Div (Demon) in Old Iran Myths

The word "Div" is among those words which have various denotations in Iranian languages. In some cases, it is used to denote odd beings, so much so that readers of unbelievable tales (stories) are engrossed in descriptions of the beings, researchers are in doubt and some may disbelieve them. On the other hand, as it is mentioned in religious and mythical texts and repeated in medieval centuries chronicle texts, Iranian's life is blended with both physical and spiritual fight against Divan. As the frequency of these stories are numerous, we cannot regard them all imagination of story writers. So it seems necessary to look up new and believable denotations for the word "Div" in a different view. Such an endeavor is not rare among Iranina scientists since some great men such as Ferdowis and Gardizi have recommended contradictory denotations for the term. In present paper, a number of believable denotations for the term "Div" are discussed.