diff --git a/app/backend/prisma/seed.ts b/app/backend/prisma/seed.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..669a9eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/backend/prisma/seed.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,468 @@
+// Seed Postgres with the legacy frontend's hardcoded content.
+// Source of truth is the existing browser module `teknav-data.js`; we import it
+// directly so this stays in lockstep until the admin UI replaces it as the
+// content origin (Phase 5).
+//
+// Idempotent: uses `upsert` keyed on natural identifiers (slug / email / name).
+
+import { PrismaClient } from '@prisma/client';
+import * as argon2 from '@node-rs/argon2';
+import { readFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+import { dirname, resolve } from 'node:path';
+// @ts-expect-error - plain JS module, no types
+import { TeknavData } from '../../teknav-data.js';
+
+const __dirname = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
+const credentials = JSON.parse(
+  await readFile(resolve(__dirname, 'credentials.json'), 'utf-8')
+) as { staff: Array<{ email: string; password: string; role: string; name: string; username?: string; resetPasswordOnSeed?: boolean }> };
+
+const prisma = new PrismaClient();
+
+const authorIdMap = new Map<string, string>();
+const categoryIdMap = new Map<string, string>();
+const tagIdMap = new Map<string, string>();
+const userIdByEmail = new Map<string, string>();
+
+// Legacy frontend stores roles as plain strings; the schema uses an enum.
+const ROLE_MAP: Record<string, 'admin' | 'editor' | 'writer' | 'reviewer' | 'reader'> = {
+  admin: 'admin',
+  editor: 'editor',
+  writer: 'writer',
+  reviewer: 'reviewer',
+};
+
+const STATUS_MAP: Record<string, 'active' | 'suspended' | 'pending'> = {
+  active: 'active',
+  inactive: 'suspended',
+};
+
+async function hash(password: string) {
+  return argon2.hash(password, {
+    algorithm: argon2.Algorithm.Argon2id,
+    memoryCost: 19 * 1024,
+    timeCost: 2,
+    parallelism: 1,
+  });
+}
+
+function usernameFromEmail(email: string) {
+  return email.split('@')[0]
+    .toLowerCase()
+    .replace(/[^a-z0-9_.]/g, '_')
+    .replace(/^[^a-z0-9_]+/, '')
+    .replace(/[^a-z0-9_]+$/, '')
+    .slice(0, 30);
+}
+
+function usernameFromText(text: string) {
+  return text
+    .toLowerCase()
+    .replace(/^@/, '')
+    .replace(/@.*$/, '')
+    .replace(/[^a-z0-9_.]/g, '_')
+    .replace(/^[^a-z0-9_]+/, '')
+    .replace(/[^a-z0-9_]+$/, '')
+    .slice(0, 30);
+}
+
+async function uniqueUsername(base: string, excludeUserId?: string) {
+  const cleanBase = base || 'user';
+  for (let i = 0; i < 50; i += 1) {
+    const suffix = i === 0 ? '' : `_${i}`;
+    const candidate = `${cleanBase.slice(0, 30 - suffix.length)}${suffix}`;
+    const taken = await prisma.user.findUnique({ where: { username: candidate } });
+    if (!taken || taken.id === excludeUserId) return candidate;
+  }
+  return `${cleanBase.slice(0, 23)}_${Date.now().toString(36)}`.slice(0, 30);
+}
+
+async function seedCategories() {
+  for (const c of TeknavData.categories) {
+    const row = await prisma.category.upsert({
+      where: { slug: c.slug },
+      update: {
+        name: c.name,
+        description: c.description,
+        color: c.color,
+        diagram: c.diagram ?? null,
+      },
+      create: {
+        slug: c.slug,
+        name: c.name,
+        description: c.description,
+        color: c.color,
+        diagram: c.diagram ?? null,
+      },
+    });
+    categoryIdMap.set(c.id, row.id);
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ categories: ${TeknavData.categories.length}`);
+}
+
+async function seedTags() {
+  for (const t of TeknavData.tags) {
+    const row = await prisma.tag.upsert({
+      where: { name: t.name },
+      update: { count: t.count ?? 0 },
+      create: { name: t.name, count: t.count ?? 0 },
+    });
+    tagIdMap.set(String(t.id), row.id);
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ tags: ${TeknavData.tags.length}`);
+}
+
+async function seedAuthors() {
+  const authorSlugAliases: Array<{ from: string; to: string }> = [
+    { from: 'arsam-sabbagh', to: 'sabbagh' },
+    { from: 'ahmadreza-mahjoub', to: 'mahjoob' },
+  ];
+  for (const alias of authorSlugAliases) {
+    const oldAuthor = await prisma.author.findUnique({ where: { slug: alias.from }, select: { id: true } });
+    const newAuthor = await prisma.author.findUnique({ where: { slug: alias.to }, select: { id: true } });
+    if (oldAuthor && !newAuthor) {
+      await prisma.author.update({ where: { id: oldAuthor.id }, data: { slug: alias.to } });
+    }
+  }
+
+  for (const a of TeknavData.authors) {
+    const row = await prisma.author.upsert({
+      where: { slug: a.slug },
+      update: {
+        name: a.name,
+        specialty: a.specialty,
+        bio: a.bio ?? '',
+        initials: a.initials ?? '',
+        color: a.color ?? '#0F6B73',
+        social: a.social ?? {},
+        articleCount: a.articleCount ?? 0,
+      },
+      create: {
+        slug: a.slug,
+        name: a.name,
+        specialty: a.specialty,
+        bio: a.bio ?? '',
+        initials: a.initials ?? '',
+        color: a.color ?? '#0F6B73',
+        social: a.social ?? {},
+        articleCount: a.articleCount ?? 0,
+      },
+    });
+    authorIdMap.set(a.id, row.id);
+  }
+
+  // Extra authors (none currently)
+  const extraAuthors: Array<{
+    slug: string; name: string; specialty: string; bio: string;
+    initials: string; color: string; verifiedExpert: boolean;
+    social: object; articleCount: number; userUsername: string | null;
+  }> = [];
+  for (const ea of extraAuthors) {
+    const linkedUser = ea.userUsername
+      ? await prisma.user.findUnique({ where: { username: ea.userUsername }, select: { id: true } })
+      : null;
+    await prisma.author.upsert({
+      where: { slug: ea.slug },
+      update: {
+        name: ea.name,
+        specialty: ea.specialty,
+        bio: ea.bio,
+        initials: ea.initials,
+        color: ea.color,
+        verifiedExpert: ea.verifiedExpert,
+        social: ea.social,
+        articleCount: ea.articleCount,
+        ...(linkedUser ? { userId: linkedUser.id } : {}),
+      },
+      create: {
+        slug: ea.slug,
+        name: ea.name,
+        specialty: ea.specialty,
+        bio: ea.bio,
+        initials: ea.initials,
+        color: ea.color,
+        verifiedExpert: ea.verifiedExpert,
+        social: ea.social,
+        articleCount: ea.articleCount,
+        userId: linkedUser?.id ?? null,
+      },
+    });
+  }
+
+  console.log(`  ✓ authors: ${TeknavData.authors.length + extraAuthors.length}`);
+}
+
+async function linkAuthorsToUsers() {
+  const authors = await prisma.author.findMany({ select: { id: true, name: true, userId: true } });
+  for (const author of authors) {
+    const linkedUser = await prisma.user.findFirst({
+      where: { name: author.name },
+      select: { id: true },
+    });
+    if (linkedUser && author.userId !== linkedUser.id) {
+      await prisma.author.update({
+        where: { id: author.id },
+        data: { userId: linkedUser.id },
+      });
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+async function seedStaffAccounts() {
+  // Initial staff accounts come from credentials.json. Plaintext passwords are
+  // hashed (Argon2id) before insert. Rotate via the admin panel before go-live.
+  for (const a of credentials.staff) {
+    const passwordHash = await hash(a.password);
+    const existing = await prisma.user.findUnique({ where: { email: a.email }, select: { id: true } });
+    const username = await uniqueUsername(a.username ?? usernameFromEmail(a.email), existing?.id);
+    const row = await prisma.user.upsert({
+      where: { email: a.email },
+      update: {
+        name: a.name,
+        role: ROLE_MAP[a.role] ?? 'reader',
+        username,
+        ...(a.resetPasswordOnSeed ? { passwordHash } : {}),
+        // Passwords are not overwritten on re-seed unless resetPasswordOnSeed
+        // is explicit. This lets new staff accounts replace old placeholder
+        // seed passwords while preserving manually rotated production accounts.
+      },
+      create: {
+        email: a.email,
+        passwordHash,
+        name: a.name,
+        role: ROLE_MAP[a.role] ?? 'reader',
+        username,
+        status: 'active',
+      },
+    });
+    userIdByEmail.set(a.email, row.id);
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ staff accounts: ${credentials.staff.length}`);
+}
+
+async function seedDirectoryUsers() {
+  // The legacy frontend's `users` list is a separate directory used by admin UI;
+  // seed each as an active reader/writer with a placeholder password the user
+  // must reset before logging in. Skip if a same-email account already exists.
+  for (const u of TeknavData.users) {
+    const existing = await prisma.user.findUnique({ where: { email: u.email } });
+    if (existing) {
+      if (!existing.username) {
+        await prisma.user.update({ where: { id: existing.id }, data: { username: await uniqueUsername(u.username ?? usernameFromEmail(u.email), existing.id) } });
+      }
+      userIdByEmail.set(u.email, existing.id);
+      continue;
+    }
+    const passwordHash = await hash(`reset-me-${u.email}`);
+    const username = await uniqueUsername(u.username ?? usernameFromEmail(u.email));
+    const row = await prisma.user.create({
+      data: {
+        email: u.email,
+        passwordHash,
+        name: u.name,
+        username,
+        role: ROLE_MAP[u.role] ?? 'reader',
+        status: STATUS_MAP[u.status] ?? 'active',
+      },
+    });
+    userIdByEmail.set(u.email, row.id);
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ directory users: ${TeknavData.users.length}`);
+}
+
+async function backfillUsernames() {
+  const users = await prisma.user.findMany({
+    where: { username: null },
+    select: { id: true, email: true, name: true },
+  });
+  for (const user of users) {
+    const base = user.email.includes('@teknav.local')
+      ? usernameFromText(user.name || user.id)
+      : usernameFromEmail(user.email);
+    await prisma.user.update({
+      where: { id: user.id },
+      data: { username: await uniqueUsername(base, user.id) },
+    });
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ username backfill: ${users.length}`);
+}
+
+// Convert Persian date `۱۴۰۳/۰۸/۲۸` → null (we already have dateEn = ISO).
+function persianDigitsToInt(s: string): string {
+  return s.replace(/[۰-۹]/g, (d) => String('۰۱۲۳۴۵۶۷۸۹'.indexOf(d)));
+}
+
+async function seedArticles() {
+  let created = 0;
+  for (const art of TeknavData.articles) {
+    const categoryId = categoryIdMap.get(art.category);
+    const authorId = authorIdMap.get(art.authorId);
+    if (!categoryId || !authorId) {
+      console.warn(`  · skipping ${art.slug}: missing category or author`);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const publishedAt = art.dateEn
+      ? new Date(art.dateEn)
+      : art.date
+      ? new Date(persianDigitsToInt(art.date).replace(/\//g, '-'))
+      : null;
+    const status = ['rust-systems', 'venture-capital-ai'].includes(art.slug)
+      ? 'پیش‌نویس'
+      : 'منتشرشده';
+
+    const data = {
+      slug: art.slug,
+      title: art.title,
+      subtitle: art.subtitle ?? null,
+      summary: art.summary ?? '',
+      content: art.content ?? '',
+      type: art.type ?? 'تحلیل عمیق',
+      status,
+      readTime: art.readTime ?? 5,
+      views: art.views ?? 0,
+      reactions: art.reactions ?? 0,
+      featured: !!art.featured,
+      diagram: art.diagram ?? null,
+      metaDescription: art.metaDescription ?? null,
+      keywords: Array.isArray(art.keywords) ? art.keywords : [],
+      ogTitle: art.ogTitle ?? null,
+      ogDescription: art.ogDescription ?? null,
+      ogImage: art.ogImage ?? null,
+      canonicalPath: art.canonicalPath ?? `/article/${art.slug}`,
+      dateModified: art.dateModified ? new Date(art.dateModified) : publishedAt,
+      factCheckedAt: art.factCheckedAt ? new Date(art.factCheckedAt) : publishedAt,
+      sourceNotes: art.sourceNotes ?? null,
+      contentFreshnessStatus: art.contentFreshnessStatus ?? 'current',
+      categoryId,
+      authorId,
+      publishedAt,
+    };
+
+    const row = await prisma.article.upsert({
+      where: { slug: art.slug },
+      update: data,
+      create: data,
+    });
+
+    // Wire tags by name (idempotent: delete + re-link is safest on re-seed).
+    if (Array.isArray(art.tags) && art.tags.length) {
+      await prisma.articleTag.deleteMany({ where: { articleId: row.id } });
+      for (const tagName of art.tags) {
+        const tag = await prisma.tag.upsert({
+          where: { name: tagName },
+          update: {},
+          create: { name: tagName },
+        });
+        await prisma.articleTag.create({
+          data: { articleId: row.id, tagId: tag.id },
+        });
+      }
+    }
+    created++;
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ articles: ${created}`);
+}
+
+async function seedActivity() {
+  // Idempotent: wipe seed-origin entries (those without a userId) before reinserting.
+  // Real user-driven activity (with userId) is preserved across re-seeds.
+  await prisma.activityLog.deleteMany({ where: { userId: null } });
+  const entries = TeknavData.activityLog ?? [];
+  if (entries.length) {
+    await prisma.activityLog.createMany({
+      data: entries.map((a: any) => ({
+        action: a.action ?? '',
+        target: a.target ?? '',
+        type: a.type ?? 'system',
+      })),
+    });
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ activity entries: ${entries.length}`);
+}
+
+async function seedSeries() {
+  const seriesList = [
+    {
+      slug: 'openclaw-series',
+      title: 'سری OpenClaw: از معماری تا امنیت',
+      description: 'بررسی جامع OpenClaw — از معماری سلف‌هاستد تا امنیت، ژئوپلیتیک، و اقتصاد هاستینگ عامل',
+      articleSlugs: [
+        'openclaw-self-hosted-architecture',
+        'openclaw-docker-vps-guide',
+        'openclaw-china-geopolitical-split',
+        'openclaw-prompt-injection-defense',
+        'microsoft-execution-containers-mxc',
+        'clawhosters-agent-hosting-economy',
+      ],
+    },
+    {
+      slug: 'ai-science-series',
+      title: 'سری کشف علمی با هوش مصنوعی',
+      description: 'از ابطال حدس اردوش تا بازنگری در روش‌شناسی علمی — سه مقاله درباره نقش هوش مصنوعی در پیشرفت ریاضیات',
+      articleSlugs: [
+        'erdos-unit-distance-conjecture-disproved',
+        'ai-scientific-discovery-sociology',
+        'human-ai-symbiosis-mathematical-proof',
+      ],
+    },
+  ];
+
+  for (const s of seriesList) {
+    const series = await prisma.articleSeries.upsert({
+      where: { slug: s.slug },
+      update: { title: s.title, description: s.description ?? '' },
+      create: { slug: s.slug, title: s.title, description: s.description ?? '' },
+    });
+    for (let i = 0; i < s.articleSlugs.length; i++) {
+      const article = await prisma.article.findFirst({ where: { slug: s.articleSlugs[i] }, select: { id: true } });
+      if (!article) { console.warn(`  · series: article not found: ${s.articleSlugs[i]}`); continue; }
+      await prisma.seriesArticle.upsert({
+        where: { seriesId_articleId: { seriesId: series.id, articleId: article.id } },
+        update: { position: i + 1 },
+        create: { seriesId: series.id, articleId: article.id, position: i + 1 },
+      });
+    }
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ series: ${seriesList.length}`);
+}
+
+async function refreshAggregates() {
+  // Keep articleCount on Author/Category in sync with reality (the legacy seed
+  // had hand-rolled values; from now on the API maintains these on writes).
+  const authors = await prisma.author.findMany({ include: { _count: { select: { articles: true } } } });
+  for (const a of authors) {
+    await prisma.author.update({ where: { id: a.id }, data: { articleCount: a._count.articles } });
+  }
+  const cats = await prisma.category.findMany({ include: { _count: { select: { articles: true } } } });
+  for (const c of cats) {
+    await prisma.category.update({ where: { id: c.id }, data: { articleCount: c._count.articles } });
+  }
+  console.log(`  ✓ aggregates refreshed`);
+}
+
+async function main() {
+  console.log('seeding teknav…');
+  await seedCategories();
+  await seedTags();
+  await seedAuthors();
+  await seedStaffAccounts();
+  await seedDirectoryUsers();
+  await backfillUsernames();
+  await linkAuthorsToUsers();
+  await seedArticles();
+  await seedSeries();
+  await seedActivity();
+  await refreshAggregates();
+  console.log('done.');
+}
+
+main()
+  .catch((e) => {
+    console.error(e);
+    process.exit(1);
+  })
+  .finally(async () => {
+    await prisma.$disconnect();
+  });