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{{Short description|Iranian mythological bird}}
{{Other uses|Simorgh (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox mythical creature
|name             = Simurgh
|AKA              = 
|image            = Senmurv.svg
|image_size       = <!-- Image size in pixels; do not use with image_upright -->
|image_upright    = <!-- Image size scale factor; do not use with image_size -->
|caption          = Simurgh as the royal emblem of the [[Sassanian Empire]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Zhivkov|first1=Boris|title=Khazaria in the Ninth and Tenth Centuries|date=2015|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-9004294486|page=78|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Du2CAAAQBAJ&pg=PA78|language=en}}</ref>{{Better source|date=March 2025}}
|Folklore         = [[Persian mythology]]
|Grouping         = [[Legendary creature|Mythical creature]]
|Sub_Grouping     = 
|Family           = <!-- Attested family members, if applicable -->
|Country          = [[Ancient Iran]]
|Region           = <!-- Region of origin -->
|Details          = <!-- Any additional details -->
|First_Attested   = <!-- First attestation (in other words, source) -->
|Similar_entities = <!-- Entities described as similar -->
}}

The '''simurgh''' ({{IPAc-en|s|ɪ|ˈ|m|ɜːr|g}}; {{langx|fa|سیمرغ}}; also spelled ''senmurv, simorgh, simorg'', ''simurg'', ''simoorg, simorq'' or ''simourv'') is a benevolent bird in [[Persian mythology]] and [[Persian literature|literature]]. It bears some similarities with [[mythological]] birds from different origins, such as the [[Phoenix (mythology)|phoenix]] ({{langx|fa|link=no|ققنوس}} ''quqnūs'') and the [[Huma bird|humā]] ({{langx|fa|link=no|هما}}).<ref>Juan Eduardo Cirlot, A Dictionary of Symbols, Courier Dover Publications, 2002, p. 253</ref> The figure can be found in all periods of [[Greater Iran|Iranian]] art and literature and is also evident in the iconography of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]],<ref>For example, on the wall of [[Samtavisi Cathedral]]</ref> [[medieval Armenia]],<ref>For example, fresco depiction of simurghs inside medallions (evoking motifs found on Sassanid textiles) in the church of Tigran Honents at [[Ani]]. P Donabedian and J. M. Thierry, ''Armenian Art'', New York, 1979, p.  488.</ref> the [[Byzantine Empire|Eastern Roman Empire]],<ref>For example, a row of simurghs are depicted inside the "Ağaçaltı" church in the [[Ihlara]] gorge. Thierry, N. and M., ''Nouvelles églises rupestres de Cappadoce'', Paris, 1963, pp. 84–85.</ref> and other regions that were within the realm of Persian cultural influence.

==Etymology==
The [[Persian language|Persian]] word ''sīmurğ'' ({{lang|fa|[[wikt:سیمرغ|سیمرغ]]}}) derives from [[Middle Persian]] ''sēnmurw''<ref>A. Jeroussalimskaja, "Soieries sassanides", in ''Splendeur des sassanides: l'empire perse entre Rome et la Chine'' (Brussels, 1993) 114, 117–118, points out that the spelling  ''senmurv'', is incorrect – noted by David Jacoby, "Silk Economics and Cross-Cultural Artistic Interaction: Byzantium, the Muslim World, and the Christian West", ''Dumbarton Oaks Papers'' 58 (2004): 197–240, esp. 212 note 82.</ref><ref name="Iranica">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2002 |title=Simorg |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica |publisher=Mazda Pub |location=Costa Mesa |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/simorg |last=Schmidt |first=Hanns-Peter |author-link=Hanns-Peter Schmidt}}</ref> and earlier ''sēnmuruγ'', also attested in [[Pazend]] texts as ''sīna-mrū''. The Middle Persian word comes from [[Avestan]] ''mərəγō Saēnō'' "the bird Saēna", originally a [[Raptor (bird)|raptor]], likely an [[eagle]], [[falcon]], or [[sparrowhawk]], as can be deduced from the etymological cognate [[Sanskrit]] ''śyenaḥ'' (श्येनः) [[Raptor (bird)|raptor]], [[eagle]] and [[bird of prey]], which also appears as a divine figure.<ref>[[Manfred Mayrhofer|Mayrhofer, Manfred]] (1996). “śyená-”. In: ''Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen'' [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan] Volume II. Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, 1996. p. 662. (In German)</ref> ''Saēna'' is also a personal name. The word was lent to Armenian as ''siramarg'' ({{lang|hy|[[wikt:սիրամարգ#Old Armenian|սիրամարգ]]}}) '[[peacock]]'.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Siramarg by Aram Sarkisian {{!}} Animators for Armenia {{!}} Animators for Armenia |url=https://animators-armenia.betterworld.org/auctions/animators-armenia/items/siramarg-by-aram-sarkisian |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=BetterWorld |language=en}}</ref>

On the other hand, the phrase ''sī murğ'' ({{lang|fa|سی مرغ}}) means "thirty birds" in Persian; this has been used by [[Attar of Nishapur]] in his symbolic story of ''[[The Conference of the Birds]]'', the [[frame story]] of which employs a play on the name.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Al-Kindi Center for Research and Development (KCRD) |url=https://www.al-kindipublisher.com/ |access-date=2022-09-22 |website=www.al-kindipublisher.com}}</ref>

==Mythology==
[[File:Sassanid silver plate by Nickmard Khoey.jpg|left|thumb|[[Sassanian]] silver plate of a simurgh (Sēnmurw), 7th or 8th century CE]]

[[File:Simurgh platter. From Iran. Samanids dynasty. 9th-10th century CE. Islamic Art Museum (Museum für Islamische Kunst), Berlin (parallax).jpg|left|thumb|[[Samanid dynasty|Samanian]] Simurgh platter" (9th-10th century). Simurgh as a word in [[Farsi|Persian]] is a [[double entendre]] (or [[Īhām]]), and can be interpreted as 30 birds. This plate depicts that interpretation. [[Attar of Nishapur]] also mentions this interpretation in his poetic book of [[Conference of the Birds]]]].

[[File:Delegate with Simurgh design on his dress in the Afrasiab murals 648-651 CE.jpg|thumb|left|Ambassador with Simurgh design on his dress in the [[Afrasiab murals]], 648–651 CE.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Compareti (University of California, Berkeley) |first1=Matteo |title=Ancient Iranian Decorative Textiles |journal=The Silk Road |date=2015 |volume=13 |page=38 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291135843}}</ref>]]

===Form and function===
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2021}}
The Simurgh is depicted in [[Iranian art]] as a winged creature in the shape of a bird, gigantic enough to carry off an elephant or a whale. It appears as a peacock with the head of a dog and the claws of a lion – sometimes, however, also with a human face. The Simurgh is inherently benevolent.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=TÜFEKÇİ |first=ALİ |date=2020-12-17 |title=Journey in search of truth: Metaphorical story of Simurgh, sovereign of birds |url=https://www.dailysabah.com/arts/journey-in-search-of-truth-metaphorical-story-of-simurgh-sovereign-of-birds/news |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=Daily Sabah |language=en-US}}</ref> Being part mammal, they suckle their young.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Nair |first=Nitten |date=2022-09-09 |title=Simurgh : The Giant Bird |url=https://mythlok.com/simurgh/ |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=Mythlok |language=en-US}}</ref> The Simurgh has an enmity towards snakes, and its natural habitat is a place with plenty of water.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> Its feathers are said to be the colour of copper in some versions, and though it was originally described as being a dog-bird, later it was shown with either the head of a man or a dog (Bearded vultures are variably orange or rust of plumage on their head, breast, and leg feathers, but this is thought to be cosmetic. This colouration comes from dust-bathing or rubbing iron-rich mud on its body).<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

"''Si-''", the first element in the name, has been connected in [[folk etymology]] to Modern Persian ''si'' ‘thirty’. Although this prefix is not historically related to the origin of the name ''simurgh'', "thirty" has nonetheless been the basis for legends incorporating that number – for instance, that the simurgh was as large as thirty birds or had thirty colours (''siræng''). Other suggested etymologies include Pahlavi ''sin murgh'' ‘eagle bird’ and Avestan ''saeno merego'' ‘eagle’.<ref name=":0" />

Iranian legends consider the bird so old that it had seen the destruction of the world three times over. The simurgh learned so much by living so long that it is thought to possess the knowledge of all the ages. In one legend, the simurgh was said to live 1,700 years before plunging itself into flames (much like the [[phoenix (mythology)|phoenix]]).<ref name=":0" />

The simurgh was considered to purify the land and waters and hence bestow fertility. The creature represented the union between the Earth and the sky, serving as mediator and messenger between the two. The simurgh roosted in [[Gaokerena]], the [[Haoma|Hōm]] (Avestan: ''Haoma'') Tree of Life, which stands in the middle of the world sea ([[Vourukasha]]). The plant is potent medicine and is called all-healing, and the seeds of all plants are deposited on it. When the simurgh took flight, the leaves of the tree of life shook, making all the seeds of every plant fall out. These seeds floated around the world on the winds of [[Vayu-Vata]] and the rains of [[Tishtrya]], in cosmology taking root to become every type of plant that ever lived and curing all the illnesses of mankind.

The relationship between the simurgh and Hōm is extremely close. Like the simurgh, Hōm is represented as a bird, a messenger, and the essence of purity that can heal any illness or wound. Hōm – appointed as the first priest – is the essence of divinity, a property it shares with the simurgh. The Hōm is in addition the vehicle of ''[[Khvarenah|farr(ah)]]'' (MPers: ''khwarrah'', {{langx|ae|{{script|Avst|𐬓𐬀𐬭𐬆𐬥𐬀𐬵}}}} {{Transliteration|ae|xᵛarənah}}, ''kavaēm kharēno'') ‘divine glory; fortune’. ''Farrah'' in turn represents the [[Divine Right of Kings|divine mandate]] that was the foundation of a king's authority.

It appears as a bird resting on the head or shoulder of would-be kings and clerics, indicating [[Ahura Mazda|Ormuzd's]] acceptance of that individual as his divine representative on Earth. For the commoner, [[Verethragna|Bahrām]] wraps fortune/glory "around the house of the worshipper, for wealth in cattle, like the great bird Saena, and as the watery clouds cover the great mountains" (''[[Yasht]]'' 14.41, cf. the rains of Tishtrya above). Like the simurgh, ''farrah'' is also associated with the waters of ''Vourukasha'' (''Yasht'' 19.51, 56–57). In Yašt 12.17 Simorgh's (Saēna's) tree stands in the middle of the sea Vourukaša, it has good and potent medicine and is called all-healing, and the seeds of all plants are deposited on it.

[[File:SchoolOfTabriz3.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Zal and the Simurgh on the [[Mount Qaf]]]]

===In the ''Shahnameh''===
The simurgh made its most famous appearance in [[Ferdowsi]]'s epic ''[[Shahnameh]]'' (Book of Kings), where its involvement with Prince [[Zal]] is described. According to the ''Shahnameh'', [[Zal]], the son of [[Saam]], was born albino. When Saam saw his albino son, he assumed that the child was the spawn of devils, and abandoned the infant on the mountain ''[[Hara Berezaiti|Alborz]]''.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Flights of Imagination: How Birds Have Been Reinvented As Mythical Creatures Around The World — Object Lessons Space |url=https://objectlessons.space/Flights-of-Imagination-How-Birds-Have-Been-Reinvented-As-Mythical |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=objectlessons.space |language=en}}</ref>

The child's cries were heard by the tender-hearted simurgh, who lived atop this peak, and she retrieved the child and raised him as her own. Zal was taught much wisdom from the loving simurgh, who has all knowledge, but the time came when he grew into a man and yearned to rejoin the world of men. Though the simurgh was terribly saddened, she gave him three golden feathers which he was to burn if he ever needed her assistance.<ref name=":2" />
[[File:Attributed to Abdul Aziz shahnama 1525 ZAL IS SIGHTED BY A CARAVAN Berlin, Museum.jpg|thumb|Simurgh returning to nest to Zal and its chicks.<br>
{{right|{{small|—"Zal is Sighted by a Caravan" (''[[Shahnameh of Shah Tahmasp|Tahmasp Shahnamah]]'', fol. 62v), Sackler Gallery LTS1995.2.46}}}}]]
Upon returning to his kingdom, Zal fell in love and married the beautiful [[Rudaba]]. When it came time for their son to be born, the labor was prolonged and terrible; Zal was certain that his wife would die in labour. Rudaba was near death when Zal decided to summon the simurgh. The simurgh appeared and instructed him upon how to perform a [[cesarean section]] thus saving Rudaba and the child, who became one of the greatest Persian heroes, [[Rostam]].

Simurgh also shows up in the story of the [[Seven Trials of Esfandiyar]] in the latter's 5th labor. After killing the wicked enchantress, [[Esfandiyar]] fights a simurgh, and despite the simurgh's many powers, Esfandiyar strikes it in the neck, [[decapitating]] it. The simurgh's offspring then rise to fight Esfandiyar, but they, too, are slain.<ref name=":2" />

===In Persian Sufi poetry===
[[File:An assembly of animals and birds - Johnson Collection (c.1610) - BL J.67.4.jpg|upright|thumb|Simurgh from the works of [[Attar of Nishapur]]]]
In classical and modern Persian literature the simorḡ is frequently mentioned, particularly as a metaphor for God in [[Sufism|Sufi mysticism]].<ref name="Iranica" /> In the 12th century ''[[The Conference of the Birds|Conference of the Birds]]'', Iranian Sufi poet [[Attar Neyshapuri|Farid ud-Din Attar]] wrote of a band of pilgrim birds in search of the simurgh. In the poem, the birds of the world gather to decide who is to be their king, as they have none. The [[hoopoe]], the wisest of them all, suggests that they should find the legendary simorgh, a mythical Persian bird roughly equivalent to the western [[Phoenix (mythology)|phoenix]]. The hoopoe leads the birds, each of whom represent a human fault which prevents man from attaining enlightenment. When the group of thirty birds finally reach the dwelling place of the simorgh, all they find is a lake in which they see their own reflection. This scene employs a pun on the Persian expression for "thirty birds" (''si morgh'').<ref>{{cite book|title=The World of Persian Literary Humanism|author=Hamid Dabashi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HQFNfOPAS04C&pg=PA124|page=124|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2012|isbn=978-0674067592}}</ref>

The phrase also appears three times in Rumi's [[Masnavi]], e.g. in Book VI, Story IX: "The nest of the ''sī murğ'' is beyond [[Mount Qaf]]" (as translated by E.H. Whinfield).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Whinfield |first1=E.H. |title=Masnavi i Ma'navi |date=2001 |publisher=Omphaloskepsis |location=Ames, Iowa |page=468 |url=https://ia601601.us.archive.org/11/items/MasnaviByRumiEnglishTranslation/rumi_masnavi.pdf |access-date=25 September 2022}}</ref>

Through heavy Persian influence, the simurgh was introduced to the [[Arabic]]-speaking world, where the concept was conflated with other Arabic mythical birds such as the [[ghoghnus]], a bird having some mythical relation with the [[date palm]],<ref>[http://ommolketab.net/english/search/search.php?mid=9401676 Quranic articles; Vegetables in Holy Quran – The date-palm]{{dead link|date=August 2012}}</ref> and further developed as the ''rukh'' (the origin of the English word "[[roc (mythology)|roc]]").
Representations of simurgh were adopted in early [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad]] art and coinage.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Compareti |first1=Matteo |title=The State of Research on Sasanian Painting |url=https://www.academia.edu/1809995 |journal=Humanities.uci.edu |access-date=4 April 2019 |language=en}}</ref>

===In Kurdish folklore===
Simurgh is shortened to "sīmir" in the [[Kurdish language]].<ref name="Iranica"/> The scholar [[Kamilla Trever|C. V. Trever]] quotes two Kurdish folktales about the bird.<ref name="Iranica"/> These versions go back to the common stock of Iranian simorḡ stories.<ref name="Iranica"/> In one of the folk tales, a hero rescues the simurgh's offspring by killing a snake that was crawling up the tree to feed upon them. As a reward, the simurgh gives him three of her feathers which the hero can use to call for her help by burning them. Later, the hero uses the feathers, and the simurgh carries him to a distant land. In the other tale, the simurgh carries the hero out of the netherworld; here the simurgh feeds its young with its teats, a trait which agrees with the description of the simurgh in the [[Middle Persian]] book of [[Zadspram]]. In another tale, simurgh feeds the hero on the journey while the hero feeds simurgh with pieces of sheep's fat.

==In popular culture==
*[[Ambrose Bierce]]'s ''[[The Devil's Dictionary]]'' (1906) characterizes the Simurgh as "omnipotent on condition that it do nothing" and likens it to the role of the [[hoi polloi|rabble]] in a [[republic]].<ref>[http://dict.org/bin/Dict?Form=Dict2&Database=devil&Query=Rabble "Rabble" entry in ''The Devil's Dictionary''] at [[Dict.org]]</ref>
*The title of [[Salman Rushdie]]'s first novel, ''[[Grimus]]'' (1975), is an anagram of Simurg.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abebooks.co.uk/9788126906307/Salman-Rushdie-Critical-Essays-Vol-8126906308/plp|title=Salman Rushdie: Critical Essays Vol. 1|publisher=Atlantic Publishers}} Page v</ref>
*Simurgh is the name of a proxy tool introduced in 2009 that helps residents of Iran avoid [[Internet censorship in Iran|government censorship of websites]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-18263058|title=Trojan targets Iranian and Syrian dissidents via proxy tool|work=BBC News|date=30 May 2012|access-date=21 December 2020}}</ref>
* The [[Crystal Simorgh]] is an award given by [[Fajr International Film Festival]].
* The Simorgh is one of the creatures encountered by the protagonists in the 2006 movie [[Azur & Asmar: The Princes' Quest]].
* The Simurgh is the name of one of the Endbringers in the 2011 [[Worm (web serial)]].
* In the Yugioh card game, Simorgh is the boss monster of its own archetype.
* A Simurgh card from a fictional collectible card game serves as a major plot device in the sci-fi novel ''Entanglement'', by Gibson Monk.
*A simurgh appeared in chapter 49 of the manga [[Delicious in Dungeon]] as Laios contemplates various bird-like monsters. It is shown large enough to hold an elephant in its talons.
*The Simurgh is featured in [[Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown]], a 2024 video game in which it indirectly grants the player character various time-manipulation powers used to progress in the game.
*In her poem "Garden Simurgh", [[Kathleen Raine]] describes how 'I hung out nuts for the blue-tits but the sparrows came, / All thirty of them / With a flurry of wings, / One mind in thirty vociferous selves...' eventually concluding that no 'wonder-bird' should be deemed 'more miraculous' than these 'two-a-farthing sparrows / Each feather bearing the carelessly-worn signature / Of the universe'.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Raine |first=Kathleen |author-link=Kathleen Raine |title=Collected Poems |publisher=Faber & Faber Ltd |year=2019 |isbn=978-0-571-35202-9 |edition=2nd |location=London |pages=340}}</ref>
*The Simurgh is referenced in both [[Zeyn Joukhadar]]’s novels, ''The Map of Salt and Stars'' and ''[[The Thirty Names of Night]].'' In the latter novel, an ornithologist names a (fictional) species of ibis ''Geronticus simurghus,'' after the mythical Simurgh.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Zal in the Nest of Simurgh LACMA M.73.5.447.jpg|Simurgh at its nest
File:Bird Simurgh on Nadir Devanbegi Madrasah, Bukhara (Симург на Медресе Нодир-Диван-Беги, Nodir devonbegi madrasasi).jpg|Decoration outside of [[Lyab-i Hauz|Nadir Divan-Beghi madrasah]], [[Bukhara]]
File:Basawan. The Flight of the Simurgh. ca. 1590, Sadruddin Aga Khan Collection.jpg|Painting of the Simurgh made in the [[Mughal Empire]]
File:Detail. Simurgh platter. From Iran. Samanids dynasty. 9th-10th century CE. Islamic Art Museum (Museum für Islamische Kunst), Berlin.jpg|Simurgh platter. From Iran. Samanid dynasty, 9th–10th century CE. Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Anqa]], Arabian mythological bird identified with the Simurgh
* [[Anzû (mythology)|Anzû]] (older reading: Zû), Mesopotamian monster
* [[Chamrosh]], Persian mythological bird 
* [[Chimera (mythology)|Chimera]], Greek mythological hybrid monster
* [[Fenghuang]], mythological bird of East Asia
* [[Garuda]], Indian mythological bird
* [[Griffin|Griffin or griffon]], Greek lion-bird hybrid
* [[Huma bird]], Iranian mythical bird
* [[Mythological hybrid|Hybrid creatures in mythology]]
* [[Konrul]], Turkish mythological hybrid bird
* [[Lamassu]], Assyrian deity, bull/lion-eagle-human hybrid
* [[Luan (mythology)|Luan]], Chinese mythological bird related to the phoenix, whose name is often translated as "simurgh"
* [[Nue]], Japanese legendary creature
* [[Oksoko]], Slavic mythological double-headed eagle
* [[Pamola]], A Legendary bird-spirit in Abenaki Mythology
* [[Pegasus]], winged stallion in Greek mythology
* [[Pixiu]] or Pi Yao, Chinese mythical creature
* [[Roc (mythology)|Roc]], Arab and Persian legendary bird, the opposite of Anqa
* [[Shahbaz (bird)]], Persian mythological bird
* [[Simargl]], a related being in Slavic mythology
* [[Sphinx]], Greek mythical creature with lion's body and human head
* [[Turul]], Turkic and Hungarian mythological bird of prey and a national symbol of Hungarians
* [[Ziz]], giant griffin-like bird in Jewish mythology
* [[Firebird (Slavic folklore)|Zhar Ptica]], bird in Russian mythology parallel to the [[Phoenix (mythology)|Phoenix]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite journal |title=Simorgh — An Old Persian Fairy Tale |last=Ghahremani |first=Homa A. |journal=Sunrise |year=1984 |issue=June/July |url=http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/mideast/mi-homa.htm |publisher=Theosophical University Press }}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline}}

{{Zoroastrianism}}
{{Shahnameh}}

[[Category:Female legendary creatures]]
[[Category:Legendary birds]]
[[Category:Mythological hybrids]]
[[Category:Monsters]]
[[Category:National symbols of Iran]]
[[Category:Persian legendary creatures]]
[[Category:Shahnameh characters]]
[[Category:Phoenix birds]]