The History of Iranian Jews in the Modern Era
Author: Mehrdad Amanat
This book offers a detailed account of the hardships endured by Iranian Jews, particularly during the Qajar period, yet its central concern lies in examining the broader phenomenon of religious conversion in Iran. The author explores how systemic religious discrimination under the Qajars often led Jews to change their faith. These conversions included, at times, adoption of Islam, the Bahá’í Faith, or even Christianity, but in all cases, conversion was often a means to improve one's social standing.
Thus, the deeply entrenched religious inequalities in Iranian society gave rise to the phenomenon of Jewish conversion as a form of social navigation. To support his analysis, the author employs the compelling method of drawing upon personal biographies, weaving individual lives into the broader fabric of historical narrative. The result is a work that is at once a historical and sociological study, anchored in precise data drawn from the rhythms of everyday life.