The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism: Race and the Politics of Dislocation

[Jacques de Imbelloni]

May 28, 2019

Speaker: Reza Zia-Ebrahimi

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi discusses the origins of racial forms of Iranian nationalism by revisiting the work of Fath’ali Akhundzadeh and Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani, two Qajar-era intellectuals. In their efforts to make sense of Iran's shortcomings in the nineteenth century, these thinkers advanced an ideology Zia-Ebrahimi terms as "dislocative nationalism," in which pre-Islamic Iran is cast as a golden age, Islam is reinterpreted as an alien religion, and Arabs are represented as implacable others. Dislodging Iran from its empirical reality and tying it to Europe and the Aryan race, this ideology remains the most politically potent form of identity in Iran. Zia-Ebrahimi highlights Akhundzadeh and Kermani's nationalist reading of Iranian history that has been drilled into the minds of Iranians since its adoption by the Pahlavi state in the early twentieth century. Reza Zia-Ebrahimi is Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in History at King’s College London. He was born in Iran and grew up in Switzerland before being naturalized a Londoner. He completed his doctorate at the University of Oxford (St. Antony’s College) in what is still nostalgically called ‘Oriental Studies’. His research lies at the intersection of modern world history and ethnic studies, and he has widely published on Iranian articulations of nationalism. He currently works on a diachronic history of modern antisemitism and Islamophobia in Western Europe, with particular focus on the interlinkages between conspiracy theories and ideas of race.

[Dr_Maul]

Interesting why for some reason Azeris/Turks seem to be into this Aryanism
Starting with Akhundzadeh up to the modern day Jason Jorjani
Overall, I find it to be misguided with some minor relevant points which can be integrated

[sean]

Iranian nationalism is tied with ancient Iranian history/culture. Iranian nationalists think of Islam as invading foreign religion that should be uprooted from modern Iran. However, their leadership is all Persian. Iranian nationalism is a myth to keep the Baluchs and Kurds in line.

Ever since the Safavids, they have had a problem with Turkic people exploiting them and creating the illusion of Shi'ite identity being more important than Persian nationalism (Khamenei is half Azeri, Khomeini's paternal family is mixed with Shia Muslims of Indian origin).

Persian nationalism and the cult of ancient Iran is domestically their biggest enemy. They always make a big deal about how friendly the Pahlavis were to the Axis and that the Shah let SUMKA (the Iranian neo-Nazi party) flourish. Ahmed Kasravi was stabbed by Shi'ite radicals in broad daylight for promoting Persian nationalism.

Reza Shah took his cue from the nationalist ideological currents sweeping Europe and Turkey, where colonial scholarship had long equated language with ethnicity as part of the efforts to understand the success of certain nation-states as compared to others.

Aryanism was one of the most influential of these ideologies, and it identified the Indo-European language tree (which includes Sanskrit, Persian, and most European languages) as proof of a migration of an imagined Aryan nation out of India, through Persia, and into Europe.

The current Iranian government is basically Leninist with a few more turbans. The Supreme Leader is like a wannabe Shi'ite pope who is elected by a college of cardinals (mullahs) and all clerics are expected to abide by what he deems the essential rulings for the sake of unity. People are allowed to follow other clergy who differ from the Leader only in what the Leader says they can. So clergy who support the traditonal Shi'ite separation of clergy and state are repressed.

[Radimir]

The Arabs clapped Persia's cheeks so hard, they haven't recovered yet. Haha brutal.

[Tooting Carmen]

(Secular) Iranian nationalism has a heavily OWD streak to it - we are not Arabs, our true natives are fair-skinned, Islam was a foreign imposition etc etc.

[Jacques de Imbelloni]

(Secular) Iranian nationalism has a heavily OWD streak to it - we are not Arabs, our true natives are fair-skinned, Islam was a foreign imposition etc etc.

Pre revolution nationalism, I wonder if the persian californian diaspora hold this wievs?

[Tooting Carmen]

Pre revolution nationalism, I wonder if the persian californian diaspora hold this wievs?

Under the Shah? To a large extent, yes. And even today, Iranians (many if not most of whom actually hate the Islamic regime) are known to be rivalled only by the Lebanese in being the most White/Western-worshipping Middle Easterners. (Not that I think their appalling theocratic regime is in any way justifiable; just that a lot of Iranians seem to want to replace one extreme with another).

[Babak]

Pre revolution nationalism, I wonder if the persian californian diaspora hold this wievs?

I dont count california persians as persians and none of their views matter.

Iranian nationalism is retarded.

[Teutone]

I dont count california persians as persians and none of their views matter.

Iranian nationalism is retarded.

1) They seem to be degenerated to the maximum. Generally muslim Americans have no namus.

2) Why you think its retarded?

Your nation,history,people are incredible.

[StonyArabia]

I dont count california persians as persians and none of their views matter.

They are mostly Persian Jews from what I know.