Introduction

Carpet weaving is one of the most important handicrafts of the Qashqai people, and the carpets woven by the Qashqais are also called Qashqai rugs or carpets. In the beginning, Qashqai carpet weaving was done only for the personal use of the Qashqai nomads. But over time and with the increasing popularity of this carpet among other people, carpet weaving is considered as a profession and a source of income for Qashqai nomadic women. Today, in addition to Qashqai nomads, the production and weaving of Qashqai carpets is done by rural or sometimes urban people, while in the past, Qashqai carpet weavers were mainly nomadic women or girls. Due to the fact that Fars province is the main settlement center of the Qashqai tribe, Qashqai carpets are also known as Qashqai carpets of Fars or Qashqai carpets of Shiraz. Qashqai carpet can be considered one of the most famous and special Iranian handwoven carpets. One of the surprising and remarkable points about Qashqai carpets and rugs is that the weavers often used the mental method of weaving in carpet weaving. In simpler terms, it means that nomadic women used local and traditional designs and motifs in a more modified form (according to the interests and skills of each person) instead of using carpet maps to weave Qashqai carpets.