The epithet is used to explain and designate the praised one. Yet it may also sometimes be used in various other ways, i.e. for eulogy, blame, mercy, generalization, ambiguity, statement of details, exhortation of truth, discussion of nature, discovery, and emphasis. This research has attempted to survey the virtual and rhetorical purposes of epithet on the basis of valid syntactic and rhetorical sources.

In English rhetoric, the epithet is when they use the characteristics of something or someone with its name or instead of its name. This definition is identical to "irony of the adjective" or "irony of the noun" in the Persian rhetoric. Studies show that some research has been done in this area and they have introduced epithet with greater development and have failed to provide brilliant examples of the use of this artistic tool. epithet can be an artistic use of the adjective which makes the word more "literary". However, in the English rhetoric, epithet is more commonly found in epic texts, but research shows that in texts that value "rhetoric" and, more generally, "poetry", epithet emerges on a broader level. In the present study, Masnavi by Nizami (Haft Peykar), which is full of epic elements, is investigated and analyzed from the point of view of applying epithet and this question has been answered: What are the functions of epithet in “Haft Peykar” by Nizami? The results show that Nizami has made the most of epithet to create all sorts of ambiguities, paradoxes, descriptions, characterization and some other exquisite literary arrays. It seems that to find a variety of rhetorical arts, consideration of epithet in his works, especially “Haft Peykar”, is essential.

epithet is a literary technique used in poetry and prose to express artistic meanings and concepts and to express emotions and feelings. Hedayat is one of the authors and founders of modern Persian fiction who has used this literary technique in his works, especially Blind Owl. In this article, this technique has been studied in a descriptive-analytical way, in order to show one of the beauties of this work, to determine its artistic ability and the beautiful taste of its author. The results show that most of the epithet used in Blind Owl are compound and simple, epithet which are in the form of similes, metaphors, ironies, personification, bombast, and conglobatio, and the highest frequency belongs to the personification epithet and the lowest belongs to metaphor.

epithet is an adjective or adjective substitute that is often used in epic poetry to highlight the characteristics and special abilities of heroes by depicting their feelings and states in different scenes. Details such as origin, appearance, skill, lineage, position and ability of the characters in the story are provided through epithet. These details help us to deepen the meaning and significance of the events and the formation of the characters' identities. In the present study, with a more precise definition of this term and through Khanghani’s odes, we have reached this conclusion that epithet can be used in other fictional texts (lyrical, mystical, etc.) and non-fiction. Contrary to some observations, an epithet should have an "artistic" function, and its role should be prominent in poetic creations and introducing the characteristics of the hero of fiction and non-fiction texts. In Khaghani's poems, epithet has been used to create metaphor, simile, repetition, irony, allusion, ambiguity, exaggeration, harmony, paradox, personification, syllogism and pun. The most frequent of these literary techniques is in "metaphor". In most of Khaghani's mixed metaphors, the epithet is used and it is most frequently employed in the form of descriptive compounds than "adjective substitute". Undoubtedly, one sign of diversity and genius in Khaghani lies in his use of epithets.

Single epithet is a type of epithets which follows its own description in case of the expression, ‘ known’ and ‘ unknown’ , gender, and number. It is used for different ‘ purposes’ including ‘ allocation’ , ‘ clarification’ , praise, admiration, blame and criticism, emphasis, ambiguity, ‘ detail’ , ‘ extension’ , and pity. This research investigates the single epithet along with its purposes and justifications in the letters of Amir al-Mu’ minin Ali (pbuh) in the Nahj al-Balagha, using the descriptive analysis method. The findings of the research show that the two justifications of ‘ allocation’ (i. e. the restriction of shared circle of the ‘ unknown’ ) and ‘ clarification’ (i. e. the removal of the ‘ known’ possibilities) have high frequency in the letters of the Nahj al-Balagha. Also the ‘ purpose’ of praise and admiration is first addressed to God Almighty. After the essence of Almighty, it is addressed to the Holy Prophet, the Family of Prophet, and the Righteous, respectively. Moreover, the adjectives of blame and criticism are addressed to Satan and ‘ Passion’ and the ‘ purposes’ of emphasis and ambiguity are seen in the Imam’ s speech with less function.

One of the common stylistic features in the Iliad and Odyssey by Homer and Shahnameh by Ferdowsi is the use of epithet. By presenting details about characters, objects and the places in a story, epithets create a powerful descriptive structure in order to develop the character and images in the story. The epithets along with the person’s name form a formula, which fills a part of a verse and play an important role in the poem’s rhythm. Thus, it can be said that epithets help the poet in the description, narration and the music of the poem and help the reader or audience to better understand the story. The present study attempts to define the epithets and mention numerous examples, so as to show the effect of using them in developing the characters, image and the rhythm in Iliad and Odyssey and Shahnameh.

By comparing the linguistic structure of epithets in Shahname with the same structures in literary works of classical Western epic tradition, many similarities can be achieved, all of which indicate a common cultural and linguistic tradition among Indo-European peoples based upon similar functions in semiotics. One of the most important features of Shahname, which is comparable linguistically to classical epos, is the epic formulas. These elements are often accompanied by repetition and emphasis and appear frequently in order to form the epic effect. The history of epic formulas in classical Western literature dates back to Homer; the linguistic functions of epic formulas also play an important role in Ferdowsi's Shahname, but their prevalence differs from that of Homer and Virgil in terms of the prosodic structure and literary traditions prevalent in Persian epics. One of the common ways to use the epic formulas is inserting epithets as the titles and attributes that come after the names of the heroes; in these structures with the aid of repetition, the writer increase the effect of speech on the audience. In the present article, we have tried to measure the linguistic effects of the application of epic formulas in Western literature compared to Ferdowsi's masterpiece as the supreme model of Persian epic. In our interdisciplinary approach we aimed to analyse the various functionalities of these structures particularly from the perspective of discourse analysis.

Type and modality of ‘description’ has always had significance and special manifestation in the poetry of different periods of Persian Literature, so that study and analysis of descriptions is highly instrumental in stylistic trends of literary works. In contemporary poetry also analysis of descriptions in many cases demonstrates norm-breaking and innovative approaches of poets, in consequence of their regarding affairs from a novel viewpoint.Due to significance of descriptions and their sublime position in literary works it is necessary to investigate these works in this regard. The present study firstly seeks to investigate types of description in Forough Farrokhzad’s poetry on the basis of some definitions in Arabic language and literature, and also the tropes the poet has practiced in this regard such as simile and personification as the most frequent ones. Secondly, epithets are analyzed in terms of grammatical concerns. These epithets are categorized according to Dr. Ali-mohamad Haghshenas’ Persian grammar and treatment of each epithet considering their grammatical structures is examined statistically.

Hiding the name or revealing it is one the prominent themes in epic literature. The aim of present research is studying the concept of "name" and revealing or hiding it in Shānāmeh, heroic poems and tūmārhā-ye naqqālī (notebooks of storytelling). By using library and content analysis methods, these works have been examined. The results show that in confronting enemy the heroes choose one of these three methods: in 25 cases, the heroes reveal frankly their own name.  In 5 cases, they confront their enemies with a forged name, and only in one case they refer to their epithet and honorific title. Apparently, these methods are in contradictory but not so if examined carefully. All three methods have a mythic and ritual origin revealing the role of name in the beliefs of ancient Iranians. In the past, some people believed that name is an important part of man's being and if his name is revealed to his enemies, he will be spellbound and defeated. So, in confronting the enemy, the heroes tried to hide their name or used a forged one. But, some other heroes believed that if the enemy utters their name that will enforce and excite the enemy to attack, so the heroes pre-empt and shout their own names and the enemy will be intimidated. The third aspect is that epithet is not a living part of the hero’s existence. So while refraining from revealing the name they could refer to their epithet facing the enemy.