Periodic Reporting for period 1 - DocZow (Documentation of intergenerational transmission in Zoroastrian women's silk weaving)
Berichtszeitraum: 2024-05-01 bis 2026-05-31
Zusammenfassung vom Kontext und den Gesamtzielen des Projekts
This project explores the material and intangible heritage of Iranian Zoroastrian communities in relation to the Silk Road from the Sasanian period to the present day. It investigates how silk weaving traditions, together with associated linguistic, cultural, and ritual knowledge, have been transmitted across generations, particularly within Zoroastrian women’s communities in Iran and the wider diaspora.
The project is based on the understanding that silk weaving is not only a technical craft but also a culturally embedded system of knowledge that integrates language, oral tradition, social organisation, and symbolic meaning. It therefore adopts an interdisciplinary approach that connects textile studies, cultural heritage research, ethnolinguistics, and history in order to examine both the tangible and intangible dimensions of Silk Road heritage.
Historically, silk production was introduced into Iran through Silk Road exchanges during the Sasanian period (224–651 CE), a time when Zoroastrianism was the dominant religion of the empire. Over time, Zoroastrian communities became key carriers of cultural continuity, even after the political and religious transformation following the Arab-Muslim conquest of Iran in the 7th century. Despite migration, dispersion, and changing social conditions, these communities preserved important elements of their cultural heritage, including textile traditions, linguistic practices, and ritual knowledge.
A central focus of this project is the role of Zoroastrian women as custodians of silk-related knowledge. Women have historically played a key role in the production, preservation, and transmission of silk weaving practices, not only as a form of economic activity but also as a medium of cultural identity and intergenerational learning. Silk weaving has been transmitted through family-based and community-based systems, where knowledge is passed down through both practical training and oral traditions.
The project highlights the importance of oral literature, storytelling, and symbolic narratives in the transmission of weaving knowledge. These narratives are closely connected to the Zoroastrian Dari Behdini dialect, which continues to function as an important medium for cultural expression and knowledge transfer. Within this linguistic and cultural framework, technical knowledge of silk production is embedded in metaphors, stories, and symbolic representations that guide learning processes across generations.
In this context, silk-weaving terminology has been systematically extracted from oral sources within Zoroastrian communities, who are regarded as one of the most historically rooted cultural groups in Iran. These oral sources provide rare and valuable access to locally transmitted knowledge systems, offering insight into authentic vocabulary, symbolic meaning, and technical knowledge embedded in traditional textile production. Rather than functioning only as a technical lexicon, this terminology reflects broader cultural narratives through which knowledge is preserved, organised, and transmitted across generations.
A distinctive feature of this oral tradition is its narrative structure, in which silk-weaving knowledge is encoded in two major symbolic stories that reflect the division of labour and intergenerational roles within Zoroastrian women’s communities. The first narrative, “The Fairy King’s Daughter,” is associated with young girls and describes the initial stages of silk production, including preparation of raw materials for natural dyeing, sericulture practices, spinning, and preparatory weaving processes, as well as additional decorative stages such as embroidery and patchwork. This narrative functions as an early pedagogical framework through which foundational textile knowledge is transmitted.
The second narrative, “The Serpent King,” is associated with married women and mothers and symbolically represents more advanced and technically demanding stages of silk production, including weaving, natural dyeing, fabric painting using natural pigments, and the application of complex textile techniques for producing finished silk fabrics. Together, these narratives form a culturally structured system of knowledge transmission that links technical expertise with life stages and social roles.
This system is closely related to the principle of division of labour and cooperation, expressed in Zoroastrian tradition through the concept of Hamāzuri in Avestan sources. This principle has historically supported intergenerational learning, skill development, and the empowerment of younger generations, while ensuring continuity of textile knowledge and cultural practices over time.
Zoroastrian women weavers traditionally used two complementary pedagogical methods for transmitting silk-weaving knowledge. The first method is oral storytelling, including myths, legends, and structured narratives used to communicate theoretical knowledge about textile production, terminology, and cultural meaning. The second method consists of performative and symbolic teaching practices, including magical-symbolic theatrical performances in which weaving processes are represented through ritualised enactments and puppet-based storytelling. These performances serve as embodied educational tools that support the transmission of practical skills through visual, narrative, and experiential learning.
The project therefore demonstrates how textile knowledge is not only preserved through manual practice but also through a complex cultural system combining language, narrative, performance, and social organisation. It highlights the importance of intangible cultural heritage as a dynamic process of knowledge transmission that connects past and present, and individual skill with collective memory.
By combining historical analysis, ethnographic fieldwork, linguistic documentation, and material culture studies, the project provides new insights into how Silk Road heritage has been preserved and transformed within minority communities. It draws on archival sources, oral histories, museum collections, and textile artefacts to reconstruct the historical development of silk-related practices and their cultural significance.
The expected impact of this research is to contribute to Silk Road studies, textile history, and cultural heritage scholarship by offering a new perspective on the role of women in the transmission of intangible cultural heritage. It also enhances understanding of how endangered knowledge systems survive through oral traditions and material practices, and how such systems can be documented, preserved, and made accessible for future generations.
Overall, the project contributes to broader discussions in the humanities and social sciences on cultural transmission, heritage preservation, and the interconnectedness of language, material culture, identity, and gendered knowledge systems.
The project is based on the understanding that silk weaving is not only a technical craft but also a culturally embedded system of knowledge that integrates language, oral tradition, social organisation, and symbolic meaning. It therefore adopts an interdisciplinary approach that connects textile studies, cultural heritage research, ethnolinguistics, and history in order to examine both the tangible and intangible dimensions of Silk Road heritage.
Historically, silk production was introduced into Iran through Silk Road exchanges during the Sasanian period (224–651 CE), a time when Zoroastrianism was the dominant religion of the empire. Over time, Zoroastrian communities became key carriers of cultural continuity, even after the political and religious transformation following the Arab-Muslim conquest of Iran in the 7th century. Despite migration, dispersion, and changing social conditions, these communities preserved important elements of their cultural heritage, including textile traditions, linguistic practices, and ritual knowledge.
A central focus of this project is the role of Zoroastrian women as custodians of silk-related knowledge. Women have historically played a key role in the production, preservation, and transmission of silk weaving practices, not only as a form of economic activity but also as a medium of cultural identity and intergenerational learning. Silk weaving has been transmitted through family-based and community-based systems, where knowledge is passed down through both practical training and oral traditions.
The project highlights the importance of oral literature, storytelling, and symbolic narratives in the transmission of weaving knowledge. These narratives are closely connected to the Zoroastrian Dari Behdini dialect, which continues to function as an important medium for cultural expression and knowledge transfer. Within this linguistic and cultural framework, technical knowledge of silk production is embedded in metaphors, stories, and symbolic representations that guide learning processes across generations.
In this context, silk-weaving terminology has been systematically extracted from oral sources within Zoroastrian communities, who are regarded as one of the most historically rooted cultural groups in Iran. These oral sources provide rare and valuable access to locally transmitted knowledge systems, offering insight into authentic vocabulary, symbolic meaning, and technical knowledge embedded in traditional textile production. Rather than functioning only as a technical lexicon, this terminology reflects broader cultural narratives through which knowledge is preserved, organised, and transmitted across generations.
A distinctive feature of this oral tradition is its narrative structure, in which silk-weaving knowledge is encoded in two major symbolic stories that reflect the division of labour and intergenerational roles within Zoroastrian women’s communities. The first narrative, “The Fairy King’s Daughter,” is associated with young girls and describes the initial stages of silk production, including preparation of raw materials for natural dyeing, sericulture practices, spinning, and preparatory weaving processes, as well as additional decorative stages such as embroidery and patchwork. This narrative functions as an early pedagogical framework through which foundational textile knowledge is transmitted.
The second narrative, “The Serpent King,” is associated with married women and mothers and symbolically represents more advanced and technically demanding stages of silk production, including weaving, natural dyeing, fabric painting using natural pigments, and the application of complex textile techniques for producing finished silk fabrics. Together, these narratives form a culturally structured system of knowledge transmission that links technical expertise with life stages and social roles.
This system is closely related to the principle of division of labour and cooperation, expressed in Zoroastrian tradition through the concept of Hamāzuri in Avestan sources. This principle has historically supported intergenerational learning, skill development, and the empowerment of younger generations, while ensuring continuity of textile knowledge and cultural practices over time.
Zoroastrian women weavers traditionally used two complementary pedagogical methods for transmitting silk-weaving knowledge. The first method is oral storytelling, including myths, legends, and structured narratives used to communicate theoretical knowledge about textile production, terminology, and cultural meaning. The second method consists of performative and symbolic teaching practices, including magical-symbolic theatrical performances in which weaving processes are represented through ritualised enactments and puppet-based storytelling. These performances serve as embodied educational tools that support the transmission of practical skills through visual, narrative, and experiential learning.
The project therefore demonstrates how textile knowledge is not only preserved through manual practice but also through a complex cultural system combining language, narrative, performance, and social organisation. It highlights the importance of intangible cultural heritage as a dynamic process of knowledge transmission that connects past and present, and individual skill with collective memory.
By combining historical analysis, ethnographic fieldwork, linguistic documentation, and material culture studies, the project provides new insights into how Silk Road heritage has been preserved and transformed within minority communities. It draws on archival sources, oral histories, museum collections, and textile artefacts to reconstruct the historical development of silk-related practices and their cultural significance.
The expected impact of this research is to contribute to Silk Road studies, textile history, and cultural heritage scholarship by offering a new perspective on the role of women in the transmission of intangible cultural heritage. It also enhances understanding of how endangered knowledge systems survive through oral traditions and material practices, and how such systems can be documented, preserved, and made accessible for future generations.
Overall, the project contributes to broader discussions in the humanities and social sciences on cultural transmission, heritage preservation, and the interconnectedness of language, material culture, identity, and gendered knowledge systems.
Arbeit, die ab Beginn des Projekts bis zum Ende des durch den Bericht erfassten Berichtszeitraums geleistet wurde, und die wichtigsten bis dahin erzielten Ergebnisse
During the reporting period, the project focused on establishing a conceptual and empirical link between Zoroastrian oral literature and the silk weaving traditions of Zoroastrian women. The main scientific objective was to collect, extract, and document silk textile heritage transmitted across generations within Zoroastrian female communities, and to analyse the mechanisms through which this knowledge is preserved and transmitted through oral and intangible cultural practices.
The research concentrated on Zoroastrian language use, particularly the oral traditions of women silk weavers, as the primary medium of intergenerational knowledge transmission. A significant analytical achievement was the identification and documentation of how textile knowledge is embedded within linguistic and narrative structures, allowing technical weaving knowledge to be reconstructed through oral sources.
However, the project also faced important methodological challenges. Linguistic diversity and the uneven preservation of dialectal branches significantly affected data accessibility. While the Yazdi branch of the Dari Behdini language remained partially accessible, the Kermani branch is no longer actively spoken, which limited direct linguistic verification. The absence of living speakers for certain dialectal forms required indirect interpretive approaches. In addition, the presence of rare and highly specialised lexical items used in silk production and trade created further analytical complexity, as many of these terms are symbolic or quasi-visual in nature. Their interpretation required careful ethnolinguistic and semiotic analysis in order to translate them into established technical weaving terminology.
The project drew on a wide range of complementary sources for data collection. These included historical travelogues, oral histories, recorded interviews, commercial invoices, photographic archives, and documentary films preserved in family collections and institutional repositories. Additional material was obtained from governmental archives, including national cultural heritage archives, broadcasting collections, and UNESCO-related documentation. Museum-based research also provided important material evidence, including silk textiles and weaving tools preserved in major international collections. These sources enabled a comprehensive reconstruction of silk production techniques, decorative systems, and historical developments in textile practices.
Further primary materials included ethnographic fieldwork conducted through semi-structured and in-depth interviews with silk weaving practitioners and Zoroastrian female storytellers. Fieldwork also involved the documentation of silk textile samples and the analysis of visual and material sources from both private and institutional collections.
The methodological framework of the project was interdisciplinary and qualitative, combining historical analysis, ethnography, linguistic documentation, and material culture studies. Data collection was structured through three main channels: library-based research, fieldwork, and systematic analysis of written and oral documentation. This multi-method approach allowed for triangulation between textual, oral, and material sources.
Data management involved systematic classification, extraction, and organisation of relevant information related to intangible cultural heritage and mechanisms of intergenerational transmission. A key achievement of the project was the structured documentation of silk-weaving terminology, particularly lexical items derived from symbolic representations found in oral narratives and historical documents such as commercial records. These terms were analysed in relation to their functional, symbolic, and technical meanings within weaving practices.
Overall, the project achieved a comprehensive documentation and analytical reconstruction of silk weaving knowledge systems within Zoroastrian women’s communities. It demonstrated how technical textile knowledge is embedded in oral literature, linguistic structures, and symbolic narratives, and how these elements function together as a system of intergenerational cultural transmission.
The research concentrated on Zoroastrian language use, particularly the oral traditions of women silk weavers, as the primary medium of intergenerational knowledge transmission. A significant analytical achievement was the identification and documentation of how textile knowledge is embedded within linguistic and narrative structures, allowing technical weaving knowledge to be reconstructed through oral sources.
However, the project also faced important methodological challenges. Linguistic diversity and the uneven preservation of dialectal branches significantly affected data accessibility. While the Yazdi branch of the Dari Behdini language remained partially accessible, the Kermani branch is no longer actively spoken, which limited direct linguistic verification. The absence of living speakers for certain dialectal forms required indirect interpretive approaches. In addition, the presence of rare and highly specialised lexical items used in silk production and trade created further analytical complexity, as many of these terms are symbolic or quasi-visual in nature. Their interpretation required careful ethnolinguistic and semiotic analysis in order to translate them into established technical weaving terminology.
The project drew on a wide range of complementary sources for data collection. These included historical travelogues, oral histories, recorded interviews, commercial invoices, photographic archives, and documentary films preserved in family collections and institutional repositories. Additional material was obtained from governmental archives, including national cultural heritage archives, broadcasting collections, and UNESCO-related documentation. Museum-based research also provided important material evidence, including silk textiles and weaving tools preserved in major international collections. These sources enabled a comprehensive reconstruction of silk production techniques, decorative systems, and historical developments in textile practices.
Further primary materials included ethnographic fieldwork conducted through semi-structured and in-depth interviews with silk weaving practitioners and Zoroastrian female storytellers. Fieldwork also involved the documentation of silk textile samples and the analysis of visual and material sources from both private and institutional collections.
The methodological framework of the project was interdisciplinary and qualitative, combining historical analysis, ethnography, linguistic documentation, and material culture studies. Data collection was structured through three main channels: library-based research, fieldwork, and systematic analysis of written and oral documentation. This multi-method approach allowed for triangulation between textual, oral, and material sources.
Data management involved systematic classification, extraction, and organisation of relevant information related to intangible cultural heritage and mechanisms of intergenerational transmission. A key achievement of the project was the structured documentation of silk-weaving terminology, particularly lexical items derived from symbolic representations found in oral narratives and historical documents such as commercial records. These terms were analysed in relation to their functional, symbolic, and technical meanings within weaving practices.
Overall, the project achieved a comprehensive documentation and analytical reconstruction of silk weaving knowledge systems within Zoroastrian women’s communities. It demonstrated how technical textile knowledge is embedded in oral literature, linguistic structures, and symbolic narratives, and how these elements function together as a system of intergenerational cultural transmission.
Fortschritte, die über den aktuellen Stand der Technik hinausgehen und voraussichtliche potenzielle Auswirkungen (einschließlich der bis dato erzielten sozioökonomischen Auswirkungen und weiter gefassten gesellschaftlichen Auswirkungen des Projekts)
The project has generated several results that go beyond the current state of the art in textile studies, heritage research, Iranian studies, gender studies, and ethnolinguistics.
First, the project established previously undocumented links between material and intangible cultural heritage by demonstrating how silk-weaving knowledge is transmitted through oral literature, storytelling, symbolic narratives, ritual performances, specialised terminology, and textile production practices. This integrated perspective contributes a new methodological framework for studying the relationship between craft traditions and intangible cultural heritage.
Second, the project identified and documented the role of Zoroastrian religion in shaping women’s engagement with silk textiles. The findings reveal how religious beliefs, concepts of purity, gender roles, and community practices influenced the production, transmission, and preservation of silk-weaving knowledge over centuries. This provides new evidence for understanding the interaction between religion, gender, and material culture.
Third, the project demonstrated the close relationship between silk textiles and the cultural identity of Zoroastrian women. Silk weaving emerged not only as an economic activity but also as a medium through which cultural memory, linguistic knowledge, social values, and community identity were preserved and transmitted across generations.
A major contribution of the project is the demonstration that Zoroastrian women’s silk weaving possesses all the characteristics of Intangible Cultural Heritage as defined by UNESCO. The tradition is simultaneously traditional, contemporary, and living; it has been maintained through continuous intergenerational transmission and remains embedded in community practices. The project therefore complements the UNESCO inscription “Sericulture and Traditional Production of Silk for Weaving” (2022) by providing detailed evidence regarding the cultural, linguistic, educational, social, and gendered dimensions of silk-weaving traditions in Iran.
The project further identified educational mechanisms through which silk-weaving knowledge has been transmitted to girls and young women. By documenting oral narratives, symbolic teaching methods, and intergenerational learning practices, the research provides an example of a sustainable educational model that has functioned successfully for centuries without reliance on modern technologies. These findings are particularly relevant to international discussions concerning cultural education, community-based learning, and the transmission of traditional knowledge in developing countries. In this respect, the project contributes evidence relevant to UNESCO’s broader concerns regarding girls’ education, cultural sustainability, and safeguarding traditional knowledge systems.
A particularly innovative contribution of the project is the identification and analysis of two major educational narratives used for transmitting silk-weaving knowledge across generations: “The Fairy King’s Daughter,” which explains the duties and skills traditionally taught to girls, and “The Serpent King,” which focuses on the advanced responsibilities and technical expertise of married women and mothers. These narratives demonstrate how theoretical and practical knowledge were embedded in oral literature and symbolic educational systems, providing a unique example of long-term intergenerational knowledge transfer.
Another significant result concerns the reconstruction of historical silk networks associated with Zoroastrian communities. Through the analysis of commercial records, archival documents, oral histories, and surviving evidence related to caravan routes and caravanserais used by Zoroastrian silk merchants and weavers, the project provides new information concerning Silk Road trade networks and cultural exchange. These findings complement the UNESCO World Heritage inscription “The Persian Caravanserai” (2023) by offering additional evidence regarding the movement of silk, merchants, knowledge, and cultural practices across historical trade routes in Iran.
The project also contributes to the UNESCO–EU initiative “Silk Roads Heritage Corridors in Afghanistan, Central Asia and Iran – International Dimension of the European Year of Cultural Heritage” (2018–2024). By documenting the role of women, oral traditions, specialised terminology, and community-based transmission of textile knowledge, the research expands current understandings of Silk Road heritage beyond trade and material exchanges, highlighting the importance of intangible cultural practices in maintaining Silk Road traditions.
Furthermore, the project generated new evidence regarding the relationship between silk textiles and the Tirgān festival. By documenting the cultural, symbolic, and ritual significance of silk within traditions associated with water, rain, fertility, and seasonal celebrations, the research contributes valuable contextual information relevant to the safeguarding and interpretation of Tirgān/Vardavar, which is under consideration for inscription on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2026.
Finally, the project produced the first systematic documentation and analysis of specialised silk-weaving terminology preserved within the oral traditions of Zoroastrian communities. Extracted from one of Iran’s oldest surviving cultural and linguistic communities, this terminology provides unique access to indigenous knowledge systems and offers new resources for future research in textile history, historical linguistics, anthropology, cultural heritage studies, museum documentation, and Silk Road scholarship.
The project therefore advances knowledge in several fields simultaneously by connecting textile technology, language, religion, women’s history, oral literature, intangible cultural heritage, and Silk Road studies. It establishes a new interdisciplinary framework for understanding how technical knowledge, cultural identity, and community memory are preserved and transmitted across generations.
First, the project established previously undocumented links between material and intangible cultural heritage by demonstrating how silk-weaving knowledge is transmitted through oral literature, storytelling, symbolic narratives, ritual performances, specialised terminology, and textile production practices. This integrated perspective contributes a new methodological framework for studying the relationship between craft traditions and intangible cultural heritage.
Second, the project identified and documented the role of Zoroastrian religion in shaping women’s engagement with silk textiles. The findings reveal how religious beliefs, concepts of purity, gender roles, and community practices influenced the production, transmission, and preservation of silk-weaving knowledge over centuries. This provides new evidence for understanding the interaction between religion, gender, and material culture.
Third, the project demonstrated the close relationship between silk textiles and the cultural identity of Zoroastrian women. Silk weaving emerged not only as an economic activity but also as a medium through which cultural memory, linguistic knowledge, social values, and community identity were preserved and transmitted across generations.
A major contribution of the project is the demonstration that Zoroastrian women’s silk weaving possesses all the characteristics of Intangible Cultural Heritage as defined by UNESCO. The tradition is simultaneously traditional, contemporary, and living; it has been maintained through continuous intergenerational transmission and remains embedded in community practices. The project therefore complements the UNESCO inscription “Sericulture and Traditional Production of Silk for Weaving” (2022) by providing detailed evidence regarding the cultural, linguistic, educational, social, and gendered dimensions of silk-weaving traditions in Iran.
The project further identified educational mechanisms through which silk-weaving knowledge has been transmitted to girls and young women. By documenting oral narratives, symbolic teaching methods, and intergenerational learning practices, the research provides an example of a sustainable educational model that has functioned successfully for centuries without reliance on modern technologies. These findings are particularly relevant to international discussions concerning cultural education, community-based learning, and the transmission of traditional knowledge in developing countries. In this respect, the project contributes evidence relevant to UNESCO’s broader concerns regarding girls’ education, cultural sustainability, and safeguarding traditional knowledge systems.
A particularly innovative contribution of the project is the identification and analysis of two major educational narratives used for transmitting silk-weaving knowledge across generations: “The Fairy King’s Daughter,” which explains the duties and skills traditionally taught to girls, and “The Serpent King,” which focuses on the advanced responsibilities and technical expertise of married women and mothers. These narratives demonstrate how theoretical and practical knowledge were embedded in oral literature and symbolic educational systems, providing a unique example of long-term intergenerational knowledge transfer.
Another significant result concerns the reconstruction of historical silk networks associated with Zoroastrian communities. Through the analysis of commercial records, archival documents, oral histories, and surviving evidence related to caravan routes and caravanserais used by Zoroastrian silk merchants and weavers, the project provides new information concerning Silk Road trade networks and cultural exchange. These findings complement the UNESCO World Heritage inscription “The Persian Caravanserai” (2023) by offering additional evidence regarding the movement of silk, merchants, knowledge, and cultural practices across historical trade routes in Iran.
The project also contributes to the UNESCO–EU initiative “Silk Roads Heritage Corridors in Afghanistan, Central Asia and Iran – International Dimension of the European Year of Cultural Heritage” (2018–2024). By documenting the role of women, oral traditions, specialised terminology, and community-based transmission of textile knowledge, the research expands current understandings of Silk Road heritage beyond trade and material exchanges, highlighting the importance of intangible cultural practices in maintaining Silk Road traditions.
Furthermore, the project generated new evidence regarding the relationship between silk textiles and the Tirgān festival. By documenting the cultural, symbolic, and ritual significance of silk within traditions associated with water, rain, fertility, and seasonal celebrations, the research contributes valuable contextual information relevant to the safeguarding and interpretation of Tirgān/Vardavar, which is under consideration for inscription on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2026.
Finally, the project produced the first systematic documentation and analysis of specialised silk-weaving terminology preserved within the oral traditions of Zoroastrian communities. Extracted from one of Iran’s oldest surviving cultural and linguistic communities, this terminology provides unique access to indigenous knowledge systems and offers new resources for future research in textile history, historical linguistics, anthropology, cultural heritage studies, museum documentation, and Silk Road scholarship.
The project therefore advances knowledge in several fields simultaneously by connecting textile technology, language, religion, women’s history, oral literature, intangible cultural heritage, and Silk Road studies. It establishes a new interdisciplinary framework for understanding how technical knowledge, cultural identity, and community memory are preserved and transmitted across generations.