Monumental effort

Iranians join hands to work on unique encyclopaedia


The making of the Encyclopaedia Iranica is a monumental task which has been undertaken by the Iranian community spread all over the world. The Association of Friends of Encyclopaedia Iranica, Dubai chapter, met recently to discuss and encourage the ongoing work on the project.

Mark Houshmand, the man responsible for organising the Dubai chapter of events, says: "The purpose of this meeting is to provide a forum for better awareness, and acquainting the community in Dubai with the work related to the Encyclopaedia Iranica."

Housed at Columbia University's Center for Iranian Studies, work on the Encyclopaedia Iranica has been progressing under the supervision of its founder, Professor Ehsan Yarshater, since 1974.

The encyclopedia is a monumental undertaking with historical ramifications that cover the past 3,000 years of life in its broadest sense on the Iranian plateau. It has been regarded by many scholars as the most extensive compendium ever conceived on the past and present cultures of the people who speak the Farsi language and their contributions to human civilisation.

Dr H. Mousavian has been closely associated with Professor Yarshater since the inception of the encyclopaedia.

During his presentation at the Dubai chapter of events, he said: "Until now 10 volumes of the Encyclopaedia Iranica, till the letter G, have been produced. A volume is composed of 10 parts, each having 112 pages."

It is a prime, precise and reliable reference on the lands, lives, cultures, science and history of all Iranian people and their interaction with other societies. It is a presentation of the heritage in Iran and is a sustained recognition of the contributions of Iranians throughout history and is an effort by them towards preservation of their cultural identity.

The Iranica project aims to complete a peer-reviewed set of 28 reference volumes, 10 of which have already been published. It is intended to benefit scholars, students and general readers alike with keen special interests in Iran, by providing a medium that each person of Persian/Iranian heritage would be proud to possess.

Treasure trove

Regarded as a treasure trove of knowledge, it ranges from biographies of notable men and women in every field to descriptions of all Iranian cities and monuments (ancient and modern), from oil installations to major banks, from Zoroastrian scriptures to Islamic rituals, from Persian classics to modern novels, from Iranian flora and fauna to Persian music and folklore, from philosophy, mysticism and Persian calligraphy to Persian and Afghan architecture, and from history of science and medicine to economy and ecology.

According to Dr Michael Lustig, the work of the encyclopaedia is not only challenging but also needs a lot of commitment and dedication for continuance.

Speaking on the works compiled in Volume III, he said: "I aim to show the depth and diversity of topics covered and emphasise that each topic is covered with authoritative completeness and scholarly soundness." He helped the people of Dubai get a taste of the various categories and facets of Iran that he has covered in this volume.

Pargol Sotudeh is a Dubai resident and has contributed to the encyclopaedia through an article on the Zoroastrian religion. She has also translated some of the articles in the encyclopaedia related to ancient Iran and wants to spread the message of the extensive work involved with the encyclopaedia.

Her ongoing PhD research work is related to the pre-Islamic languages and literature in Iran. She made a presentation on gardens based on references made in the Encyclopaedia Iranica and how they were inspired by Iranian culture.

Contributions

Iranian linguists, historians and archaeologists from many universities, museums and institutions have actively participated in the development of the encyclopaedia. To date over 900 scholars have contributed to the Iranica.

The U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the foremost sponsor of educational, academic and research projects in the U.S., has supported the Iranica for 22 years.

However, to ensure the completion of this monumental work, the Encyclopedia Iranica Foundation was established in 1989 and hopes to collect funds from all over the world.