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Iranian Culture and Politics Lecture Series
Iran: the New Identities of a Republic. Wednesday 10 April 2003, 5 pm; 304 Stephens Hall
The Islamic Revolution of Iran happened 25 years ago. 70% of the present population was born after this major event in the history of Middle East: the first post-Soviet revolution. In the 20th century, Iran has been a laboratory, a land of political and social experimentations. A deep revolution has occurred in Iran, and this old country can no longer be seen and analysed with former conceptual frameworks. Behind the splendour of the vivid Persian heritage, Iran is a new country. We have to learn from the new identities of the Republic of Iran.

The sons - and daughters - of Khomeyni are basically different of their fathers: women and the younger generation in general have become new political factions; the land of Iran, with its ethnic diversity, has new dynamics strengthening the political unity of the country; and with 15 neighbouring countries, as well as the international community, the Iranian state has independence as its main political priority. Political Islam was born - and perhaps failed - in Iran, but Islam is finding its way in both internal and international life. The Iranian society is highly educated and wants to share their international culture and technologies. Nationalism, Islam and science are the three pillars of this new Iran.

Democracy is scarce in the Middle East, but Iran is, in fact, a Republic. It is not only a political regime, presently controlled by the clerics (with numerous failures and very controversial attitudes), but a global system that the people of Iran have made themselves. A model that can be compared with new political regimes brought or supported from abroad.

Nationalism and Cultural Diversity in Iran: Heritage and Contemporary Dynamics. Wednesday 23 April 2003, 12.00 - 1.30 pm, Barrows Hall
Iran is one of the oldest States, or more precisely, of the oldest Empire in the world, uniting with several people and cultures in a single political body. Reza Shah in the beginning of the 20th century abandoned the Empire to build a centralized State, and imposed his law on all the provinces, tribes, languages and cultures. This nationalism, built on the 19th century European model, was not a complete success. The fear that surrounding trans-border populations would become independent became a strong reality which still remains, but which is no longer accurate. After some decades of struggle between Tehran and the provinces, a new geo-cultural system is in the making since the Islamic revolution, and in spite of religious authorities.

As a mater of fact, Iran was, and is, both united and diverse. The native Persian speaking population is less than 50%, but Persian literature is the common heritage of all Iranians even if they speak Turkish or Kurdish or Baluchi.

The Iraq-Iran war and the dramas of the Islamic Revolution have shown that Iranian nationalism is stronger than political opposition or international Islamic policy. The implosion of the USSR has shown how far the Iranian "cousins" of the North were. Above all, the internal political and cultural evolution of the country, shown in 1997 by the election of Mohammad Khatami, but also by numerous cultural and demographic changes, has given new dynamics to ethnical identities. Education and the knowledge of international culture and technologies are new major elements of the Iranian popular culture.

The ethnic and cultural question is no longer about political independence, but having full participation in the nation-wide debate, policy, culture, and income from oil. The active participation of surrounding non-Persian provinces in national polls has clearly shown this new dynamics between cultural diversity and nationalism in Iran.

The lecture will be illustrated with maps from the Atlas of Iran (1998)
Co-sponsored by the France-Berkeley Fund and the Department of Near Eastern Studies