Ferdowsi Day and the Shahnameh: Celebrating Persia’s National Epic

Every May 15 (25th of Ordibehesht in the Iranian calendar), Iranians around the world commemorate Ferdowsi Day – a celebration of Abul-Qâsem Ferdowsī Tusi (Ferdowsi) and the Persian language. This date also marks Persian Language Day, honoring Ferdowsi as “the most influential figure in Persian literature”. Born around 940 CE near the city of Tus in northeastern Iran, Ferdowsi was a dehqān (landowner) who spent over three decades writing his masterpiece, the Shahnameh (“Book of Kings”). The Shahnameh – a sprawling epic of nearly 60,000 rhyming couplets – is regarded as Iran’s national epic and a foundational text of Persian culture. Even for Iranians living abroad, Ferdowsi Day is a chance to reconnect with their roots by honoring the poet who “revived national stories and breathed new life into the Persian language and literature”.

A bust of Ferdowsi (Tehran, 1934). Even a thousand years ago Iranians honored Ferdowsi’s legacy; in 1934 a commemorative bust was made for his millennial birthday, reflecting his status as Iran’s national poet.

Who Was Ferdowsi?

Ferdowsi was born c. 935 in a village near Tus. By tradition he belonged to a landowning family and lived comfortably on his estates. He had one daughter, and legend says he began writing the Shahnameh in order to provide her dowry. According to the 12th‑century scholar Nezāmī‑ye Arūżī, Ferdowsi worked on this epic for about 35 years. In 1010 CE he finally completed the Shahnameh and presented it to Sultan Maḥmūd of Ghazni. (Tradition holds that the Sultan …