The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi

The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism

Race and the Politics of Dislocation

Columbia University Press | 2016

https://doi.org/10.7312/ziae17576

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About this book

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi revisits the Qajar-era intellectuals who founded modern Iranian nationalism, arguing that they advanced an ideology of "dislocative nationalism," in which pre-Islamic Iran is cast as a golden age, Islam is radicalized as an alien religion, and Arabs become implacable others. Tying Iran to Europe and the Aryan race, this ideology remains a politically potent form of identity.

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi revisits the work of Fath?ali Akhundzadeh and Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani, two Qajar-era intellectuals who founded modern Iranian nationalism. In their efforts to make sense of a difficult historical situation, these thinkers advanced an appealing ideology Zia-Ebrahimi calls "dislocative nationalism," in which pre-Islamic Iran is cast as a golden age, Islam is reinterpreted as an alien religion, and Arabs become 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.

Akhundzadeh and Kermani's nationalist reading of Iranian history has been drilled into the minds of Iranians since its adoption by the Pahlavi state in the early twentieth century. Spread through mass schooling, historical narratives, and official statements of support, their ideological perspective has come to define Iranian culture and domestic and foreign policy. Zia-Ebrahimi follows the development of dislocative nationalism through a range of cultural and historical materials, and he captures its incorporation of European ideas about Iranian history, the Aryan race, and a primordial nation. His work emphasizes the agency of Iranian intellectuals in translating European ideas for Iranian audiences, impressing Western conceptions of race onto Iranian identity.

Author information

Reza Zia-Ebrahimi is lecturer (assistant professor) in history at King's College London.

Reviews

An important work and should be read by anyone interested in modern Iranian studies.... Highly recommended.

Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University:
The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism brings to final and definitive fruition a body of critical thinking about the origin and rise of Iranian nationalism deeply rooted in the Eurocentric racism of the nineteenth century. Zia-Ebrahimi lasers in on the crucial instantiations of this powerful ethnocentric construction of the nation, carefully dissecting and critically dismantling them. This is a must read and an exemplary piece of scholarship declaring the rise of a new generation of scholars who are overriding the clichés and hang-ups of their parental generation.

John Breuilly, London School of Economics:
Zia-Ebrahimi persuasively argues that the texts of a few writers furnished the basis of a nationalist ideology asserting the Aryan essence of an ancient nation, an ideology taken up by Iran's Pahlavi rulers and still significant. His book is a substantial contribution to modern Iranian history and has relevance beyond the field of Iranian studies. Zia-Ebrahimi's argument is related to key debates in the field of nationalism studies and his methods can be illuminatingly applied to other cases.

Afshin Marashi, author of Nationalizing Iran: Culture, Power, and the State, 1870-1940:
The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism is a major contribution to the intellectual history of modern Iran. Reza Zia-Ebrahimi has brought into critical focus some of the most pious and intractable certainties that have long defined the ideology of Iranian nationalism. Both erudite and iconoclastic, this book is sure to stir much contentious debate.

Houchang Chehabi, Boston University:
The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism breaks new ground in the study of recent Iranian history. It reveals and analyzes the dirty little secret of Iranian nationalism, namely that it contains a racist dimension. It is not only a well-researched and well-written book, it is also a courageous book.

Frontmatter Free access PDF PDF	i
Contents Free access PDF PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	ix
Note on Transliteration and Spelling Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	xi
Introduction Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	1
1. The Paleontology of Iranian Nationalism Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	17
2. Akhundzadeh and Kermani: The Emergence of Dislocative Nationalism Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	41
3. Pre-Islamic Iran and Archaistic Frenzy Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	73
4. Of Lizard Eaters and Invasions: The Import of European Racial Thought Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	99
5. Europe, That Feared Yet Admired Idol Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	125
6. Aryanism and Dislocation Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	147
7. The Road to Officialdom Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	169
8. Triumph Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	201
Conclusion: The Failure of Dislocative Nationalism Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	215
Notes Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	223
Bibliography Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	263
Index Access restricted Content is available PDF PDF	279

The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism

Race and the Politics of Dislocation

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