Iraj Dihqan

Dihqan, Iraj (d. 1925). Born in Malayir, he received his primary and secondary education in his hometown and Hamadan respectively. He went to Tehran in 1945 to study at the Faculty of Letters, University of Tehran. He obtained his BA in 1949 and later received his doctorate. He taught at high school in Tehran until 1955. Then he immigrated to the United States and taught Persian literature there. His first collection of poetry, Gulha-yi Wahshi (Wild Flowers) appeared in 1946. After a while, his second collection, Yadbud (Memoriam), appeared, followed by his other works: Pulha-yi Shikastih (broken bridges); Insha’ wa Nigarish wa Dastur-i Zaban-i Farsi (Persian composition, writing, and grammar); Majmu’ih-yi Lughat-i Kalila wa Dimna (Kalila. and Dimna Vocabulary). His first recognition was indebted to his well-known ghazal

‘She broke my covenant, saying bygone is the past;

Weeping, I replied: ‘Ay, but it was too soon’.

Dihqan is a talented poet and his poetry is particularly delicate.

Farhang-i Sukhanvaran-i Mu’asir (2/ 1391-1395).