The Shi'is of Iraq provides a comprehensive history of Iraq's majority group and its turbulent relations with the ruling Sunni minority. Yitzhak Nakash challenges the widely held belief that Shi'i society and politics in Iraq are a reflection of Iranian Shi'ism, pointing to the strong Arab attributes of Iraqi Shi'ism. He contends that behind the power struggle in Iraq between Arab Sunnis and Shi'is there exist two sectarian groups that are quite similar. The tension fueling the sectarian problem between Sunnis and Shi'is is political rather than ethnic or cultural, and it reflects the competition of the two groups over the right to rule and to define the meaning of nationalism in Iraq. A new introduction brings this book into the new century and illuminates the role that Shi`is could play in postwar Iraq.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
<TR>Preface<TR>A Note on Transliteration<TR>Abbreviations<TR>Introduction3<TR>Ch. 1The Making of Iraqi Shii Society13<TR>Iraq the Frontier14<TR>The Shrine Cities18<TR>The Conversion of the Tribes to Shiism25<TR>The Nature of the Conversion43<TR>Ch. 2Years of Upheaval49<TR>The Impact of Two Revolutions50<TR>Muslim Unity and the Jihad Movement55<TR>The 1919 Plebiscite61<TR>The 1920 Revolt66<TR>Ch. 3Exercising Social Control75<TR>Containing the Mujtahids75<TR>Managing the Tribal Shaykhs88<TR>Baghdad and the Shrine Cities94<TR>The Blow to the Status of Persians100<TR>Human Dilemmas105<TR>Ch. 4The Search for Political Representation109<TR>Recognizing the State109<TR>The 1935 Revolt120<TR>The Bid for Power125<TR>The Radical Options132<TR>Ch. 5The Commemoration of 'Ashura'141<TR>The Nature of the Muharram Observances142<TR>The Mujtahids and the Muharram Observances154<TR>The State and 'Ashura'157<TR>Ch. 6Pilgrimage to the Shrine Cities and the Cult of the Saints163<TR>Foreign Pilgrimage164<TR>Internal Visitation173<TR>Ch. 7The Corpse Traffic184<TR>Development and Socioeconomic Functions185<TR>The Religious Creed versus the Social Order192<TR>The State and the Corpse Traffic197<TR>Ch. 8Shii Money and the Shrine Cities205<TR>The Building of an Economic Base206<TR>The Oudh Bequest211<TR>The Consequences of Dependency on Foreign Funds229<TR>Ch. 9The Shii Madrasa in Iraq238<TR>Features and Functions241<TR>Signs of Decline247<TR>A New Iraqi Shii Madrasa262<TR>Conclusion269<TR>Epilogue: The Gulf War and its Aftermath273<TR>Appendix 1 The Constitution of the Buraq Quarter of Najaf283<TR>Appendix 2 Important Shii Shrines, Tombs, and Holy Sites in Iraq285<TR>Appendix 3 Shii Holy Burial Sites287<TR>Bibliography289<TR>Index303
