Iranian nationalism is a form of nationalism centered on the people of Iran and those who identify as Iranian, encompassing political, social, and cultural movements that emphasize pride in Iranian history, culture, languages, and national unity. Alt URL
National consciousness in Iran has ancient roots, drawing from centuries of shared historical memory, including pre-Islamic empires such as the Achaemenid and Sasanian periods. However, modern Iranian nationalism, as a predominant ideological force shaping attitudes and policies, primarily emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Alt URL It developed amid Qajar Iran's encounters with European colonialism, internal weaknesses, and the need for reform. Intellectuals like Fath'ali Akhundzadeh and Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani played key roles in articulating ideas that highlighted Iran's pre-Islamic heritage, Aryan origins, linguistic unity around the Persian language, and historical continuity, often critiquing the cultural influence of Islam following the 7th-century Arab conquests as an overlay on an older, indigenous civilization.
The 1905–1911 Persian Constitutional Revolution marked a significant rise in patriotic sentiments and unity across diverse groups. This momentum intensified under the Pahlavi dynasty (1925–1979), particularly during Reza Shah's reign (1925–1941), when nationalism shifted from intellectual discourse to official state policy. Alt URL The government promoted centralized modernization, including infrastructure projects, military reforms, secular education, and cultural revivalism. Notable initiatives included the 1935 international request that foreign delegates begin using Iran (the native endonym) in formal correspondence, as well as archaeological efforts highlighting sites like Persepolis. These measures aimed to foster cohesion among Iran's multi-ethnic population, including Persians, Azeris, Kurds, and others, though they sometimes involved coercive policies, Alt URL such as suppressing regional autonomies and prioritizing Persian-centric narratives.
History Origins Iran's politics are first recorded in the twenties of the third century C.E. as an essential feature of Sasanian propaganda.
In the third-century, Iran was shaken by a conflict between universalism and nationalism that was most clearly manifested in the religious and cultural sphere. The outcome of this conflict is well known: the traditionalistic and nationalistic impulses gained the upper hand, and Manichaean universalism succumbed to the nationalism of the Zoroastrian Magi. Iranian identity, which up to that point had essentially consisted of cultural and religious nature, assumed a definite political value, placing Persia and the Persians at the center of the Sasanian Empire. In other words, at the center of a state based on the twin powers of the throne and altar and sustained by an antiquarian and archaizing ideology. This ideology became more and more accentuated during the Sassanian period, reaching its height under the long reign of Khosrow I (531–79 A.D.). Of course, economic and social factors favored the victory of the stronger classes in a society that was based mainly on a rural economy, namely the aristocratic landed and warrior classes and the Magian clergy.
Shu'ubiyya
Iranian identity came under threat after the fall of the Sasanian Empire and the Muslim conquest of Persia. The term Shu'ubiyya refers to a response by Persian Muslims to the growing Arabization of Islam in the 9th and 10th centuries and discrimination against Iranian people by the occupiers. It was primarily concerned with preserving Persian culture and protecting Persian identity. Some of the famous Iranian Shu'ubi figures are Bashshar ibn Burd, Ismail Nisa'i, Zeyad e Ajam, Hissam ibn Ada, Abulhassan Ali Mada'ini, Abu Hatam Sajestani, Ibrahim ibn Mamshad and Abu Abdullah Muhammad Marzbani. Many consider Ferdowsi a Shu'ubi poet.
Iranian Intermezzo
The term Iranian Intermezzo represents a period in Middle Eastern history that saw the rise of various native Iranian Muslim dynasties on the Iranian Plateau. This term is noteworthy since it was an interlude between the decline of Abbasid rule and the eventual emergence of the Seljuk Turks in the 11th century. The Iranian revival consisted of Iranian support based on Iranian territory and most significantly a revived Iranian national spirit and culture in an Islamic form.
Iranian-Shia identity under the Safavids
Iran regained its political unity and was given a new distinct religious identity under the Safavids. Shia Islam became the official state religion and henceforth played an important role in the reconstruction of a new ethno-religious identity for the Iranian people. Furthermore, the rise of the Safavid empire coincided with the rise of the neighboring Ottoman Empire in West Asia and North Africa (and most importantly, for centuries Iran's geo-political as well as ideological arch-rival) and the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent, both adhering to Sunni Islam. The formation of these political entities helped create a distinct Iranian-Shia political identity among these polities. It also helped to expand the hegemony of the Persian language in much of the Muslim world. Persian literature was, apart from Iran and its territories stretching from the North Caucasus to the Persian Gulf, produced from the Balkans to Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent.Eaton, R. The Persian Cosmopolis. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History. Retrieved 3 May. 2023, from https://oxfordre.com/asianhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277727-e-402. Qajar era and the start of modern nationalism
The modern Iranian national movement began in the late 19th century. This movement was in large part a reaction to 19th-century European colonialism in the region, which led to the loss of Qajar possessions in the Caucasus.Patrick Clawson writes: "Since the days of the Achaemenids, the Iranians had the protection of geography. But high mountains and vast emptiness of the Iranian plateau were no longer enough to shield Iran from the Russian army or British navy. Both literally, and figuratively, Iran shrank. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Azerbaijan, Armenia, much of Georgia were Iranian, but by the end of the century, all this territory had been lost as a result of European military action. Iran translated her territorial losses into a sense of both victimization and a propensity to interpret European action through the lens of conspiracy. This in turn has helped shape Iranian nationalism into the twenty first century." In the course of the 19th century, through the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828) and the out-coming Treaty of Gulistan and Treaty of Turkmenchay of 1813 and 1828 respectively, Iran was forced to irrevocably cede swaths of its territory in the North and South Caucasus comprising what is now Georgia, Dagestan, Azerbaijan and Armenia to the Russian Empire.Timothy C. Dowling Russia at War: From the Mongol Conquest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond pp 728-729 ABC-CLIO, 2 dec. 2014 These territories had made, for centuries, part of the concept of Iran until their loss.
The initial objectives of these nationalists was to put an end to the feudalistic landholding system, governmental sloth and corruption, and the wholesale distribution of Iranian resources to foreigners.
One of the principal and most noted forerunners of Iranian nationalism during the Qajar era was Mirza Fatali Akhundov, born in the then-recently ceded territories in the Caucasus to a family of landowners originating in Iranian Azerbaijan.Tadeusz Swietochowski, Russia and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transition (New York: Columbia University Press), 1995, page 27-28:
Modern nationalism
Modern nationalism in Iran dates back to 1905 when an almost bloodless constitutional revolution created Iran's first parliament. Reza Shah helped shape Iranian nationalism by infusing it with a distinctly secular ideology and diminishing the influence of Islam on Iran. By integrating European legal policies in the place of Islamic courts, Shah reassured the efficiency of the state bureaucracy and promoted a strong sense of Iranian nationalism. However, the nationalism promoted by the Pahlavi dynasty was distinctly Persian nationalist, defining Iranian national identity through Persians and the Persian language as its central foundations and promoting the Persianization of minorities.
In 1935, Reza Shah asked foreign delegates and League of Nations to use the term Iran in formal correspondence. In addition, Reza Shah sought to change the names of various towns to honor pre-Islamic Persian kings and mythological heroes and to continue to reduce the power of the mullahs by seeking to modernize Iran. The Pahlavi dynasty thus was set irrevocably down the road towards infusing the country with a form of secular nationalism, a path that would eventually bring it into conflict with the country's clerical class.
Iranian nationalism was a deciding force in the 1951 movement to nationalize Iran's oil wealth. Mossadegh's goal of nationalizing Iran’s oil came into effect in the year 1951. By allowing Iran to have full power and control over their prime resource, the AIOC and other European programs participated in an international boycott which eventually caused a deter in Iran's economy. After Mossadegh's deposition guided by help from the U.S. and Britain, Reza Shah's son and successor Mohammad Reza Pahlavi retained control and used the increased gas prices to expand modernization in Iran.
Iranian nationalist discourse often focuses on the pre-Islamic history of Iran.. In the 20th century, different aspects of this romantic nationalism would be referenced by both the Pahlavi monarchy, which employed titles such as Āryāmehr ('Light of the Aryans'), and by some leaders of the Islamic Republic that followed it..
Despite the secular tendencies of the vast majority of Iranian nationalists, there is a grouping called the Religious Nationalists who are Iranian nationalists but also religious Muslims.
Ethnic discontent Iran's 2016 parliamentary elections saw the reformists' victory, signalling support for President Hassan Rouhani's moderate government and the nuclear deal. However, the campaign also focused on addressing the demands of Iran's ethnic minorities, who make up 40-50% of the population. The five major ethnic groups—Azeris, Kurds, Arabs, Baluchis, and Turkmen—have a long history of political struggle for their rights, and many of them are Sunni, in contrast to the country's Shia majority.
Ethnic grievances have been a prominent feature in election rhetoric, with candidates using sharper language to mobilize minority communities. While previous leaders, such as President Khatami in 1997, promised civil rights for all Iranians, these promises often remained unfulfilled, widening the gap between minorities' expectations and their realities.
This pattern of ethnic politicking has undermined Iran by creating divisions between ethnic groups and political factions. The country’s ethnic diversity is also seen as a national security threat, with minority groups living near or across borders, especially in the context of Iran's sectarian rivalry with Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia. Despite many of these groups' demands being legally recognized, Iran’s ethnic policies are ultimately shaped by the Supreme National Security Council, not elected officials.
If Iran continues to make promises to ethnic groups during elections without follow-through, the long-term damage to ethnic relations and the country's democracy could be severe. Addressing ethnic discontent is essential for maintaining national unity and stability.