Examining the Phenomenon of Begging in the Nasrid Era, a Case Study of Garrus Province

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Professor, Department of History, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

2 PhD Student of History, Department of History, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

10.30484/ganj.2024.3154

Abstract

Purpose: Begging, as a prevalent manifestation of poverty, stems from economic and social disruptions. This phenomenon had extensive social repercussions during the Qajar era. This study, based on an important governmental report from the Naseri period concerning beggars in Garrus Province, aims to investigate the phenomenon of begging, analyze the characteristics of beggars (gender, age, and behavioral patterns), and identify some of the reasons that prompted groups of beggars to adopt this practice. The central question of the study pertains to the state of begging and the characteristics of beggars in Garrus Province.
 
 Method and Research Design: The research employs thematic analysis based on library sources and documents to identify, analyze, and categorize data related to this phenomenon.
Findings and Conclusion: Begging in Garrus Province occurred across various age groups. The fact that 36% of the beggars were women reflects the vulnerability of impoverished families to poverty and their subsequent resort to begging. Moreover, the government's initiative in compiling and sending an official report—which required collecting data on beggars—indicates the significant presence of this group and the concerns of local and possibly central authorities regarding the social consequences of begging, such as disruptions to order and security. However, no specific program for addressing or organizing beggars in this province appears to have been implemented.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

English Translation of References
Documents
Sāzmān-e Asnād va Ketābxāne-ye Melli-ye Iran (Sākmā) (National Library and Archives Organization of Iran): 295/7345; 295/7604; 296/12982; 296/21258; 296/21259. [In Persian]
Manuscripts
“Joqrāfiyā-ye Irān” (Geography of Iran). Sāzmān-e Asnād va Ketābxāne-ye Melli-ye Iran (Sākmā) (National Library and Archives Organization of Iran). Number 5-15561. [In Persian]
“Fehrest-e xazā’en va ma’āden-e Irān” (List of treasures and mines of Iran). Sāzmān-e Asnād va Ketābxāne-ye Melli-ye Iran (Sākmā) (National Library and Archives Organization of Iran). Number 5-10268. [In Persian]
Books
Afshar, Forouzan. (1400/2021). “Takaddi-zodāyi: Az enqelāb-e mašruteh tā entehā-ye Pahlavi-ye avval” (De-beggary: From the constitutional revolution to the end of the first Pahlavi). Tehran: Hamšahri. [In Persian]
Afshar, Iraj. (1371/1992). “Kermānšāhān va tamaddon-e dirine-ye ān” (Kermanshahs and its ancient civilization) (vol. 2). Tehran: Zarrin. [In Persian]
Alizadeh Birjandi, Zahra; & Malekzadeh, Elham. (1400/2021). “Takaddi-gari dar dowre-ye Qājār va Pahlavi” (Begging in Qajar and Pahlavi periods). Tehran: Fekr-e Bekr. [In Persian]
Aubin, Eugene. (1362/1983). “Irān-e emruz” (La Perse d’aujourd’hui, Iran, Mesopotamie) [Persia Today, Iran, Mesopotamia]. Translated and edited by Ali Asghar Saeedi. Tehran: Ketābforuši-ye Zovvār. [In Persian]
Brittlebank, William. (1399/2020). “Irān dar dowre-ye qahti: Ravāyati az didār-e šarq vas afar-e raft-o-bāzgašt (1290 AH/1873 AD)” (Persia during the famine: A narrative of a tour in the east and of the journey out and home). Translated by Seyyedeh Fatemeh Yahosseini. Tehran: Širāze-ye Ketāb-e Mā. [In Persian]
Curzon, George. (1349/1970). “Irān va qazie-ye Irān” (Persia and the Persian question). (vol. 2). Translated by Gholam Ali Vahid Mazandarani. Bongāh-e Tarjomeh va Našr-e Ketāb. [In Persian]
Dehkhoda, Ali Akbar. (1377/1998). “Loqat-nāme-ye Dehxodā” (Dehkhoda lexicon) (vol. 5). Tehran: Dānešgāh-e Tehrān (University of Tehran). [In Persian]
Dolatabadi, Yahya. (1361/1982). “Hayāt-e Yahyā” (Yahya’s life) (vol. 1). Tehran: Ferdowsi. [In Persian]
Etemad Al-Saltaneh, Mohammad Hasan. (n. d.). “Tārix-e montazam-e Nāseri” (Naseri history in verse) (vol. 3). Edited by Mohammad Esmaeel Rezvani. Tehran: Donyā-ye Ketāb. [In Persian]
Etemad Al-Saltaneh, Mohammad Hasan. (1350/1971). “Ruznāme-ye xāterāt-e E’temād-os-Saltaneh: Vazir-e entebā’āt dar avāxer-e dowre-ye Nāseri: Marbut be sāl-hā-ye 1292 tā 1313 Hejri Qamari” (The Life and Diary of Mohammad Hasan Khan E'temad os-Saltaneh: Inside the Court of Naser od-Din Shah Qajar, 1881-1896). Tehran: Amir Kabir. [In Persian]
E’temad Al-Saltaneh, Mohammad Hasan. (1363/1984). “Al-ma’āser-o val-āsār” (Feats and Events) (vol. 1). Edited by Iraj Afshar. Tehran: Asātir. [In Persian]
Fauvrier, Joannes. (1385/2006). “Se sāl dar darbār-e Irān: Az 1306 tā 1309 Qamari” (Trois ans à la cour de Perse 1888 – 1891) [Three years in the court of Iran]. Translated by Abbas Eghbal Ashtiani. Tehran: ‘Elm. [In Persian]
Ghazvini, Mohammad Shafi. (1370/1991). “Qānun-e Qazvini: Entrqād-e owzā’-e ejtemā’ee-ye Irān-e dowre-ye Nāser” (Qazvini Law: Criticism of the social situation of Iran during the Nasrid period). Edited by Iraj Afshar. Tehran: Talāyeh. [In Persian]
Giddens, Anthony. (1376/1997). “Jāme’e-šenāsi” (Sociology). Translated by Jamshid Behnam. Tehran: Xārazmi. [In Persian]
‎Gobineau, Joseph Arthur. (1383/2004). “Se sāl dar Āsiyā: Safarnāme-ye Kont de Gobino (1855 – 1858)” (Trois ans en Asie: de 1855 a 1858) [Three years in Asia: 1855 – 1858]. Translated by Abd-Al-Reza Houshang Mahdavi. Tehran: Qatreh. [Persian]
“Gozāreš-hā-ye owzā’-e siyāsi-ejtemā’ee-ye velāyāt-e ‘asr-e Nāseri” (Reports on the socio-political situation of the provinces in the Nasrid era). (1372/1993). Edited by Mohammadreza Abbasi & Parviz Badiei. Tehran: Pažuheškade-ye Asnād-e Sāzmān-e Asnād va Ketābxāne-ye Melli (Sākmā) (National Library and Archives Organization of Iran). [In Persian]
“Gozāreš-hā-ye nazmiyeh az mahallāt-e Tehrān” (Nazmieh's reports from the neighborhoods of Tehran) (vol. 1). (1377/1998). Edited by Ensiyeh Sheikh Rezaei & Shahla Azari. Tehran: Sāzmān-e Asnād va Ketābxāne-ye Melli-ye Iran (Sākmā) (National Library and Archives Organization of Iran). [In Persian]
Holster, Ernst. (1354/1975). “Irān dar yeksad-o-sizdah sāl piš” (Persien vor 113 Jahren) [Iran in one hundred and thirteen years ago]. Translated by Mohammad Asemi. Tehran: Markaz-e Mardom-šenāsi-ye Irān. [In Persian]
Kermani, Nazem Al-Eslam. (1377/1998). “Tārix-e bidāri-ye Irāniyān” (The history of the awakening of Iranians) (vol. 1). Translated by Ali Akbar Saeeidi Sirjani. Tehran: Peykān. [In Persian]
Labbens, Jean. (1359/1980). “Jāme’e-šenāsi-ye faqr (Jahān-e sevvom va jahān-e čahārom” (Sociologie de la pauvreté, le tiers-monde et le quart-monde) [Sociology of poverty, the third world and the fourth world]. Translated by Jamshid Behnam. Tehran: Xārazmi. [In Persian]
Layard, Sir Austen Henry. (1367/1988). “Safarnāme-ye Lāyārd yā mājarā-hā-ye avvaliyeh dar Irān” (Early adventures in Persia, Susiana, and Babylonia, including a residence among the Bakhtiyari and other wild tribes before the discovery of Nineveh). Translated by Mehrab Amiri. Tehran: Vahid. [In Persian]
Maragheei, Zein Al-Abedin. (n. d.). “Siāhatnāme-ye Ebrāhim Beig-e Marāqe-ee” (Ibrahim Beig’s travelogue). Edited by Mohammad Ali Sepanlou. (n. p.): n. p. [In Persian]
Marivani, Mohammad. (1382/2003). “Bijār dar gozar-e tārix” (Bijar in the passage of history). Tehran: Nik-pendār. [In Persian]
Moeen, Mohammad. (1383/2004). “Farhang-e Fārsi” (Moin Encyclopedic Dictionary) (vol. 1). Tehran: Amir Kabir. [In Persian]
Momtahen Al-Doleh, Mirza Mahdi Khan. (1353/1974). “Xāterāt-e Momtahen-od-Dowleh” (The memoirs of Momtahen Al-Doleh: The biography of Mirza Madi Khan Momtahen Al-Doleh Shaqaqi). Edited by Hossein Gholi Khan Shaghaghi. Tehran: Amir Kabir. [In Persian]
Mousavi Khoyi, Abolghasem. (1314 AH/1896). “Mowsu’at-ol-Emām al-Xoyi” (Encyclopaedia of Imam al-Khoei) (vol. 24). Qom: Mo’assese-ye Ehyā’-e Āsār-e Emām Al-Xoyi (Al-Khoei Institute). [In Persian]
Naraghi, Mahdi. (1379/2000). “Jāme’-os-sa’ādāt: ‘Elm-e axlāq-e eslāmi” (The Collector of Felicities) (vol. 2) (9th ed.). Translated by Seyyed Jalal Al-Din Mojtabavi. Tehran: Hekmat. [In Persian]
Polak, Jakob Eduard. (1368/1989). “Safar-nāme-ye Polāk: Irān va Irāniān” (Persien, das land und seine bewohner; Ethnograpische schilderungen) [Persia, the land and its inhabitants: Ethnographic descriptions]. Translated by Keykavous Jahangiri. Xārazmi. [In Persian]
Rochechouart, Julien de. (1378/1999). “Xāterāt-e safar-e Irān” (Souvenirs d'un voyage en Perse) [Memories of a trip to Persia]. Translated by Mehran Tavakkoli. Tehran: Ney. [In Persian]
Salour, Ghahreman Mirza. (1374/1995). “Ruznāme-ye xāterāt-e ‘Eynossaltaneh (Qahremān Mirzā Sālur)” (The daily memoirs of Eyn Al-Saltaneh) (vol. 2). Edited by Masoud Salour & Iraj Afshar. Tehran: Asātir. [In Persian]
Serena, Carla. (1363/1984). “Mardom va didani-hā dar Irān: Safar-nāme-ye mādām Kārlā Serenā” (Hommes et choses en perse) [Men and things in Persia]. Translated by Gholamreza Samiei. Tehran: Našr-e no. [In Persian]
Sheil, Lady. (1368/1989). “Xāterāt-e Leidi Šeil” (Glimpses of life and manners in Persia). Translated by Hossein Aboutoraabian. Tehran: Našr-e no. [In Persian]
Talibov, Abdul Rahim. (1356/1977). “Ketāb-e Ahmad” (Ahmad’s book or the Talibian vessel). Tehran: Šabgir. [In Persian]
Wishard, John. (1363/1984). “Bist sāl dar Irān” (Twenty years in Persia; A narrative of life under the last three shahs). Translated by Ali Pirnia. Tehran: Novin. [In Persian]
 
Articles
Alizadeh Birjandi, Zahra. (1402/2023). “Barresi-ye nahve-ye ‘amalkard-e xeyriye-hā dar omur-e notekaddiyān (Motāle’e-ye moredi: Dowre-ye Qājār va Pahlavi)” (Investigating the performance of charities in the affairs of beggars (Case study: Qajar and Pahlavi periods)). Pažuheš-nāme-ye Motāle’āt-e Vaqf va Omur-e Xeyriyeh (Journal of Endowment & Charity Studies), 1(1). [In Persian]
Mehrabani, Vahid. (1391/2012). “Takaddi-gari va mobādelāt-e eqtesādi dar bāzār-e sonnati-ye Tehrān” (Begging and economic exchanges in the traditional market of Tehran). Majalle-ye Eqtesādi – Māhnāme-ye Barresi-ye Masā’el va Siyāsat-hā-ye Eqtesādi, 12(2). [In Persian]
Dissertation
Lesanipour, Mehri. (1394/2015). “Takaddi-gari dar Irān-e ‘asr-e Safavi va Qājār” (Begging in Safavid and Qajar Iran). [Masters’ thesis]. Department of History and Civilization, Department of Islamic History, Dānešgāh-e Beinolmelali-ye Emām Xomeini-ye Qazvin (Imam Khomeini International University). [In Persian]
Newspapers
Irān-e Soltāni, year 57, issue 16, p. 2. [In Persian]
Irān-e Soltāni, year 59, issue 10, p. 4. [In Persian]
Habl-ol-Matin (Habl al-Matin), year 6, issue 12, p. 4. [In Persian]
Vaqāye’-e Ettefāqiyeh, 14 Ḏū al-Qaʿdah 1267 AH / 10 September 1851, issue 32, p. 2. [In Persian]
Vaqāye’-e Ettefāqiyeh, 22 Ḏū al-Ḥijjah1268 AH / 7 October 1852, issue 88, p. 4. [In Persian]
Vaqāye’-e Ettefāqiyeh, 3 Safar 1271 AH / 26 October 1854, issue 195, p. 3. [In Persian]

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 04 February 2024
  • Revise Date: 12 February 2024
  • Accept Date: 21 April 2024

Share

How to cite

Statistics