A Trip Down Memory Lane. Revisiting Persians National Identity in the Safavids Folktales

Abstract

The rise of the Safavid dynasty (1501-1736) in Persia has had a profound impact on the lives of Iranians. The Safavids established the first Iranian national government after Islam, a government that ubsequently helped Iranian identity to take new forms. The authors develop a discussion concerning the customs and common interests of Iranians that are central to the construction of national identity as they are portrayed in oral folktales about Shah Abbas (1582-1629). The identity components that are identified and examined by the authors in approximately one hundred and fifty tales persist as fundamental features of Iranian identity, bar a few alterations regarding modern Iranians. Because of their frequency, sustenance and richness in quantity, the Safavid folktales have subconsciously played a significant role in representing a pattern for modern Iranians’ national identity. In sum, this paper seeks to find a link between folktales and the construction of national identity, particularly on the Iranian plateau.

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Vzpon dinastije Safavidov (1501–1736) v Perziji je globoko vplival na življenje Irancev. Safavidi so ustanovili prvo iransko nacionalno vlado, ki je prispevala, da je iranska identiteta dobila nove oblike. V tem članku so obravnavane navade in skupni interesi Irancev, kakor se kažejo v ustnem izročilu ljudskih pripovedi, povezanih s šahom Avvasom (1582–1629) in so osrednjega pomena v graditvi iranske nacionalne identitete. Sestavine identitete so izluščene in obravnavane iz gradiva 150 pripovedi. Z nekaj spremembami, ki se nanašajo na sodobne Irance, so ostale temljne poteze iranske identitete. Zaradi pogostnosti, vsebine in bogastva so bile safavidske pripovedi nezavedno pomembne za vzorec sodobne identitete Irancev. Prispevek se torej osredinja na vez med ljudskimi pripovedmi in graditvijo nacionalne identitete, zlasti na Iranskem višavju.