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9781433143861

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This book is a translation of a unique historiography of the Qajar court and its people based on personal diaries, private collections and oral histories. With his deep knowledge of social events and political issues of Qajar era Iran, the author opens new windows onto the social history of modern Iran. Indeed, this translation of such an important book from Persian (Farsi) to English will help scholars have access to such original research and will also help public audiences become familiar with this fascinating period of Iranian history. -Pedram Khosrow, School of International Studies, Oklahoma University The work of Ali Shabani mixes description with narrative, where powerful families, wealth, and historical personages shape what it means to be a Qajar politician and statesman. It offers public entertainment by reading history through court glamour and family politics-some of the staples of traditional history. The Thousand Families is a valuable source for scholars who are interested in exploring the intersection of biography, historical writing, and public entertainment in modern Iran and the way the Qajar era is understood and represented during the mid-twentieth century. -Rula Jurdi Abisaab, Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University The Thousand Families, despite its deceptively populist title, is an excellent work of historical scholarship on a misunderstood period of Iranian and world history. With insights into the sources and a deep understanding of the dynamics of the inner workings of the Qajar court, Ali Shabani has produced a remarkable book whose periodization of Qajar administrative history is an excellent starting point for any study of nineteenth century Iranian history. -Khodadad Rezakhani, Department of History, Princeton University

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Ali Shabani (1927–2002) was educated in Persian literature at Tehran University and had a Diploma of Journalism from the University of Maryland. He was court journalist and chief editor of various journals, and he published numerous articles, mostly satirical critiques. In addition to Hezar Famil (The Thousand Families), he wrote Bohran (Crisis) and Tarrah-e Kudeta (The Plotter of the Coup d'État). Patricia J. Higgins (Ph.D. in anthropology, University of California, Berkeley) is Emeritus Distinguished Service Professor of Anthropology at SUNY, Plattsburgh. She has conducted ethnographic research in Iran and among Iranians in the United States. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and as chapters in edited volumes. Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi (Ph.D. in linguistics, University of Ottawa) is Senior Lecturer of Persian Language and Linguistics at McGill University. Her publications include Processing Compound Verbs in Persian and The Oxford Handbook of Persian Linguistics, several book chapters, and articles in peer-reviewed journals. She is the daughter of Ali Shabani.

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