Gardizi's role in reviving and recovering the components of Iranian identity and assimilating it with Islamic identity in Zain al-Akhbar

Sanchooli, Doostali

doi:10.22034/chs.2026.565727.1147

Gardizi's role in reviving and recovering the components of Iranian identity and assimilating it with Islamic identity in Zain al-Akhbar

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Doostali Sanchooli

Assistant Professor, Department of History, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Zabol, Zabol, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22034/chs.2026.565727.1147

Abstract

Abu Saeed Abdolhay Gardizi, a historian of the fifth century AH, is one of the Iranian historians who, by writing the book Zain al-Akhbar, entered the field of identity based on Iranian-Islamic identity. He made an important contribution to strengthening Iranian historiography in Persian and tried to revive some of the components of Iranian identity and link it with Islamic identity, thus advancing the two in parallel. Considering this issue, this study attempts to examine and analyze Gardizi's role in reviving and recovering the components of Iranian identity and assimilating it with Islamic identity in the historiography of Zain al-Akhbar using a descriptive-analytical method and relying on library sources. Gardizi was among the thinkers who, besides his attachment to Islamic teachings, was also interested in the culture and identity of pre-Islamic Iran and made a serious effort to harmonize some of the identity components such as geography and specific territory, Persian language, common past and history, monotheistic beliefs, and Iranian thought which emphasized wisdom and reason, justice and fairness of rulers and government officials, in the Islamic era. In addition to consolidating and perpetuating this identity, he tried to encourage the rulers of the Ghaznavid Turkic race to preserve and protect the Iranian-Islamic identity, so that in addition to gaining legitimacy and acceptance among the Iranians, they could reduce their oppression and oppression of the people and act on the principles of justice and fairness in the Iranian thought that did not conflict with Islamic culture.

Keywords

Gardizi

identity

Iran

Islam

Zain al-Akhbar

Holy Quran

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