Tārīkh-e Bayhaqī is a history of the Ghaznavids Empire written by Abul-Fazl Bayhaqi in Persian

Persian language

Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...

 in the 11th century CE.

The work is believed to have consisted of thirty books, of which only six books remain.

The main topic of the remaining books is the reign of Mas'ud I

Mas'ud I of Ghazni

Mas'ud I seized the throne of the Ghaznavid Empire upon the death of his father Mahmud from his younger twin Mohammad who had been nominated as the heir upon the death of their father Mahmud of Ghazni. His twin was blinded and imprisoned...

. In addition to reporting political events, Tarikh-e Bayhaqi reports on geographical places and on the history of the Persian literature by mentioning notable writers and poets of the time. It is also well known for its rich use of language.

Modern era

K. Allin Luther compared the epistomology of Bayhaqi's "History" to later Seljuq historians and advices a rhetorical approach to the Tarikh-i Bayhaqi. Marilyn Waldman also recommends a rhetorical approach through speech act theory, yet does not give a comprehensive break down of the text. Julie Scott Meisami also points to the analytical nature of the "History" and places Bayhaqi among the historians of the Islamic renaissance.