7Berkeh: Dr. Ahmad Eghtedari, the most prominent scholar of the Persian Gulf studies, is recovering his health in his house in Tehran after undergoing an operation a week ago. Dr. Eghtedari is 94 years old and until recently, he used to show up in his office in the Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia to which he has dedicated his extensive library.
Ahmad Eghtedari is born in 1304, in Gerash. He is known as Ahmad Khan to Gerashi people because he is a descendant of the thanes (Khan in Persian) of Gerash. He has always expressed his wish to be buried after his death in Gerash next to his ancestors.
He is a teacher, lawyer, writer, historian and geographer, and the most prominent scholar in Persian Gulf studies. In his youth, he has traveled on foot along the coasts of Persian Gulf and Oman Sea and has begun mapping and documenting their topography. The Pearl of Persian Gulf is a book that documents his Iranian Studies researches.
Life and Education
Ahmad Eghtedari was born Ahmad Khan Eghtedari Gerashi in 1304 in Gerash, a small city in the south of Fars, Iran. Both his parents, Mortaza Qoli Khan Eghtedari and Aniss Eghtedari, were Gerashi descendants of thanes (Khan in Persian) of Gerash. He is currently living in Tehran, and has three children, Afshin, Omid and Arezoo.
He started his education in Lar and Shiraz. He returned to Lar to work as a teacher in elementary school, which he continued to do for 30 years. Meanwhile, in 1328, he was accepted in the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences of the University of Tehran and graduated as a lawyer in 1334. He worked as a lawyer for 40 years, too.
At the same time, he started his researches about the history of Larestan. Due to these prominent studies, he was invited to teach history to graduate students of the University of Tehran. Later, he received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Tehran for his outstanding works and researches.
Works
Eqtedari has written 40 invaluable books and more than 100 scholarly papers. These works cover a wide range of topics, including the correction and publication of poetry collections written by previous poets, translations of the research works of non-Iranian scholars and writers, tales of Mathnavi, Manteq-o-Tair (Assembly of Birds) and One Thousand and One Nights, and also scientific researches in the fields of the language and the culture of different regions of Iran.
Some of the books published by Ahmad Eghtedari are: The Persian Gulf, from Ancient Times until Today; Bandar Abbas and The Persian Gulf; Pearl Hunting in The Persian Gulf; The History of Muscat and Oman and Bahrain and Their Relations with Iran; The History of Shipping in Iran; Historical Sites of the Coasts and Islands of The Persian Gulf and Oman Sea; Ancient Larestan and Larestani Culture; Khuzestan and Kohgiluyeh and Mamasani
Some words and expressions in this news story:
Guardian of the Persian Gulf: پاسبان خلیج فارس
Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia: مرکز دایرهالمعارف بزرگ اسلامی
Descendant: نوادگان
Ancestors: اجداد
honorary doctorate degree: مدرک دکترای افتخاری
