M. Rahim Shayegan

M. Rahim Shayegan (, ; born 1966) is an Iranian-American ancient historian who is the Eleanor and Jahangir Amuzegar Professor of Iranian, the founding Director of the Pourdavoud Center for the Study of the Iranian World, and the Head of the Department of Iranian Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (from 2014). He also is a foreign corresponding member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (2022), a member of the Academia Europaea (2019) and the American Oriental Society and a Guggenheim fellow (2013, for writing the book Arsacids and Sasanians: Political Ideology in Post-Hellenistic and Late Antique Persia).

Son of Dariush Shayegan, Rahim Shayegan received his B.A. from the University of Cologne, Germany, and his M.A. from the University of Sorbonne, France, followed by Ph.D. work at the University of Göttingen, Germany, and received his Ph.D. in Harvard University like a Junior Fellow at Harvard Society of Fellows.

Shayegan focused of his research in the Iranian philology and epigraphy, religion and the history of ancient Iran, primarily the history of Achaemenid, Arsacid, Seleucid, and Sasanian periods.

Shaegan most quoted and authoritative book Arsacids and Sasanians: Political Ideology in Post-Hellenistic and Late Antique Persia was to be translated into Persian, but the intended translator died shortly after starting the work. It is a study of the relations of the Iranian empires with Western states, political crises of the Parthian era and Sasanian rise to power and speculation as to whether the Sassanids were aware of Iran's Parthian past. Arsacids and Sasanians: Political Ideology in Post-Hellenistic and Late Antique Persia received positive reviews from professional iranists. According to Sabine Müller, this book is a 'differentiated, thorough, lively, inspiring, and ambitious study'.

Selected publications

 * (translated into Persian)
 * (Editor-in-chief)
 * (Editor-in-chief)