A Study of the Approach of Qajar-Era Historians to Ashura

Ashura was considered by authors throughout the history as an identity element for the Shi‘a. During the Qajar period, more and more attention was devoted to Ashura given the dominant denominational tendencies of the time. Assuming that writings in each society reflect its cultural condition, this paper deploys a text-based approach and an analytic-descriptive method in order to answer the following question: what was the approach of Qajar-era historians to Ashura, and why did it arise? The research concludes that historians of the period were influenced by the dominant context of their society, particularly early decades of the Qajar period and Iran-Russia wars, as a result of which they adopted an epic approach. In later decades, because of their sympathy with the government and public beliefs, many of their reports highlighted thoughtless emotions, considering apparent order and glory and a predetermined destinies in Ashura and elsewhere.