civilisation of the times. Therefore it could not form the centre of
gravity of Persian life although there is no doubt that in several
respects in this province there were preserved typical features of
Sasanian antiquity.

[Footnote 1: For a general conspectus of the history of the provinces
with regard to their independence during the Sasanian and Arab
domination, _see, e.g._ F. Justi, G.I. Ph., II, pp. 547-49--"History of
Iran from the earliest to the end of the Sasanides" in German--Appendix
I.]


KHORASAN.

It was otherwise with the Eastern provinces of Khorasan, too far distant
from the territary occupied by the Arab settlers, and too densely
inhabited by Iranians to rapidly lose its previous characteristics. On
the contrary, we know from the historians that in this province Iranian
elements remained steadfast throughout the Umayyad dynasty and it was
exclusively due to the support given by Khorasanians to the Abbasides
that the latter succeeded in overthrowing the previous dynasty and
commenced the era of powerful Iranian influences in the history of the
Musalman Orient.[1] Khorasan played a vital part in the development of
the modern Persian literature and especially its chief department,
poetry. The entire early period of the history of modern Persian poetry,
from Abbas welcoming with an ode Khalif Mamun into Merv down to
Firdausi, may be labelled Khorasanian. There flourished the activity of
Rudaki, Kisai, Dakiki, and other less notable representatives of the
early period of modern Persian bards.[2] The culture of poetry was
favoured not only by the geographical position of the province of