1. Sovereignty, Authority, and Powa
Team China

2. Political Culture, Communication, and Socialization
Multi-faceted political culture characterized by:
Authoritarianism, not totalitarianism- Central political leaders did not control all lives, people were accustomed to paying attention to local officials or leading own lives
Union of political and religious authority- Except for during rule of Qajars ( )
Shiism as central components- 90% of Iranians identify themselves of Shiite which links citizens to gov
Escape from European colonization- Iran never officially colonized by Europeans during imperialist era
Geographic limitations- Much of land space unusable for agriculture, so population is unevenly distributed, with most people living in cities
The influence of ancient Persia- Persian cultural habits remained after Arabs invaded Iran
Strong sense of Iranian nationalism

3. Sources of Power -Stephen
Authoritarianism
Union of political and religious authority
Shiism and sharia
90% of Iranians identify as Shiite
Sharia, Islamic law, important source of legitimacy and power
Strong Iranian nationalism
Stronger sense of identity than most arab countries
Most likely identify as Iranian first, and Muslim second

4. Types of Economic Systems- Claire
Political and economic changes have taken many courses over Iran’s long history
Natural resources have been both detrimental and beneficial for the economy
A lack of arable land has meant that agriculture base of the empire was never secure
geographical location has caused Iran to emphasize trade by land, so when world commerce turned to sea- based power at the beginning of the 26th century, Iran was marginalized
Greatest natural resource is oil-- caused Iran to prosper
Safavids-- implemented serious economic restraints b/c geographical location caused inability to participate in trade
Qajars -- sold oil drilling rights to Britain and borrowed heavily from European banks to cover expenses and economic unrest due to these loans led to the constitution of 1906
Pahlavis-- transformed into a rentier state, which is heavily supported by state expenditure, b/c of increasing amount of income from oil.

5. Belief Systems as Sources of Legitimacy
Religion became the unity that survived despite invasion and domination
Shiism established as the state religion in the 16th century
Belief that leadership should be hereditary and that the true heirs were descendants of Muhammed, Islam’s founder
The heirs- “imams”- continued to rule until the 9th century until the “Hidden Imam”
Iran stood alone as a Shiite state among Sunni nations
Ismail, founder of the Safavid Empire, gave political legitimacy to the belief that the Hidden Imam would return
Ayatollah Khomeini was seen as protector of faith that unites religion with power of the state
Constitution of 1979 reflects importance of religion toward legitimacy and reiterated the concept of the return of the Hidden Imam
Islamic law, Sharia, binds the citizens

6. Governance and Accountability - alexis emily D
The highest power lies with the Supreme Leader (Rahbar) of the Islamic Revolution, currently Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei. ... According to the Constitution, the Islamic Republic of Iran is a republic with separation of powers among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
Iranians elect the president and parliament every four years
Assembly of leadership every eight under fierce scrutiny by guardian council
Assembly of leadership authorized to dismiss leader
Majles approve national budget, draft legislation, and ratifies international treaties
Five seats for minorities