Main Styles of the Persian Literature

In general, the most famous styles of the Persian literature are consisting of: Khorasani style, Iraqi style and Hindi style. We will discuss about these three styles of the Persian literature in continue.

A) Khorasani Style

The major genres of Persian poetry emerge in the period of the Khorasani style (tenth to early twelfth centuries).[1] These include the short poem or epigram, generally in the four line rubai (pl. rubaityat) form, or as a qate’(fragment, a form often used for satire or personal invective); the medium-length poem of praise and so on. The Khorasani style’s masterpiece is the Shahnameh of Ferdowsi, which recounts the pre-Islamic myths and romanticized history of Iran from the creation of the world to the Arab conquest. Sanai Ghaznavi one the famous Persian poets is credited with this style. Iraqi style is more sush and more cerebral than Khorasani, delighting in the decoration, word play and conspicuous euphony. Many of the tropes current during the period of the Khorasani style had become conventional.[2]

The influential romances of the Azerbaijani poet Nezami (1141-1209) may be regarded as transitional between the two styles.

Khorasani style”, as most of its followers were associated with Greater Khorasan, is characterized with its supercilious diction, dignified tone, and relatively literate language. The chief representatives of this lyricism are Asjadi, Farrukhi Sistani, Unsuri, and Manuchehri. Panegyric masters such as Rudaki were known for their love of nature, their verse abounding with evocative descriptions.