Our Mission

Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation

Professor Ehsan Yarshater, the founder and editor-in-chief of Encyclopædia Iranica (Encycopaedia) until 2017, established the Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation, Inc. (Foundation) in 1990. The mission of the Foundation is to ensure the uninterrupted and permanent continuation of the Encyclopædia Iranica as a significant work of reference, archival resource, and data bank covering all aspects of Iranian civilization in its widest temporal and spatial context. Such a resource, even when said to be “complete,” will require not only constant updating, but also the inclusion of new entries to keep abreast of current research.

In the course of the past two decades, the Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation has been the largest financial supporter of the Iranica project. It has also successfully augmented its Endowment Fund, and will continue to serve as the main source of financial support for the Encyclopædia Iranica.

The Foundation is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) public charity registered in New York State