Converting Persia: Religion and Power in the Safavid Empire (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781860649707)

'Converting Persia' explains how Iran was to acquire one of its defining characteristics: its Shi'ism. Under the Safavids (1501-1736 CE), Persia adopted Shi'ism as its official religion. Rula Abisaab explains how and why this specific brand of Shi'ism - urban and legally-based - was brought to the region by leading Arab 'Ulama from Ottoman Syria, and changed the face of the region till this day. These emigre scholars furnished distinct sources of legitimacy for the Safavid monarchs, and an ideological defense against the Ottomans. Just as important at the time was a conscious and vivid process of Persianization both at the state level and in society. Converting Persia is vital reading for anthropologists, historians and scholars of religion, and any interested in Safavid Persia, in Shi'ism, and in the wider history of the Middle East."Rula Abisaab has provided us with a remarkable study of Safavid Iran. Her work throws new light on the interplay of religion and society and will be a crucial work for all interested in the making of modern Iran." -Abbas Amanat, Professor of History, Yale University.

Author: Rula Abisaab
ISBN-10: 186064970X
ISBN-13: 9781860649707
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Language: English
Published: 02/26/2004
Pages: 256
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.16lbs
Size: 9.46h x 6.12w x 0.98d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 09/01/2004 pg. 170