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Child marriage denotes the contracting or consummation of a marriage in which one or both partners are underage. In Ḥanafī legal doctrine (officially adopted by the Ottoman state, and practiced throughout its domains), a child (ṣaghīr) is a minor person (qāṣir) who has not yet reached physical puberty (bulūgh), marked for girls by the onset of menstruation and for boys by their first nocturnal seminal emission. For girls this was generally held to be 12 or 13, for boys 13 or 14, but sexual maturity could also be acknowledged at the age of 9 o…

a prominent type of traditional folk entertainer, who appears as a street performer in the days preceding Nowruz. The Ḥāji Firuz entertains passers-by by singing traditional songs and dancing and playing his tambourine for a few coins. A version of this article is available in print Volume XI, Fascicle 5, pp. 551-552 ḤĀJI FIRUZ, the most famous among the traditional folk entertainers, who appears in the Persian streets in the days preceding Nowruz (Figure 1). The Ḥāji Firuz entertains passers-by by singing traditional songs and dancing and playing…

a piece of cloth that is spread on the floor, and on which dishes of food are placed at meal times. SOFRA, in the most common usage of the term, a piece of cloth that is spread on the floor, and on which dishes of food are placed at meal times. Since sitting at dining tables has become increasingly common nowadays, the word may also refer to an ordinary tablecloth. Apart from this usual meaning in Persian, the word sofra has become associated with a number of religious, ceremonial (such as the sofra-ye ʿaqd, the marriage ceremony spread; and of the Haft Sin spread of the Nowruz celebrat…

originally verbal formulas recited to prevent or ward off potential harm by magical power but now also denoting written and even talismanic magic. A version of this article is available in print Volume V, Fascicle 4, pp. 385-388 CHARMS (< Lat. carmen “song, verse, incantation”; Pers. afsūn, “incantation,” damdam < Ar. damdama “disturbance”; Pers. and Ar. doʿā “prayer,” taʿwīḏ “charm, amulet,” ḥerz “protection,” verd [a section of the Koran or other spoken charm], ṭelesm < Gk. telesma “talisman”), originally verbal formulas recited to prevent or ward off potential harm b…

the name of a heroic blacksmith in the Šāhnāma who rebels against the tyrant Żaḥḥāk and helps Ferēdun wrest the kingdom from him. A version of this article is available in print Volume XVI, Fascicle 2, pp. 130-132 KĀVA, the name of a heroic blacksmith in the Šāhnāma who rebels against the tyrant Żaḥḥāk and helps Ferēdun wrest the kingdom from him. Kāva appears in the narrative when Żaḥḥāk is set on forcing his subjects to testify to his good rule by signing an official document to that effect. At this moment the blacksmith walks into the roy…

the name of the ancestor of the Gōdarziān clan of heroes in the Šāh-nāma. A version of this article is available in print Volume XVI, Fascicle 2, pp. 118-119 KAŠVĀD, the name of the ancestor of the Gōdarziān clan (q.v.) of heroes in the Šāh-nāma. Based on Ṭabari’s rendition of his name as Jašvād (Ṭabari, I, pp. 608, 617-18), Theodor Nöldeke suggested that the correct form of this name must be Gašvād, with an initial “g” rather than “k” (Nöldeke, tr., p. 17, n.1). Djalal Khaleghi-Motlagh, however, rejects this view and argues that, since t…

a Shiʿite religious lay association founded in 1953 by the charismatic cleric Shaikh Maḥmud Ḥalabi to defend Islam against the Bahai missionary activities. A version of this article is available in print Volume XII, Fascicle 4, pp. 426-428 ḤOJJATIYA, a Shiʿite religious lay association founded by the charismatic cleric Shaikh Maḥmud Ḥalabi (q.v) to defend Islam against the Bahai missionary activities. Ḥojjatiya exerted considerable, albeit indirect and unintended, influence on the education and world-view of the lay elite leadership…

(chiromancy or palmistry; Pers. Kaf-bini), a form of physiognomy that deduces personal characteristics from the form of the lines on the subject’s palm. PALM READING (chiromancy or palmistry; Pers. Kaf-bini), a form of physiognomy that deduces personal characteristics from the form of the lines on the subject’s palm. The Persian term kaf- bini is a compound made of the words kaf, “palm,” and bini (from the infinitive didan), “looking into.” In general, it is not used for divining the future, although one of the lines on the palm, called ḵaṭṭ-e ʿomr, “longevity line,” is associated wi…

the epitome of generosity and munificence in Arabic and Persian anecdotal traditions. A version of this article is available in print Volume XII, Fascicle 1, pp. 57-58 ḤĀTEM ṬĀʾI, the epitome of generosity and munificence in Arabic and Persian anecdotal traditions. Ḥātem b. ʿAbd-Allāh b. Saʿd Abu Saffāna (or Abu ʿAdiy) Ṭāʾi (Ebn ʿAbd-Rabbeh, I, p. 197; Waṭwāṭ, p. 65) is the most renowned of the so-called “three most generous men of pre-Islamic Arabia” (Ebn ʿAbd-Rabbeh), I, p. 197). He is said to have inherited his generosi…

lamps. Various kinds of lamps were used in Persia before the introduction of electric light. The simplest and cheapest was the čerāḡ-e mūšī “mouse lamp,” so called probably because of its small size and poor light. A version of this article is available in print Volume V, Fascicle 3, pp. 260-262 ČERĀḠ, lamps (Man. Mid. Pers. crʾh, Man. Parth. crʾγ, Pahl. čirāγ, So. crʾ(ʾ)γ, Khot. cärau, etc., see Bailey, Dictionary, p. 103, as well as the etymological speculations in Bailey, 1959, pp. 120-25; loanword in Aramaic šrgʾ, see Telegdi, p. 255). Various kinds of lamps were used in Pers…

a compilation of short biographical notices on some one thousand poets of the Safavid period. TAḎKERA-YE NAṢRĀBĀDI, a compilation of short biographical notices on some one thousand poets of the Safavid period, compiled by the poet and literary historian Mirza Moḥammad Ṭāḥer Naṣrābādi (b. Mārbin of Naṣrābād, in the vicinity of Isfahan, 1027/1618) and presented to the Safavid Shah Solaymān (r. 1666-94). Naṣrābādi embarked upon the project in 1083/1672 ( Taḏkera, p. 5) and completed it in 1091/1680. The exact date of his death is unknown. Naṣrābādi’s ancestors, according to his auto…

by the French orientalist Henri Massé (b. Lunéville, France, 2 March 1886, d. Paris, 9 November 1969), published in 1938, one of the most comprehensive and reliable texts on general Persian folklore in a Western language.A version of this article is available in printVolume VI, Fascicle 4, pp. 432-433 CROYANCES ET COUTUMES PERSANES, by the French orientalist Henri Massé (q.v., b. Lunéville, France, 2 March 1886, d. Paris, 9 November 1969), published in 1938, one of the most comprehensive and reliable texts on general Persian folklore in a Western…

(1903-1977), an Iranian teacher, editor, translator, and literary scholar. MINOVI, MOJTABA (Mojtabā Minovi, b. Tehran, 19 Bahman 1282 Š./9 February 1903; d. Tehran, 6 Bahman, 1355 Š./26 January 1977), teacher, editor, translator, and literary scholar (FIGURE 1). LIFE The eldest of twelve siblings, Mojtabā Minovi was born into a family of religious scholars that traced its lineage to one of the influential mojtaheds of the Qājār period, most probably Šariʿatmadār-e Esterābādi (Yaḡmāʾi, p. 60). His pedigree is given as Mojtabā Minovi,…

the art or technique of gaining knowledge of future events or distant states by means of observing and interpreting signs. A version of this article is available in print Volume VII, Fascicle 4, pp. 440-443 DIVINATION (Per. morvā, morḡvā, šogūn zadan, fāl, fāl gereftan/zadan, tafaʾʾol), the art or technique of gaining knowledge of future events or distant states by means of observing and interpreting signs. Various objects or events may serve as media of divination. Here we discuss only those interpretive acts which have the general struc…

a common weed found in Persia, Central Asia, and the adjacent areas. A version of this article is available in print Volume VIII, Fascicle 6, pp. 583-584 ESFAND ( sepand, sepanj, espanj < Proto-Ir. *svanta; Ar. háarmal, Lat. Peganum harmala; wild rue), a common weed found in Persia, Central Asia, and the adjacent areas (for the the plant’s name in other Iranian languages see Flattery and Schwartz, p. 40). Esfand was well known among the ancient Indo-Iranians. Dioscorides provides in the 1st century C.E. the earliest description of the plant, calling it pêganon agrion. Later Greek author…

prominent scholar of Persian literature, essayist, translator, university teacher, and one of the founders of the discipline of folklore in Iran. MAHJUB, MOHAMMAD JAFAR (Moḥammad Jaʿfar Maḥjub, b. Tehran, 1 Šahrivar 1303 Š./23 August 1924; d. Los Angeles, 27 Bahman 1374 Š./17 February 1996) prominent scholar of Persian literature, essayist, translator, university teacher, and one of the founders of the discipline of folklore in Iran (FIGURE 1). LIFE Although Mahjub’s given name was Moḥammad Jaʿfar, his family called him by the nickname, Amir. His father, ʿAli Ak…

name of a category of supernatural beings believed to have been created from smokeless fire and to be living invisibly side-by-side the visible creation. A version of this article is available in print Volume X, Fascicle 4, pp. 418-422 GENIE (Ar. andPers. jenn; incorrect plural, ajenna, used in Persian), name of a cathegory of supernatural beings believed to have been created from smokeless fire (Koran 55:14; El-Shamy, Motif A2905.1, “Jinn created from fire”) and to be living invisibly side-by-side the visible creation. They are repeatedly mentioned in the Koran, where chapter 72 ( Sūra…

lit. “beverage of unity”; concoction made from adding hashish extract (jowhar-e ḥaīš) to diluted yogurt. A version of this article is available in print Volume VII, Fascicle 6, pp. 584-585 DŪḠ-E WAḤDAT “beverage of unity,” concoction made from adding hashish extract ( jowhar-e ḥaīš) to diluted yogurt (Šahrī, VI, pp. 412, 423). The resulting tonic is drunk by certain mystics as a hallucinogen during their rites. ʿAlī-Akbar Dehḵodā, in his compendium of Persian proverbs and dicta (1339 Š./1960, I, p. 255), quoted a verse from Kamāl-al-Dīn …

(also čerāḡān, čerāḡbānī, čerāḡbārān), the decoration of buildings and open spaces with lights during festivals and on occasions like weddings, coronations, royal birthdays, circumcision ceremonies, and so on. A version of this article is available in print Volume V, Fascicle 3, pp. 264-265 ČERĀḠĀNĪ (also čerāḡān, čerāḡbānī, čerāḡbārān), the decoration of buildings and open spaces with lights during festivals and on occasions like weddings, coronations, royal birthdays, circumcision ceremonies, and so on. It may have originated in the tradit…

(1900-1998), Shaikh, charismatic cleric and founder of the Ḥojjatiya Association whose primary objective was to meet the polemical challenge of the Bahai faith and the perceived danger of its aggressive missionary activity in Persia. A version of this article is available in print Volume XI, Fascicle 6, pp. 581-583 ḤALABI, Shaikh MAḤMUD (b. Mašhad, 13 Rajab 1318/6 November 1900; d. Tehran, 26 Dey 1377/16 January 1998; Figure 1), a charismatic cleric and the founder of Ḥojjatiya Association (Anjoman-e Ḥojjatiya; q.v.). Shaikh Maḥmud Ḥalabi Ḵorāsā…