Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/1217

 RELIGION — INSTRUCTION 1 1 6.=)

three million nomads. Of these, 260,000 are Arabs. 720,000 Turk-.

675,000 Kurds aud Leks, 20,700 Baluchis au.l Or

These ligures, however, are merely round numbers, aud estimates van -.

The number of Europeans residing iu Persia does not exceed 1,200. There are about 600 British subjects resident in Persia (exclusive of British Indians).

The principal cities of Persia are : — Teheran, with over 220,000 inhabi- tants; Tabriz, with 200,000 ; Ispahan and Kermanshah, 80,000 each; Meshed and Kerman, with 70,000 to 80,000 e.ich ; Yezd, with 45.000 ; Barfurush, aud Shiraz, with 50,000 ; Hamadan, Kazvin, Kom, Kashan, Resht, each with 30,000 to 40.000 inhabitants.

Religion.

Of the population about 8£ millions are Mahometans of the Shi'a and of that branch of it known as the Ithnd' Ashariyya, who recognise twelve Imams or spiritual successors of the Prophet Mahomet ; 850,000 are of the Sunui sect ; 10,000 are Parsis (Guebres), 40,000 Jews, 50,000 Armenians, and 30,000 Nestorians.

The Mahometans of the sect called Shi'a differ to some extent in religious doctrine, and more iu historical belief, from the Moslems of the Turkish Empire, who are called Suuni. The Persian priesthood (ulema) is very powerful. Any person capable of reading the Koran and interpreting its laws may act as a priest (mulla). As soon as such a priest becomes known for his just interpretation of the divine law, and for his knowledge of the traditions and articles of faith, usually gained by many years of study at Najaf and Kerbela, he is called a mujtahid, or chief priest. There are many mujtahids in Persia, sometimes several in one town ; there are, however, only four or five whose decisions are accepted as final. The highest authority, the chief priest of all, is the leading mujtahid, who resides at Najaf or Kerbela, - near Baghdad, and some consider him the vicegerent of the Prophet, the representative of the Imam. The Shah and the Government have no voice in the matter of appointing the mujtahids, but the Sheikh -ul-Islam, chief judge, and the Imam-i-Jum'ah, chief of the great mosque (Masjed-i-Jain'ah) of a city, are appointed by Government. Under the Imam-i-Jum'ah are the ish naniaz or khatib (leader of public prayers and reader of the Khutbeh, the Friday oration), the mu'azzin (crier for prayers), and sometimes the mutavali (guardian of the mosque) ; this latter, as well as the mu'azzin, need not necessarily be a priest. All mosques and shrines have some endow- ments (wakf), and out of the proceeds of these are provided the funds for the salaries of the priests attached to them. The shrine* of some favourite saints are so richly endowed as to be able to keep an immense staff of priests, servants, and hangers-on.

The Gregorian National Armenians form two dioceses, each under a bishop. One bishop resides at Tabriz, the other at Ispahan. There are also a few thousand Roman Catholic Armenians in Persia who have a bishop of their own rite at Ispahan, the bishop of the Latin rite residing at Urumiah. There is a wide tolerance exercised towards Armenians and Nestorians, Jews, and Parsis in cities where Europeans reside ; in other places, however, they occasionally suffer oppression from Mussulmans belonging to the lower classes.

Instruction.

In recent years many schools of various degrees, entirely on European lines, have been established ; the Ministry of Education has undergone radical reforms ; and female education has been greatly advanced. There are probably some 180 schools in Persia with an aggregate of 10,000 pupils of both a