Hafiz-i Abru
Hafiz-e Abru was a Persian historian working at the courts of Timurid rulers of Central Asia. His full name is
ʿAbdallah ibn Lotf-Allah ibn 'Abd-al-Rashid Behdadini; his short name is also transcribed in Western literature as Hafiz-i Abru, Hafez-e Abru, Hafiz Abru etc.
. Like the Il-Khanids, the Timurids were concerned with legitimizing their right to rule, and Hafiz-i Abru's “A Collection of Histories” covers a period that included the time of Shah Rukh himself.
Hafiz-i Abru was born in Khorasan and studied in Hamadān. He entered Timur's court in the 1380s; after the death of Timur, Hafiz-i Abru continued in the service of Timur's son, Shah Rukh, in Herat. He interacted with other scholars congregating around Timur's and Shah Rukh's courts, and became recognized as a good chess player.
Hafiz-i Abru is the author and/or compiler of numerous works on the history and geography of the Timurid state and adjacent regions, commissioned by his master Shah Rukh.
