Kaveh the Blacksmith

For other uses, see Kaveh (disambiguation).
Further information: Zahhak § Revolution against Zahhāk
Illustration of Kaveh surrounded by his followers in Kaveh, a magazine from World War I that was named after him.
Kaveh the blacksmith on a stamp of the Iranian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1920, with one hand holding a hammer, and the other anachronistically waving the Republic's Red Flag.

Kaveh the Blacksmith (Persian: کاوه آهنگر, romanized: Kāveh Āhangar, IPA: [kʰɒːˈve ʔɒːɦæŋˈɡæɹ] ⓘ)[1][2] is a figure in Iranian mythology who leads an uprising against a ruthless foreign ruler, Zahāk. His story is narrated in the Shahnameh, the national epic of Iran (Persia), by the 10th-century Persian poet Ferdowsi.

According to ancient legends, Kāveh was a blacksmith who launched a national uprising against the evil foreign tyrant Zahāk, after losing two of his children to serpents of Zahāk. Kāveh expelled the foreigners and re-established the rule of Iranians.[3] Kāveh and the people went to the Alborz Mountains in Damāvand, where Fereydun, son of Ābtin and Faranak was living. Then a young man, Fereydun agreed to lead the people against Zahāk. Zahāk had already left his capital, which fell to Fereydun's troops with little resistance. Fereydun released all of Zahāk's prisoners.

Kāveh is a Persian mythological character known for his resistance against Zahāk in Iran. In modern times, Kāveh is sometimes invoked for political aims. As a symbol of resistance, he raised his leather apron on a spear. This flag, known as Derafsh Kaviani, was later decorated with precious jewels and became the symbol of Persian sovereignty for hundreds of years, until captured and destroyed by the Arabs, following the defeat of the Sassanids at the 636 Battle of al-Qadisiyyah. Ya'qub ibn al-Layth al-Saffar, who rebelled against the Abbasid Caliphate, claimed the inheritance of the kings of Persia and sought "to revive their glory," in 867 he sent a poem written by himself to the Abbasid caliph Al-Mu'tazz, stating: "With me is the Derafsh Kaviani, through which I hope to rule the nations."[4] In later times, Kāveh the Blacksmith was invoked by Iranian nationalists starting from the generation of Mirza Fatali Akhundov.[5] His name was used as the title of a nationalist newspaper in 1916,[5] and in 1920, adorned the canton of the flag of the Persian Socialist Soviet Republic (known as the Soviet Republic of Gilan).[6]

Mehregan is the celebration for Fereydun's victory over Zahāk.

The dynasty of Karen Pahlav (also known as the House of Karen) claimed to be Kāveh's descendants.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference West2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Malcolm1829 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Marashi2008 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ FLAGS i. Of Persia, A. Shapur Shahbazi, Encyclopædia Iranica
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Kashani-Sabet2000 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Persia (Iran): Short-lived states". Flags Of The World. Retrieved 2012-09-08.