This study examines Afghan historians’ narratives of Ancient Iran through Karl Mannheim’s sociology of knowledge and Quentin Skinner’s hermeneutic methodology. Drawing on Mannheim, it argues that historical interpretations are shaped by social location and intellectual context; thus, Afghan historiography reflects not only historical evidence but also the social, religious, and cultural positions of its authors. Mannheim’s concept of “perspective” highlights how historical understanding emerges from specific socio-historical conditions and inherited structures of thought.

The study identifies three major interpretive currents in Afghan narratives of Ancient Iran: a critical-nationalist perspective that situates Ancient Iran within Afghanistan as an independent civilizational center; a pessimistic perspective that frames history as a struggle between faith and unbelief, emphasizing religious and political conflicts; and a sympathetic perspective that views Afghanistan as an active and influential cultural center in antiquity. These approaches assign different meanings and emphases to political and civilizational developments depending on historians’ social and ideological contexts.

Using Skinner’s focus on authorial intention and speech acts, the study treats these texts not as neutral accounts but as interventions addressing specific intellectual and political concerns. By analyzing evaluative language and conceptual usage, it reconstructs the relationship between text, intention, and context. The combined theoretical and methodological framework enables a critical and multidimensional understanding of representations of Ancient Iran in Afghan historiography.