Dr. Mahdi Vaziniafzal is an Associate Professor in the Department of History and Archaeology at the University of Jiroft (Iran). He is currently an international researcher specializing in Zoroastrian archival documents and is collaborating with the University of Hamburg under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Shervin Farridnejad.

He studied the History of Islamic Iran at the University of Tehran and the University of Isfahan, where he completed his Ph.D. in 2015.

His research interests cover a broad range of topics in the social and economic history of Iran, including the history of road construction, the history of games and recreation (such as backgammon, chess, and Ganjifeh), food history, Iran's diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire and Russia, and the history of trade.

A particular focus of his current research is the history of the Zoroastrian community in modern Iran, with special emphasis on trade networks, Zoroastrian merchant companies and families, and the economic exchanges between Zoroastrians in Iran and India. His work is based on the analysis of archival sources, manuscripts, and financial and commercial documents, with the aim of reconstructing the economic and social structures of these communities.

Forschungsprojekt (2026-)

Title: "The commercial activity of the Zoroastrians of Yazd during the Qajar period in the 19th century" (with emphasis on unpublished documents)

In collaboration with Prof. Dr. Shervin Farridnejad

Iranian Zoroastrians were a very active religious minority in the political and economic fields in the 19th and 20th centuries. An important part of them lived in the city of Yazd. The city of Yazd is located in the center of Iran. Zoroastrians had many economic relations with other countries including India. Zoroastrian merchants had commercial offices in different cities of Iran as well as some important cities in the world. They exported and imported many goods. Many financial and commercial archival documents have been left from Zoroastrians, which are collected and analyzed in this project.

In the political arena, Zoroastrians had serious challenges with the rulers of the Qajar period, and the desire for a free and developed Iran brought them into the atmosphere of the Iranian constitutional revolution at the beginning of the 20th century.

In this project, we will answer the following questions:

What was the volume of foreign and domestic trade of Yazd Zoroastrians?
In the absence of a banking system in Iran, how did Zoroastrians manage their finances?
What goods did they export and import?
How did they try to continue their business activities in front of the institution of power and religion?

Research focus and research interests

Religious minorities in Qajar period in Iran
Relations between Iran and Ottomans in the Qajar period
Social history in the contemporary history of Iran
 

Publications
Books

• with Varzā, Jamshid (2026). The Legacy of the Mehrabān Zoroastrian Family: The Establishment of the First Zoroastrian Trading House in Iran. Forouhar Publications, forthcoming (in Persian).
• with Varzā, Jamshid (2025). Documents of the Zoroastrian Trading House Jahāniān: Political, Commercial, and Financial Correspondence (1879–1916). Hiromba Press (in Persian).
• with Varzā, Jamshid (2026). The Mission Hospital of Yazd during the Qajar Period (1898–1924): A Collection of Letters, Reports, and Memoirs of Christian Physicians in Yazd. National Archives of Iran Publications, forthcoming (in Persian).
• (2021). Evliya Celebi’s Travels to Safavid Iran: Four Journeys during the Reigns of Shah Safi and Shah Abbas II. Jiroft University Press (in Persian).
• (2020). Albert Gasteiger-Khan Mohandes Bashi: Reports, Travelogues and Documents of an Austrian Road Engineer in the Era of Naser al-Din Shah (1860–1889). Jiroft University Press (in Persian).

Articles (in Persian)

• (2011). Fath-Ali Shah’s Politics in Qom and the Development of the Shrine of Fatemeh Ma'sumeh. Journal of Research in History, 1(3), 101–119.
• (2011). Expansion of the Shrine of Fatemeh Ma'sumeh and the Increase of Pilgrims in Qom during the Reign of Naser al-Din Shah. Journal of Research in History, 2(3), 65–76.
• (2011). Establishment and Expansion of Qom’s Hospital (Dar al-Shafa) in the Qajar Era. Scientific Journal of History Research, 6(24), 189–208.
• (2011). Establishment of the Telegraph House and the British Consulate in the Ports and Islands of Hormozgan
• with Ganbari, Sabah (2012). Repair and Development of the Tehran–Qom Road in the Qajar Period. Social History Studies, 2, 101–123.
• with Azami Sardo, Zabiollah (2012). The Introduction of Potatoes into Iran as a Transformation in Traditional Agriculture during the Qajar Period. Journal of Cultural History Studies, 3(12), 131–155.
• with Nasrabadi, Esmaeil (2012). Analysis of the Concession of the Tehran–Qom Chaussee Road during the Reign of Naser al-Din Shah. Historical Studies of Culture, 3(10), 103–132.
• with Bahnāmfar, Mohammad Hasan (2013). Reading and Revising the Treatise of Nizam al-Din Ahmad Gilani on the Properties of Certain Plants. Journal of Traditional Islamic Medicine and Iran, 4(3), 266–274.
• with Nouraei, Morteza; Jaafari, Ali Akbar (2015). Naser al-Din Shah Qajar and Tsarist Russia: Road Construction Policies in Gilan Province. Journal of the National Library and Archives of Iran, 25(1), 52–80.
• with Nouraei, Morteza; Jaafari, Ali Akbar (2016). Policies and Challenges of Naser al-Din Shah in the Development of Chaussee Roads in Mazandaran. Journal of Historical Researches of Iran and Islam, No. 19, 235–260.
• 2017). Pahlavani Rituals in the Tradition and Culture of Iranian Society during the Reign of Naser al-Din Shah. Conference proceedings, University of Esfarayen, 529–551.
• (2019). Economic and Political Interests of Russia and Britain in Road Construction in Qajar Iran. Tarikh-e Now, 9(26), 1–37.
  (2019). Views and Positions of Influential Social Classes in Qajar Society on Road Development. Journal of the National Library and Archives of Iran, 48–91.
• (2010). “Modernization Policies of the Pahlavi State in Urban Structure and Their Impact on the Historical Fabric (Case Study: Yazd, 1925–1961).” Journal of Historical Researches of Iran and Islam, 20(2), 177–197.
• (2019). Security, Border, and Diplomatic Struggles between Iran and Russia in North Khorasan during the Reign of Naser al-Din Shah. Pazhoheshnameh-ye Khorasan-e Bozorg, 73–92.
• (2020). The Role of Engineer Albert Gasteiger-Khan in Developing Iran during the Qajar Period. Ganjine-ye Asnad, 30(4), 112–145.
• with Abolghasemi, Ali (2020). Genealogy of Tribal Identity and the Challenges of Bayat Governance in Ilam from the Seljuk to the Qajar Period. Farhang-e Ilam, 21(66–67), 132–147.
• (2020). Challenges of the Ziegler Company in the Export of Persian Handwoven Carpets in Qajar Iran. Journal of Foreign Relations History, 21(1), 107–136.
• (2021). The Position of Kars in the Security and Military Challenges of Iran and the Ottoman Empire. The Historical Study of War, 4(4), 95–120.
• with Moosavi, Seyyed Ahmad (2022). The Plan of Islamic-Military Alliance of Iran and Ottomans Against Russia during the Caucasian Wars. Journal of Historical Study of War, 6(3), 82–98.
• with Dehghani, Mahdi (2022). The Place of Chess in the Qajar Period with an Emphasis on Chess Treatises. Iranian Civilization Research, 4(1), 165–184.
• (2022). An Introduction to an Iranian Culinary Manuscript and Its Cultural Significance in the Qajar Period. Conference, 1–21.
• (2022). Teaching Types of Games in the Qajar Period based on the Qamarnameh Treatise. Conference, 134–143.
• with Dehghani, Mahdi (2023). The Position of Imamzadeh Shrines in the Safavid Period. The History of Islamic Culture and Civilization, 14(51), 131–150.
• with Abolghasemi, Ali (2024). Investigating the Evolution of the Local Family of Shomleh in Khuzestan in Seljuk Era. History of Islam, 25(99), 143–169.
• with Dehghani, Mahdi (2024). Issuance of Jihadi Fatwas by the Ottoman Turks and Its Feedback in the Islamic World. The History of Islamic Culture and Civilization, 123–146.
• with Mosavi, Seyed Ahmad (2024). The Challenges of the Ottoman Diplomatic Corps in Iran during World War I. Journal of Historical Researches of Iran and Islam, 262–290.
• (2024). Growth of Global Cotton Trade and Its Impact on Cropping Patterns in Yazd Villages. Conference.
• with Dehghani, Mehdi (2025). Combat Tactics of Afghan Military Detachments during the Interregnum of the Safavid Dynasty. Journal of Historical Study of War, 9(1), 19–32