The Investigation of the Effects of the Iranian Folk Culture on the Travelogues of the German Heinrich Brugesch

Folk culture is a collection of rituals, ceremonies, myths, legends, stories, proverbs, songs, lullabies, riddles, games, entertainment, beliefs and superstitions of a society. Travelogues provide us with extensive and valuable information about the political, social, economic, and cultural aspects of different societies. Therefore, analyzing such writings is very effective in recognizing the manifestations of folk culture in a society. In this study, two travelogues "A Journey to the Court of Sultan Sahebqaran" and "In the Land of the Sun" written by Heinrich Brugesch, who traveled to Iran twice during the reign of Nasser al-Din Shah, were analyzed using descriptive-analytical method and library resources, to re-read the domains of Qajar's Iranian folk culture. The results of the study show that a significant part of these travelogues deals with the elaboration and description of the components of the Iranian folk culture. Description of appearance and character of Iranians, jewelry, hunting, celebrations, Muharram's mourning ritual, marriage and wedding ritual, funeral ritual, eating etiquette, hospitality etiquette, folklore language and literature, folk buildings and places, folk arts and handicrafts, and beliefs and superstitions are the most important elements of the Iranian folk culture, about which Brugesch has written in his travelogues with a sharp and comprehensive prospective. In parts of Bruges's travelogues, the "Western" mentality toward east is seen, comparing the "other" with the "self", and considering the "self" to be superior. Nonetheless, there are many fair judgments in them, distinguishing them from other European travelogues.