The composition of Persian poetry based on the repeated metrical foot Fāʿelāto is a relatively recent phenomenon dating only to the twentieth century. Neither the poetry of earlier Persian poets contains verses constructed through the repetition of Fāʿelāto, nor did the classical authorities on Persian prosody recognize a baḥr (metre) consisting exclusively of repeated Fāʿelāto feet. Consequently, this homogeneous (mottafeq al-arkān) metre remained unidentified and virtually overlooked throughout the history of Persian poetry until it attracted the attention of contemporary poets and was subsequently described, analyzed, and theoretically explained by modern scholars of Persian prosody. Using a descriptive-analytical methodology, this study examines the historical background of the Fāʿelāto metre in Persian poetry and addresses two principal questions: What is the prosodic significance and status of the Fāʿelāto metre within the Persian metrical tradition, and which metrical patterns derived from this foot have been employed by contemporary Persian poets?
The findings suggest that the earliest poem composed entirely on the repetition of Fāʿelāto is “Tarāneh” (Song) by Houshang Ebtehaj (Sayeh), first published in September 1954. The publication of this poem marked the emergence of the Fāʿelāto metre as a recognized prosodic pattern and drew the attention of both poets and prosodists. Since then, poems have been composed in more than ten metrical patterns derived from this metre. Among contemporary Persian poets, Simin Behbahani and Hossein Monzavi have made the most extensive and creative use of metres based on Fāʿelāto.