Cultural Semiotics Specific Names: The Core of One Thousand and One Nights and One Thousand and one days

In Cultural Semiotics, specific names constitute the foundational layer of our consciousness. These names embody mythical beliefs and serve as pretexts for identifying and recognizing individuals within the context of their environment. Analyzing specific names offers an initial insight into the cultural core and the predetermined chain of signs. "One Thousand and One Nights" and "One Thousand and one days" are refereed to as complicated writings in Persian folk literature and the meaningful part of the historical and social memory of the Iranian people. Similar to insignia, names provide semantic guidance within the Semiosphere, prompting the question of how specific names relate to one another in these works. This research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach grounded in Yuri Lutman's theory of cultural semiotics, examining the bilateral and multifaceted relationships between different sign systems. The study concludes that the nature of cultural context is reflected in the patterns of specific names in both stories. Furthermore, the selection of names and the semantic core of both narratives align with the norms of Iranian culture, contrasting with "other" cultures through their discourses, interactions, and conflicts.
Introduction:
Cultural semiotics examines cultural texts both as literary works and as repositories of people's memories and experiences within a historical context. In Yuri Mikhailovich Lotman's model of cultural semiotics, specific names function as mythical beliefs, pre-narratives, and pre-texts that individuals use to identify and understand phenomena in their environment. Specific names do not convey new messages; rather, their meanings are recognized rather than learned. By analyzing specific names in One Thousand and One Nights and One Thousand and One Days, as well as in the semiosphere and isomorphic texts of Iranian tales, this study explores the foundations for modeling and interpreting specific names in various folk narratives.
Methodology:
This research employs a descriptive-analytical approach grounded in Lotman’s Cultural Semiotics theory to explore the semantics of specific names and their cultural connections and interactions within the semiosphere of One Thousand and One Nights and One Thousand and One Days. The objective is to achieve a preliminary understanding of their cultural significance.
Key theoretical propositions include the following patterns related to the semiosphere and specific names:

Cultural Isomorphism: Culture is a complex, meta-linguistic, and diachronic textual construct shaped by the human mind.
Semantic Dualities: These encompass oppositions such as center versus periphery, self versus other, and nature versus culture.
Textual Memory and Automated Individual Memory: Culture serves as a collective memory, while the Specific names Semiosphere represents a network of individual signs and meanings.

Results and Discussion:
The narratives in One Thousand and One Nights and One Thousand and One Days share structural and thematic patterns derived from Iranian folklore. These stories highlight common motifs embedded in the semiosphere, revealing both explicit and implicit aspects of Iranian cultural identity. Intertextual connections further illustrate how the structure and arrangement of motifs emphasize continuity between the texts.
The patterns of specific names reflect diachronic elements rooted in Iranian culture, serving as cultural signifiers that preserve collective memory. By analyzing these names, this research identifies how Iranian cultural norms and values shape the semantic cores of these narratives, demonstrating the integration of mythological symbols and historical references within the narrative framework.
Conclusion:
In One Thousand and One Nights, the act of storytelling by “Šhahrzād” transforms “Šhahryār.” The theme of storytelling as a means of survival is not only central to the main narrative but is also echoed throughout many of the book's stories. Similarly, the core narrative of One Thousand and One Days revolves around the storytelling of Jor'ebakhsh. The character Farroxnaz, who initially despises men due to a dream, is transformed by Jor'ebakhsh through tales of men's loyalty in love, extending the narrative across consecutive days.
“Thousand” and Thousand and One: These numerical terms serve as time-counting adjectives, symbolizing temporal continuity and abundance. In One Thousand and One Days, the number emphasizes plurality, contrasting with One Thousand and One Nights, which unfolds over 1,001 nights, while the former spans 231 days. Intertextual discussions, particularly regarding the book Hezar Afsan, reveal connections between these narratives, where numbers and figures interpret mythological and symbolic dimensions. For instance, One Thousand and One Nights features two brothers (Šahrzamān and Šahryār) and two sisters (Šahrzād and Dunyāzād), while One Thousand and One Days introduces two witch sisters (Mehrafzā and Golnāz) and two lovers who share the same dream about “Farroxnāz.”
“Night” and “Day”: Representing darkness and light, these time markers symbolize contrasting periods and transitions. The primary narrative in One Thousand and One Nights begins with “Sahrzaman,” who discovers his wife’s betrayal, thereby initiating the story’s crisis. His subsequent revelation about Šahryār’s wife deepens the conflict. “Sahrzaman,” symbolizing time and transformation, disrupts the initial balance and sets the stage for a prolonged narrative crisis, sustained by “Shahryar.” Both texts structure their chapters based on the symbolic passage of nights and days.
Character Analysis (Shahrzad, Shahryar, Dunyazad, Jor'ebakhsh, and Farroxnaz): In One Thousand and One Nights, “Shahrzad” and “Dunyazad” are portrayed as the daughters of a minister. Historical accounts, such as Masoudi’s Morojal-zahab, present “Shahrzad” as the minister’s daughter and “Dunyazad” as her maid. In Alfehrest by Ibn al-Nadim, “Shahrzad” is the king’s daughter, while Dunyazad is responsible for managing the nightstand. Variations of these names appear across versions of HezarAfsan and Alf Laylah wa-Laylah. Linguistically, both names share the suffix “-zad,” which is derived from Persian. Shahrzad likely evolved from “Shahr azad,” meaning “free person of the city.” Alternative forms include “Ĉahrzād” and “homā Cahrzad,” as mentioned in the works of Tabari. Historical sources like Mas’udi and Ya’qubi identify “Shahrzad” as the storyteller of HezarAfsan and as the daughter of figures such as Ardeshir and “Bahman.”.