Historical Sciences Studies

The present study examines the relationship between “living memory” and “official history” in the context of intellectual, cultural, and identity developments ... Read More

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Research Paper

A Comparative Study of the Narrative of Shah Abbas’s Confrontation with the Nuqtavis in Safavid Sources (with Emphasis on Khuzani’s Afzal al-Tavarikh)

Abbas Adavoudi jolfaei; Rasool Jafarian

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 25-56

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.401271.473839

Abstract

The present study, entitled “A Comparative Study of the Narrative of Shah Abbas’s Confrontation with the Nuqtavis in Safavid Sources,” seeks to compare the accounts ... Read More The present study, entitled “A Comparative Study of the Narrative of Shah Abbas’s Confrontation with the Nuqtavis in Safavid Sources,” seeks to compare the accounts of Khuzani and three other historians of this period, in order to reveal the unique information contained in their reports as well as the aspects of similarity and difference among their narratives. The aim is to determine how the comparative analysis of these sources leads to the emergence of diverse interpretations concerning the Nuqtavi affair and to the formation of contradictory understandings in the reader’s mind. The Nuqtavi order was founded in 800 AH by Mahmud Pasikhani, and its activity continued during the Safavid era; as signs of their cooperation with the Nizari Muhammad-Shahi sect can be observed during the reign of Isma‘il and The reign of Tahmasp was accompanied by his violent treatment of the Nuqtavis. regarding the reign of Shah Abbas, it must be said that each historian of this period reflected the story of the Shah’s confrontation with the Nuqtavis in his own manner. Among them, Khuzani’s narrative has not been considered in any of the previous scholarly studies. The findings of this research indicate that Khuzani offers a unique narrative in such cases as the key role of ‘Inayat-Kal Isfahani in dealing with the Nuqtavis, mentioning the scholars present at the trial of Darvish Khosrow, and depicting the massacre of the Nuqtavis of Qazvin. Furthermore, with regard to the introduction of their narratives and issues such as Shah Abbas’s alleged inclination toward the Nuqtavi order, the way in which he became aware of their deviations, the chronology of related events, the method of proving Darvish Khosrow’s guilt in court and the selection of Yusufi Tarkeshdoz for kingship, there exist similarities and differences between Khuzani’s account and those of other historians. Ultimately, the author of this study argues that the fading of ideological prejudices over time and Khuzani’s lack of fear of the Safavid political apparatus—due to his residence in India—gave him the opportunity to present the event with a more realistic and independent perspective compared to the other three sources.

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Research Paper

Power and Knowledge; The Construction of Historical Memory: A Genealogy of Contested Discourses in the Representation of the 1953 Iranian

sajjad omidoiur

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 57-84

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.400236.473834

Abstract

This study offers a critical discourse analysis of the 1953 Iranian coup through Foucault's power-knowledge framework, examining how three competing narratives_the Pahlavi regime's ... Read More

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Research Paper

An Examination of the Structure, Texture, and Scale System of Ancient Elamite Music

Masoud Bathaei; Kolsoum Ghazanfari; Hossein Ghanbari Ahmadabad

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 85-112

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.404587.473861

Abstract

Investigating ancient musical traditions, specifically within the Elamite civilization, is inherently complex due to the paucity of extant textual documentation. Despite Elam’s ... Read More

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Research Paper

Unifying Two Pasts: Sufi Nationalism and Iranian Antiquity in Basiri’s Secrets of Persepolis (1955- 1971)

Zeinab Tamassoki

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 113-137

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.398829.473825

Abstract

In the mid-twentieth century, as state archaeologists unearthed Persepolis and the Pahlavi regime cast the site as a symbol of Iran’s pre-Islamic grandeur, the director of Shiraz’s ... Read More In the mid-twentieth century, as state archaeologists unearthed Persepolis and the Pahlavi regime cast the site as a symbol of Iran’s pre-Islamic grandeur, the director of Shiraz’s National Library was composing a different kind of monument. Ali-Akbar Basiri’s Secrets of Persepolis, a lengthy narrative poetry written in Persian, reframed the Achaemenid site not as a symbol of secular nationalism, but as a spiritual landscape animated by Sufi metaphysics. In Basiri’s poem, the architectural layout of Persepolis becomes a spiritual topography: each palace represents a distinct stage on the path toward perfection. Darius, imagined as an embodiment of the insān-i kāmil, serves as the poet’s guide along this journey, which is illuminated by the Prophet and Imam ʿAlī. Written after the 1953 coup, during a period of ideological fracture and renewed debates over national identity, Basiri’s work quietly challenged the dichotomy between Iran’s Islamic and pre-Islamic pasts. Drawing on his connections to Shiraz’s literary and intellectual circles, as well as his proximity to ongoing archaeological discoveries, Basiri composed a vision of Iranian identity that neither glorified ancient kingship nor dismissed it, but sought to reconcile it with the language of mystical unity. This article situates Secrets of Persepolis within the larger landscape of Pahlavi-era cultural politics and examines how the poem embodies a syncretic effort to bridge divided temporalities. The article thus contributes to three overlapping fields: first, the study of nationalism and identity in twentieth-century Iran; second, the reception of antiquity in Islamic cultural contexts; and third, the role of mystical literature in modern Iranian intellectual history. By situating Secrets of Persepolis alongside both earlier Islamic texts and contemporaneous nationalist projects, the study highlights the poem’s role in mediating a longstanding cultural tension between two overlapping but often compartmentalized pasts

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Research Paper

The Social Status of Women Musicians in the Parthian Period

Mozhgan Khanmoradi

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 139-162

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.399734.473836

Abstract

The historical sources rarely mention music and instruments during the Parthian period. Archaeological evidence reveals the existence of several musical instruments in the Parthian ... Read More The historical sources rarely mention music and instruments during the Parthian period. Archaeological evidence reveals the existence of several musical instruments in the Parthian period. The influence of Achaemenian and Greek art and culture can be seen in the music of the Parthian period. yet, there is no precise information about female musicians and their position. But, archaeological evidence shows women as musical instrument players. Depictions of female musicians in archaeological evidence are sources for studying the position of women in music. The purpose of this research is to understand the position of women in the music and society of the Parthian period and their instruments. Another goal of this research is to identify the instruments used by women during this period. The most important questions of this research are: What musical instruments did women use during the Parthian period? What was their status and role in Parthian society? This research has a descriptive-analytical approach. its data gathered from various library resources. The results of this research say that women played an active role in musical activities. According to terracotta, wall paintings, Nisa rhytons and reliefs, women played music alone or with men. Women were more active during the Parthian period than in previous periods (Elamite, Achaemenid and Seleucid period). Archaeological evidences have been discovered from of Susa, Bard e Neshāndeh, Nisa, Dalverzin Tepe, Airtam, Nippur, Babylon, Uruk, Hatra, Dura-Europos, Seleucia, and Olbia. They in playing stringed instruments (harp, string, and lute), percussion instruments (tambourine, cymbal and castant), and wind instruments (flute, reed and double reeds). It also seems that female musicians are only shown playing certain instruments, which could indicate that women are more skilled in those instruments than male. According to available sources, women played instruments as musician, singer, and dancer in religious ceremonies, feasts, and celebrations after victories

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Research Paper

From Farr-e Izadi (Divine Glory) to the Station of Zellu-l-lah (Shadow of God): The Representation of Kingship in the Mysticism of Najm al-Din Razi

Sajjad Rahmani Falah; Seyed Abolfaz Razavi

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 163-192

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.399768.473833

Abstract

The book Mirsad al-'Ibad by Najm al-Din Razi is a mystical work encompassing ethical and political themes. Drawing inspiration from the concept of divine charisma (farr-e izadi) and ... Read More

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Research Paper

A Study of the Toponyms Suraq, Duraq, Falāhīyeh, and Shādegān in the Historical Geography of Khuzestan

Marzieh Sharbaf; Shahrokh Razmjou

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 193-232

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.387405.473763

Abstract

Toponymy, as a key branch of historical geography, plays a significant role in analyzing spatial and cultural transformations in human societies. Place names serve as essential tools ... Read More Toponymy, as a key branch of historical geography, plays a significant role in analyzing spatial and cultural transformations in human societies. Place names serve as essential tools for gaining deeper insights into the complex relationship between humans and their environment throughout history, reflecting cultural changes, population movements, and socio-political transformations over the centuries. Focusing on the toponyms Suraq, Duraq, Falāhīyeh, and Shādegān in southern Khuzestan, this study highlights, on the one hand, the capacity of toponymic studies to reconstruct spatio-historical developments and, on the other, their value in revealing the inseparable ties between spatial identity, natural factors, and socio-political processes. The main goal of this research is to reassess part of Khuzestan’s territorial history by tracing the historical background, spatial changes, and semantic connections of these four toponyms, in order to answer whether they refer to distinct locations across different historical periods or to a shared geographical context. The study employs a comparative analysis of Syriac, Greek, and Arabic geographical-historical texts, travel accounts, geographic coordinates, historical maps, and archaeological evidence. The combined data indicate that these place names have undergone multiple spatial and temporal transformations from antiquity to the present. Based on archaeological, linguistic, historical, and geomorphological evidence, four key locations have been identified: Tel Tendy and Ja Nišīn (as the probable sites of ancient Suraq and Duraq in present-day Rāmshīr County), the village of Madīneh (as Old Duraq in Shādegān County), and Falāhīyeh (as New Duraq and the original nucleus of modern Shādegān). These areas appear to have shifted gradually from east to west and then southwest along the Jarrāhī River over time, due to environmental changes—such as the evolution of alluvial fans—and human interventions. While the available data shed partial light on these transformations, the limited scope of previous investigations and the destruction of many sites in recent decades underline the need for targeted archaeological surveys, satellite imagery analysis, and interdisciplinary approaches to either confirm or revise these hypotheses.

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Research Paper

Discourse Conflict and the Transition from Traditional to Modern Medicine in the Management of Smallpox in Qajar-era Iran

javad alipoor silab

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 233-254

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2026.402496.473851

Abstract

This study investigates the process of transition and the adoption of modern smallpox treatment methods in Qajar-era Iran. Prior to the introduction of Western medical practices, understanding, ... Read More

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Research Paper

The Role of Hermias and Aristotle, Advisor to Philip II, in the Relations between the Achaemenid Empire and Macedonia (347-336 BC)

Alireza Karbasi; Hamidreza Pashazanous; Esmaeil Sangari

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 255-277

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.392841.473795

Abstract

In the narratives of Aristotle's life, it is mentioned that he traveled and stayed in the cities of Atarneus and Assos in northwest Asia Minor, under the rule of a local ruler named ... Read More

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Research Paper

The Historical Content of the Qajar Press

Mohammadreza Hajiaghababaei; Mobina Mahmoudian

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 279-294

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2026.406919.473874

Abstract

Since the emergence of newspapers in Iran, the publication of historical materials has constituted one of their most prominent thematic domains. Historical content in the press reflects ... Read More

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Research Paper

The Military and Strategic Importance of Isidore of Charax’s Parthian Stations

Farshid Naderi; Sohaib Mohammadi Nowsudi

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 295-324

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.402600.473853

Abstract

Parthian Stations, written by Isidore of Charax, a first-century BCE geographer, is a distinctive work that systematically records roads, stations, and strategic points across the Parthian ... Read More

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Research Paper

Content Analysis of Endowment Documents of Provincial Officials in the Mazandaran Region during the Qajar Period (1210–1344 AH)

farshid noroozi; Hamidreza Aryanfar

Volume 18, Issue 1 , April 2026, Pages 325-349

https://doi.org/10.22059/jhss.2025.387832.473770

Abstract

This study aims to examine the types, functions, and purposes of endowments (waqf) established by provincial officials in the Mazandaran region during the Qajar period. It employs a ... Read More This study aims to examine the types, functions, and purposes of endowments (waqf) established by provincial officials in the Mazandaran region during the Qajar period. It employs a qualitative content analysis approach to investigate historical documents, specifically endowment deeds composed by a group of Qajar officials in Mazandaran. Among these endowers, four were sartīp (brigadiers), three sardār (generals), three khān (chieftains), two beglarbegī (provincial governors), one kalāntar (mayor), and one mostowfī (financial officer). The endowments they established exhibit considerable diversity in type, including land, caravanserais, shops, pastures, gardens, qanats, coffeehouses, fortresses, and mansions—demonstrating the use of a broad range of assets for philanthropic purposes.The designated uses of these endowments were equally varied and included religious mourning ceremonies, sustenance for the descendants of the endower, assistance to the poor, the sayyeds, and the destitute, as well as broader charitable and public-benefit activities. This diversity of functions reflects the religious motivations, social responsibility, and attentiveness of the endowers to the multifaceted needs of their communities.In terms of chronological distribution, 36% of the waqf deeds date to the reign of Nāṣer al-Dīn Shāh, 50% to Moẓaffar al-Dīn Shāh, and 14% to Aḥmad Shāh—highlighting the peak of endowment activity during the Moẓaffarid period. Geographically, the documents pertain to the cities of Sari, Nur, Barforush, Amol, Baladeh, Savadkuh, and Bandpey, with the greatest concentration found in Sari and Nur.The findings of this study indicate that Qajar officials in Mazandaran played a significant role in the continuation and expansion of the waqf institution. By endowing diverse forms of property, they made meaningful contributions to addressing the social and religious needs of their time. The variety in the types and functions of waqf, along with their temporal and spatial distribution, offers a clear picture of the role of charitable endowments in the socio-political fabric of Mazandaran during the Qajar era.

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Volume 18 (2026)

Volume 17 (2025)

Volume 15 (2023)

Volume 14 (2022)

Volume 13 (2021)

Volume 12 (2020)

Volume 11 (2019)

Volume 9 (2018)

Volume 10 (2018)

Volume 8 (2017)

Volume 7 (2015)

Volume 6 (2015)

Volume 5 (2013)

Volume 4 (2013)

Volume 3 (2011)

Volume 1 (2009)

Volume 16 (1403)

Volume & Issue: Volume 18, Issue 1 - Serial Number 41, April 2026, Pages 1-362

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