Hojir Explained

Bodyclass:vcard
Abovestyle:background: #CD853F
Aboveclass:fn org
Above:Hojir
Headerstyle:background: #F0E68C
Header1:Shahnameh Men
Label2:Name
Data2:Hojir
Label3:Nickname
Data3:Iranian gladiator
Header14:Other Information
Label15:Well known
Data15:Caught in Sohrab hand
Label16:Wars
Data16:Davazdah Rokh War
Label17:killer
Header21:Family members
Label22:Father
Label23:Brothers
Label24:Ancestor
Label25:Lineage
Data25:House of Goudarz

Hojir[1] (Persian: هُژیر) is an Iranian hero in Shahnameh, the national epic of Iran. Hojir is son of Goudarz and brother of Giv and Rohham. Hojir first appears in the story of Rostam and Sohrab.

Hojir in the Shahnameh

He is castellan of Dez-e Sepid (White fortress) in the border of Iran and Turan. When Sohrab arrives at Dez-e Sepid, Hojir came out to fight him, but he was defeated by Sohrab, however Sohrab does not kill Hojir and instead takes him as a prisoner. Sohrab, wishing to recognize Rostam, his father, asks Hojir to introduce leaders of Iranian army to him, but when he asks about Rostam, Hojir does not reveal Rustam's identity, fearing that Sohrab may kill Rostam.

The castellan of Dez-e Sepid is not to be confused with Hojir the messenger. This later Hojir participated in a series of battles between Iran and Turan, with his most important role in the story of Davazdah Rokh (Twelve combats), where he kills Sepahram, a Turanian hero in a pitched battle.

Other resources

Beside Shahnameh, Hojir was also mentioned in other sources such as Momjalal-tawāriḵ, where he is the chief companion of Kay Khosrow.

His name is derived from Old Iranian *Hu-čiθra and it means "of good nature" or literally of good appearance. In Middle Persian texts, his name was mentioned as hu-čihr and then it developed into New Persian Hožir/Hojir, meaning "beautiful, fair". َIts cognate in Modern Persian is Hu-čehr (هوچهر) or beh-čehr (بهچهر). It sometimes incorrectly pronounced as "Hajir".

Sources

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Shahbazi. A. Shapur. HOJIR. ENCYCLOPÆDIA IRANICA. 6 March 2016.