Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran)

Abstract   The political history of any country represents an important action. This domain is full of information that can be methodically studied. One of its important issues is the people's representation, which means the way politics and politicians view people and the way people view politics and politicians, revealing itself in the manners of acts and interactions between them in the domain of political power. Nowadays, the issue of people's interaction with the political power has enjoyed a great variety and is considered an issue that "is being done"; in other words, new dimensions are added to it every day, making it deeper and more thorough. Given the "time-based" approach, we can see the representation of people in the political history with a glance at historical resources. Identifying the status of people in the political history enjoys a particular complexity in the field of historical knowledge. One of its requirements is discussion on method. This paper explores the method and a case study of it. Among the findings of this research is that there are two different old and new eras in the social and political history in one classification in historical resources and other resources of political and social thought. Their social and political representations in terms of such characteristics as "awareness", "determination", and "activism" are more extended, deeper, and more various in the new era compared to the old era.

Abstract   The establishment and growth of the textile industry in the Pahlavi era made Mazandaran one of the poles in the industry in Iran. Mazandaran textile Industries played a considerable role in Iran's self-sufficiency in the 1340s on the solar calendar. However, during its establishment and flourishing period, Mazandaran textile Industry faced numerous challenges, including a shortage of skilled manpower and the impacts of political tensions. With the fall of the Pahlavi dynasty, which was the founder of the modern textile industry in Mazandaran, textile factories in the city continued to exist at the local level after the Islamic Revolution. But they were never able to restore their previous flourishing condition. In recent years, weaknesses in various areas have resulted in the closure of the industry. A correct understanding of the event necessitates the need to review the history of the growth of this industry in Mazandaran. The following article is based on documents and press left from that era, along with written sources and interviews, and field studies of former workers in the industry. It aims to historically rebuild this local industry and explore its role in Iran's national industries.

Abstract   Public baths used to be part of the social life in the past, but reformers criticized them as modernism was beginning to penetrate the society. The reformers demanded hygienic standards to be enhanced at public baths, so that they would be congruent with modern lifestyle. Among such standards was the use of shower instead of khazinah (a large pool at public baths used for washing one's body). Meanwhile, the authorities at the municipality, who were in charge of the city's general issues, adopted a number of measures, by which they forced public bath owners to abide by such hygienic guidelines. Due to the opposition voiced by those people who used to go to public baths and did not want to use the shower instead of khazinah, the conflict lasted for a very long time with many vicissitudes in the meantime. The conflict encompassed the period between the middle period of Reza Shah's ruling and the 1340s (1961-1971). The present research refers to the press published during that era, the documents and the oral history, and explores the flow of this incident in Isfahan (as a case study). Thanks to the urban authorities' perseverance as well as the urban population’s public request, which was the result of public health level enhancement, the hygienization process was initiated. However, since the above-mentioned changes, though essential, were not completely congruent with cultural aspects in the corresponding society, they were not performed with ease, and were followed by a long-lasting period of conflicts and struggles. Ultimately, fundamental changes in the lifestyle and architecture of the urban buildings made feasible the existence of house bathrooms; thus, the issue of public bath and its related problems were removed from the social life of cities.

Abstract   Economic geography is part of human geography. In the former, man and nature are studied in relation with each other. In addition, the way man utilizes resources is also investigated. These resources are sometimes natural, and they are sometimes the result of human material needs; trade and business are examples of this second category. Establishing security in the trade roads is necessary for trade boost in any region. The active presence of Nizaris in Quhistan put the security of roads under a serious danger. This initially led to reactions by Seljuks and rulers of neighboring territories, but eventually forced them to interact with the Nezaris. The question raised in this research is the relationship between Nizaris' policy of choosing castles in Quhistan and repetitive clashes between them and the Seljuks. The hypothetical answer to the question is that thanks to the Nizaris powerful economic trades, any disorder would bring irreparable economic damage to the Seljuks; this made fighting with the Nizaris inevitable.

Abstract   Bathroom, as opposed to dominant belief, has not been just a place for people to get cleaned and purified, but, due to its capacities, it has had some social and even political functions all through the history of Iran. These functions bring testimony for the fact that bathroom, as an effecting construction, has had a significant place in the history of the Iranian social changes, especially in the Islamic Mediaeval periods. Now, this paper aims to raise such a question as to what sort of functions the bathroom had in the middle Ages of the Iranian history. The results show that the bathroom, due to its special geographical situation in the rural areas and the cities, and thus as a place for people to gather together, has been a main place for social interactions. This included giving public information, counting public population, having the medical function and even acting as a social etiquette, as well as showing its social function. Moreover, the bathroom has sometimes been a special place in which great scientists made their debates; hence, it shows the cultural-scientific function of the bathroom in the given history of Iran. Therefore, having taken a descriptive-analytic methodology as well as using reliable sources, this paper tries to discuss the different aspects of the bathroom in the middle periods of the Iranian history.

Abstract The occurrence of natural disasters accounts for one of the most significant developments in the social history of Iran. Despite its strengths in quantity and variety, Iranian historiography can be seriously criticized due to its negligence of describing natural incidents and disasters; these incidents have always been a starting point for many historical developments. Thus, the present research attempts to explore this part of the social history, which was the starting point of many developments, during the ruling of Nassereddin Shah of Qajar (1885-1934). The main question of this research is: To what extent and in what way such incidents as drought, earthquake and flood affected the economic system during the ruling of Nassereddin Shah? To find the answer to this question requires a historical research using descriptive-analytic method. Data collection was carried out using the library method. The findings of the research suggest that this stage of Iran's history (1264-1313 AH) went through such destructive natural disasters as drought, earthquake and flood. These were followed by the spread of epidemic diseases and a decrease in the population. Still worse, these natural disasters had big impacts on the weakening system of economy and the life of people during the Nasseri era.