Iranian Political Culture: a brief overview Legitimacy of the State Characteristics of Iranian Political Culture

Historical Roots of the Modern State  Persians and Greeks were two of the strongest civilizations from 6 th century BC to 200 AD Both Greeks and Persians conquered by Macedonians Alexander the Great admired the Greek culture and spread it to areas he conquered After, Persian sovereigns were hereditary military leaders  The Importance of Shiism Little political unity during 7 th to 16 th centuries in modern-day Iran Region suffered invasions and Arabs brought Islam to area Religion became the glue that held area together Even when Mongols invaded in 13 th century, Islam remained rooted in region’s culture Shiism was established as the state’s religion in the 16 th century by Ismail, the founder of the Safavid Empire

Legitimacy in the Modern State  Authoritative rulers have continued to play a prominent role in Iranian history Pahlavi shahs ruled from  Attempts at secularization were defeated when Shah fled from power in 1979 The Revolution of 1979 anchored Iran in Shiite principles The Constitution of 1979 legitimizes the state  Preamble reflects importance of religion and legitimacy: Faith, God, Divine Justice, Koran, Prophet Muhammad are all mentioned

Conflicting Ideas in the Modern State  Conflicting Ideas: sovereignty of the people and clerical rule have created a crisis of legitimacy  Reformers came to the forefront during Khatami’s presidency ( )  Reforms ended when conservative Ahmadinejab elected in 2005  Today- even in a theocracy reformers and conservatives debate for power and influence  Iran: a Dream of Democracy Iran: a Dream of Democracy

Political Culture: Multi-faceted w/ complex history  Authoritarianism, but not Totalitarianism: Even with Safavid Empire, not all facets of people’s lives controlled People paid attention to local leaders  Union of Political and Religious Authority Religious and political leaders were often the same, even in Persian times Religion and politics were separated for a time, but brought back together in 1979

Political Culture Cont’  Shiism and Sharia as Central Components: 90% of all Iranians identify themselves as Shiite Sharia law (Islamic Law) is important in that it emphasizes legitimacy of government  Escape from European Colonization: Iran, although influenced by foreign powers, has never been colonized by them  Geographic Limitations: Much of Iranian land space is unusable for agriculture Vast desert plain and mountains to the north and northeast Lack of usable land led early Persians to seek better lands thru expansion and conquest Population of Iran is unevenly distributed today, most live in cities and in the northwest

Denser population in northwest

Political Culture Cont’  The Influence of Ancient Persia: Differences between Iran and its neighbors go beyond religion Persian heritage and culture still remain in tact  Strong Sense of Iranian Nationalism: Strong Sense of Iranian Nationalism Public opinion polls show Iran with a stronger sense of nationalism, as opposed to its Arab neighbors People tend to identify themselves as Persians first, and Muslims second