Pahlevani and zoorkhaneh rituals

Koshti Pahlewani
The pahlevan Mustafa Tousi holding a pair of meels
Also known asKoŝtiye Pahlewāni
FocusWrestling
Country of originIran/Persia
Famous practitioners
Descendant arts
Official websitehttp://www.izsf.net/en/
MeaningHeroic wrestling
Pahlewani and Zurkhanei rituals
CountryIran
Reference00378
RegionAsia and the Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription2010 (4th session)
ListRepresentative
Pehlevanliq culture: traditional zorkhana games, sports and wrestling
CountryAzerbaijan
Reference01703
RegionEurope and North America
Inscription history
Inscription2022 (17th session)
ListRepresentative

Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is the name inscribed by UNESCO for Warzesh-e pahlavāni (Persian: آیین پهلوانی و زورخانه‌ای, "heroic sport") or Warzeŝe Bāstāni (ورزش باستانی; Warzeŝe Bāstānī, "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics and a form of martial arts originally used to train warriors in Iran (Persia) Outside Iran, zoorkhanehs can now also be found in Azerbaijan, and Afghanistan, and were introduced into Iraq in the mid-19th century by the Iranian immigrants, where they seem to have existed until the 1980s before disappearing. It combines martial arts, calisthenics, strength training and music. It contains elements of pre-Islamic and post-Islamic culture of Iran (particularly Zoroastrianism and Gnosticism) with the spirituality of Persian Shia Islam and Sufism. Practiced in a domed structure called the zurkhāneh, training sessions consist mainly of ritual gymnastic movements and climax with the core of combat practice, a style of folk wrestling called koshti pahlavāni.