Fourteen papers on a diversity of themes relating to the grammar and the vocabulary of Persian, Middle Persian texts, non-standard and early varieties of Persian, and dialects of Iran. Editions of so far unpublished texts are also included. Contributions by Gerardo Barbera, Claudia A. Ciancaglini, Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst, Ela Filippone, Daniele Guizzo, Mohammad Hasandust, Judith Josephson, Gilbert Lazard, David N. MacKenzie (†), Mauro Maggi, Paola Orsatti, Elio Provasi, Hassan Rezai Baghbidi, and Riccardo Zipoli. For students of Persian, Iranian philology, and comparative and general linguistics.

The volume contains forty-one papers dedicated to the distinguished Iranianist by colleagues, friends and former students, and a complete bibliography of the dedicatee. The papers deal with a variety of themes relating to Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism, Christianity, Buddhism and the multifarious religious history of pre-Islamic Iran approached mainly, but not exclusively, from a historical and philological point of view. The volume also contains a number of previously unpublished or untranslated religious texts as well as re-editions and new translations. The papers cover all Old and Middle Iranian languages, New Persian and other New Iranian languages.

Ronald E. Emmerick’s Handbook of Khotanese consists of two parts: his Introduction to Khotanese, tried and tested with students over the years and here made available in print for the first time; and a systematic survey of Khotanese and the closely related Tumshuqese language. The Introduction, completed with additional chapters by the editors, offers a gradual and comprehensive introduction to Old Khotanese, with translation exercises. Late Khotanese is introduced in the final chapter of the course.