ʿAbd al-Ghaffār Najm al-Dawla; From Traditional to Modern Geography in Qajar Period

Geography is one of the sciences that was considered by the intellectuals and the scholars of the Iranian society during the reign of Qajar, and as one of the sub-courses in some of the schools of this period, such as Dār al-Funūn, by teachers of modern mathematics and engineering. It was taught through an applied approach. The work of Najm al-Dawlah in this science played a very influential role in the transition from the traditional to its modern form, which is one of the main features of the science of this period. Before him, of course, several books in India and Iran in this field have been published mainly in the form of translations from other languages into Persian and in lithographic printing. It could develope the modern science in Iran. But Najm al-Dawla’s writings brought more attention to this science in its modern form. The purpose of this study is to study the science of geography during the Qajar period and the role of Najm al-Dawla’s geographical compilations in establishing a modern geography in Iran during the Qajar period.