Imperial wars and the violence of hunger: remembering and forgetting the Great Persian Famine 1917–1919

Abstract

The Great Persian Famine of 1917–1919 is one of the greatest calamities <br/>in the history of Iran. While some scholarly work has explored the causes <br/>and dynamics of the famine, less attention has been paid to its memo-<br/>rialisation. This paper aims to understand how the Great Persian Famine <br/>is remembered – or not – in public and personal spheres in Iran. <br/>Discussing the historical events that have been silenced, neglected or <br/>publicly recognised and commemorated before and after the Islamic <br/>Revolution, the paper focusses on the processes that hinder public and <br/>private memorialising of hunger violence. Drawing on existing literature, <br/>personal diaries, artistic representations, and interviews with persons <br/>whose parents or grandparents experienced the Great Persian Famine, <br/>we discuss why it has not figured prominently in the national historiog-<br/>raphy or commemorative practices, except during a brief period (2008–<br/>2013) when it found its way into the prevailing political discourse.