Shahnameh

The Shahnameh (The Book of Kings) is the national epic of Greater Iran, written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between approximately 977 and 1010 CE. This masterpiece contains around 50,000 couplets, making it one of the world's longest epic poems and the longest written by a single author. It chronicles both the mythological and historical past of the Persian Empire, spanning from the world's creation to the Islamic conquest in the 7th century.

Written in Persian, the Shahnameh holds immense cultural significance across multiple nations influenced by Persian culture, including Iran, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Armenia, Georgia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The work stands as a cornerstone of Persian literature and language, embodying Iran's cultural identity and serving as a defining piece of its literary heritage. In Persian, the title شاهنامه (Šāhnāme) literally translates to "The Book of Kings."