Transcript Iran: What`s in a Name?

Iran: What’s in a Name?
 Historically known as Persia until 1935,
when Reza Shah Pahlavi asked for the
country to be called by its native name
 Iran means “Land of the Aryans”
 Persia derived from ancient Greek name
for Iran, Persis
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Name comes from a region in southern
Iran called Pars
Location
 Asia: The Middle East
 North: former Soviet Republics
 South: Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman
 East: Afghanistan, Pakistan
 West: Turkey, Iraq
 Major Cities: Tehran, Tabriz, Mashhad,
Esfahan, Shiraz
Map: The Persian Cat
Shahyad Square, Tehran
Early History
 6,000 years of civilization and 2,500 years of
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written history.
1,400 years of post-Islamic history since the Arab
conquest in 7th century AD: religious and
national subordination and never-ending
conflict.
Median Dynasty (728-550 BC): created first
Iranian Empire
Safavid Dynasty (1502-1736): conversion of
population towards Shi’ism
Qajar Dynasty (1781-1925): constitutional
dynasty; British and Russian spheres of influence
Pahlavi Dynasty (1925-1979)
 Ruled Iran from the crowning
of Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1925
to the overthrow of Reza
Shah Pahlavi's son
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in
the Iranian Revolution of
1979.
 By the mid-1930s Reza Shah's
dictatorial style of rule
caused dissatisfaction
among some groups
 Dynasty collapsed following
widespread uprisings in 1978
and 1979.
 Its collapse marks a break in
the ancient tradition of
Iranian monarchy.
Islamic Revolution (1979)
 Transformed Iran from a monarchy under Pahlavi
dynasty to an Islamic republic under Ayatollah
Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the revolution and
founder of the Islamic Republic.
 It has been called the third great revolution in history
 Helped make Islamic fundamentalism a political
force
 Constitution based on rule by Islamic jurists
 Khomeini—Supreme leader (lifetime appointment)
 President—Head of the Government
 Cabinet
 Supreme Court
 Legislation
1980s—strained time with US
 52 U.S. diplomats held hostage by group of Iranian terrorists
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who took over American embassy in support of the Islamic
revolution.
444 day hostage crisis ended in 1981
The incident was seen by many as a blow against U.S.
influence in Iran and its support of the recently fallen Shah
of Iran, Pahlavi, who had recently been allowed into the
United States for cancer treatment.
In Iran, the crisis is thought to have strengthened the
political hold of radical anti-American forces who
supported the hostage taking.
The crisis also marked the beginning of American legal
action, or sanctions, that weakened economic ties
between Iran and America.
Iranian Demographics
 Population—nearly 70
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million
Life expectancy at
birth—69 years
Birth rate—17 per 1,000
persons
Death rate—6 per 1,000
persons
Literacy rate—72%
0-14 yrs
15-29 yrs
30-50 yrs
60+ yrs
Ethnicity and Religion
 Although there are
various sub-groups, the
majority of Iranians
would say their religion
is Islam.
 The largest ethnic
group in Iran is
Persians, followed by
Azeris.
Persians
Azeris
Kurds
Arabs
Other
Shi'a
Muslim
(Islam)
Sunni
Muslim
(Islam)
Other
Economy
 Mixed System:
 Large and dominating public sector
 Small private sector
 Multinational corporations
 Structure:
 Agriculture 24%
 Industry 28%
 Services 48%
 Major Exports: petroleum, carpets, nuts
 Major Imports: capital goods, food items
 Unemployment rate: 16% and rising
A Youth Powered Society
 Youth Demographic
 Between
15-29 years old—25
million (35%)
 Median age—26 years old
 Legal voting age—16 years old
 Issue of high concern
 High
unemployment
Women in Iran
 Higher Education—65%
 Changing Marriage and Child Custody
Laws
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Shirin Edabi: Nobel Peace Prize 2003
 Professional life
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Women in all aspects of work force
Inequality in senior and managerial jobs
Women and the Islamic Dress
Code
An Advanced and Cultured
Society: Science
 Avicenna
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father of early
modern medicine
(11th century)
 Biruni
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first anthropologist
(11th century)
Science (cont.)
 Mina Bissel
 Possible Nobel
Peace prize
candidate for her
scientific work in the
field of cancer
biology and
therapeutics
Art, Media, and Sport
 Andre Agassi
 Former world #1
professional tennis
player.
 Freddie Mercury
 Lead singer of
Queen
Art, Media, and Sport (cont.)
 Christiane Amanpour
Chief International
Correspondent for
CNN
 Abbas Kiarostami
 internationally
acclaimed film
director; received
100 awards;
President of
Cannes Film
Festival in 2005
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Business
 Farzad Nazem
 Chief Technology
Officer and
Executive VP of
Yahoo!
 Firouz Naderi
 Associate Director of
NASA’s Jet
Propulsion
Laboratory
Business (cont.)
 Pierre Omidyar
 Founder and
chairman of eBay
 Omid Kordestani
 Senior VP for World
Wide Sales and Field
Operations of
Google
Cuisine
 Very diverse, with each province
featuring its own dishes
 Base of the cuisine: rice
 Most common ingredients include herbs,
vegetables, saffron, nuts
 World capital of caviar
 Earliest wine production in Iran between
6000 and 5000 BC
 Shiraz wine: produced in 9th century—
finest wine in Middle East
Nowrooz—Iranian New Year
 Established in 1388
 First day of Spring (equinox)
 Symbolic—rebirth, renewal
 Family celebration without religious
connotation
 Traditions: house cleaning, new clothes,
special dishes, family visiting, Haft-Sin
table