The last display of Sassanid Middle Persian literature

Introducing a variety of seventeenth-century Middle Persian forms of letters including papyrus and parchments, found in Egypt during the time of Khosrow II army’s domination (618-628 CE.), the present article is going to study script, composition style and literature of these documents written in a cursive script which can be regarded as the last practical variation script in Sasanian era. Also, these letters represent the multilateral activities of Iranians in Egypt. These letters were not only shared among Iranians, but also between Iranians and Egyptian officials who, prior to the arrival of Iranians, had a good knowledge of the Roman ministerial system, which indicated the social interaction, and particularly the economic interrelationbetween the two groups and their mutual impact. These letters will be studied in terms of lexicon, historical and literary aspects.Papyri and Parchment writings, mentioned here, differ from Book Pahlavi in vocabulary, syntax and style.Through studying these differences, it is possible to investigate the evolution procedure during which lapidary script developed to cursive. Literature applied in these Papyri and parchments, particularly official letters, as Sassanian typical correspondence in the time mentioned, had a tendency to follow fixed patterns, and seem to be concise and effective enough.

Keywords

References

ابوالقاسمی، محسن 1373. تاریخ زبان فارسی، تهران، انتشارات سمت.

آموزگار، ژاله و تفضلی، احمد 1380. زبان پهلوی، ادبیات و دستور آن. چاپ سوم، تهران، انتشارات معین.

بختیاری، آرمان 1391. پاپیروسهای پهلوی . نامه فرهنگستان، ش. 1، 75 -88.

دریایی، تورج 1387. تاریخ و فرهنگ ساسانی. ترجمه مهرداد دیزچی. تهران، انتشارات ققنوس.

دریایی، تورج 1392. ساسانیان. ترجمه شهرناز اعتمادی. تهران، انتشارات توس.

فرای، ریچارد 1380. تاریخ باستانی ایران. ترجمه مسعود رجب نیا. شرکت انتشارات علمی و فرهنگی.

کرامتی، یونس 1393. پاپیروس. دایرهالمعارف بزرگ اسلامی، ج.13، 498-499.

گیرشمن، رومن1380: ایران از آغاز تا اسلام. ترجمه محمد معین. شرکت انتشارات علمی و فرهنگی.

گیزلن، ریکا 1384. چهار سپاهبد شاهنشاهی ساسانی، بر اساس شواهد مهرشناسی. ترجمه سیروس نصرالهزاده. سازمان میراث فرهنگی و گردشگری.

نصرالهزاده، سیروس. زیرچاپ. کتیبههای خصوصی دورهی ساسانی. پژوهشگاه علوم انسانی و مطالعات فرهنگی.

هویسه، فیلیپ 1393. ادبیات کتیبه‌ای در زبان‌های ایرانی باستان ومیانه. ادبیات ایران پیش از اسلام. جلد هفدهم (پیوست 1) . ترجمه سیروس نصراله‌زاده. انتشارات سخن.

Azarpay, Guitty et al. 2002. Analysis of Writing Materials in Middle Persian Documents. Bulletin of the Asia Institute, New Series, Vol. 16: 181-187.

Azarpay, Guitty et al. 2003. New Information on the Date and Function of the Berkeley MP Archive. Bulletin of the Asia Institute, New Series, Vol. 17: 17-29.

Bailey, W. and Abaev, V. I. 1985. Alans . Encyclopaedia Iranica,Vol. I, Fasc. 8: 801-803.

Cereti, C.G. 2008. On the Pahlavi Cursive Script and the Sasanian Avesta . Studia Iranica, Tome 37, fas.2: 175-196.

Daryaee, Turaj. 2003. Middle Persian Papyri from the Sasanian Occupation of Egypt in the Seventh Century (I).www.sasanika.org

Daryaee, Turaj.2004. Middle Persian Papyri, Ostraca and Parchments . Middle Persian Documents: 1-2.

De Menasce,Jean. 1957. Pahlavi inscriptions. Ostraca and papyri.Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum(CII), Part III: Pahlavi Inscriptions, Vol.IV: Ostraca,Vol.V: Papyri . London.

De Menasce,Jean. 1985. Rechercher de Papyrologie Pehlevie . Studia Iarnica, cahier 3:163-175.

Gadjiev, Murtazali. 2016. DARBAND EPIGRAPHY i. MIDDLE PERSIAN INSCRIPTIONS. Encyclopædia Iranica, online edition. available at www.iranicaonline.org.

Geignoux, Philip. 1999. Ostraca, Papyri et Parchemins. Dossiers d'Archéologie, Cote: 044.34: 24-25.

Geignoux, Philip.2010. Un Nouvel Ouverage de Reference de la Papyrologue Pehlevie: Note de Laecture . Studia Iranica, Vol. 39:111-120.

Geignoux, Philip. 2012.Un Archive Post-sassanide du Tabaristan(1), Les Orientals, Vol. XXI:.29-97.

Gyselen, Rika.1999. Monnaies et Sceaux Sassanides. Dossiers d'Archéologie, Cote: 044.34: 26-29.

Gyselen, Rika.2007. Sasanian Seals and Sealings in the Saeedi Collection. Acta Iranica 44.

Gyselen, Rika. 2012. Scellements dans l'Archive Post-Sassanide de Tabaristan(1). Res Orienrales,Objects et Documents Inscrits en Parsig. Vol.XXI: 97-108.

Gzella, Holger.2015. A Cultural History of Aramaic, From the Beginnings to the Advent of Islam. Boston.

Hansen, O. 1938. Die Mittelpersischen Papyri der Papyrussammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin. Berlin (APAW 1937, Nr. 9).

Jalalipour, Saeid. 2014. Persian Occupation of Egypt 619-629: Politics and Administration of Sasanians . e-Sasanika Graduate paper 10 :1-16.

Kent, Roland. 1953. Old Persian (Grammar, Texts, Lexicon). New Haven.

Sänger, Patrick. 2011.The Administration of Sasanian Egypt: New Masters and Byzantine Continuity. Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 51: 653–665.

Tafażżolī , Ahmad. 1993. Correspondence i. In pre-Islamic Persia. Encyclopaedia Iranica.Vol. VI, Fasc. 3: 287-290.

Weber, Dieter. 1983. Die Pehlevi fragmente der Papyrussammlung der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek in Wien . Festschrift Papyrus Erzherzog Rainer (P. Rainer Cent.): 215-28.

Weber, Dieter.1984. Pahlavi Papyri und Ostraca: Stand der Forschung. Middle Iranian Studies, Proceedings of the International Symposium organized by the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven from the 17th to the 20th of May 1982, ed. by W. Skalmowski and A. van Tongerloo, Leuven (= Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta, 16): 25–43.

Weber, Dieter .1991. Ein bisher unbekannter Titel aus spätsassanidischer Zeit?. Corolla Iranica (Papers in honour of Prof. Dr. D. N. MacKenzie). ed. by R. E. Emmerick and D. Weber: 228–236.

Weber, Dieter.1992. Ostraca, Papyri und Pergamente. Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum, vol.IV.Ostraca and Vol.V. Papyri. London.

Weber, Dieter. 2002. Eine spätsassanidische Rechtsurkunde aus Ägypten . TYCHE 17: 185–192.

Weber, Dieter. 2003. Remarks on the development of the Pahlavi script in Sasanian times. Religious Texts in Iranian Language :185–195.

Weber, Dieter. 2005. Pahlavi Papyri . Encyclopaedia Iranica online.

Weber, Dieter. 2007a. Writing Exercises in Late Sassanian Times, A Contribution to the Culture of Writing Pahlavi. Ancient and Middle Iranian Studies: 255–263.

Weber, Dieter. 2007b. The Vienna Collection of Pahlavi Papyri. Akten des 23. Internationalen Papyrologenkongresses,(Geichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Phil.-Hist. Kl., Kommission für Antike Rechtsgeschichte): 725–738.

Weber, Dieter. 2008a. Berliner Pahlavi-Dokumente, Zeugnisse spätsassanidischer Breif und Rechtskultur aus frühislamischer Zeit. Wiesbaden.

Weber, Dieter.2008b. Sassanidische Briefe aus Ägypten . Asiatische Studien/

Études Asiatiques LXII/3: 803–826.

Zeini, Arash. 2015: Preliminary remarks on Middle Persian in the Pahlavi documents. Studies on the Iranian World I. Before Islam: 67–73.