Place of Persian Literature in Russian Iranology (Late 19th Century and Early 20th Century)

In the middle of the 19th century, Iranology was developed as a scientific discipline in many European countries. The new period of the relationships between Russia and the East began from the time of the reign of Peter the Great in early 18th century. In fact, the first scientific endeavors of Russians in the field of Orientalist studies are all connected with the name of this Emperor. During the late 19th century, owing to the efforts of Valentin Zhukovski, the prominent Russian Iranologist, the study of Persian literature, as one of the important academic branches of Iranology, entered St. Petersburg School of Russia. In the 20th century and after the October Revolution in 1917 in the former Soviet Union, a series of new subjects and problems were propounded in Orientalist studies, such as in Iranology. More than anything else, the ideological change in the Soviet State resulted in the rise of new methods in research on Iranology. Many of the related problems, not only those related to recent periods, but also those which were rooted in ancient history, culture, and written sources, were studied following the Marxist-Leninist approach. In this paper, while examining the history of Russian Iranology in short, the writer has tried to clarify the place of Persian literature in the Iranology of the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Russia.