Ahmad Kasravi
Ahmad Kasravi Tabrizi (29 September , 1890 - March 11, 1946), was a notable Iranian linguist, historian, reformer, and philosopher.
He was born in Hokmabad (Hohmavar), Tabriz. Initially, Kasravi enrolled in a seminary. Later, he joined the Persian Constitutional Revolution. He experienced a sort of conversion to Western learning when he learned that the comet of 1910 had been identified as a reappearance of Halley's comet. He abandoned his clerical training after this event and enrolled in the American Memorial School. Thenceforward he became, in Roy Mottahedeh's words, "a true anticleric."
It was in Tbilisi where he first became acquainted with a wide spectrum of political ideas and movements, and he soon was employed by the government of Iran in various cultural posts.
A prolific writer, Kasravi was very critical of both the Shi'a clergy and of the policies of the central government. He had liberal views on religion, was a strong supporter of democracy, and expressed them in satirical pamphlets like What Is the Religion of the Hajis with Warehouses? that infuriated many readers. His views earned him many powerful enemies such as Ayatollah Khomeini.
Kasravi is known for his research on the ancient Azari language and origin of the Azerbaijani people. He claimed that the ancient Azeri language was an offshoot of Pahlavi language. Due to his research, he was granted the membership of London Royal College of Asian Studies and American Academy [1].
On March 11, 1946, while being tried on charges of "slander against Islam," Kasravi and one of his assistants were shot to death in open court in Tehran by followers of Navvab Safavi, a Shi'a extremist cleric who had founded a terrorist organization called the Fadayan-e Islam (litteraly Devotees of Islam). The same group had failed in assassinating Kasravi earlier in April 1945 in Tehran. Ayatollah Boroujerdi and Ayatollah Sadr issued fatwas for killing Ahmad Kasravi.[2]
Some of his more famous books are:
- The 18 Year History of Azarbaijan
- The Constitutional History of Iran
- The Forgotten Kings (Persian شهرياران گمنام)
- The 500 Year History of Khuzestan
- A Brief History of The Lion and Sun
- Sheikh Safi and His Progeny
- Shiism (Persian شيعيگرى)
- Bahaism (Persian بهاييگرى)
- Sufism (Persian صوفيگرى)
See also
References
- Roy Mottahedeh, The Mantle and the Prophet: Religion and Politics in Iran (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1985), ch. 3.
External links
- Ahmad Kasravi (BBC Persian)
- Ahmad Kasravi biography
- Website about Ahmad Kasravi
- Criticism at Kasravi
 | This Iranian biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a Middle Eastern writer or poet is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |