“Persophony”. Regionality, Identity, Language Contacts in the History of Asia

"Persophony" is the most renowned work of one of Iran's leading contemporary scholars, Bert Fragner, which has garnered significant recognition in the international academic community. The initial publication of this book occurred in 1999 and, over the course of fifteen years, it has evolved into a seminal work in the field of Iranian studies. The term "persophony" pertains to the sphere of predominance of the Persian language, which serves as a lingua franca across a vast expanse stretching from Iran to China, and from the Caucasus to India. During the medieval period, this region developed as a cohesive cultural entity. Throughout history, these aforementioned regions have frequently been integral components of larger state formations such as the Ghaznavids, Ghurids, Ilkhanids, Mughals, Timurids, Safavids and Qajars. The foundation of this unity lay in the Persian language.This translation is primarily intended for Iranian historians and scholars of the Middle East. It aims to partially fill the gap in the Russian-language academic literature that has developed due to a lack of translations of recent research on the medieval Muslim world, especially works published in German. At the same time, this book contains a significant number of facts and insights that have not been previously presented in Russian publications and are therefore unknown to Russian-speaking readers. As such, it will appeal not only to those seeking to engage with the challenges of contemporary Oriental studies but also to anyone interested in the cultural legacy of Iranian peoples.