Государства и культуры иранского государства - Гафуров Б.Г.
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The emergence of the Achaemenid State, the first world power known in history, was accompanied, as has been the case of all empires, by conquests and military expeditions. But at the same time, (he emergence of this vast empire objectively
led to many positive results and consequences. It saved the peoples comprised in it from devastating invasions and wars which had been a permanent feature of the preceding period taking a heavy toll of human lives and destroying productive forces and cultural values. The unification of the peoples of the Near and Middle East, Central Asia and Transcaucasia within the framework of a single state greatly facilitated intensive processes of economic, social and cultural interrelation. Taxes and duties introduced in the Achaemenid Empire put a heavy burden on the toiling masses of the conquered lands; their exploitation by the indigenous nobility was also intensified. But law and order, strictly
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defined taxes, and a unified monetary system helped in the development of productive forces, trade and exchange of material and intellectual values between various peoples comprised in the Empire. In this respect the activities of some of the Achaemenid kings notably Cyrus the Great and Darius I, had a positive significance. Their tolerance as regards customs and cultural traditions of various countries and peoples, as well as laws and order enforced by them within the borders of their Empire greatly facilitated, of the one hand, the progress of indigenous cultures and folk traditions, and on the other, the strengthening of economic and cultural relations and influences. Having creatively adopted the best achievements of the preceding periods and of many other peoples, the Achaemenid Empire marked a new and much more advanced phase of the development of productive forces, system of administration, townplanning, culture and arts. The Achaemenid culture and art, which had emerged as a result of active interection of various ethno-cultural traditions, have long outlived the Achaemenid state deeply affecting the cultural development of various peoples of the East and the West in the subsequent periods.
Soviet scholars regard the 2500th anniversary of the Iranian State —the emergence of the Ahaemenid Empire — as an important event marking a significant stage in the history and culture of many peoples.
The study of the history of Iran, of its culture, art, literature and language has long and glorious traditions in our country. The publication of this volume is a vivid manifestation of the great interest and sincere feelings of the Soviet scholars and all Soviet, people for the people of the friendly country of Iran and their great culture.
/. M. Oransky SOVIET STUDIES OF OLD IRANIAN TEXTS (1917-1970)
The present work surveys Soviet studies of texts in the Old Iranian languages. Chronologically it covers the period from the oldest documents to those dating back to the Arab conquest of Iran and Central Asia (VH-early VIII centuries). It deals with major Soviet achievements in studying the Avesla and Old Persian inscriptions, documents in the languages of the Sassanian Iran, as well as of those of the рге-Moslem Central Asia (Parthian, Soghdian, Khwa-rezmian, and Bactrlan).
The author believes that one of the most significant shifts in the development of this Held of science in Soviet times lies in the fact that studies of the Old Iranian texts which formerly were almost exclusively of the philological and linguistic nature, are now closely linked with studies in the history and the history of the culture of the peoples of Central Asia, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Iran, and Afghanistan. The period in question saw the formation of the Soviet school of Old Iranian philology and comparative-
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historical Iranian linguistics which was founded by A. A. Freiman and of the Soviet historical school of the Ancient Orient, founded by V. V. Struve. Apart from the old research centers in Moscow and Leningrad, new ones have been set up in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Transcaucasia.
«Remarkable findings by Soviet archaeologists of new documents of the Old Iranian Languages have been a considerable contribution to science; the joint effort of Soviet Iranologists and historians in deciphering and interpreting those documents has led to a number of important discoveries in the history and the history of culture of Iran and Central Asia, as well as in Old Iranian philology and linguistics.
/. P. Petrushevsky
STUDIES OF IRANIAN FEUDAL SOCIETY IN RUSSIA AND IN THE USSR
Research in historic development of Iranian feudal society feature prominently in Russian and Soviet Iranian studies. Researches in Iranian as well as feudal society of Central Asia whose type is quite similar, were initiated by V. V. Barthold, the eminent Russian Orientalist (see his classic work «Turkestan During the Mongol Invasion» published twice in English (London, 1928 and 1958), and a number of other works by the same author many of which have been translated into Western languages and also into Persian, Arabic and Turkic). The most important contribution to solving the problem of the genesis of early feudal society in Iran and its specific features in the III—VI centuries was made by N. V. Pigulevskaya {one of her works, «Iranian Cities in the Early Ages» was published in French in Paris, in 1963); Iranian feudalism of the period in question was also studied by B. I. Zakhoder (Moscow) and K- V. Trever (Leningrad). A. Yu. Yakubovsky (Leningrad) devoted a number of his works to the problem of the history of feudal institutions of the VIII— XII centuries (in particular, to the military feoff — iqta). A. A. Ali-zadeh (Baku) made an important contribution to the studies of iqta and other feudal institutions and of the tax system and social terminology of feudalism in Iran and Azerbaijan of the XIII—XIV centuries. I. P. Petrushevsky (Leningrad) investigated the categories of feudal land ownership, forms of feudal bondage, the status and duties of peasantry, and the development of the military-feoff system and immunity in the XIII—XVIII centuries (one of his works, «Land Tenure and Agrarian Relations in Iran in the XIII— XV Centuries», was published in Persian—Tehran, 1344-1966). The same problems have been dealt with in some works by B. N. Zakhoder, A. M. Belenitsky, N. D. Aliklukho-Maklai, and A. I. Falina.
