Thursday 3 November 2022

Iran, the Not-So-Islamic Republic

According to a survey among 40.000 Iranians living in Iran, Iranian society shows a clear tendency to secularisation. While Iran's official census claims that almost the whole population (99.5%) is Muslim, the survey carried out by the Group for Analyzing and Measuring Attitudes in Iran (GAMAAN) in 2020, only 40% identify as Muslim (of which 32% identify as Shia, 5% as Sunni Muslim and 3% as Sufi Muslim). 9% say they are atheists, 7% call themselves rather spiritual than religious, 8% are Zoroastrians, 1.5% are Christian. 47% report losing their religion in their lifetime, 6% say they have changed from one religion to another. In other words, "the trend towards faiths other than Islam is unmistakable". Also, in the past decades, fewer religiously associated forenames were chosen for children.

A third occasionally drink alcohol, over 60% do not perform theoretically obligatory Muslim daily prayers, 68% agree that religious prescriptions should not be part of the legislation, 72% oppose the law mandating women wear hijab. Younger people report higher levels of irreligiosity and conversion to Christianity. Apparently, the state made more and more people move away from their religion (via and via and via and via

Music selection (YouTube):

::: Kourosh Yaghmaei, Havar Havar: WATCH/LISTEN
::: Pari Zangeneh, Do Beh Do: WATCH/LISTEN
::: Pari Zangeneh, Baroun Barouneh: LISTEN
::: Pari Zangeneh, Mastoom: WATCH/LISTEN
::: Kourosh Yaghmaei, The Heartbroken Town Girl: WATCH/LISTEN

photographs (Teheran, 1976) by Bruno Barbey (Magnum) via and via and via

2 comments: