recognized authors and texts with unknown authors; “Topics Related to Afghanistan”; “Topics Related to Uzbekistan and Tajikistan” and “Indices” subdivided into the list of names, the list of geographical places, the list of books, theses, journals and newspapers, lexicon of civil and ethnic terms.                   

The first volume of “Index Iranicus” included indexing for 5993 articles on Iranian studies from periodicals, calendars, memorandums and article collections published from the beginning of journalism in Iran until the year 1338 SH (1959-60); it was compiled by Iraj Afshār, published by the Tehran University Press in 1340 SH (1961-62) and dedicated to Sayyid Ḥasan Taqīzādeh (d. 1970) and Mojtabā Minovī (d. 1977). After the publication of “Index Iranicus, volume VI” in 1383 SH (2004-5), Iraj Afshār announced his decision to stop publishing the series due to old age, but the Centre for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia formed a joint team, composed of Iraj Afshār himself, ʿAbdulḥusayn Azarang, Kāmrān Fānī and ʿInāyatollah Majīdī and supervised by Iran-Nāz Kāshīān in order to continue this great work and resume publishing it.

“Index Iranicus” is the most essential tool and a primary reference book for any researchers who intend to study or undertake research on the Iranian studies; it enjoys such a high status among the Iranologists that Jan Rypka (1886-1968), a prominent Czech orientalist and professor of Iranology once stated, “We, the orientalists, fail to fully appreciate Iraj Afshār for “Index Iranicus” as it paves our way to the actual world of Iranian studies.”  

Title of publication: Index Iranicus, volume XIII

Page numbers: 1308 pages

Quantity: 200 copies

Price: 5,250,000 Rials

If you are interested in purchasing a copy, please

•             Visit the CGIE Bookshop at No. 210, Kāshānak, Nīāvarān, Tehran - Iran

•             Order Online at store.cgie.org.ir

•             Call +98 21222976-77

•             Send a message to +989127362684 on WhatsApp