Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: the making of a literary humanism -- The making of an Iranian world in an Islamic universe: the rise of Persian language and literature (632-750) -- The Persian presence in the Abbasid empire: resisting Arabic literary imperialism (750-1258) -- The prose and poetry of the world: the rise of literary humanism in the Seljuqid empire (1038-1194) -- The triumph of the word: the perils and promises of the Mongol empire (1256-1353) -- The lure and lyrics of a literature: the center and periphery of the Timurid empire (1314-1508) -- The making of a literary cosmopolitanism: treading over multiple empires (1501-1732) -- The dawn of new empires: literary humanism in search of itself (1736-1924) -- The final frontiers: new Persian literary humanism (1906-present) -- Conclusion.

Electronic reproduction. Palo Alto, Calif. : ebrary, 2011. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ebrary affiliated libraries.