Iranian Dialect Literature of the Classical Period: The Philological Investigation of Old Ṭabarī (10-15 cent. C. E.)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Ludwig Paul
• Subject Area: Islamic Studies, Arabian Studies, Semitic Studies
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 514803331

The project aims to investigate philologically the language and literature of Old Ṭabarī. This language has been spoken and written since over 1.000 years in the north of Iran, in the historical region of Ṭabarestān / the modern province of Māzandarān, and its modern successor is called New Ṭabarī or Māzandarānī. From the 10 to 15 century C.E., Old Ṭabarī was widely used in literature (poetry and prose) and religious education (madrasa, Quran studies), but it was less widely written than Persian. Those parts of Old Ṭabarī literature that have survived to this day, mostly interlinear translations of Arabic works, represent only a small part of a thriving literature, and have hardly been worked upon so far. Through editing and translating a representative part of texts, the project aims at describing the salient features of grammar, and the lexicon, of Old Ṭabarī, and to provide an access to the important literature in Old Ṭabarī, especially to the Zaydi commentary tradition of the Quran (tafsir). This would also provide a better access to the history of Zaydi Shiism during the 13-16 centuries.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Iran
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Abolqasem Esmaeilpour