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IRAN vii, continued (3) Elamite, with a Linguistic Sketch LINGUISTIC SKETCH OF ELAMITE As indicated above, Elamite was spoken in the southern Zagros regions, which correspond to the ancient cultural-political entities of Elam and Anshan, and expanded into Akkadian-speaking Susiana (see map, ELAM i, Fig. 1). Neither its northern nor…

IRAN vii, continued (4) Urartian, with a Linguistic Sketch LINGUISTIC SKETCH OF URARTIAN Urartian was most likely the dominant vernacular around Lake Van and the upper Zab valley. It was written from the late ninth to seventh century B.C.E. in the empire of Urartu in an area that included modern-day…

IRAN vii, continued vii(5). Kassite The Kassites (q.v.), Akkadian Kaššu (Balkan, 1954), were mountain tribes probably somewhere in the central Zagros who ruled Babylon from the sixteenth to the middle of the twelfth century B.C.E. They may be related to the later Kissaioi in the mountainous regions north of Susa…

IRAN vii, continued vii(6) Non-Iranian Languages in Islamic Iran LANGUAGE FAMILIES The non-Iranian languages spoken today in Iran include members of the following language families: (1) Altaic: (a) Oghuz Turkic, with several members; (b) Khalaj Turkic; (2) Afro-Asiatic Semitic: (a) Arabic; (b) Neo-Aramaic; (3) Indo-European: (a) Armenian; (b) Indo-Aryan Gypsy;…

IRAN vii, continued vii(7). Turkic Languages of Iran In Iran, there are two distinct branches of Turkic: Oghuz Turkic languages and dialects that represent the southwestern branch of Turkic, and Khalaj, which presents a tiny branch of its own. Most widely spoken is Azeri (varieties of which are spoken in…

IRAN vii, continued (8) Semitic Languages of Iran First Aramaic and then Arabic had considerable contact with Iranian languages. Their impact differs. Aramaic was made the official language of communication by Darius I The Great (q.v.), and hence is referred to as Imperial Aramaic, which considerably contributed to the success…

IRAN vii, continued vii(9). Arabic During Sasanian times, several large Arab tribes moved into the Fertile Crescent. Some tribes were moved to the Persian hinterland by Shapur II (r. C.E. 309-79) to the area of Bam, others to Dälaki in Fars and Kerman. Beginning in the early seventh century, administrators…

IRAN viii. PERSIAN LITERATURE (1) Pre-Islamic Literature (2) Classical Persian Literature. (3) Modern Persian Literature.   (1) Pre-Islamic Literature Until the late Sasanian period, pre-Islamic Iran was mainly an oral society. As a result, Iranian “literature” was for a long time essentially of oral nature as far as composition, performance,…

IRAN viii (2) Classical Persian Literature INTRODUCTION Reviewing the origins of a specific literary history helps us find our bearings and provides us with reference points to chart its subsequent developments. This approach will be adopted here in our overview of classical Persian literature, a daunting task in itself given…

IRAN x. Persian art and architecture. See ART; ARCHITECTURE.

IRAN xi. PERSIAN MUSIC Persia is a country with rich and diverse musical tradition, which may be classified in various ways. (1) Regions of music. All ethnic groups (the Persian majority, Kurds, Lors, a number of Turkic-speaking peoples, Baluchis, Armenians) and various ethnic and religious minorities claim to have distinct…

IRAN, JOURNAL OF THE BRITISH INSTITUTE OF PERSIAN STUDIES. The British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS) was inaugurated in December 1961 in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s official visit to Iran in March of that year (see GREAT BRITAIN xiv). The aim was for an Institute which would be…

IRAN-CONTRA AFFAIRS, the linkage in the mid-1980s of two separate and distinct U.S. covert operations in Iran and Central America. These operations became linked when funds generated by the sale of weapons to Iran were diverted to help finance the so-called Contra war in Nicaragua. This entry will focus on…

IRĀN-E JAVĀN, a weekly paper published in Tehran from 5 Esfand 1305 to 28 Bahman 1306 Š. (25 February 1926-17 February 1927) as the organ of an association with the same name (Anjomān-e Irān-e javān). In the first issue, Ḥasan Nafisi (Mošarref-al-Dawla) and Moḥammad Tonokāboni were named as its publisher…