Dr Siavush Randjbar-Daemi
Senior Lecturer
Senior Lecturer in Modern Middle Eastern History
- Phone
- +44 (0)1334 46 3058
- srd5@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Office
- Room 6b
- Location
- United Colleges
- Office hours
- On Research Leave (Semester 2)
Research areas
Siavush’s core research interests lie in the evolution of the state in modern and contemporary Iran, and the contribution to the public sphere, particularly in periods of relative pluralism, such as the early 1950s or 1979-1981, of a variety of actors, from crowds formed by subaltern parts of society to socio-political elites.
His first book, The Quest for Authority: A History of the Presidency from Revolution to Rouhani, is the first full-length monograph to focus on the presidential institution in the Islamic Republic, from its inception to the present day.
Siavush is now working on a long-term project which will yield a number of outputs, the turbulent and unique political history of the 1977-1981 period through the lens of the “Other Revolutionaries”, those parts of the anti-monarchical coalition which succeeded in bringing the Pahlavi monarchy to an end but who were ejected from the public sphere by the early 1980s.
In March 2021, Siavush was co-organiser of the first-ever (bilingual) academic conference focused on the Tudeh Party of Iran in the Western academic sphere, on the occasion of the Eightieth anniversary of its foundation.
Siavush's article on the Tudeh Party of Iran's attitude towards the land reform initiatives of the Pahlavi state in 1958-1964 was the winner of the 2023 Elie and Sylvia Kedourie Prize for Outstanding Article.
Siavush is co-editor of Fada'i Guerrilla Praxis in Iran, 1970 - 1979
Narratives and Reflections on Everyday Life (Bloomsbury/IB Tauris, 2023), a new anthology on the everyday life challenges of the Fada'i guerrillas in the 1970s.
Siavush is a keen student of the evolution of the Iranian press, and has collaborated with the University of Manchester Library in the creation of Nashriyah www.library.manchester.ac.uk/nashriyah, the first openly-accessible repository of relevant Iranian periodicals from the 20th century. He is currently also producing a number of outputs on the life and times of several publications of the 1979 and 1951-53 period.
Besides Italian and English, Siavush's work has been published in several Persian language media, including the Akhbar-e Rouz, Asr-e Nou and Radio Zamaneh websites, and the Andisheh-ye Pouya, Bukhara, Negah-e Now and Shahrvand-e Emrouz journals published in Iran.
Siavush warmly welcomes prospective PhD applicants who intend to base their dissertation on any of the strands detailed above. His current research supervision includes various aspects in the history of the Tudeh Party of Iran, the evolution of the car industry in the Pahlavi era and the activities of the Iranian opposition to the Shah in the Middle East in the 1960s and 1970s.
PhD supervision
- Bita Naghashian
Selected publications
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From Mehrabad-e Jonoubi to the technical faculty
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 27 Jul 2023, Fada'i Guerrilla praxis in Iran, 1970-1979: narratives and reflections on everyday life. Atabaki, T., Mohajer, N. & Randjbar-Daemi, S. (eds.). London: I.B. Tauris, p. 217-237 21 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
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Fada'i Guerrilla praxis in Iran, 1970 - 1979: narratives and reflections on everyday life
Mohajer, N. (Editor), Atabaki, T. (Editor) & Randjbar-Daemi, S. (Editor), 27 Jul 2023, London: I.B. Tauris. 352 p.Research output: Book/Report › Book
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The quest for authority in Iran: a history of the presidency from revolution to Rouhani
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 28 Nov 2017, London: I.B. Tauris. 348 p. (International library of Iranian studies; vol. 71)Research output: Book/Report › Book
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Open access
The Tudeh Party of Iran and the land reform initiatives of the Pahlavi State, 1958-1964
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 1 Jun 2022, In: Middle Eastern Studies. 58, 4, p. 617-635 19 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
The Tudeh Party of Iran and the peasant question, 1941-53
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 2020, In: Middle Eastern Studies. 56, 6, p. 969-987Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
“Down with the monarchy”: Iran’s Republican Moment of August 1953
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 2017, In: Iranian Studies. 50, 2, p. 293-313Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Building the Islamic state: The draft constitution of 1979 reconsidered
Randjbar-Daemi, S., 1 Jul 2013, In: Iranian Studies. 46, 4, p. 641-663 23 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review