75731 - Literary Civilisation of the Pre-Islamic Iran (1) (LM)

Academic Year 2020/2021

  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in History and Oriental Studies (cod. 8845)

    Also valid for Second cycle degree programme (LM) in History and Oriental Studies (cod. 8845)

Learning outcomes

The student should acquire a basic knowledge of the cultural history of Pre-Islamic Iran, with special attention for its linguistic, literary, religious and historico-political traditions, also throughout the direct analysis and critical comment of ancient sources, epigraphic documents, coins, etc. The student, at the end of the course, should be able to frame in a proper way the main lines of the Pre-Islamic history and present in a documented form some aspects of its traditions.

Course contents

The classes offer an introduction to the linguistic and literary history of the Iranian Pre-Islamic world, with special reference for the textual sources extant in the manuscript tradition, in the epigraphical documentation as well as preserved in the oral folklore. Particular focus will be dedicatec to Avestan, Old Persian, Middle-Persian (in its varieties) and Sogdian. Every years will be analysed sources of different nature, period and linguistic origin, in order to offer a wide range of knowledge.

More in details, the class proposes a series of introductory lessons concerning the conceptual means adopted in the Iranian linguistics; this approach will involve some presentations of the basic tools of the Indo-Iranian and indoeuropean linguistic methodology. After a presentation of the basic approach of comparative linguistics with a discussion of the Indo-Iranian and Iranian distinctive isoglosses, the class will enter the history of the Old Iranian literary tradition (Avestan and Old Persian literature). The main languages and literatures of the Middle Iranian phase will be discussed and presented in their main characters.  In this Academic year a seminar will be dedicated to an introduction into Pahlavi language and literature with a direct analysis (translation and commentary) of the first chapter of the Bundahishn, one of the most interesting Zoroastrian cosmological texts.

Readings/Bibliography

Introduction to Iranian religions and languages:

I.M. Oranskij, Le lingue Iraniche, ed. it. a cura di A.V. Rossi, Napoli 1973.

N. Sims-Williams, "Le lingue iraniche", in Le lingue indeuropee, a cura di A. Giacalone Ramat e P. Ramat, Bologna 1993, pp. 151-179.

J. Wiesehofer, La Persia antica, Bologna 2003.

Emmerick, Ronald E. and Macuch, Maria, (eds.), The Literature of Pre-Islamic Iran. Companion Volume I to A History of Persian Literature. London: Taurus.

A. Panaino, Zoroastrismo. Storia, temi, attualità. (Scienza e Storia delle Religioni). Morcelliana, Brescia, 2016.

A. Panaino, "Zoroastrismo e religioni dell'Iran preislamico", in Dizionario del sapere storico-religioso del Novecento, a cura di A. Melloni, Bologna 2010, pp. 1752-1792.

Students attending the classes will find most of the contents during the development of the course, but in any case they can find additional details in the texts of Iranian linguistics above quoted. The two studies dedicated to the Zoroastrian tradition are requested.

The introductory texts to the study of the Pahlavi language will be suggested during the seminar.

Students unable to attend the classes must choose two monographic works concerning the religious and political history of ancient Iran, and at least one study (book or article) dedicated to the literary and/or linguistic history of Pre-Islamic Iran. It is strongly recommended to contact the Professor in order to better define the profile of the program.

Students can choose optional bibliography during lessons

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons using textual material for students; discussions about the items also with the presence of other colleagues.

Assessment methods

The examination consists in a discussion of the main items presented during the lessons: political and religious history of Ancient Iran and problems of Iranian linguistics.

The acquisition of a solid vision of the subjects presented in the class and the knowledge of the related arguments with a precision in the terminology and an ability in the critical reference to the different aspects of the discipline, will be recognized with the highest votes, as excellence. A mnenomic knowledge with a correct language but not always consistent and critically argumented will be considered as worth of a discrete valutation.
Weal points in the preparation with an unfitting language, mistakes in the chronological determinations of the poblems, incompetence in the bibliographical items, and uncritical references, will be considered as insufficient.
 It is fundamental that the student pays attention on the technical terminology, the correct spelling of the Iranian terms, and in particular in the framework of the linguistic problems, that he/she is in condition of expressing in a formal way the phenomena that have been treated in the class.

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

The present class (6CFU) is part of the Integrated Course named “Iranistics". If a student has chosen to pass the full integrated program (12CFU), the final evaluation will be the result of the arithmetic average obtained in the two modules (“Storia religiosa del mondo iranico" [Religious History of Pre-Islamic Iran] and “Civiltà letteraria dell’Iran preislamico" [Literary Civilisation of the Pre-Islamic Iranian World]).

Teaching tools

Manuals, videos, manuscripts in facsimile, epigraphic sources, coins, etc. Lessons will be held in the class or via remote teaching means according to the general conditions and in agreement with the laws and regulations fixed by the University.

Office hours

See the website of Antonio Clemente Domenico Panaino