Iran and Islam: Iranian Identity, Islamic Heritage

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Abstract

What is the Iranian Identity and what are its major features? What are the basic elements and constituents of Iranian cultural identity? What causes made Iranian identity hold its internal unity throughout several centuries while it has continually been facing a diversity of cultures? These are the main questions which this study seeks to find answers for. Actually, it addresses a complicated theme in Iranian cultural history, the conceptual structure of the Iranian identity in post-Islamic era. Focusing on the Islamic characteristics of Iranian identity it proposes a historical approach to the study of the subject. This aim has been met through giving an explanation of the relation between Islamic and Iranian elements of Iranian identity. The results of the study show that the Iranian people, as an intermediate agent, have played a very important role in conciliating the Iranian and Islamic ideas. They also succeeded to make a brilliant synthesis of their ancient cultural legacy and the new religion. The Islamic part of this synthesis was so important, without a sufficient understanding of which we would not be able to reach an acceptable explanation of Iranian historical developments during the Islamic period

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