PERSIA

[s. 597] : The modern kingdom of Persia, occupies, roughly speaking, that part of Western Asia lying between the Caspian Sea on the north and the Persian Gulf on the south, Afghanistan and Baluchis an on the east and Turkey on the west. Its exact boundaries have not as yet been definitely locaied, but starting from Mount Ararat at the northwest, the river Aras forms the greater part of its boundary line between that part of Ru ia lying west of the Caspian Sea, tho there is a small strip of country extending south of the river Aras along the Caspian Sea which does not belong to Persia. East of the Caspian, Ru ian Turkestan bounds it on the north, tho the exact limits of Persian territory have not been accurately settled, Ru ian authorities claiming more than is allowed by other European powers. On the east the called by the natives Iran, boundary lines between Afghanistan and Balu chi stan have been determined by British commi ioners at different times, altho some parts of it southern and south disputed. Its are still western boundary is the coast-line of the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf. Its western boundary from Mount Ararat in a general southwesterly direction to the Persian Gulf is the disputed Per so Turkish frontier, for the settlement of which a mixed commi ion, appointed in 1843, labored for 25 years, with the result that the disputed territory has been defined rather than the exact boundaries delimited. Persia extends for about 700 miles from north to south, and 900 miles from east to west, and includes an area estimated at 628,000 square The greater part of this region is an miles. elevated plateau, almost a perfect tableland in the center and on the east, but cut up by mountain chains on the north, the west,_ and the More than three-fourths of its entire south. surface is desert land, but many of the valleys between the high mountain ranges are wonder Rare fully fertile and exceedingly beautiful. luscious fruits, valuable timber, and mountain brooks and torrents make the land a flowers, Persia scene of picturesque beauty which is celebrated in history and song, and indi olubly connected with the ideas of Persia. With such a diversity of physical characteristics there is of nece ity a diversity of climate. On the plateau the climate is temperate; at Ispahan summer and winter are equally mild, and regular seasons follow each other. At the north and the northwest severe winters are experienced, while the inhabitants of the desert region in the center and on the east of it are scorched in summer frozen in winter. Along the Caspian Sea “the summer heat is intense, while the winters are mild, and heavy and frequent rainfalls make the low country marshy and unhealthy. In the southern provinces, tho the heat in autumn is exce ive, winter and spring are delightful; and summer, tho hot, is not unpleasant, since the atmosphere of Persia in general is remarkable for its dryne and purity. The population of Persia is about 9,000,000. The majority are engaged mainly in agriculture, and the best wheat in the world, together with other cereals, is raised, and cotton, sugar, rice, and tobacco are produced in the southern provinces. The wandering tribes dwell in tents, and move about with their flocks and herds as the seasons succeed each other, spending the spring and summer on the mount am slopes and the winter on the plains. The two principal races are the Turks and the Persians. There are also Arabs, Kurds, Leks, and Baluchis. The principal cities of Persia, with their population, are: Teheran, 250,000; Tabriz, 185,000; Ispahan and Meshed, each with 80,000; Kerman and Yezd, each wiih 60,000. It is estimated that 8,000,000 of the population belong to the Shiah faith, 750,000 are Sunnis, 10,500 Parsees, 20,000 Jews, 53,000 Armenians, and 30,000 Nestor i ans. The government of Persia is similar to that It is a kingdom whose king is called He is the absolute ruler and the master of the lives and goods of aU his subjects; but tho his power is absolute, he must not act of Turkey. the Shah. contrary to the accepted doctrines of the Mohammedan religion as laid down by the prophet and interpreted by the high priesthood. The laws are based on the precepts of the Koran, and the Shah is regarded as vicegerent of the prophet. A ministry, divided into several departments, after the European fashion, a ists him in the executive department of the government. A governor-general is appointed over each one of the 27 provinces, who is directly responsible to the central government. The nomad tribes are ruled over by their chiefs, who are responsible to the governors. The only instruction of the bulk of the population is from the teachings of the Koran, but there are a great number of so-called colleges supported by public funds, where students are instructed not only in religion, and Persian and Arabic literature, but also in scientific knowledge. History: It is not the province of this article to give any sketch of the history of the country of Persia, but the following dates of the principal epochs in its history may be of service. From the earliest records, dating back to about 2,000 B.C., the first rulers of Persia were the Medes, who conquered Babylonia and established a Medo-Persian empire, which lasted, under the rule of famous kings Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius, Xerxes, and Artaxerxes until — — 580 the conquest by Alexander the Great, 331 B.C., when the Greek and Part hi an Empire was established, which ended about the middle of the 2d century. The Sa an i an Empire, from the beginning of the 3d century lasted until about the end of the 7th, when the period of Arabian domination commenced, and gradually grew in extent and influence. Mohammedanism completely captured the life and permeated the thought of the people to the very core. Persia was at times a province, and the center of the Arabian Empire, under succe ive rulers of Arab, Turk, or Mongol origin. The sway of the Timurides and Turkomans lasted from 1405 to 1499. From 1499 to 1736 the Sufi or Sufawi dynasty ruled the country. Its founder was Is mail Sufi. With the acce ion of Nadir Shah, 1736, the last native Persian dynasty pa ed away. At the death of Nadir Shah in 1747 a period of anarchy, followed by short reigns of various despots, ensued, until in 1794 Agha Mohammed ascended the throne the first of the reigning dynasty of the Kajars. The present Shah, Muzaffar-ed-din, succeeded his father in 1896. Mi ions in Persia: When the religion of Christ — was accepted by Const an tine (312) it was stigmatized b}’ the rival empire of the East as the religion of the Romans. Religious zeal and national feeling united against it, and bitter persecutions continued in Persia for a century after they had ceased in the Roman Empire. The sufferings of Christians imder Shaplir II., the Sa an i an, were as terrible as any experienced under Diocletian. In tlie face of these obstacles it is clear that the Christian faith had a harder mi ion field in Asia than in Europe. The 3d century saw Christian mi ions there advancing generally in peace. The 4th century was full of conflict and persecution, with an open door and many adversaries. The pious and zealous monks of Egypt and Syria were the leading mi ionaries, and their labors are still attested by the many churches that bear their names in Me so pot am i a and among the Nestor i ans. The Armenians were largely converted, and the Georgians. In this century also strong heretical sects took shape, that have left relics to the present day. In the 5th century the bitter controversies within the church resulted in the separation of the Eastern Christians from the West. The Nestor i an controversy at the Council of Ephesus (431) resulted in a schism which was carried thence to Ede a, and thence to Persia. The separation of the main body of Christians under the Persian rule was completed in a council held at Seleucia 499. There were political reasons for this separation as well as theological. It gave satisfaction to the Persian Government to have its Christian subjects break their connection entirely with the Romans, and thus it gave rest from persecution. In the 6th and 7th centuries there was much mi ionary activity by the Persian Church. Under the Caliphs: 641-1258. The dominant religion of Persia from the primeval days had been the faith of Zoroaster. Christianity failed to overthrow it. To this mighty religion, which once seemed likely to supersede all others and be proclaimed in the edicts of the great king over Europe as well as Asia, the fatal blow came suddenly, and from a quarter least expected. The Persian Emperor received a letter one day 681 from”the camel-driver of Mecca,” bidding him abjure the faith of his ancestors and confe that “there is no God but God, and Mohammed is the prophet of God.” The indignant monarch tore the letter to pieces, and drove the camel-drivers who brought it from his presence. But before ten years had pa ed the Arab hordes had driven the Persian from his throne. Persia, defeated in two decisive battles, reluctantly gave up the The whole system fell with a crash, contest. and the only remnants left to perpetuate its are some 6,000 souls in Yezd, a city of Persia, rites and 100,000 Parsees in Bombay. The faith of Mohammed from that day to this has ruled in Persia. The Persian is the only Arvan race that accepted Islam. ‘Under the Mogul Tartars: 1258-1430. The Moguls arose in Chinese Tartary. The last of Christian in name, the race of Christian kings doubtle , more than in reality was slain by Genghis Khan about 1202. Genghis had a Christian wife, the daughter of this king, and he was tolerant toward the Christian faith. In fact, the Mogul conquerors were without much religion, and friendly toward all. The wave of carnage and conquest swept westward and covered Persia, and overwhelmed the Caliph This change was for a time of Bagdad in 1258. — — favorable to the Christians, as the rulers openly declared themselves Christians, or were partial The patriarch of the Neslorians to Christianity. was chosen from people of the same speech and race as the conquerors a native of Western China. He ruled the church through a stormy period of seven reigns of Mogul kings; had the joy of baptizing some of them, and of indulging for a time the hope that they would form such an alliance with the Christians of Europe against the Muslims as would render all Asia, acro to China, a highway for the Christian faith. But the period of such hope was brief, and soon ended in threatened ruin. The Christian faith was thrown back upon its last defenses, and became a hunted and despised faith, with only a remnant of adherents clinging with a death grip to their churches and worship. The Period of Greatest Depre ion: 1400-1830. Persia was torn by factions and wars for a century. As France rejected the Reformation and reaped her reward in anarchy and blood, so Persia suffered on a larger scale. The Christian Church was lost a buried and apparently lifele seed only remaining and the Christian name became — — — a by-word. The Sufi or Sufawi kings (1499-1736) ruled over large populations of Armenians and Georgians, Nestor i ans, and Jacobites in what is now Ru ian and Turkish territory. Meanwhile the Reformation came to Europe, and the revival spirit of propagandism in the Romish Church. Toward the close of the 16th century occurred some events bearing on Persian mi ions, especially during the reign of Shah Abbas the Great (1582-1627), the contemporary of Queen Elizabeth. One was diplomatic intercourse of the between England and Persia. The first attempt was a failure, for in 1561 Anthony Jenkinson arrived in Persia with letters from Queen Elizabeth for Tamasp Shah. At their interview the Shah’s first question was, “Are you a Muslim or an infidel?” He replied that he was not a Muslim nor was he an infidel. But the Shah expre ed his di atisfaction, and the English man retired, and every step of his was imme- Persia diately sprinkled with sand and swept to remove the defilement of his contact with the royal court. But in 1598 Sir Anthony and Robert Shirley had better succe , for they arrived in Persia with a numerous retinue, and for many years were intimately a ociated with Shah Abbas, and laid the foundation of English influence in the East. Following upon the Sufawi kings was an invasion of Persia, lasting through seven years of ma acre and misrule. Then arose Nadir Shah, who extended the Persian frontier far eastward and westward, and pillaged India. A generation of anarchy and civil war followed until the rise of the present line of kin^s, called Afghan Kajar line, from the ancestral tnbe from which they spring. Since the opening of the 19th century these kings have ruled, and an era of comparative peace has come. For twelve centuries Mohammedanism, in one form or another, has controlled the government, and molded the laws and morals and destinies of the millions the of Persia. Modern Christian Mi ions: Manifestly the ancient and medieval mi ions in Persia have failed to Christianize the nation. The way for modern Protestant mi ions began to open with the opening of the 19th century. The Persian language, through the Mogul emperors and the conquests of Nadir Shah, became the polite language of a large part of India, and the lingua franc a of all Western Asia. The East India Company required their officials to study the Persian, until the time of Lord Macaulay, when English became the official language. Persia also from its position has an importance as a political power that was courted by Napoleon, by Ru ia, and by England. Thus it came to pa that splendid emba ies were sent to Persia early in the century, and English influence most of all controlled affairs for several decades. Henry Martyn was a chaplain in India, and there acquired the Persian language. He came to Persia in 1811 to complete and improve the Persian translation of the New Testament. No one can read his memoir covering the eleven months that he spent in Shiraz and not marvel at his boldne in confe ing Christ and his deliverance from the bigoted Mollahs. But both his witne and his book were rejected with scorn. The devoted mi ionary left the country without knowing of a single convert. Neverthele his translation of the New Testament and the Psalms was the lasting fruit of his labors. He wrote on completing it this prayer: “Now may the Spirit who gave the word, and called me, I trust, to be an interpreter of it, graciously and powerfully apply it to the hearts of sinners, even to gathering an elect people from the long-estranged Persians.” Many wonderful facts in later years show that this prayer is being answered. The next laborer was the Rev. C. G. Pfander, He visited of the Basel Mi ionary Society. Persia in 1829, and at intervals for a few years sojourned there, pa ing part of his time in Shusha, Georgia, where his brethren from Germany then had a flourishing mi ion. This learned and devoted man came near sealing his testimony with his blood at Kermanshah, in Western Persia, but was preserved for protracted He died at Constantinople in 1869. labors. His great work for Persia is “The Balance of Truth,” a book comparing Christianity and several This work and Mohammedanism. Persia PesJiawar other treatises on the controversy with Islam were published in India, and are doing a great deal secretly in Persia to direct the you sands whose faith in their religion is shaken. The same works, perhaps unwisely published in Turkey before Dr. Ptander’s death, led to severe persecution, and to a strict suppre ion of all books aimed at the system of Islam. But the books still live, and have their work to do, for they are exhaustive and unanswerable. After several such sporadic mi ionary ventures in Persia, Dr. Joseph Wolf, about 1827, visited Persia. He was a converted Jew, a To great traveler, and a voluminous writer. this latter fact was due the decision of the to send men in 1830 to examine the condition of the Nestor i an Church, described by determined Dr. Wolf. As a result the Rev. to establish a mi ion to the Nestor i ans. Justin Perkins and his wife embarked in the fall of 1833. They reached Tabriz about a year later, and in the summer of 1835 were joined by This little company of Dr. and Mrs. Grant. two mi ionaries and their wives arrived at Oroomiah formally to occupy the place as a Meanwhile the station in November, 1835. in 1834 sent out the Rev. J. L. Merrick, who had specially prepared himself to explore the Mohammedan field of Persia and Central Asia. He continued a mi ionary till 1843. He traveled extensively in company with Mr. Haas, ABCFM ABCFM ABCFM and both came near losing their lives in an encounter with the Mollahs in Ispahan. Mr. Merrick’s labors resulted only in teaching some Persian youths the English language and science, and in translating the Shi’ite traditional Life of Mohammed. It became evident that Providence had not yet opened the way to labor directly for the Mohammedans. The roll of this mi ion counts fifty-two mi ionaries, men and women, sent out previous to 1871. Time would fail to tell of all these. The pioneers, Me rs. Perkins and Grant, were enthusiastic and apostolic men. One of them. Dr. Grant, finished his career in 1845. You sands in America and England became familiar with his work through his letters and his boolv on the Mountain Nestor i ans, and his Memoir, written by a colleague in the mountain work, Dr. Laurie. His grave is by the shores of the Tigris, while the account of his labors has pa ed into the annals of the Church’s heroes. Justin Perkins, D.D., was spared to labor for more than thirty-six years, dying on the last day of 1869. His eminent services were seen in pioneer work, and in making known the Nestor i ans. In his later days he was a real patriarch, with all the venerable bearing and deep piety of the best fathers of old. The force of mi ionaries was steadily increased from time to time by the arrival of other men. The work of the was almost entirely for the Nestor i ans, numbering about 100,000 souls, partly in Persia and partly in Kurdistan, under ABCFM Turkish rule. The preparatory work was followed by a remarkable ingathering, and then <;ame years of organizing and training. The work accomplished was to establish an enterprise with all the appliances and parts of an aggre ive reformation m this old church, a of Constantinople, in the heart of Islam the pre , the training-schools for young men and young women, a band of over fifty native pastors and evangelists, an aggregate you sand miles east — 582 of over eighty schools and congregations. The results were great in themselves, and greater in their bearing upon the future. The Presbyterian Board, 1871 to this day; By the union of the two great branches of the Presbyterian Church in 1870, the New School body ceased its support of the ABCFM, and claimed a portion of the mi ion as its heritage. “The Mi ion to the Nestor i ans” was transferred to the care of the Presbyterian Board in 1871. The work has since been widely extended into Eastern Persia and to reach Armenians, Kurds, and to some extent Persian Mohammedans. On the other hand, the work among the Nestor i ans has been profoundly affected by the entrance of Ru ian mi ionaries, who have won a large proportion of the Nestor i an Church to rejoin the Eastern Church from which their fathers seceded fifteen hundred years ago. A notable event was the celebration of the jubilee of this work in 1885, followed by prevailing revivals in many of the congregations. The hope of the work is in the gift of the Holy Spirit in its convincing and renewing power. The Archbishop’s Mi ion to the Nestor i ans (the word Archbishop referring to the Archbishop of Canterbury, in England) is another enterprise of a mi ionary character. No time need here be spent upon it, however, since it has been sufficiently described in another place. The Mi ion of the CMS: In 1869 the Rev. R. Bruce, of the CMS, on his way back to India visited Persia. He found the Muslims of Ispahan so friendly, and the Armenians so anxious to learn of the Christianity of the West, that he delayed to leave. His stay was prolonged year after year Dr. Bruce opened schools and found his hands full of work that he had not expected to take up. Finally in 1875 the CMS decided to a ume these enterprises and prosecute the work so incidentally begun. Three other stations have been occupied, and medical mi ions and Zenana mi ions have been undertaken. Moreover, God has given His; ble ing to this new enterprise in Persia. The following societies are now at work in Persia: The Presbyterian Board, North; the Archbishop’s Mi ion to the A yrian Christians; the London Society for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews; the Church Mi ionary Society, and the Bible societies. Educational work has received prominence from the beginning of modern mi ions in Persia, and the work of medical mi ionaries has been highly appreciated by the Persians. The great need of Persia was suggested by Lord Curzon in 1892: “Those philosophers are right who argue that moral must precede material and internal reform in Persia. It is usele to graft new shoots on to a stem whose sap is exhausted or poisoned. We may give Persia roads and railroads; we may work her mines and exploit her resources; we may drUl her army and clothe her artisans; but we shall not have brought her within the pale of civUized nations until we have got at the core of the people, and given a new and a radical twist to the national character and institutions.” This need can only be met by divine me age, borne to Persia by the mi ionary of the cro . Barrett (J.), Persia, the Land of the Imams, New York, 1888; Benjamin (S. G. W.), Persia and the Persians, 1 on don and New York, 1887; Bird (Isabella), Journeys in Persia and Kurdistan. 2 vols., London, 1893; Curzon (G.), The Per siari Question, 2 vols.. London, 1892; Watson (R. G.), A Histon/ of Persia (1800-1858), London, 1873; Landor (H. b.), Acro Coveted Lands, 2 vols., London, 1902. 683 Persia PERSIAN LANGUAGE: The Persian is one of the Indo-Germanic family of Aryan languages, of sufficient importance in itself to be sometimes called the Western Aryan. It is called Irani in Persian and in the West of Asia it is known as This latter name is identical with the Farsi. well-known name Parsee or Parsi, the people of Western Asia often using “f” where their eastern The ancient sources of the neighbors use “p.” Persian as it exists to-daj’’ are the Zend, which is very near to the Sanskrit; the Ancient Persian, of which few literary remains exist, some of these being found in the book of Daniel, but which is still near to the Sanskrit in many particulars, and the Pehlevi, or Sa an i an of the first seven The latter has a consider centuries of our era. able number of Chaldee words, and differs materially from the Zend in having few inflections and terminations in comparison with the older language. A later dialect of the Pehlevi shows a distinct purpose to avoid the use of other than true Persian words and to return to the Ancient The modern Persian is very Persian forms. simple in its grammar. In fact, it is often said to have no grammar worth disturbing oneself It has no gender of noun, adjective or about. pronoun, except by use of a special word to show Its case declensions are few, its plural is sex. regularly formed in every case, one of the two pluralizing terminations being used for for inanimate objects. and the other animate In the verb great use is made of auxiliary combinations. At the same time, and perhaps because of this, the language has a wonderful fulne and flexibility. No other Asiatic language compares with the Persian in elegance and in the sonorous sweetne of its tones. Persian is widely cultivated throughout Asia literary qualities and its literature. its Whether In the East or the West, in India or in Turkey, the educated man must as a matter of At the same time, since course know Persian. the Mohammedan era it has lost much of its purity through adoption of numbers of Arabic words which are not always naturalized that is, are not always subjected to Persian rules of inflection and construction. In the earlier periods of Persian writing the cuneiform characters were used as well as letters derived perhaps from the Syriac. At present the Arabic alphabet Addiis universally used for writing Persian. for — tional dots supplied to Arabic letters furnish the sounds which Arabs do not use, and the Persian taste gives an angle to the letters which neither Arabs nor Turks permit, but aside from these Arabic letters are unchanged. The Persian has been used to some small degree for mi ionary purposes. Its territorial expansion suggests the wisdom of making greater use of it for Christian publications. Such use cannot avail, however, unle the writer is a master of Persian in every sense. 601