The Persianate World

“This is the first volume to examine seriously the notion of a ‘Persianate world’ extending far beyond the traditional strongholds of Iran and India. By highlighting the uses of Persian across early modern Eurasia in places as diverse as China, Siberia, and even England, the volume represents an exceptionally important contribution to our understanding of what constituted this world.”—Andrew Peacock, Professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic History, University of St. Andrews

"With erudition and refinement, this book accomplishes something remarkable—it shows the importance of Persian as a language of exchange of specialized literate knowledge while also exploring the process by which it became constrained by the rise of vernacular cultures. It provides a timely corrective to an anachronistic understanding of the Persianate sphere as an empire of letters centred exclusively on Iran."—Paolo Sartori, author of Visions of Justice: Shari’a and Cultural Change in Russian Central Asia

"This groundbreaking collection of essays illuminates the multifaceted and very complex history of the rise and decline of the Persian language as a lingua franca in a way that has never before been conceptualized."—Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak, author of Recasting Persian Poetry: Scenarios of Poetic Modernity in Iran

"The scholarly term 'Persianate' has been widely adopted with little critical analysis. This volume provides welcome reflection and case studies on the role of Persian in countries and domains beyond Iran and India, exploring its frontiers to find analytical utility in the concept."—Kevin van Bladel, Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Yale University