TEHRAN – Turkish scholar Ali Temizel has been honored with a Shahriar Medal, a decoration that Iran gives to foreign scholars who have made outstanding contributions to Persian language studies.

Selcuk University Mevlana Research Institute director Temizel received the medal from the Iranian ambassador to Ankara, Mohammad Farazmand, during a special ceremony at the Embassy of Iran, the Sadi Foundation, a Tehran-based organization that promotes the Persian language abroad, announced on Sunday.

In a short speech, Temizel expressed his thanks for the medal and talked about the strong influence the Persian language has in Turkey.

He also pointed to Turkish students’ desire for the history and culture of their country and noted that it is difficult to learn about the issues without knowing the Persian language.

The Turkish expert on Persian literature expressed his hope that an expansion of academic ties between Iran and Turkey would help improve Persian learning in Turkey.

On his part, Farazmand said, “The Persian language is a key component of Turkish culture, which has spread in Anatolia over the centuries, and learning Farsi has been changed into a movement that is increasingly flourishing.”

Alireza Danesh, Iranian cultural attaché in Turkey, was also in attendance at the ceremony.

He expressed his appreciation of all Temizel’s hard work to promote Iranian poet Mohammad-Hossein Behjat, best known by his pen name Shahriar, in Turkey and said, “Granting this cultural medal to Professor Temizel should be considered as an appreciation of his long service in the spread of the Persian language and culture in Anatolia.”

Yakup Safak, a professor at Kirikkale University, was also honored with an award for his contributions to Persian literature studies in Turkey.

In his recent studies, Safak has focused on Persian mystic and poet Molana Jalal ad-Din Rumi and published several books and articles in this field.

So far, twelve Turkish scholars have been decorated by Iran with Shahriar Medals.

The decoration has been named after poet Shahriar, the most prominent figure of contemporary Persian literature.

He was mainly influenced by the poetry of Hafez, a Persian poet writing in the 14th century. 

Shahriar, who also composed works in Azerbaijani, published his first book of poems in 1929 with prefaces by Persian literature scholars Mohammad-Taqi Bahar, Saeid Nafisi and Pejman Bakhtiari.

“Heidar Babaya Salam” is Shahriar’s most famous Azerbaijani poetry collection, which highlights his birthplace, the village of Heidar Baba. 

Photo: Turkish scholar Ali Temizel (L) holds the Shahriar Medal after receiving the decoration from Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Farazmand (R) at the Embassy of Iran in Ankara.

MMS/YAW