Marriage with First-Degree Relatives in Ancient Iran: A Historical Reassessment of a Prevailing Claim

Abstract

This article critically reassesses the widespread claim that marriages with first-degree relatives were socially accepted and prevalent in ancient Iran. Through a textual analysis of late Pahlavi sources, an examination of their post-Sasanian transmission under conditions of political and religious domination, and a review of authoritative scholarship in Iranian and Zoroastrian studies, the study demonstrates that this allegation lacks historical and social credibility. The concept commonly cited in support of this claim is shown to be theological and idealized rather than descriptive of actual social practice. The article further argues that ideological reinterpretation, selective transmission, and polemical misuse of late sources played a decisive role in the formation and persistence of this accusation.

The Persian (Farsi) version of this article is available online at: [https://zenodo.org/records/18379973]