The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism

Zia-Ebrahimi persuasively argues that the texts of a few writers furnished the basis of a nationalist ideology asserting the Aryan essence of an ancient nation, an ideology taken up by Iran's Pahlavi rulers and still significant. His book is a substantial contribution to modern Iranian history and has relevance beyond the field of Iranian studies. Zia-Ebrahimi's argument is related to key debates in the field of nationalism studies and his methods can be illuminatingly applied to other cases.--John Breuilly, London School of Economics An important work and should be read by anyone interested in modern Iranian studies.... Highly recommended.--Choice Zia-Ebrahimi's study is daring, innovative, and meticulous and is an essential discussion--for both public and academic readers.--Rasoul Aliakbari The Historian It is rare that an academic study centrally concerned with a nineteenth-century discourse is so urgently relevant to contemporary intellectual and political debates. Reza Zia Ebrahimi's first monograph is just such a work.--International Journal of Middle East Studies Richly evocative and provocative . . . This is an original study that shows the immense complexity of Iranian nationalism.--Perspectives on Politics A brave book in that it is the first major attempt to address the unwelcome issue of the racist strand in Iranian culture, its origin and its divisive impact. It is to be highly commended for its innovative identification and definition of dislocative nationalism, and its original, wide-ranging argument.--Iranian Studies The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism deftly tackles one of the most poisonous and culturally destabilizing features of the modern Iranian cultural zeitgeist . . . This insightful monograph is as groundbreaking as it is incisive and it will surely become one of the standard 'go-to' texts on the subject.--British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism brings to final and definitive fruition a body of critical thinking about the origin and rise of Iranian nationalism deeply rooted in the Eurocentric racism of the nineteenth century. Zia-Ebrahimi lasers in on the crucial instantiations of this powerful ethnocentric construction of the nation, carefully dissecting and critically dismantling them. This is a must read and an exemplary piece of scholarship declaring the rise of a new generation of scholars who are overriding the clich s and hang-ups of their parental generation.--Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism is a major contribution to the intellectual history of modern Iran. Reza Zia-Ebrahimi has brought into critical focus some of the most pious and intractable certainties that have long defined the ideology of Iranian nationalism. Both erudite and iconoclastic, this book is sure to stir much contentious debate.--Afshin Marashi, author of Nationalizing Iran: Culture, Power, and the State, 1870-1940 The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism breaks new ground in the study of recent Iranian history. It reveals and analyzes the dirty little secret of Iranian nationalism, namely that it contains a racist dimension. It is not only a well-researched and well-written book, it is also a courageous book.--Houchang Chehabi, Boston University