Examining the Social Reasons for the Incompatibility of Accounts Related to Homay Chehrzad’s Reign

جستارهای نوین ادبی

Article 4, Volume 45, Issue 2 - Serial Number 177, November 2013, Pages 85-101   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/jls.v45i2.18914

Author

Rohangiz Karachi^*

Abstract

According to the tradition and Ferdowsi’s Shāhnāma, the well-known Iranian national epic, Homay Chehrzad is the first Iranian sovereign queen of the Keyanid origin. Her life was an amalgamation of ancient Iranian myth, epic and history. She was the daughter, wife and successor to the throne of Bahman Ardeshir, son of Esfandiyār. The sovereignty of Homay was not expected by the society. Therefore, the unusual supremacy of a woman and her adopting the responsibility of the traditionally masculine office was a controversial and challenging experience. This might be the underlying reason behind the varying accounts and details associated with Homay: the eight names ascribed to her, the same identity of her father and husband, abandoning her child secretly in the river, her strange story of finding her son Darāb and different reports regarding her reign, many of which have been the subjects of hot debates in historical, feminist and epic fields. The aim of this article is to analyze various hypotheses regarding Homay’s private life and her reign within the framework of Feminist criticism. The study also intends to answer this question: Has Homey’s social status as a female sovereign caused diversity of narratives and alteration of her life events?

Keywords

Homay; Shāhnāma; Iran’s history; Iranian woman; gender role