Fani was good to excellent in every field he wrote or spoke in.

According to Iran Book News Agency (IBNA), the memorial service for the late Kamran Fani, author, translator, and librarian, was held this morning, Tuesday (December 16th), at the Pen Hall of the National Library.

Seyed Abbas Salehi, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, said at the ceremony: “Individuals with different functions do not perform equally in all areas, but Kamran Fani was an author, researcher, editor, manager, encyclopedia supervisor, and editor, and his score was never average in any field. It takes a lot of energy for someone to get good grades in all functions, but Fani was outstanding in these fields. As an editor, a significant portion of his legacy remains in editing. In this very place where we are present, he worked as a librarian, and he even founded some areas in Persian library science.”

Salehi continued: “This distinction of being outstanding and not average in any field was his prominent feature, and we rarely find his equal in recent centuries and years. Fani’s works for entering various fields were not average, and in every field he wrote or spoke in, he was good to excellent, and this is highly valuable. His other important characteristic was his moral virtues, which were mentioned at the gathering. I hope his path remains glorious.”

Gholamali Haddad Adel, Head of the Persian Language Academy, said at the ceremony: “Fani was a servant of books. Everyone acknowledges his virtues. Fani was a librarian, a bibliographer, and above all, a book reader.”

Haddad Adel said: “He also participated in compiling the Encyclopedia of Shiism. Fani was indifferent to worldly possessions and was a prolific reader and soft-spoken, humble and modest. He spoke little and judiciously. He reminded me of the movie Fahrenheit 451, where following a government order to destroy books, each citizen decided to memorize one book. Fani read books as if they were about to disappear.”

The Head of the Persian Language and Literature Academy emphasized: “Three months ago, they called me and said that Fani’s relatives had hospitalized him in a nursing home in Karaj, and his condition was inappropriate. I immediately took action and, due to his physical condition, transferred him to Sina Hospital, but it was too late. Some people just like to create controversy.”

He added, stating that Fani was a pillar of modern librarianship in Iran: “His love for books reminds us of the concern we now have about the spread of new communication devices. Now everyone is busy with mobile phones, and social networks have taken away the opportunity for deep and detailed study.”

Ahmad Masjedjamei also referred to Fani’s generosity during the session and said: “Fani played a role in editing, compiling, and writing many books but had no interest in fame or recognition. That’s why his name is not mentioned in many books. During my ministry, I designed a literary award called ‘Servant of the Book,’ the idea for which came from Kamran Fani. Fani received his first literary award from ‘Servant of the Book.’ He truly was a servant of books.”

Masjedjamei added: “Fani was a living encyclopedia. He also played a role in writing many encyclopedias. He was very generous. If someone started a project that Fani was writing, Fani would allow the project to be registered under their name and would step aside.”

Gholamreza Amirkhan, Head of the National Archives and Library Organization, also said at the ceremony: “Even after retirement, Kamran Fani used to come to the National Library on Tuesdays and guide catalogers. Fani was always present at the National Library until 2018, but suddenly cut off contact with the outside world. In 2020, his contact was completely severed. I even went to his house once but was not successful in seeing him.”

Amirkhan said: “Fani had an undeniable role in cataloging and always guided librarians.”

For this ceremony, Masoud Pezeshkian, the President, also sent a message of condolence.