Continuity in Iranian Identity Resilience of a Cultural Heritage

Despite changes in sovereignty and in religious thought, certain aspects of Iranian culture and identity have persisted since antiquity. Drawing on an exploration of history, religion and literature to define Iranian cultural identity and link the Persian past with more recent cultural and political phenomena, this bookexamines the history of Iran from its ancient roots to the Islamic period, paying particular attention to pre-Islamic Persian religions and their influence upon later Muslim practices and precepts in Iran. Accessible English translations of the pre-Islamic Andarz (Advice) literature and of the Adab (Counsel) genre of the Islamic era illustrate the convergence of religion and literature in Iranian culture and how the explicitly religious Adab texts were very much influenced and shaped by the Andarz sources. Within the context of this historical material, and in particular the pre-Islamic religious material, the author highlights its literary and ethical implications on post-Islamic Iranian identity. Exploring the link between a consistent pre-Islamic Iranian identity and a unique post-Islamic one, this book will be of interest to students of Iranian Studies, Middle Eastern studies and Religious Studies, as well as anyone wishing to learn more about Persian history and culture.

Introduction 1. Old Iranians 2. Middle Iranians 3. Iranian Religions 4. Middle Persian Literature: Andarz 5. Iranian Persistence in the Islamic Era 6. Islamic-Era Persian Literature: Adab. Conclusion

Fereshteh Davaran teaches Persian language courses in the San Francisco Bay area, most recently at the University of California, Berkeley, and at De Anza and Diablo Valley Colleges. She has translated three classic works of English literature into Persian and has published many literary reviews in both languages.