Two Unknown Toponyms in the Shahnameh

جستارهای نوین ادبی

Article 1, Volume 45, Issue 4 - Serial Number 179, February 2012, Pages 1-17   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/jls.v45i4.22926

Author

Mohammad Jafar Yahaghi^*

Abstract

Shahnameh researchers have not made enough attempts to find the correct forms of its toponymy. The variants of these names are frequently incompatible and sometimes incorrect. Obviously the copiers of manuscripts have made little effort to record such names correctly and even at times they have inadvertently replaced the original names with the ones sounding more familiar to them. Based on the record of manuscripts and regional and geographical information, this paper intends to specify the correct forms of two toponyms (i.e., “Archang” & “Narahoo / Payahoo”) which have been recorded incorrectly in all accessible manuscripts and printed copies of the Shahnameh. The first (i.e., “Archang”) is certainly a variant of Archangan, a village in Kalat Naderi area in Khorassan Razavi province. The second one, with some reservations, can be the name of a battle ground near the border of ancient Zabolestan and Touran, located in present Afghanistan.

Keywords

Shahanmeh; ancient manuscripts; “Archang”; “Narahoo / Payahoo”