Individuals from various cultures can easily distinguish differences in traits by making comparisons to their own. These differences make up the fundamentals of a society’s way of life. The rules that most individuals abide by comprise the framework of a culture. Culture is the shared beliefs and social norms of a country or area that are different from other places. In the country of Iran, an abundance of diversity defines their culture. Using the United States Army’s operational variables, this paper will define the culture of Iran by analyzing the environmental, political, religious, and military operational variables, as well as their military conflicts with the United States. The U.S. Army uses the operational variables …show more content…
The physical landscape affects the ability people to access equipment, weapons systems and resources. Iran is an area that is extremely diverse mainly because of its geographic location. The country is located in Southwest Asia. Its boundaries stretch from the Caspian Sea to the north and down to the Persian Gulf at its southern tip. The capital of Iran is Tehran, seated between Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Pakistan (Mazur, n.d.). The environment is disparate, with dry arid deserts and subpolar regions throughout the country. Iran is host to the Kavir and Lut deserts. Temperatures in these locations can rise greater than 130 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, the country is home to a number of mountain ranges. The two most prominent being the Elburz Mountains (northern part of the country) and the Zagros Mountains (western and southern portion). In these areas, the temperatures can get as low as negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit (Mazur, …show more content…
After its founding in 1979, Iran became a Theocratic Republic. It was originally a monarchy, but after much fighting, the last Shah (king) went into exile and the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini established the Islamic Republic (Kagan, 2012a). In a theocratic republic, God is the supreme civil ruler of the nation. The people elect a supreme leader and president to oversee political and some civil laws, but the leaders must look to the Qur’an for spiritual and civil guidance (Theocratic, 2016). The supreme leader has the overall control in all matters to include the military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, a military entity charged with protecting the revolution of 1979 and its achievements (Kagan, 2012). The state’s government is a multi-tier system with some checks and balance systems in place so that one group does not have total power. The first tier is the Islamic consultation assembly, a parliamentary group who creates and passes laws. The second tier is the Guardian Council. Elected by the supreme leader, this group is the approval authority for all of the parliament’s decisions. The Guardian Council also has the power to remove the Supreme Leader if they feel he is not worthy of the title. The Expediency Council is the last tier, which mediates decisions between the previous two entities. The
Not only did the religious history play a large role in Iran’s beliefs but also foreign invaders have been imposing their power on the Iranian region for thousands of years. Iran...
Prior to the Islamic Revolution, Iran was ruled by the Shah, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, and furthermore, not governed by religion. The Shah’s White Revolution launched a series of reforms in 1963 that are indicative of where women’s rights for Iran were heading prior to the Islamic revolution. The reforms included, giving women the right to vote, run for office and to become lawyers and judges. This large of a reform in regards to women’s rights, was far more drastic than anything Iran had experienced in the past, and the shock of these “extreme” measures, received a large backlash from over 90% of the population1, the Shia Muslims.
After its founding in 1979, Iran became a Theocratic Republic. It was originally a monarchy, but after much fighting, the last Shah (king) went into exile and the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini established the Islamic Republic (Kagan, 2012a). In a theocratic republic, God is the supreme civil ruler of the nation. The people elect a supreme leader and president to oversee political and some civil laws, but the leaders must look to the Qur’an for spiritual and civil guidance (Theocratic, 2016). The supreme leader has the overall control in all matters to include the military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, a military entity charged with protecting the revolution of 1979 and its achievements (Kagan, 2012). The state’s government is a multi-tier system with some checks and balance systems in place so that one group does not have total power. The first tier is the Islamic consultation assembly, a parliamentary group who creates and passes laws. The second tier is the Guardian Council. Elected by the supreme leader, this group is the approval authority for all of the parliament’s decisions. The Guardian Council also has the power to remove the Supreme Leader if they feel he is not worthy of the title. The Expediency Council is the last tier, which mediates decisions between the previous two entities. The
Over the course of the last century, the Islamic Republic of Iran (formerly known as Persia) has seen colonialism, the end of a dynasty, the installation of a government by a foreign power, and just over three decades ago, the popular uprising and a cleric-led revolution. These events preceded what could be considered the world’s first Islamic state, as politics and fundamentalist religion are inextricably linked in contemporary Iran. Looking at Iran from the mid 1940’s until the present day, one can trace the path that led to the rise of fundamental Islam in Iran in three distinct periods. The first is that which began with the rise of secular nationalism and the decline of Islam. In the second, the secular, western-friendly government eventually gave way to the Islamic revival in the form of a government takeover by hard-line clerics and disillusioned, fundamentalist youth; both motivated and led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Rule of Iran by these fundamentalist clerics then led to the formation of the fundamentalist Islamic theocracy that governs present-day Iran. The current government has some democratic appearances, but all real power is in the hands of the supreme leader, an Ayatollah who is chosen by the Assembly of Experts, a group of clerics chosen by the Guardian Council. With the Iranian Revolution, political Islam was born, with the fundamentalists holding the reins of power in Iran to the present day.
Ludwig, P. (1999). Iranian Nation and Islamic Revolutionary Ideology. Die Welt des islams. 39(2). 183-217.
The formation of states and political legitimacy has most of the time been intertwined with the religious authority that resided in the state. In Christian Europe, the church was the initial source of legitimacy post-Roman Empire. The rise and fall (and rise again) of the Catholic church and the Protestant Reformation help shaped state structures and ultimately, the rise of the secular state. In contrast, in Dar-al-Islam, there was a unique and changing relationship between the state and the ulamas because politics and religion was more or less in the same realm. In some instances, the state and ulamas remained relatively separate but in other cases, the ulamas became the
Although the Iranian Revolution was both a political and religious movement in that it resulted in major shifts in government structure from an autocracy to a republic and that Islamic beliefs were fought to be preserved, it was more a religious movement in that the primary goal of the people was to preserve traditional ideology and in that the government became a theocracy intertwined with religious laws and desires of the people. Although the Iranian Revolution was caused by combination of political and religious motivations and ideas, the desires of the people supporting the movement were more dominantly religious ideas that were wished to be imposed in society and in a new government. The Shah, or king, of Iran at the time was Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, who had developed relations with nations in the “western” world, specifically with the United States. The United States supported the White Revolution, which was a series of social reformations the Shah made to remove Islamic values, law and tradition from the government to boost the country’s economy (White Revolution, 2010).... ...
It places many negative rights on government officials, for example, no quartering soldiers in time of war. While also promising many positive rights such as freedom of speech, to bare arms, religion and much more. In contrast, Iranian citizens do not have the right to decide what religion they choose to be. If one is born in Iran, he or she is immediately classified as a believer of the Islamic faith. I have a personal experience that ties into the lack of religious freedom in Iran. One summer, I went to visit my family, which I so love to do. A family friend and I were talking when she told me I was a Muslim—flat out told me what I believed. And I think it’s because they are so used to being told what they believe and having a single, national religion forcibly taught to them is why she had a hard time understanding that I in fact, was not a Muslim. There are very many people who used to believe in the Muslim faith before the revolution but now that the government uses their religion as an excuse to harm its people, I know countless people who have shied away from
Anasazi was an advanced culture that emerged 1300 years ago and they are also known as "the ancient ones". Anasazi culture became important in the south western part of the United States of America. They constructed large flat-roofed masonry structure which are known as pueblos in the Four Corners area in Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, and Arizona. The Anasazi culture was believed to appear as early as 5500 B.C.E. They are called "The Basket Makers" because they are woven skillfully and are very beautiful baskets that was found in sites where their culture was associated at. Anasazi had a high speed social structure which included trade, irrigation, agriculture, and storage. The Anasazi was well known for trading corn, beans, squash, and turquoise. Turquoise is a stone that is a beautiful greenish/blueish in color. A huge part of their everyday life consisted of trading livestock, clothing, and food.
After the deposing of the shah by revolution, the people of Iran elected a democratic l...
Griffith, William E. “The Revial of Islamic Fundamentalism: the Case of Iran.” International Security. Volume 4, Issue 1, 1979, 132-138.
In this study, I aim to determine the effects of globalization on Middle Eastern society, particularly that of Iran. By globalization, I mean the expansion of influence via growing global economies, particularly that of the west, and its unique and very common interaction with the Middle East. Aside from economical expansion, I also include military, political and cultural expansion, or globalization, by that of western cultures and states onto Middle Eastern societies. Cultural expansion can be an effect of economic globalization, as well as military presence in or around a said area. International politics also play a role in affecting cultures, as politics are quite intertwined with economics and military action. Economically, globalization has caused the distribution of wealth to shift dramatically. This is due to many causes, but the oil industry in particular is the source of much of the changes in Middle Eastern society. Iran is no exception, with the oil industry casting a great shadow on the nation’s economy. Obviously, the oil industry also dominates the global economy, therefore bringing many different factors into the Middle East. The pursuit of a “competitive business environment”, international business and political pressures combined with internal and international cultural conflicts, military presence and international image all play huge roles in impacting society. I will be exploring these three variables: GDP, Effect(s) on culture, and rate of growth.
A Persian writer, Shahrokh Meskoob once said, "Identity is a reactive matter and attention to self becomes more meaningful in relation to others." This quote illustrates how one’s identity is greatly affected by the society around them and how they communicate and connect with one another. While this can draw on aspects of everyone and anyone’s life, it can be especially applied to different cultures, and in this case, the Persian culture. Taking into consideration how far it dates back to, this is an ancient culture and it has been kept alive for so long by the people who have the desire to do such and pass on their Persian background as my dad has done for me and as I will do for my children.
Pakistan a very large country with a very diverse culture, over the years Pakistan been it invaded by many different countries to include Arabs, Persians, Huns and many countries form the European Continent, which have influenced the culture of Pakistan. The culture in Pakistan resembles that of the western world in things such as movies, music as well as sports. Pakistani movie companies produce at least 40 films a year with movies concerning anything of India illegal, music is also very popular in Pakistan ranging from traditional Pakistani music and more recently music from parts of the western world. There are also wide variety of sports played in Pakistan the most popular being cricket, to go along with field hockey, polo, and football. Pakistan like many other countries in Asia has a very large heritage in things such as Art, the Ruins of Mohenjo-Daro, Axial the ancient city, and the Mosque of the Pearls, these are just a few of the sites that have been named UNSECO world heritage sites and are the pride of the cultural world of Pakistan. Through the generation, Pakistanis have had many numerous dances passed from one generation to another. Some of the more popular ones are hangar, attack which are tribal wedding dances which involves mimicking a warriors dance, giddha a humorous dance, and kikli where dancers snap their fingers and whirl about and luddi a dance to celebrate military victory but in more recent times one to celebrate sporting victories . Music much like dance has always been very popular in culture and much the same as dance music has many different versions throughout the country. Ghazal is a poem that the author puts to music; Qawwali is a form of devotional music located throughout the entire cou...
There are a lot of different cultures in the world we live in today. Finding the place you belong and discovering your own culture can be a challenge. This is especially true when you look at culture as an individual versus culture in your family, or even within your community. I’ve always been very family oriented, so that plays a big part in who I am and how my family’s dynamic works. I believe that my family has had a huge impact on the development of my culture, and I hope that I have had the same impact on theirs.