Iran as the "Persian Empire"

I just love how the meme that Iran is a "Persian Empire" made up of un-integrated ethnicities is being touted in the media by mostly uninformed people who have never set foot in the country and until now had probably never even heard of the Balouch or other Iranian ethnicities.

The assumption -- previously promoted by the likes of Ledeen -- is that since Iran is multiethnic therefore it must be susceptible to breaking apart. Here, let me complicate your life for you a bit more: About a quarter of Iranians are "Azeris" meaning they are descendants of a Turkic-speaking peoples. In fact I am part "Azeri" and so is the Supreme Leader of Iran and lost of other folks.  Yet I also speak Persian and so do my Azeri relatives& I've never had any reason to identify as such. And that doesn't mean I am keen to see the break up of Iran.

Fact is, Iran is no more of an "Empire" than modern day Britain or the many other countries that are multi-ethnic. The novelty of this "discovery" of the multiethnic characteristic of Iran by some is in the fact that they've grown too used to viewing Iranians as a homogeneous, Borg-like Evil "Them" -- a mass of crazy, uncivilised creatures living in a space imaginatively consisting of nothing but deserts and camels--  so much so that the discovery that Iran is a multicultural society comes as a shock and surprise to them. Even more shocking when they realize that there are "Asian" and "Black" Iranians, as well as blonde ones. (This ultimately is due to the way that Americans in particular tend to classify other people in the world by racial categories, which they assume are universally-applicable.)

Comments

[Isma'il Abushams]

The mono-cultural mono-religious nation state in which minorities are disenfranchised is a Western invention .. It seems that the West does not have the creative thinking powers to deal with otherwise functioning "States"

[majid shaghaghi]

Curious thing is that as a half Azeri myself , I have noticed more Iranian patriotism from my Azeri side of family rather from persian side, in fact through the history Azeris have always shown absolute commitment to Iranian unity and if necessary they have defended Iran against the enemies bravely ,the ignored fact(by foreigners as well as many Iranians) is that we are first Iranians and then whatever ethnicity,

[Pirouz]

You're so right about this, Cyrus.

My grandmother was from Tabirz- Azeri country. She would never ever consider herself anything but Iranian. Two of my Iranian cousins are light skinned and blond haired, again 100% Iranian.

And yes, how many so-called Iran experts are there in the US that have never even been to Iran? Just amazing, isn't it?