First Hafez Khorramshahi Prize Awarded to Dadbeh and Prigarina
The 2026 Bahauddin Khorramshahi Hafez Prize in the Iranian books category went to the late Dr. Asghar Dadbeh for 'Rendi Amuz va...', published by Farhang Moaser Publishing in 1404. In the foreign category, Dr. Natalia Prigarina received the 2026 prize for her Russian translation of the Divan of Hafez with commentary.
According to the reporter of Iran's Ambassador Arjan (Ambassador Arjan), at the same time as the conference "Speech of Hafez's Love from Shiraz to Samarkand" was held at the National Library and Records Organization of Iran, the winners of the first period of the Hafeezaneh Bahauddin Khoramshahi Award were announced in both domestic and international sections.
The first Bahauddin Khoramshahi Memorial Award was presented today, October 21, in a ceremony held at the same time as the "Speech of Hafez's Love from Shiraz to Samarkand" conference at the National Library and Records Organization of Iran in memory of Dr. Asghar Dadbeh and Professor Natalya Perigarina.
According to the statement of the jury, the book "Randy Amouz and..." written by Dr. Asghar Dadbeh's biography, which was published in 1404 by Farhang Masaher Publishing House, was selected in the internal section of this award. In the international section, the 2026 prize was awarded to Natalia Prigarina, a Russian Iranian and Orientalist, for translating Hafez's Divan into Russian along with literary and linguistic explanations in two volumes.
The jury of this award has reviewed the works published about Hafez in Iran during 1404 and the works published outside Iran between 2024 and 2026.
Gholamreza Amirkhani: Hafez is the most Iranian poet of Iran
At the beginning of this ceremony, Gholamreza Amirkhani, head of the National Library and Documents Organization of Iran, spoke about the place of Hafez in Iranian culture and referring to a story of the life of Mohammad Ali Eslami Ndushan, he said: "The late Eslami Ndushan once mentioned in a gathering that one of his literary and Shirazi friends said that Hafez was born on 20 Mehr; The poet is loving and his poem score is 20.
He added: "My favorite poet is Saadi, but Hafez is the most Iranian poet of Iran." Although Ferdowsi's position is unattainable, Hafez is the most Iranian."
Referring to the death of Ayatollah Shabiri Zanjani, Amirkhani discussed the four-volume book "A Sip of the Sea" and said: "This book contains anecdotes that were narrated on the sidelines of Ayatollah Shabiri's lessons. In the third volume of the book, it is mentioned that in one of the discussion sessions, a conversation took place between Imam Khomeini and Mirza Abdullah Mojtahadi about the position of Hafez and Saadi. Imam considered Hafez higher than Saadi and said: Even a dry stick knows that Hafez is better than Saadi.
In order to explain the difference in the views of these two poets on love and beauty, the head of the Organization of Records and the National Library of Iran pointed to verses by Saadi and Hafez and said:
A fruitless reprimander should not miss tangerine
In that case, like Yusuf, you will show Jamal from the curtain
I knew about Yusuf's ever-increasing goodness
that love will bring out the veil of innocence, the flour of Zulikha.
He also stated: "Imam Khomeini and Quaid Shahid both had a special interest in Hafez." In a conference, Imam Shahid mentioned several times that the 400 sonnets left by Hafez are a small part of the actual number of his poems. Because he used to write poetry and tear it up.
Mehdi Sanai: Poetry and culture are important assets of Iranian diplomacy
In the continuation of the ceremony, Mehdi Sanai, director of the Institute of Iran and Eurasian Studies (ERAS), spoke about Hafez's position among Iranians and the potential of Persian poetry and literature in cultural relations and diplomacy.
He stated: "Every Iranian has a special interest in Hafez, poetry and literature. Since I have no expertise, I cannot judge whether Hafez or Saadi is better. Maybe I know and read Saadi more, but sometimes I feel that the pleasure of being with Hafez is greater. Saadi is more of a teacher, but Hafez is a doctor."
Referring to his years of activity in the field of foreign policy, Sanaei considered poetry and culture as one of the most important assets at the disposal of Iranian diplomacy and added: "One of the greatest assets at the disposal of diplomacy is poetry, culture and soft power. Undoubtedly, every Iranian diplomat and every Iranian abroad has capital that is ahead of many other countries, and of course with this capital, inefficiencies are compensated."
He further raised the question whether Iran is using this cultural capacity sufficiently and whether the agents of the country are aware of its importance or not. Sanai said: "I have doubts; However, there are brokers who have sufficient standing."
Director of the Institute of Iranian and Eurasian Studies, then referring to the presence of Natalya Prigarina in this conference, said: "When I was a cultural advisor in Russia, I got to know this Iranologist. He translated Diwan poems of Hazrat Imam and is one of the most prominent Iranologists.
Sanai recounted a memory from one of the cultural meetings in Russia and said: "Once in a meeting where Usmanov was also present, he pointed out that when we started our work on the literature of different countries during the Soviet period, colleagues from other departments were jealous of us who were working on Iran and said that your work is entertainment and it is not fair that your rights should be equal to ours."
In the end, he expressed his hope that the young generation will become more familiar with the teachings of great poets, including Hafez.
Korosh Kamali Sarostani: Hafez Day turned from a cultural proposal into a national event
Kurosh Kamali Sarvostani, director of Fars Encyclopedia, was the other speaker of the ceremony who, after examining the history of Shiraz during the time of Hafez, spoke about the formation of the commemoration day of this poet and the development of Hafez studies in Iran.
He stated: "Honoring Hafez, along with preserving his poetry and thought, is aimed at unceasing efforts to continue the recognition and introduction of his works and to provide the basis for research about him. Therefore, in 1375, the idea of naming days of the year after the two great poets of Shiraz, Saadi and Hafez, came to my mind.
Kamali Sarostani explained about the process of choosing these days: "To choose these days, I consulted with a group of writers, including Professor Bahauddin Khorramshahi, Dr. Mansour Rastgar Fasai, and the memory of Dr. Abdul Hossein Zarinkob, as well as the Literary Society of Yaran Sunday, and finally, May 1st was chosen as Saadi's Memorial Day and October 20th as Hafez's Commemoration Day."
He explained the reasons for choosing the 20th of Mehrmah as follows: "In choosing the 20th of Mehrmah, several reasons were considered; Among them, the pleasant weather of Shiraz in autumn, the frequency of the word "mehr" in Hafez's court, and the appropriateness of this month to honor a poet whose love and affection have a special place in his poetic world. Also, the 20th of October was a memorable date and with the passage of some time since the beginning of the school year, it provided a good opportunity to hold the ceremony."
According to the director of Fars Encyclopaedia, the first ceremony of Hafez Day was held in 1376. At first, this ceremony was mostly provincial, but with continuous follow-up and raising the issue in the country's public culture council, the ground for the official commemoration of Hafez and Saadi was provided.
Kamali Sarostani further said: "With the expansion of this matter, the Hafez Day ceremony went beyond the geography of Fars province and became a national event. Also, with the coordination of Iranian studies centers, universities with Persian language departments, and cultural institutions abroad, Hafez commemoration ceremonies were held in a number of cities in other countries.
He added: "Two years after the commemoration of Hafez, the Center for Hafez Studies was established in 1378 in order to follow up other activities in addition to holding Hafez's commemoration day; including preparing a bibliography of Hafez's articles, compiling and correcting the Diwan Jame Hafez, compiling the culture of Hafez studies and creating a specialized library, etc.
Hafezane Award along the tradition of Hafez study
In another part of his speech, the director of Fars Encyclopedia discussed the role of Hafez Day in introducing research works and the formation of the Bahauddin Khoramshahi Memorial Prize and said: "Hafez Day became an opportunity to introduce published works about this poet, hold scientific and literary meetings, and attract the attention of the media and people to his poetry and thought. The continuation of this cultural movement provided a basis for evaluating Hafez research works and introducing superior researches; The field that the Bahauddin Khorramshahi Preservation Award is also located along.
Kamali Sarostani explained about the purpose of establishing this award: "In this belief, in order to honor this wise poet and his pure thought, and for the continuation of Hafez studies, Fars Encyclopædia and the cultural and international department of Book City established the Baha'udin Khorramshahi Preservation Award to protect the precious, lasting and influential researches of Baha'udin Khorramshahi." A researcher who devoted almost fifty years of his life to knowing and introducing Hafez of Shiraz, and by compiling and publishing numerous works, he has played a lasting role in contemporary Hafezology.
Referring to Bahauddin Khorramshahi's research career, he added: "The name of this award is linked to Professor Khorramshahi's research career; A portfolio that includes numerous and valuable works in the field of conservation. Together, these works show the scope of Professor Khorramshahi's efforts in the field of understanding Hafez's poetry and personality, describing the difficulties of the court, examining the connection between Hafez and the Qur'an, correcting the text, and compiling Hafez studies."
According to him, Bahauddin Khoramshahi's Hafezane Prize is an opportunity to honor the researches that are done in the way of knowing Hafez and can help to continue Hafez research and introduce valuable works in this field in Iran and the world.
Kamali Sarostani also said about the mechanism of awarding this award: "On this basis, the best book about Hafez is selected every year and the jury, every year in the month of Mehr and at the same time as Hafez Day, after reviewing the works submitted to the secretariat, they present the selected work and award the award."
And at the end, he expressed his hope that this ceremony, along with preserving the names, will provide the basis for the continued recognition and introduction of Hafez and the expansion of research about his poetry and thought.
Akram Bagarov: Hafez is a part of the common literary heritage of Iran and Azerbaijan
Akram Bagherov, the next speaker of the conference from the Republic of Azerbaijan, spoke about the background of Hafez studies in Azerbaijan and the place of Hafez's poetry in the literary culture of this country.
He stated: "Talking about Hafez Shirazi in Azerbaijan is also a discussion about the long history of literary and cultural relations between Iran and Azerbaijan." Hafez has a place beyond a classical poet in the literary culture of Azerbaijan. His ghazals have been read, copied, described, translated and analyzed for centuries, and research about him continues in the scientific centers of Azerbaijan in the contemporary period.