Government Settlement Methods Used for nomads in Iran

  During the First Settlement Period 1934 – 1941 Reza Shah’s government mobilized its army, police, and gendarmes to block migration, to disarm nomads, and to break their political organization. To achieve its purpose, the government also pitted various tribal people against one another. They developed mutual hostilities and attacked each other. These hostilities continued into post forced settlement times. For example, […]

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Government’s Goals for Settlement of nomads in Iran

What were the government’s goals to be achieved by settlement of nomads in Iran ?   During the First Settlement Period 1934 – 1941 The forced settlement process during this period was planned in the name of modernization, development, political centralization, and national unification. The government wanted to replace tribal leaders and political system with its own political apparatus by killing

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Motives for Settlement of Nomads in Iran

During the First Settlement Period 1934 – 1941 : Reza Shah hated and distrusted the nomads and their whole culture and life style. He was repelled by tribal attire and by everything about them that was not Persian* Aside from his personal aversion for nomads, the causes for the government sponsored settlement of 1934-1941 were mostly political. The autonomous nomads with

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The QASHQA’I tribes (taefeha) and clans (tireha)

In this post , various tribes (taefeha) and clans (tireha) will be identified.   The Amaleh Tribe Amaleh means “workmen.” Members of this tribe have been mostly in the service of the ruling Qashqa’i family. The members of this tribe come from various other Qashqa’i and non-Qashqa*i tribes. They are named Amaleh because they have been in the service of the

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The QASHQA’I Tribe

The information presented here was collected from a variety of sources, for there exists no definite recorded history. There are many theories about the name Qashqa’i. Some tribal elders believe that the name came from the Turkic word Kashqa, meaning “a horse with a white spot on its forehead.” Malek Mansur Khan, one of the present leaders of the tribe, believes

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A Brief History of Nomadism in Iran

Most scholars agree that nomadism in Iran is not a new phenomenon. Peyman (1967) wrote that from the time of arrival of the Indo-Aryan race to the Iranian plateau, nomadism has existed. In later centuries, nomads from other races and other lands migrated to Iran. These migrations caused sociopolitical and economic alterations in the national fabric of society and its particular

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Nomadism and Its Distinctive and Peculiar Socioeconomic Features

Nomadism and tribalism are not one and the same phenomenon, although they can be related. The distinction between tribalism and nomadism has been expressed by David J. Marsden (1976:9) in The Qashqa*i of Iran, wherein he stated: To presume that all tribes are nomads and that all sedentary agriculturists are non-tribal is to confuse economic with political issues. . . .

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The Nomads of Iran

Iran, formerly known as Persia, comprises an area of approximately 628,000 square miles, bounded on the north by the Soviet Union, on the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the south by the Persian Gulf and the sea of Oman, and on the west by Iraq and Turkey. The interior highlands and plains are surrounded

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