Objective: European travelogues of Safavid Iran can be regarded not only as historical and ethnographic sources but also as communicative texts formed within the context of encounter between two cultures, which contributed to the construction of the image of Iran and Iranians in the European audience's mind. The present study aims to investigate the mechanisms of intercultural communication and the modes of representing the "Iranian Other" in Adam Olearius's travelogue. The primary research question is: How did Olearius observe, interpret, and represent the cultural and social elements of Safavid Iranian society during his encounter, and what role did this process play in shaping the image of Iran for the European audience?
Method:This study employs a qualitative approach using thematic analysis. The travelogue data were examined across categories including verbal and nonverbal communication, language and etiquette, education, religious rituals, daily life, women and religious minorities, social and class relations, the bazaar and trade, and the representation of self/other. The theoretical framework draws upon intercultural communication theories and the conception of culture as a communicative process; furthermore, the concept of self/other and certain considerations from Orientalist critique were employed for a critical analysis of the modes of representing Iran.
Results: The findings indicate that Olearius's travelogue is the product of a multilayered process of intercultural communication. The author's direct contact with Iranian society-his familiarity with the language, etiquette, rituals, clothing, education, and social relations-enabled the transmission of a broad body of cultural information to the European audience. Nevertheless, the selection and interpretation of this information were influenced by the author's political and commercial position, European cultural presuppositions, and the divergent semantic systems of the two societies. The differentiation of three levels-"observation," "interpretation," and "judgment"-demonstrates that the travelogue's accounts are not epistemically equivalent, and that a portion of the image presented of Iran was constructed through processes of cultural interpretation and judgment. Moreover, the prominence accorded to topics such as silk, the bazaar, and commercial relations indicates that the delegation's economic mission influenced the selection and prioritization of information.
Conclusions:The results of this study demonstrate that Olearius's travelogue can be regarded not merely as a document for understanding Safavid Iranian culture, but also as a historical medium for the transmission, selection, and reconstruction of meaning between two cultures, and for the formation of the image of the "Iranian Other" within the communicative sphere of seventeenth-century Europe.