UNESCO includes two prominent Iranian thinkers in its 2026–2027 celebration list

Tehran, IRNA – The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has placed two prominent Iranian figures of mysticism and philosophy on its list of anniversaries, events, and personalities with which UNESCO is associated in 2026-2027.

The decision was made on Saturday evening during the 43rd session of UNESCO’s General Conference taking place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from October 30 to November 13. The General Conference, which is UNESCO's main governing body, brings together its 194 member states to determine the organization's vision and general policy.

Iran’s Minister of Science Hossein Simaie, who is also head of UNESCO National Iranian Commission is attending the conference. The Commission’s Director General Hassan Fartousi is in attendance as well.

Participants in the General Conference chose the 100th year of active life of Iranian scholar and philosopher Allameh Muhammad Hossein Tabatabai, and 1,150th passing anniversary of teacher of Sufi Islam Bayazid Bastami as events of anniversaries on UNESCO list for 2026-2027.

The two events were approved from among proposals by the participating countries, and are expected to be marked through cultural and scientific ceremonies at the national and international level.

The 100th year of Tabatabai’s active life, proposed by Iran, was chosen with the support of Azerbaijan, Iraq, and Pakistan, according to a press release by UNESCO.

The 1,150th anniversary of the death of Bayazid Bastami, also proposed by Iran, was approved with the support of Armenia, Tajikistan, and Turkey.

Allameh Tabatabai, who died in November 1981, was an Iranian scholar, theorist, philosopher and one of the most prominent thinkers of modern Shia Islam. He is best known for his Tafsir al-Mizan, a twenty-seven-volume work of Quranic exegesis.

Bayazid Bastami was a famous mystic who died in 874 CE, and lived during the Abbasid Era.