Nationalism and Religion in Contemporary Iran

Bibliographic Data

ID23201200
AuthorsEliz Sanasarian (corresponding author)
Year2012
Pages309-324
Publication date2012-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeCHAPTER
VenueReligious Minorities in the Middle East (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/9789004216846_015
OpenAlexW2489272129
ISBN9789004216846
LanguageEN
Citations received2

Politics and power are not displayed openly, particularly in countries like Iran. This chapter identifies religious minorities in Iran and their present condition, discusses the legal ramifications of their situation, assesses their responses, and concludes by reverting back to the issue of nationalism. The overwhelming majority of the population are Shiʿi, about nine percent are Sunni, and the rest are Bahaʾi, Christian, Jewish, Zoroastrian, and a very small and little-known group are Mandeans. Due to the dramatic reduction of non-Muslims in Iran, any discussion of their legal and social status seems pointless. After a very rich and dynamic history in medieval and early modern Iran, old Jewish and ethnic Christian communities are fast disappearing. Recognized non-Muslims are second class citizens and non-recognized Bahaʾis, Iranian Christian converts, and Sabians are simply non-citizens. Bahaʾis and Iranian Christians live constantly under the threat of apostasy, the penalty of which is death. Keywords:Bahaʾis; Christians; contemporary Iran; Jews; nationalism; religious minorities; Zoroastrians

Apostasy · Islam · Judaism · Nationalism · Political science · Politics · Population · Power (physics) · Sociology · Theology · Zoroastrianism · Demography · Eurasian Exchange Networks · Gender Studies · History · Islamic Studies and History · Law · Philosophy · Religion and Society Interactions · Religious studies

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