A University of Sussex MPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the aut hor, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details Hijab in Transition Dress Code Changes amongst Iranian Diaspora in London Zahra Jalaeipour Submitted for MPhil in Social Anthropology Department of Anthropology School of Global Studies University of Sussex May 2016 UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX MPhil Social Anthropology Zahra Jalaeipour Hijab in Transition: Dress Code Changes amongst Iranian Diaspora in London This thesis explores the factors that influence Iranian women’s choice of hijab and its transitions. Compulsory hijab in Iran and even voluntary practice of hijab exert a great deal of influence on the lives of the Iranian women worldwide. My thesis investigates how cultural, social and political factors interweave with theological and jurisprudential debates leading to diverse forms of practicing hijab and its transitions in one’s life. For the first time in the anthropology literature, my thesis portrays and explains the current status of, and developments in, hijab amongst Iranian women who have been raised in Iran and now live in London. My research is based on the data and cultural knowledge I gathered through conducting 40 in- depth interviews with Iranian women in London, and interviewing four prominent male Muslim intellectuals, scholars and clerics who have worked on and talked about hijab in Iran (Kadivar, Eshkevari, Fanaei, and Torkashvand). In addition to narrating the history and transformations of hijab policies and hijab jurisprudence in Iran from the constitutional revolution to the present, in this research, I have identified five schemas of dress code amongst Iranians in London (full traditional hijab, full progressive hijab, partial-hijab, conservative scarf-less and radical hijab-less) which challenge the current categorizations and generalisations regarding the hijab. By describing the features of each of the schemas this thesis provides a useful descriptive and explanatory tool that will enable a better understanding of hijab dynamics among Iranian women in London. I have demonstrated that hijab is a very fluid term. Hijab varies between individuals in practice, style, rationale, and purpose, and it is neither simply oppressive nor empowering. I hereby declare that this theses has not been submitted in whole or in part to any other University for the award of any degree. Signature Zahra Jalaeipour I Acknowledgement To begin with, I would like to sincerely thank all those who shared their views, feelings and personal life stories without which I would not have been able to do this research. I would like to thank further all the writers and thinkers whose work helped me understand the topic and write this thesis. I would like to express my Special gratitude to my wonderful friend, Dr. Daryoush Mohammadpour, who took the time to read my thesis. Without his emotional as well as editorial support, finishing the PhD journey would have been much more challenging for me. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to Mohammad Reza Mojtahed, whose financial and mental support enabled me to start and finish this PhD. I'm grateful to both my supervisors, Prof Raminder Kuar Kahlon and Dr Kamran Matin, for their support and patience. I cannot put into words my appreciation for my brother, Mohammad Reza Jalaeipour, who put a lot of time and energy in reading my thesis. His support and kindness and encouragements were very essential to my ability to finish this PhD. I would like to thank Dr Ziba Mir-Hosseini for her early comments, generosity and kindness. Many thanks to Dr Ali Fanaei who was always there for me and gave me a lot of support and encouragement. I am very grateful to my psychotherapist Anahita Ganjavi who helped me to believe in myself and pushed me to get through this rather difficult journey. Many thanks to Titiksha Shukla, my friend and classmate in the global studies school, for her generosity and kindness in accepting me in her small one bedroom home at Sussex every week during the first year of my PhD. I would like to thank Emad Tabatabaei who helped me plan and structure the thesis before starting to write it. II I could not complete this research without the love and support of my family and friends. I wish to thank Sadegh KhoshZaban, my true friend, whose company, support and understanding made my life better and I cannot put in words how grateful I am. My mother, Tahere Aledavood who generously gave her love and my father Hamidreza Jalaeipour. I want to thank my brother Alireza Jalaeipour and his wife Zahra Bourghani who is dearer than a sister to me. I stayed at their flat during the most difficult times of writing this thesis and their love and generosity help me cope with the work that needed to be done. I also want to thank my dear friends who encouraged me and were always there for me. I would be unable to name them all, but they include Farnaz Hosseinizadeh, Ehsan Mojtahedi, Arefe Vaez, Mahdi Moghimi, Maryam Sadeghi, Reihane Karbaschian, Hoda Zarabi, Sajjad Sadeh and Samira Ezzati. Last but foremost I want to give my deepest gratitude and thanks to my husband Seyed Amir Hossein Hosseini. I cannot capture in words what he did for me. Without his support and love and generosity I would have not been able to do this research. He stood by me throughout the most difficult times and his patience and understanding is incomparable to anyone. III Contents Acknowledgement ................................................................................................................................ I Contents ................................................................................................................................................. III Table of Figures .................................................................................................................................. VII Note on Translation and Transliteration ................................................................................. VIII Iranian Studies transliteration scheme .................................................................................... VIII Consonants ........................................................................................................................................ VIII Vowels ................................................................................................................................................. VIII Glossary ................................................................................................................................................... X Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 Aims and scope ................................................................................................................................. 2 Background ........................................................................................................................................ 6 Themes ............................................................................................................................................... 10 Chapter outline ................................................................................................................................ 11 Chapter Two: Literature Review, Theoretical Framework and Methodology ........... 14 Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 14 Theoretical and historical backgrounds of a tension ...................................................... 15 Islam, Modernity and Secularism: Backgrounds of a Confrontation ........................ 15 Gender and Islam .......................................................................................................................... 25 Muslim Women as Free Agents ............................................................................................... 26 Problematising Gender ............................................................................................................... 33 Hijab ................................................................................................................................................... 35 Demystifying the veil ................................................................................................................... 35 Islamic Feminism or Islam and Feminism? ........................................................................ 38 The veil: to abolish or to adopt? .............................................................................................. 50 Variations of dress code, its contingencies and complexities...................................... 56 Figure 1: An Example of Piche (The White Face Covering) Worn by Iranian Women During Pahlavi Dynasty ..................................................................................................................