Abstract
An Unknown Copy of Dervish Hasan Medhi’s “Terceme-i Shah-nâme-i Firdavsî”
Firdavsî's monumental work Shah-nâme has an important place among the world classics. Although the work is regarded as the national epic of Iran, its fame was not limited to this geography, but expanded its circle of influence by reaching different cultural basins.
Shah-name owes this recognition to the author's style, which inspired many poets, as well as its translation into different languages. The first Turkish translation in the Ottoman period corresponded to the reign of Murad II, and the sultans also showed interest in the work. One of these sultans, Osman II, ordered the work to be translated and assigned this task to Dervish Hasan Medhî, who had been in the palace as a short storyteller for a long time. The work was translated in two volumes, one set to be presented to the sultan and one set probably to Mustafa Agha, the Dârüssaâde Agha. The existing copies of this translation consist of three copies in different libraries around the world. In this study, the fourth copy of the translation identified by us is introduced. Before introducing the copy, the translations of Shah-name, the identity of the author and his works were mentioned, and then information about the features of the identified copy was given.
Keywords
Şeh-nâme, Derviş Hasan Medhî, Terceme-i Şeh-nâme-i Firdevsî, Osman II.