Looking for Ethnicity in Iran

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The question of ethnic and national identity constitutes a highly complex and controversial topic in Iran, and only recently have scholars questioned Persian-centrist, majoritarian or nationalist bias in Iranian historiography and research. One example of this critique is in Rasmus Christian Elling’s recent book “Minorities in Iran: Nationalism and Ethnicity afterKhomeini” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013).

A key finding from this book is that while it can be more or less easy to identify particular ethnic or religious minorities, it is not altogether easy to identify a particular majority in Iran: indeed, who are the Persians? How do Iranian scholars challenge Western frameworks for studying ethnicity? And why are many Iranians opposed to the use of certain terminology such as “minority”? In this talk, Elling will discuss theoretical and practical aspects of studying ethnicity in Iran today and in history.

Rasmus Christian Elling is Assistant Professor at the Institute for Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies (TORS) atCopenhagen University, Denmark. He holds a PhD in Iranian Studies and has studied and lived in Iran, Istanbul and New York. His PhD has been published as ‘Minorities in Iran: Nationalism and Ethnicity after Khomeini’ (Palgrave Macmillan 2013), and he has published several articles on ethnicity, nationalism and identity politics in post-revolutionary Iran. In 2011-2012, he worked as a Research Associate at The School for Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London, and he is associated with the Anglo-German research project ‘Urban Violence in the Middle East’. His current research focus is on the urban history of Abadan, a topic on which he is writing a book. Rasmus Christian Elling teaches Middle Eastern and Iranian history, politics and sociology at Copenhagen University, and is fluent in Persian.

Transcript
Approximately 75-80% of Iran’s peoples speak Iranian languages. The major groups in this category include Persians, Kurds, Gilakis, Mazandaranis, Lurs, Tats, Talyshs and Baluchs. Turkic speakers, such as the Azerbaijani, Turkmen and the Qashqai peoples, constitute a substantial minority. The remainder are primarily Semitics such as Arabs and Assyrians or other Indo-Europeans such as Armenians and Europeans. The Georgian language is the only Caucasian language fully functioning in Iran and it’s spoken only by those Iranian Georgians that live in Fereydan and Fereydunshahr, and in smaller sockets all over Iran. Almost all other communities of Iranian Georgians in Iran apart those in Fereydan and Fereydunshahr have already lost their language, but remain a clear Georgian conscious. There are also scattered sockets of Circassians, but as the vast majority of them have become highly assimilated, no sizeable amount speak the Circassian language anymore. Mandaeans are estimated to be between 5,000 and 10,000 Mandaeans in Iran. There are also communities of Talysh people in northern Iran. There are no statistical data on the numbers of Talysh-speakers in Iran, but estimates show their number to be around 1 million. According to the CIA World Factbook, the ethnic breakdown of Iran is as follows: Persian 61%, Azeri 16%, Kurd 10%, Lur 6%, Baloch 2%, Arab 2%, Turkmen and Turkic tribes 2%, other 1%. Another source, Library of Congress states Iran’s ethnic group as following: Persians (65 percent), Azeri Turks (16 percent), Kurds (7 percent), Lurs (6 percent), Arabs (2 percent), Baluchis (2 percent), Turkmens (1 percent), Turkish tribal groups such as the Qashqai (1 percent), and non-Persian, non-Turkic groups such as Armenians, Assyrians, and Georgians (less than 1 percent). Other sources mention different statistics: Persians 51%, Azeris 24%, Kurds 7%, Lurs 6%, Baloch 2%, Arabs 3%, Turkmens 2%, Turkic tribal groups (e.g. Qashqai and Kazakhs) 1%, and other groups (e.g. Tats, Talysh, Armenians, Georgians, Assyrians, Circassians, Jews) 1%. At the turn of 1900, the approximate population of Iran was: 6 million Persians, 2.5 million Azeris, 200,000 Mazandaranis, 200,000 Gilakis, 20,000 Taleshis and 20,000 Tatis.

The term “Persians” refers to an ethnic group who speak the Western dialect of Persian and live in the modern country of Iran as well as the descendants of the people who emigrated from the territory of modern-day Iran to other countries. Today, the Persian community of Malaysia is the most populous, followed by the middle east in nations such as UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman. Significant communities also lie in the west, (notably USA, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden, France and other countries).
Ethnic Persians inhabit traditionally the Tehran province, Isfahan province, Fars province, Alborz province, RazaviKhorasan, South Khorasan, Yazd province, Kerman province, Bushehr province, Hormozgan province, Markazi province(Arak), Qom province, Gilan province, Mazandaran province Semnan province, Qazvin province, the majority of Hamadanprovince including the city of Hamadan, majority of the North Khorasan, majority of Khuzestan province, northern half ofSistan and Baluchistan (Zabol), southern and western half of Golestan province including the provincial capital of Gorgan. Ethnic Persians form also at least half of the populations in the bilingual cities of Kermanshah and Ahvaz along with ShiaKurds, Shia Arabs respectively.It is also noteworthy that most of the new generation of Lur, Bakhtiari and Kermanshahis consider themselves Persians and tend to speak Tehrani dialect of Persian. The majority of the Iranian immigrants in the west and other parts of the world also hail from Persian speaking cities especially from Tehran.

According to the CIA World Factbook, Persians in Iran constitute up to 61% of the country’s population. Another source, Library of Congress states Iran’s Persians compose 65% of the country’s population. However, other sources mention that Persians only comprise 50.5%, or 55.3%.

Iranian Azerbaijanis
Iranian Azerbaijanis, who are mainly Shi’a Muslims, are the second largest ethnic group in Iran after the Persians believed to constitute 16 percent of the population mainly according the CIA factbook, and some different sources, however many other sources argue that the amount of Azeris in Iran amount up to 24-40% of the total population and that any lower amounts are politically motivated. The Azeri (also known as Azerbaijani) population of Iran is mainly found in the northwest provinces: East Azarbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, parts of West Azarbaijan, Hamadan and Qazvin. Many others live in Tehran,Karaj and other regions. Generally, Azeris in Iran were regarded as “a well integrated linguistic minority” by academics prior to Iran’s Islamic Revolution. In fact, until the Pahlavi period in the 20th century, “the identity of Iran was not exclusively Persian, but supra-ethnic”, as much of the political leadership, starting from the 11th century, had been Turkic. The Azeris were integrated with other Iranian groups until the 19th century when after Russian invasion and annexation of northernAzerbaijan, nationalism and communalism began to alter popular perception among both ethnic groups. Despite friction, Azeris in Iran came to be well represented at all levels of, “political, military, and intellectual hierarchies, as well as the religious hierarchy.” In fact, the first wave of Iranian nationalists such as Mirza Abdul’Rahim Talibov Tabrizi and Mirza Fatali Akhundov were ethnic Azeris from Azerbaijan SSR. In Iran the term “āzari” is used formally; however, informally, Azeris and other Turkic speaking Iranian populations are colloquially referred to as “Tork” (Turks). Since Pahlavi rule, Azeris have not been allowed state-funded schools with Azeri as the language of instruction, though today there are Azeri newspapers and radio programs. The current Iranian Azerbaijanis are mostly bilingual and the existence of the newly independent nation of Azerbaijan along with the lack of any formal education in their native language at Iran’s schools have created new challenges for Iran as a country. In recent years there has been a great push for the legal recognition of the Azerbaijani language in Iran and the establishment of schools in the Azerbaijani language.

Iranian Kurds
Iranian Kurds make up the majority of the population of Kordestan province and together with the Azaris, they are one of the two main ethnic groups in West Azarbaijan province. In West Azarbaijan province Kurds are concentrated in parts of the southern and western parts of the province. Feyli tribe of Kurds also make up the significant populations of Kermanshah and Ilam provinces, although Kermanshahi and Ilamian Kurds are Shia Muslims, in contrast to the mainstream Kurds who are adherents of Sunni Islam.

Lur People
Lur people, are Luri-speaking people inhabiting part of west – south western Iran. Most Lur are Shi’a. They the Fourth largest ethnic group in Iran after the Persians, Azeri and Kurds. They occupy Lorestan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Khuzestan, Isfahan, Fars, Bushehr and Kuh-Gilu-Boir Ahmed provinces. The authority of tribal elders remains a strong influence among the nomadic population. It is not as dominant among the settled urban population. As is true in Bakhtiari and Kurdish societies, Lur women have much greater freedom than women in other groups within the region. Thie language is Indo-European. They may be related to the Kurds from whom they “apparently began to be distinguished from… 1,000 years ago.” The Sharafnama of Sharaf Khan Bidlisi “mentioned two Lur dynasties among the five Kurdish dynasties that had in the past enjoyed royalty or the highest form of sovereignty or independence.” In the Mu’jam Al-Buldan of Yaqut al-Hamawi mention is made of the Lurs as a Kurdish tribe living in the mountains between Khuzestan and Isfahan. The term Kurd according to Richard Frye was used for all Iranian nomads (including the population of Luristan as well as tribes in Kuhistan and Baluchis in Kirman) for all nomads, whether they were linguistically connected to the Kurds or not.

Qizilbash
Khorasani Turkic people, or Qizilbash, are Turkic-speaking people inhabiting part of northeastern Iran, and in the neighboring regions of Turkmenistan up to beyond the Amu Darya River; and speak the Khorasani Turkic, and live in the North Khorasan, Razavi Khorasan and Golestan provinces of Iran. and Total population Khorasani Turks is 1,000,000
According to the CIA World Factbook, Turkmens and other Turkic tribes (Qashqais, Khorassani, etc.) in Iran stand up to 2% of the overall country population, approximately more than one million people

Qashqai People
Qashqai (pronounced ; They mainly live in the provinces of Fars, Khuzestan and southern Isfahan, especially around the city of Shiraz in Fars. They are bilingual and speak the Persian language and the Qashqai language which is a member of the Turkic family of languages. The Qashqai were originally nomadic pastoralists and some remain so today. The traditional nomadic Qashqai travelled with their flocks each year from the summer highland pastures north of Shiraz roughly 480 km or 300 mi south to the winter pastures on lower (and warmer) lands near the Persian Gulf, to the southwest of Shiraz. The majority, however, have now become partially or wholly sedentary. The trend towards settlement has been increasing markedly since the 1960s.
According to the CIA World Factbook, Turkmens and other Turkic tribes (Qashqais, Khorassani, etc.) in Iran stand up to 2% of the overall country population, approximately more than one million people.

Iranian Arabs
2% of Iran’s citizens are Arabic-speakers. A 1998 report by UNCHR reported 1 million of them live in border cities ofKhuzestan Province, they are believed to constitute 20% to 25% of the population in the province, most of whom being Shi’a. In Khuzestan, Arabs are a minority in the province .They are the dominant ethnic group only in Shadegan, Hoveyzeh and Susangerd, a minority in the rural areas of Abadan (The city of Abadan is inhabited by ethnic Persians who speak theAbadani dialect), together with Persians, Arabs are one of the two main ethnic groups in Ahvaz. All other cities in Khuzestan province, are either inhabited by the Lur, Bakhtiari or Persian ethnic groups. The historically large and oil rich cities like Mahshahr, Behbahan, Masjed Soleyman, Izeh, Dezful, Shushtar, Andimeshk, Shush, Ramhormoz, Baghemalak, Gotvand, Lali, Omidieh, Aghajari, Hendijan, Ramshir, Haftkel, Bavi are inhabited by people who speak either Luri, Bakhtiari and Persian languages. There are smaller communities in Khorasan and Fars provinces. Iranian Arab communities are also found in Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

Iranian Assyrians
Assyrians are a Semitic ethnoreligious and linguistic minority in present-day Iran, descending from the Ancient Assyrians and Mesopotamians. The Assyrians of Iran are a Semitic people who speak modern Assyrian, a neo-Aramaic language descended from Classical Syriac, and are Eastern Rite Christians belonging mostly to the Assyrian Church of the East and, to a lesser extent, to the Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church and Ancient Church of the East. They share a common identity, rooted in shared linguistic and religious traditions, with Assyrians in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East such as Syria and Turkey, as well as with the Assyrian diaspora.
The Assyrian community in Iran numbered approximately 200,000 prior to the Islamic Revolution of 1979. However, after the revolution many Assyrians left the country, primarily for the United States, and the 1996 census counted only 32,000 Assyrians. Current estimates of the Assyrian population in Iran range from 32,000 (as of 2005) to 50,000 (as of 2007). The Iranian capital, Tehran, is home to the majority of Iranian Assyrians; however, approximately 15,000 Assyrians reside in northern Iran, in Urmia and various Assyrian villages in the surrounding area.

Iranian Balochis
The Balochi people of Iran live in southern and central parts and northern Sistan and Baluchistan province, one of the most remote areas of Iran. The northern part of the province is called Sistan and 63% of the province is ethnic Balochi while the rest is Persian Sistani. The Balochi people are Sunni Muslims, in contrast to the Sistani Persians who are adherents of Shia Islam. The capital of Sistan and Baluchistan is Zahedan and is inhabited by Balochs, the next largest city of the province is Zabol in Sistan and is inhabited predominantly by Persians. The town of Jask in neighbouringHormozgan Province is also inhabited by Baloch people. They form one of the smallest ethnicities in Iran.

Iranian Turkmen
There are over 1,328,585 Turkmen who are primarily concentrated in the provinces of Golestān and North Khorasan.
In Golestān the northern half is inhabited by Turkmen people.The largest Turkmen city in the province is Gonbade Kavoos. The next largest Turkmen city is Bandar Torkaman.

Talyshs of Iran
Talyshes of Iran are about 430,000 and live mostly in the northwestern province of Ardebil in northwestern Iran (Iranian Azerbaijan). They are indigenous to a region shared between Azerbaijan and Iran which spans the South Caucasus and the southwestern shore of the Caspian Sea. Another significant amount of Talysh live therefore also in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Tats of Iran
Tats of Iran are a Persian people and are very limited and Sporadic living near Alborz Mountains in Iran, especially in the south of Qazvin province. They belong to the Persian family and are a sub-group of Persians claiming Sassanid Persian ancestry.
Tats of Iran use the Tati language (Iran), is a group of northwestern Iranian dialects which are closely related to the Talysh language. Persian and Azeri are also spoken. Tats of Iran are mainly Shia Muslims and about 300,000 population.

Iranian Armenians
The current Iranian-Armenian population is somewhere around 500,000. They mostly live in Tehran and Jolfa district. After the Iranian Revolution, many Armenians immigrated to Armenian diasporic communities in North America and westernEurope. Today the Armenians are Iran’s largest Christian religious minority, followed by Assyrians.

Iranian Georgians
Iranian Georgians are an ethnic group living in Iran. They are Twelver Shia Muslims, whereas the vast majority of Georgians elsewhere in the world are Christian. The Georgian dialect is still spoken in Iran.

Once a very large minority in Iran mainly due to mass deportations by the various early modern age and modern age Iranian empires (Safavids, Afsharids, and Qajars), of their Georgian subjects, nowadays, due to intermarrying and assimilating the number of Georgians in Iran is nowadays estimated to be over 100,000. However, the amount of Iranians with partial or assimilated Georgian ancestry is estimated to exceed millions.
The Georgian language is still used by many of the Georgians in Iran. The center of Georgians in Iran is Fereydunshahr, a small city, 150 km to the west of Isfahan. The western part of Isfahan province is historically called Fereydan. In this area there are 10 Georgian towns and villages around Fereydunshahr. In this region the old Georgian identity is retained the best compared to other places in Iran. In many major Iranian cities, such as Tehran, Isfahan, Karaj and Shiraz, and Rashtlive Georgians too.

In many other places such as Najafabad, Rahmatabad, Yazdanshahr and Amir Abad (near Isfahan) there are also Georgian sockets and villages. In Mazandaran Province in northern Iran, there are ethnic Georgians too. They live in the town of Behshahr, and also in Behshahr county, in Farah Abad, and many other places, which are usually called Gorji Mahalle. Most of these Georgians no longer speak the Georgian language, but retain aspects of Georgian culture and a Georgian conscious. Some argue that Iranian Georgians retain remnants of Christian traditions, but there is no evidence for this.

Iranian Circassians
Like with the Georgians, once a very large minority in Iran all the way from the Safavid to the Qajar era, the vast majority of the Circassians have been assimilated into the population nowadays.

From Sir John Chardin’s “Travels in Persia, 1673-1677”:
There is scarce a Gentleman in Persia, whose Mother is not a Georgian, or a Circassian Woman; to begin with the King, who commonly is a Georgian, or a Circassian by the Mother’s side.
Circassians alongside the Georgians were deported en masse by the Shah’s to fulfil roles in the civil administration, the military, and the royal Harem, but also as craftsmen, farmers, amongst other professions. Circassian women were both inOttoman Turkey and Persia desired for their beauty, while the men were known as fiercesome warriors. Notable Iranians of Circassian descent of the past include Shah Abbas II, Shah Suleiman I, Pari Khan Khanum (daughter of Shah Tahmasp, involved in many court intrigues), Shamkal Soltan, Jamshid Beg (the assasinator of Shah Ismail II), Fatḥ-ʿAli Khan Dagestani (vizier of the state under Shah Sultan Husayn), Anna Khanum, and many more. Traces of Circassian settlements have lasted into the 20th century, and small sockets still exist scattered over the country, even after centuries of absorbing and assimilating.

Iranian Jews
Judaism is one of the oldest religions practiced in Iran and dates back to the late biblical times. The biblical books of Isaiah, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles, and Esther contain references to the life and experiences of Jews in Iran.

By various estimates, 10,800 Jews remain in Iran, mostly in Tehran, Isfahan, and Shiraz. BBC reported Yazd is home to ten Jewish families, six of them related by marriage, however some estimate the number is much higher. Historically, Jews maintained a presence in many more Iranian cities. Iran supports by far the largest Jewish population of any Muslimcountry.

A number of groups of Jews of Iran have split off since ancient times. They are now recognized as separate communities, such as the Bukharan Jews and Mountain Jews. In addition, there are several thousand in Iran who are, or who are the direct descendants of, Jews who have converted to Islam and the Bahá’í Faith.

Iranian Mandaeans
Iranian Mandaeans live mainly in the Khuzestan Province in southern Iran. Mandeans are a Mandaic speaking Semitic race who follow their own distinctive Gnostic religion, venerating John the Baptist as the true Messiah. Like the Assyrians of Iran, their origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia. They number some 10,000 people in Iran.