Shahrokh Meskoob (1924–2005) was a distinguished Iranian writer and intellectual, born in Babol on the Caspian coast. Imprisoned in the mid-1950s for his leftist activities, he later found himself in exile after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, following the publication of two critical articles in Ayandegan newspaper in Tehran. Meskoob’s profound literary and cultural analyses, particularly his studies on Shahnameh and the poetry of Hafez, demonstrate his view that, for him, national identity meant cultural identity. His seminal work is Iranian National Identity and the Persian. His other books from Mage include Lament for Siavash: On Death and Resurrection; and, a book of essays about him by his colleagues, A Scholar for our Times: A Celebration of the Life and Work of Shahrokh Meskoob. His other titles translated into English are: The Ant’s Gift: A Study of the Shahnameh; Dialogue in the Garden; Leaving, Staying, Returning: A Trilogy; In the Alley of the Friend: On the Poetry of Hafez.
