Folk foundations in Badi al-Zamannameh

Badi al-Zamannameh is an almost forgotten collection of poems by an anonymous poet that represents the writing style of the Safavid era and consists of 3287 verses. It is a romantic epic narrating the adventures of Badi al-Zaman, an Iranian prince, in marriage with Ghamarchehr, daughter of the Khagan of China. The current study aimed to investigate the folk foundations of Badi al-Zamannameh by adopting a descriptive-analytical methodology and conducting library research. The theme is represented by the two major fields: influences of the oral tradition and the works of previous generations and the basic themes of folktales. The old and popular texts of Persian literature like Shahnameh, Eskandarnameh Nghali, and Hamzehnameh influenced the language used in Badi al-Zamannameh. Moreover, characteristics like having a cyclical narration, applying folksy words and phrases, referring to customs and rituals, highlighting religious themes, making characterizations similar to folktales, illustrating miracles and surprises, using special numbers, using happy endings, and leaving the narration open indicate that it has been influenced by ancient folk literary works. Reflecting on a native culture illustrates the culture of a society and makes the collective identity known. Looking at the literary works of a nation as a clear reflection of its culture is a way to achieve this goal, which may lead the researcher to the processes of cultural transformation in society and know the audience of such works.