View source for Women in Iran

{{Short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->

{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox women
|image     =Ebadi.jpg 
|caption   =[[Shirin Ebadi]], Iranian womens rights activist and Nobel prize laureate 
|gii       = 0.459 (2021)
|gii_rank  = 115th out of 191
|matdeath  = 21 (2010)
|womparl   = 6% (2016)
|femed     = 62.1% (2010)
|womlab    = 49% (2011)
| ggg      = 0.576 (2022)
| ggg_rank = 143rd out of 146
| ggg_ref  = <ref>{{cite web|title=Global Gender Gap Report 2022|url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2022.pdf|publisher=World Economic Forum|access-date=7 March 2023}}</ref>
|gii_ref=<ref>{{cite web|title=Human Development Report 2021/2022|url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2021-22pdf_1.pdf|publisher=HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORTS|access-date=28 November 2022}}</ref>}}
{{Women in society sidebar}} {{Culture of Iran}}'''Women in Iran''' have played diverse roles and contributed to various aspects of society, economy, and culture. For centuries, traditional gender norms in [[Iran]] confined women primarily to the domestic sphere, with expectations to manage the household and raise children.

During the rule of the [[Pahlavi dynasty]], significant social reforms were introduced to promote women's rights and advance gender equality. Notable changes included the abolition of mandatory [[hijab]], the granting of [[women's suffrage]], the opening of universities to women, the enforcement of [[equal pay]] for men and women, and the right for women to hold public office and serve in [[Majlis|parliament]]. These reforms marked a gradual change and transition towards a more modern and egalitarian society.

Following the [[Iranian Revolution]] of 1979, although Articles 20 and 21 of the new [[Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran]] proclaim equal rights for men and women, many laws enacted after the revolution are subject to resulting in substantial restrictions on women's freedoms. Women are required by law to wear the hijab in public and must cover their hair and bodies, except for the face and hands. Non-compliance with the Islamic dress code can lead to legal penalties and, in some cases, violence by enforcement authorities.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news |date=8 March 2018 |title=Iran jails woman for removing headscarf in public |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-43329896 |access-date=16 February 2021 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

In the 21st century, international criticism of Iran's treatment of women has intensified, especially in light of the suppression of women's protests, arbitrary arrests, and police violence against women accused of violating dress codes. Cases of [[femicide]], sometimes perpetrated by family members in the name of "[[Honor killing|family honor]]" although illegal and arresting and sometimes even killing demonstrators and protestors done by the state forces, have become increasingly concerning issue In [[Iran]]. [[Human rights]] activists point to systemic failures that prevent women in Iran from receiving effective legal protection.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 26, 2018 |title=Iran: Dozens of women ill-treated and at risk of long jail terms for peacefully protesting compulsory veiling |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/02/iran-dozens-of-women-ill-treated-and-at-risk-of-long-jail-terms-for-peacefully-protesting-compulsory-veiling/}}</ref>

==History==

===Ancient Iran===
{{See also|Women in the Achaemenid Empire|Women in the Parthian Empire|Women in the Sasanian Empire}}
[[File:Elam cool.jpg|thumb|linear-[[Elamite]] women inscription. Late 3rd Millennium BC silver cup, [[Marvdasht]].]] 
Archaeological excavations at [[Shahr-e Sukhteh]] ("Burnt City"), a prehistoric settlement in the [[Sistan and Baluchestan Province|Sistan-Baluchistan]] province of southeastern Iran, have revealed that women in the region during the [[4th millennium BC|4th]] to [[3rd millennium BC]] possessed high [[social status|status]]. Of the seals discovered in graves there, 90% were in possession of women,<ref name="CHN_2_4402">{{cite web|author=CHN Press|url=http://www.chnpress.com/news/?section=2&id=4402|title=Women Held Power In Burnt City|access-date=April 11, 2007}}</ref> who made up over 60% of the population.<ref name="CHN_2_5068">{{cite web|author=CHN Press|title=Female population predominant in 5000-year-old Burnt City|url=http://www.chnpress.com/news/?section=2&id=5068|access-date=April 11, 2007}}</ref> The distribution of these seals – instruments of trade and government which represented economic and administrative control – revealed these women to have been a powerful group in their prehistoric society.<ref name="CHN_2_4402" />

The early [[Achaemenid]]-era [[Persepolis]] [[Persepolis Administrative Archives|fortification and treasury tablets]] refers to women in three different terms: ''mutu'', ''irti'' and ''duksis''.<ref name="Price"/> The first refers to ordinary (non-royal) women; the second to unmarried members of the royal family; and the last ''duksis'' to married women of royalty. Such differentiated terminology shows the significance of marital status and of a woman's relationship to the king. The tablets also reveal that women of the royal household traveled extensively and often personally administered their own estates.<ref name="Price" /> The [[queen consort]] and her ladies-in-waiting are known to have played [[polo]] against the emperor and his courtiers.<ref>{{cite news|author=Harrison, Frances|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4272210.stm|title=Polo comes back home to Iran|publisher=BBC News | date=September 22, 2005}}</ref> The only limits on the extent of the authority exercised by the king's mother were set by the monarch himself.<ref>{{cite book|author=Cotterell, Arthur|title=From Aristotle to Zoroaster|year=1998|isbn=978-0-684-85596-7|publisher=Free Press|location=New York|oclc=39269485|page=[https://archive.org/details/fromaristotletoz00arth/page/434 434]|quote="exercised by the Persian king's mother were set by the monarch himself"|url=https://archive.org/details/fromaristotletoz00arth/page/434}}</ref>

In the tablets, "non-royals and the ordinary workers are mentioned by their rank in the specific workgroup or workshops they were employed. The rations they received are based on skill and the level of responsibility they assumed in the workplace. The [[profession]]s are divided by [[gender]] and listed according to the amount of ration. Records indicate that some professions were undertaken by both sexes while others were restricted to either male or female workers. There are male and female supervisors at the mixed workshops as evident by the higher rations they have received with little difference in the number of rations between the two sexes. There are also occasions where women listed in the same category as men received fewer rations and vice versa. Female managers have different titles presumably reflecting their level of skill and rank. The highest-ranking female workers in the texts are called ''arashshara'' (great chief). They appear repeatedly in the texts, were employed at different locations, and managed large groups of women, children, and sometimes men working in their units. They usually receive high rations of wine and grains exceeding all the other workers in the unit including the males."<ref name="Price">{{cite web|author=Price, Massoume|url=http://www.parstimes.com/women/women_ancient_persia.html|title=Women's Lives in Ancient Persia|access-date=January 16, 2007}}</ref> Pregnant women also received higher rations than others. Women with newborn children also received extra rations for one month.

A few experts say that it was [[Cyrus the Great]] who, twelve centuries before Islam, established the custom of covering women to protect their [[chastity]]. According to their theory, the veil passed from the [[Achaemenid]]s to the Hellenistic [[Seleucid]]s. They, in turn, handed it to the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantines]], from whom the Arab conquerors turned it into the [[hijab]], transmitting it over the vast reaches of the Muslim world.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Iranians: Persia, Islam and the Soul of a Nation|author1=Mackey, Sandra|author2=Harrop, Scott|name-list-style=amp|publisher=Penguin|year=1996|isbn=978-0-452-27563-8|oclc=38995082|url=https://archive.org/details/iranianspersiais00mack}}</ref>

The [[Sassanid]] princess [[Purandokht]], daughter of [[Khosrau II]], ruled the Persian empire for almost two years before resigning. During the Sassanian dynasty, many of the Iranian soldiers who were captured by Romans were women who were fighting along with the men.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Dodgeon M. H.  |author2=Lieu, S. N. C. |name-list-style=amp |title=The Roman Eastern Frontiers and the Persian Wars (AD 226–363); A Documentary History|location=London|publisher=Routledge|year=1991|isbn=978-0-415-10317-6|oclc=29669928}}  pp. 24, 67, 184, 197, 307.</ref>

Persian women are depicted in many masterpieces of [[Persian miniature]]s.<ref>''Toward an aesthetic of Persian painting. Early Islamic Art, 650–1100''. Oleg Grabar. pp. 213–214</ref> These are often used as sources to "trace through the sequence of women's fashion from earlier periods".<ref>''Women's Costume of the Near and the Middle East''. Jennifer M. Scarce. 2003, p. 134</ref>

At the [[Battle of Ctesiphon (363)]] the victorious Roman soldiers prized young Persian women, seizing them as [[war booty]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/emperorjulian00robe|url-access=registration|quote=The young Persian women, renowned for their beauty, were among the choicest items.|title=The Emperor Julian|author=Robert Browning|year=1978|publisher=University of California Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/emperorjulian00robe/page/204 204]|isbn=978-0-520-03731-1|access-date=October 27, 2010}}</ref>

<gallery>
File:Parthian Queen Bust.jpg|A bust from The [[National Museum of Iran]] of Queen [[Musa of Parthia|Musa]], wife of [[Phraates IV of Parthia]]
File:Female sasani bust bowl.JPG|The Persian lady portrayed in five medallions on this bowl has a hairstyle that suggests that she may have been a queen in the [[Sassanid dynasty|Sassanid royal family]] at the time of King Narseh.
File:Mosaic01.jpg|A woman as depicted in [[Sassanid art|Perso]]-[[Roman mosaic|Roman]] floor mosaic in [[Bishapur]]
File:Khusraw Discovers Shirin Bathing, From Pictorial Cycle of Eight Poetic Subjects, mid 18th century.jpg|''[[Khosrow II|Khusraw]] Discovers [[Shirin]] Bathing'', from Pictorial Cycle of Eight Poetic Subjects, mid-18th century; [[Brooklyn Museum]]
</gallery>

===Islamic periods===

====Qajar Dynasty====
During the Qajar period, women played the role of reserve labor, which was important in the economy. Their work always benefited the family, businesses owner, and the state. Rural and lower-class women were mostly involved in [[carpet weaving]], [[embroidery]], and the production of clothing, textile, butter, fruits, and tea. They also worked in silk and cotton manufacturing as well as other handicrafts. Women were also employed at mortuaries, public bathhouses, and in more affluent houses as maids, wet nurses, and nannies.<ref>Paidar, Women and the Political Process, 41; Bamdad, From Darkness into Light, 14.</ref> &nbsp;In more populous cities women worked as entertainers, dancers, or prostitutes. Although many work opportunities were open for women their wages were lower. Women that worked in textiles during this time period earned an average of one-third of what men did.<ref>Foran, John. ''Fragile Resistance: Social Transformation in Iran from 1500 to the Revolution''. Westview Press, 1993., pp. 382</ref> Even though women were given the ability to earn a wage, they still did not have many rights, it was still possible for rural girls to be sold by the head of their families.

This time period, especially between 1905 and 1911, was the start of women's 'awakening'<ref name="auto">{{cite journal |id={{Project MUSE|186836}} |last1=McElrone |first1=Susynne M |title=Nineteenth-Century Qajar Women in the Public Sphere: An Alternative Historical and Historiographical Reading of the Roots of Iranian Women's Activism |journal=Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East |date=2005 |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=297–317 |doi=10.1215/1089201X-25-2-297 |s2cid=144893480 }}</ref> in Persia. It can be suggested that this awakening can be defined as a women's movement and feminism. Women began to become more involved with the public sphere, and Nasir al-Din Shah's harem participated in the 1891 tobacco revolt. However, it was not just wealthy women who were involved but also the common women. Washerwomen donated savings, along with wealthy women's jewelry contributions, to help sponsor a national bank. The storming<ref name="auto"/> of Majilis (parliament) in 1911 by women showed an unprecedented political awareness of women as well as a public action. Generally, there were precedents that restricted women's actions, where they were often portrayed as prisoners because of their gender inferiority. 

Often there is an orientalist view of Qajar women before the revolution. Badr al-Moluk Bamdad, wife of [[Ahmad Shah Qajar]] classic work, ''From Darkness to Light'', published two years before the Islamic Revolution (1977) refers to Persian history before the tobacco revolt as "a century of darkness",<ref name="auto1">Bāmdād Badr-al-Mulūk and Frank Ronald Charles Bagley. ''From Darkness into Light Women's Emancipation in Iran''. Mazda Publ., 2013.</ref> in which women are "poor creatures"<ref name="auto1"/> and "powerless dolls"<ref name="auto1"/> who are secluded from society while being concealed "under thick coverings and dependent like parasites".<ref name="auto1"/> Bamdad also claimed that women were "prisoners, confined in the home or under the veil and the cloak"<ref name="auto1"/>"

Sima Bahar in an article titled, ''A Historical Background to the Women's Movement in Iran'' identified that the constitutional revolution period was the first occasion women participated with men in public action. She considers that during the Qajar period "women's activities were solely limited to the household; if they were active in production at all such as in villages, the production was for the household. Women of the upper class lead an even more secluded life... they were only allowed to go out accompanied by men."<ref>Sima Bahar, "A Historical Background to the Women's Movement in Iran," in ''Women of Iran, The Conflict with Fundamentalist Islam'', ed. Farah Azari (London: Ithaca, 1983), 170–89; quotations from 172–75</ref>

During the [[Qajar dynasty]] (1789–1925), [[Malek Jahan Khanom, Mahd-e Olia|Malek Jahan Khanom]] as queen mother exerted serious political influence during the reign of her son, from 1848 until her death in 1873.

The gender roles during the Qajar era were legally and socially reinforced through a deeply entrenched patriarchal structure. Iran did not have a codified civil or penal code during this period. Instead, legal matters were governed by Islamic legal theory ([[fiqh]]), particularly the [[Ja'fari school|Jaʿfari school of thought]] (which is named after [[Ja'far al-Sadiq|Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq]] (702–765 CE), the sixth Imam in the Twelver Shiʿa tradition).<ref name="Sabaruddin2023" /> This school of thought gave men significant authority over women in matters of marriage, divorce, and guardianship. Women's mobility and public presence were highly restricted, and unaccompanied appearances in public spaces were socially discouraged. Violations of gender norms could lead to social sanctions or community-based forms of moral enforcement.<ref name="Shahrokni2020">{{cite book |last=Shahrokni |first=Nazanin |title=Women in Place: The Politics of Gender Segregation in Iran |publisher=University of California Press |year=2020 |doi=10.1525/9780520973008 |isbn=978-0-520-97300-8 }}</ref>

[[File:Antoin Sevruguin 43 8 SI.jpg|thumb|right|"Malek Jahan Khanom, Mahd-e Olia", wife and mother of Qajar rulers]]

====Pahlavi Dynasty====
[[File:Atomic women Iran.JPG|thumb|left|Female Iranian PhDs in front of [[Tehran University]]'s reactor, 1968. Text: "A quarter of [[Nuclear program of Iran|Iran's Nuclear Energy]] scientists are women".]]
The Pahlavi Shahs were the rulers of Iran between 1925 and 1979 and they introduced many reforms concerning [[Women's rights in Iran|women's rights]]. An example of an early reform introduced by [[Reza Shah]] was the ''[[Kashf-e hijab]]'', the "forced unveiling of women by a special decree on January 8, 1936, which, as the name suggests, involved the police force pulling the [[hijab]] away even from religious women, by force."<ref name="pappe 2005 237">{{cite book |title=The Modern Middle East |author-link=Ilan Pappé |first=Ilan |last=Pappé |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |page=237 |isbn=978-0-415-21408-7}}</ref> Women's involvement in society in general increased. Iranian women increasingly participated in the economy, the education sector, and in the workforce. Levels of literacy were also improved. Examples of women's involvement: women acquired high official positions, such as ministers, artists, judges, scientists, athletes, etc.

Under Reza Shah's successor [[Mohammad Reza Shah]] many more significant reforms were introduced. For example, in 1963, the Shah granted female suffrage, and soon after women were elected to the Majlis (the parliament) and the upper house, and appointed as judges and ministers in the cabinet.<ref name="pappe 2005 237"/> In 1967 Iranian family law was also reformed which improved the position of women in Iranian society. It was included in the civil code and was designed to protect wives, children and female divorcees. The general thrust of the reforms was to promote equality between men and women in society.

The Family Protection Laws of 1967 and 1973 required a husband to go to court to divorce rather than the proclamation of the [[triple talaq]], "I divorce thee" three times, as stipulated by traditional [[sharia]] law. It allowed a wife to initiate divorce and required the first wife's permission for a husband to take a second wife. Child custody was left to new family protection courts rather than automatically granted to the father. The minimum age at which a female could marry was raised from 13 to 15 in 1967 and to 18 in 1975.<ref>{{cite book |first=Robin B. |last=Wright |title=The Last Great Revolution |isbn=978-0-375-40639-3 |year=2000 |page=[https://archive.org/details/lastgreatrevolut00wrig/page/156 156] |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |url=https://archive.org/details/lastgreatrevolut00wrig/page/156 }}</ref>

Throughout the Pahlavi period, female advancements in education and labor were significant. From 1965 to 1966, the percentage of illiterate women dropped by 11%. However, this decrease in illiteracy had mainly taken place in the urban areas, which saw a decrease of 20% in illiteracy, while rural areas, by contrast, saw a decrease of 3%. This is most likely due to the increase of educational centers and universities across Iranian cities, mainly in Tehran and Abadan, during this time period.<ref name=":1">{{cite journal |last1=Touba |first1=Jacquiline Rudolph |title=The Relationship between Urbanization and the Changing Status of Women in Iran, 1956–1966 |journal=Iranian Studies |date=1972 |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=25–36 |doi=10.1080/00210867208701422 |jstor=4310102 }}</ref> The increase in education among females led to an increase in female participation in various labor fields throughout the 1956–1966 period. Women began entering fields such as biology, agricultural studies, medicine, teaching, law, and economics among other fields, giving them more significant political power. In urban centers, the employment of women in [[Abadan]], [[Tabriz]], and [[Esfahan]] increased, with the latter two seeing significant increases in female labor. Interestingly during this period, female employment in Tehran dropped slightly.<ref name=":1" />

====Islamic Republic of Iran====
[[File:2014 Fertility Rate of the Islamic Republic of Iran.png|thumb|upright=1.25|right|Decreasing fertility rate shows Iranian women are comparatively less eager to give birth.]]

Following the 1979 [[Iranian Revolution]] Iran became an [[Islamic republic]]. During the era of the post-Revolution rule, Iranian women had more opportunities in some areas and more restrictions in others. One of the striking features of the revolution was the large-scale participation of women from traditional backgrounds in demonstrations leading up to the overthrow of the monarchy. The Iranian women who had gained confidence and higher education under the Pahlavi era participated in demonstrations against the Shah to topple the monarchy. The culture of education for women was established by the time of the revolution so that even after the revolution, large numbers of women entered [[civil service]] and higher education,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ungei.org/infobycountry/iran_550.html |title=Adult education offers new opportunities and options to Iranian women |publisher=Ungei.org |date=March 6, 2006 |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=October 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181005010657/http://www.ungei.org/infobycountry/iran_550.html }}</ref> and, in 1996, 14 women were elected to the [[Islamic Consultative Assembly]].

The leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini led to many paradoxical issues for women. Women gained much influence in certain areas, but still faced many political obstacles to equality with men. For example, women were allowed to serve in the military, often in paramilitary groups, but were restricted in many fields of study in school. After the breakout of the Iran–Iraq War, women continued to gain political power. Women were mobilized both on the front lines and at home in the workplace. They participated in basic infantry roles, but also in intelligence programs and political campaigning. During the height of the Iran-Iraq War, women made up a large portion of the domestic workforce, replacing men who were fighting, injured, or dead.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ramazani|first=Nesta|date=1993|title=Women in Iran: The Revolutionary Ebb and Flow|journal=Middle East Journal|volume=47|issue=3|page=411|issn=0026-3141|jstor=4328602}}</ref>

[[Ayatollah Khomeini|Khomeini]] often expressed appreciation for women's issues after he took power. In May 1979, Khomeini addressed his audience and spoke about [[Fatimah]]: "After the death of her father, Fatimah (peace be upon her), lived for seventy-five days. She was in this world, overcome with sadness and grief. [[Gabriel]], the Trusted Spirit, came to visit and console her and tell her of future events." So, according to this tradition, in these seventy-five days that she had contact with Gabriel, he came and went many times. I do not believe that anyone else except the great prophets has had such an experience, in which for seventy-five days Gabriel, the Trusted Spirit, came and went and spoke of things that would take place in the future, that would happen to her ancestors in the future."<ref>Bucar, Elizabeth M. Creative Conformity: The Feminist Politics of U.S. Catholic and Iranian Shi'i Women. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2011.p. 35</ref> The Ayatollah spoke fondly of Fatimah as a role model for women. He said that even though she was visited by the Angel Gabriel, this is not what made her special. To him, her admirable qualities were twofold and supposedly represented by the visits from Gabriel: her special spiritual status and her excellent [[moral character]]. He continued to explain that Fatimah could have been born with this spiritual status or Fatimah could have gone through a kind of unique [[mystical experience]]. This is why the Ayatollah believed she represented the ideal female role model. Fatimah's moral excellence is observed in three interconnected activities: struggle, inspiring men, and suffering.<ref>Bucar, Elizabeth M. Creative Conformity: The Feminist Politics of U.S. Catholic and Iranian Shi'i Women. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2011. p. 37</ref> Fatimah inspired her husband as a devout Muslim. Khomeini draws parallels to this inspiration with women of Iran and how they should strive to follow their religious calling like Fatimah.

While during the revolution, the veil was worn and seen as a symbol of protest many women were alarmed when talk of the hijab being compulsory was discussed. This resulted in the [[International Women's Day Protests in Tehran, 1979]] against compulsory hijab. The topic was inflated when Ayatollah Khomeini was quoted to say that he preferred to see women in modest Islamic clothing.<ref name="auto2"/> In 1981 veiling was made compulsory and cosmetics were banned, harsh punishments were also introduced by the morality police such as the removal of lipstick by a razor blade.<ref name="auto2">&nbsp;Valentine M. Moghadam "Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran: Legal Status, Social Positions, and Collective Action." Iran After 25 years of Revolution: A Retrospective and a Look Ahead November 16, 2004.</ref> In the early 1980s women were banned from acting as judges and were discouraged from becoming lawyers. The Islamic government repealed the Family Protection Laws of 1967 and 1973, which restricted [[polygamy]], allowed women the right to divorce, and raised the minimum age for marriage. The regime banned contraception and lowered the marriage age of girls from 15 to 9. They also banned women from various fields of study and professions.

After the death of Ayatollah Khomeini, many of the restrictions on women were lifted. The government tried to stabilize population growth by distributing [[contraceptives]] often for free of charge. This caused the fertility rate to decline from 3.2 to 2.3 children per woman, which was one of the lowest rates in the Middle East.<ref name="auto2"/> &nbsp;In 1992, the High Council of the Integration Revolution adopted a set of Employment Policies for women, that encouraged the integration of women into the labor force while still emphasizing the importance of family roles for women. &nbsp;Women were encouraged to enter gynecology, pharmacology, midwifery, and laboratory work. Although they continued to be prevented by certain professors as 'Islamically inappropriate'. In 1990 the field of law was open to women and they were permitted in the Special Civic Courts, although they cannot serve as judges.<ref>Islamic Republic of Iran, Zan va Towse-eh: ahamm-e eqdamat-e anjam-shodeh dar khosus-e banovan pas az pirouzi-ye enqelab-e Eslami (Tehran: Shura-ye Hamhangi-ye Tablighat-e Eslami, &nbsp;1994), p. 15.</ref>

After the death of Khomeini, more practical reforms under [[Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani|President Rafsanjani]] for women began. Rafsanjani asserted that in Islam, "There are no barriers to the education of women in any field." The three major fields which Rafsanjani focused on were education, family planning, health, and marriage. Statistics from the 1986/87 years show that female admissions into schools of dentistry, audiology, statistics, optometry, radiology, and radiotherapy were on par with men. According to the religious-political leaders, it is believed that a woman in Iran can be both traditional and modern at the same time, this is instilled in the education they receive. Meaning that a woman's central role is in the home, taking care of children, their family and house duties, while also being able to go out into the social world and create a public life but not deteriorating any social standing of her family. The restriction of the home creates a traditional private realm for the woman while the freedom of going out creates a modern social presence. The Islamic Republic had never intended to purposely bind a woman to her home and have her fulfill wifely and motherly duties, however, it is in the religious aspect of the republic that this was done. Islam does not prohibit women from public life however it is the political and cultural climate of Iran that encourages women to practice a private domestic life. Many schools are now inspiring young girls to prepare for tomorrow, as a mother and a wife and as active figures in the involvement of social and political affairs. However, it is evident that the Education Plan of the Islamic Republic has a clear divide between the education taught to boys and girls. This includes introducing the role of responsibility for a family as well as the roles of males and females in marital life. But girls are given the confidence to put themselves out into the education fields that they desire to be in while keeping a personal family life in mind.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rezai-Rashti |first1=Goli M. |title=Women, Islam and Education in Iran |date=2019 |publisher=Taylor & Francis Group |url=https://public.ebookcentral.proquest.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=5718652}}</ref> Aside from education, Rafsanjani greatly focused on family planning and health across Iran, with women playing the central role. Iran's population throughout the 1980s soared despite the Iran–Iraq War, with the birthrate reaching 3.9 in 1983, double the world average. Health clinics for women were established nation-wide; by 1994, there were more than 10,000 health centers in Iran, and once-banned contraceptives were made available to women.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Ramazani|first=Nesta|date=1993|title=Women in Iran: The Revolutionary Ebb and Flow|journal=Middle East Journal|volume=47|issue=3|page=417|issn=0026-3141|jstor=4328602}}</ref> In 1986, the Majlis voted to introduce a 12-article law which allowed many marriage rights to women. These rights included prenuptial agreements, a divorced woman's right to a share of the property, and increased alimony rights. In 1992, the Council of Expediency passed a law allowing women who were "unjustly and unfairly" divorced to collect payment from the former husband for services she had performed during the course of the marriage.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Keddie |first1=Nikki R. |title=Women in Iran Since 1979 |journal=Social Research |date=2000 |volume=67 |issue=2 |pages=405–438 |jstor=40971478 }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; text-align:center;"
!{{flagicon|Iran|1964}} [[Pahlavi dynasty|Late 1970s]]
!Comparison
!{{flagicon|Iran}} [[Islamic Republic of Iran|Early 2010s]]
|-
| 42.33% || [[Literacy rate|Literacy (15-24)]]<ref name="unescoliteracy">{{cite web|url=http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/iran/literacy-rate|title=Iran - Literacy rate|work=indexmundi.com}}</ref> || 97.70%
|-
| 24.42% || [[Literacy rate|Literacy (>15)]]<ref name="unescoliteracy"/> || 79.23%
|-
| 48,845 || [[Higher education in Iran|Students]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.quandl.com/WORLDBANK/IRN_SE_TER_ENRL_FE-Iran-Islamic-Rep-Student-enrollment-tertiary-female|title=Iran, Islamic Rep.: Student enrollment, tertiary, female (WORLDBANK) - Data and Charts from Quandl|work=quandl.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027141210/https://www.quandl.com/WORLDBANK/IRN_SE_TER_ENRL_FE-Iran-Islamic-Rep-Student-enrollment-tertiary-female|archive-date=October 27, 2014}}</ref> || 2,191,409
|-
| 122,753 || [[Higher education in Iran|Graduates]]<ref name="amar35">[http://www.amar.org.ir/Portals/1/Iran/census-2.pdf#35 Statistical Centre of Iran (2011). Selected findings on 2011 Population and Housing Census. Teheran: Iranian ministry of the Interior, p. 35.]</ref> || 5,023,992
|-
| 2.4% || [[Higher education in Iran|Graduates (%)]]<ref name="amar35"/> || 18.4%
|-
| 19.7 || [[Age at first marriage|Age at 1st marriage]]<ref>[http://www.amar.org.ir/Portals/1/Iran/census-2.pdf#32 Statistical Centre of Iran (2011). Selected findings on 2011 Population and Housing Census. Teheran: Iranian ministry of the Interior, p. 32.]</ref> || 23.4
|}
By 1999, Iran had 140 female publishers, enough to hold an exhibition of books and magazines published by women.<ref>''The Last Great Revolution'' by Robin Wright c. 2000, p. 137</ref> As of 2005, 65 percent of Iran's university students and 43 percent of its salaried workers were women.<ref>Ebadi, Shirin, Iran Awakening : A Memoir of Revolution and Hope by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni, Random House, 2006 (p. 210)</ref> As of early 2007, nearly 70 percent of Iran's science and engineering students are women.<ref>{{cite journal|title=An Islamist revolution|first=Ehsan|last=Masood|date=November 1, 2006|journal=Nature|volume=444|issue=7115|pages=22–25|doi=10.1038/444022a|pmid=17080057|bibcode=2006Natur.444...22M |s2cid=2967719|doi-access=free}}</ref>

27.1% female ministers in government put Iran among first 23 countries in early 2000s,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ir-iran/dem-democracy |title=Iranian Democracy statistics - How Iran ranks |publisher=NationMaster |date=March 8, 2002 |access-date=May 20, 2013}}</ref> 2.8–4.9% female parliamentarians in past 15 years put it among least 25 countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?q=iran&d=MDG&f=seriesRowID%3A557%3BcountryID%3A364|title=UNdata - record view - Seats held by women in national parliament, percentage|work=un.org}}</ref> In 2009 [[Fatemeh Bodaghi]] became vice president for Legal Affairs and a top advisor to President [[Mahmoud Ahmedinejad]].<ref name="iranwomen">{{cite web|url=http://www.iranwomen.org/zanan/english/HomePage/HPDetails3.aspx?id=440|title=شوراي عالي انقلاب فرهنگي - شورای فرهنگی اجتماعی زنان و خانواده - درباره شورا|publisher=iranwomen.org|access-date=September 23, 2014|archive-date=April 26, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426054830/http://www.iranwomen.org/zanan/english/HomePage/HPDetails3.aspx?id=440}}</ref> [[Maryam Mojtahidzadeh]] who runs the women's ministry was also selected as an advisor to the president.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.women.gov.ir/en/pages/?cid=458 |title=In a decree issued by Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Ms. Maryam Mojtahidzadeh has been appointed as the Advisor to the President and President of Center for Women and Family Affairs of IRAN |publisher=Women.gov.ir |date=December 15, 2009 |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=April 26, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426054829/http://www.women.gov.ir/en/pages/?cid=458 }}</ref>

At least one observer ([[Robert D. Kaplan]]) has commented on the less traditional attitude of many women in Iran compared to other Middle Eastern countries. "In Iran, you could point a camera at a woman... and she would smile" in contrast to other more conservative places where women may mind this.<ref>Kaplan, Robert, D. ''The Ends of the Earth'', Random House, 1996, p. 181</ref>

There are also women in the Iranian police who deal with crimes committed by women and children.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8071337793166478323|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070522232907/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8071337793166478323|title=Women Police in Iran|archive-date=May 22, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/photoessays/policewomen/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070105062055/http://www.time.com/time/photoessays/policewomen/|title=Iran's thin black line|archive-date=January 5, 2007}}</ref> According to opinion of [[Supreme Leader of Iran]], [[Ali Khamenei]], giving opportunity for develop woman's talents in the family and society is respecting to the woman.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://english.khamenei.ir/news/3491/To-respect-women-empower-them-Leader | title=Leader's Speech in Meeting with Woman Researchers of the Holy Quran | publisher=english.khamenei.ir | date=October 20, 2009 | access-date=March 12, 2016}}</ref>

On May 14, 2019, the Iranian [[Islamic Consultative Assembly]] approved an amendment to their [[Iranian nationality law|nationality law]], in which women married to men with a foreign nationality should request to confer nationality on children under age 18, while children and spouses of Iranian men are granted nationality automatically. However, the [[Guardian Council]] should approve the amendment.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/05/14/iran-parliament-oks-nationality-law-reform|title=Iran: Parliament OKs Nationality Law Reform|work=Human Rights Watch|date=May 14, 2019}}</ref> On October 2, 2019, the Guardian Council agreed to sign the bill into a law,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-02/victory-for-iran-s-women-as-breakthrough-citizenship-law-passed|title=Victory for Iran's Women as Breakthrough Citizenship Law Is Passed|website=Bloomberg|date=October 2, 2019}}</ref> taking into account the background checks on foreign fathers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/iran-women-married-foreigners-pass-citizenship-children-191002145229455.html|title=Iran women married to foreigners can pass citizenship to children|website=Al Jazeera|date=October 2, 2019}}</ref>

In August 2019, the [[Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran|FFIRI]] lifted the ban on Iranian women's entry to [[Stadium|football stadium]]s for the first time in 40 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://stadiumdb.com/news/2019/08/iran_step_forward_in_the_fight_for_womens_return_to_stadiums|title=Iran: Step forward in the fight for women's return to stadiums|website=StadiumDB.com|date=August 26, 2018}}</ref> On September 8, 2019, [[Sahar Khodayari]] self-immolated after being arrested for trying to enter a stadium. Following that incident, [[FIFA]] assured that Iranian women are able to attend stadiums starting from October 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-49787863|title=Fifa 'assured' Iranian women will be able to attend football matches|website=BBC News|date=September 22, 2019}}</ref> On October 10, 2019, more than 3,500 women attended the [[Azadi Stadium]] for a World Cup qualifier against Cambodia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50002658|title=Iran football: Women attend first match in decades|website=BBC Sport|date=October 10, 2019}}</ref>
=== Legal framework and historical development ===

Iran's approach to women's legal rights was significantly restructured after the [[1979 Islamic Revolution]]. Following the Islamic Revolution, the reforms made under the [[Pahlavi dynasty|Pahlavi regime]] were reversed by the new [[History of the Islamic Republic of Iran|Islamic Republic of Iran]] government. The newly established Islamic Republic of Iran restructured the legal system by amending the [https://www.refworld.org/legal/legislation/natlegbod/1928/en/102142 1928 Civil Code] to align more strictly with Twelver Shiʿa legal theory.<ref>Mir-Hosseini, Ziba. ''Islam and Gender: The Religious Debate in Contemporary Iran''. Princeton University Press, 1999.</ref> These revisions reinforced traditional gender roles, including male guardianship over women in matters such as marriage, divorce, child custody, and mobility.<ref name="Nayyeri2013">{{cite web |last=Nayyeri |first=Kaveh |title=Gender Inequality and Discrimination: The Case of Iranian Women |url=https://iranhrdc.org/gender-inequality-and-discrimination-the-case-of-iranian-women/ |publisher=Iran Human Rights Documentation Center |date=5 March 2013}}</ref> The [[Constitution of Iran|1979 Constitution]] enshrined Islamic law as the foundation of state governance. Article 21 commits the state to protect women's rights according to Islamic principles, while Article 20 permits legal equality only when not in conflict with religious doctrine.<ref name="Farzaneh2014">{{cite journal |last=Farzaneh |first=Delaram |title=One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: A Brief History of Legal Discriminations Against Women in Iran |journal=Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law |volume=20 |issue=1 |year=2014 |url=https://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/annlsurvey/vol20/iss1/12}}</ref>

=== Discriminatory legal codes ===

Iran's Civil and Penal Codes include provisions that differentiate legal rights based on gender. Article 1041 of the Civil Code, as revised in 2002, permits girls to marry at age 13 and boys at 15. However, girls can be married at younger ages with judicial and paternal approval.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" /> This legal framework has allowed child marriages to persist in many parts of the country.

Inheritance laws provide daughters with half the share of sons, as per Quranic inheritance principles. Similarly, in legal testimony, a woman's account is often valued at half that of a man's in criminal and financial matters.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" /> Differences are also evident in retributive justice laws known as [[Blood money in Islam|diya]]. Compensation for a female victim is generally half the amount awarded for a male victim under the qisas (retribution) system.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" />

In capital cases, disparities in procedure have been noted. In the case of [https://www.timesofisrael.com/iranian-woman-dies-of-heart-attack-before-execution-still-gets-hanged-report/ Zahra Ismaili in 2021], reports indicated that she died of a heart attack before her scheduled execution, yet she was still hanged to allow symbolic satisfaction of retributive justice. This incident raised concerns about procedural fairness and gender bias in capital punishment practices.<ref>Alasti, Sanaz. 'Gender Discrimination in Iran's Capital Punishment System.' Women & Criminal Justice, 2022.</ref>

== Shi'a legal theory and religious justification ==

The legal framework of Iran is shaped by [[Twelver Shi'ism|Twelver Shi'a Islamic legal theory]], which treats religious and civil obligations differently for men and women. While both genders are responsible for fulfilling religious duties, civil laws place women in a subordinate legal status. Women must receive approval from a male guardian to travel abroad and are excluded from high-ranking positions such as judges with full authority, the presidency, or Supreme Leadership.<ref name="Ansari2016">{{cite web |last=Ansari |first=Hassan Farhang |title=The Shiite Interpretation of the Status of Women |website=Institute for Advanced Study |year=2016 |url=https://www.ias.edu/ideas/2016/ansari-shiite-women}}</ref>

== Comparative legal framework: Shi'a vs. Sunni interpretations ==

Iran's legal model differs from many Sunni-majority countries, such as Turkey or Egypt, where civil and religious legal systems often coexist. Iran's legal system operates under centralized Shi'a clerical authority, or [[Marja'|marjaʿiyya]], which enforces strict religious interpretations with limited legal flexibility on gender issues.<ref name="Sabaruddin2023">{{cite journal |last1=Sabaruddin |first1=S. |last2=Ar Rasyid |first2=H. H. |title=Understanding the Differences and Meeting Points between Shia and Sunni |journal=Journal of Research and Multidisciplinary |volume=6 |issue=1 |year=2023 |pages=697–701 |url=http://journal.alhikam.net/index.php/jrm/article/view/232}}</ref>

The concept of ''[[ijtihad]]'', the independent interpretation of Islamic legal sources, is a foundational principle in Shiʿa legal theory, particularly within the ''Usuli'' school that has been dominant in Twelver Shiʿism since the 18th century. Shiʿa legal theory maintains that qualified jurists (''[[mujtahid]]s'') may engage in ongoing interpretation of the ''Qur'an'', ''[[Sunnah]]'', consensus (''[[Ijma|ijmā]]ʿ''), and reason (''ʿ[['Aql|aql]]'') to derive legal rulings applicable to new contexts. This is unlike in most Sunni traditions, where the "gate of ijtihad" is widely regarded as having closed by the 10th century CE,<ref name="Sabaruddin2023" />

This legal flexibility in theory could allow for significant reform regarding the status of women in Shiʿa-governed societies, including Iran. However, in practice, the application of ijtihad to women's rights has been severely constrained by the dominance of conservative clerical authorities who control Iran's political and legal institutions. While Shiʿa legal theory provides mechanisms for legal innovation, most leading jurists in the Islamic Republic of Iran have resisted reinterpreting discriminatory laws in favor of gender equality. Instead, ijtihad has largely been used to reinforce traditional patriarchal norms particularly regarding matters such as inheritance, testimony, marriage, and guardianship.<ref name="Ansari2016" />

Women's rights activists and reformist scholars in Iran have attempted to appeal to ijtihad to challenge legal inequalities (such as the requirement for male guardian permission to travel, the exclusion of women from full judicial authority, and laws giving men superior divorce rights) but these efforts have faced institutional resistance. While some female ''mujtahidas'' have emerged in religious seminaries in Qom and Tehran, their legal opinions rarely influence state policy due to the centralized control of religious authority under the system of ''[[Valayat e Faqih|Vilayat-e Faqih]]'' (Guardianship of the Jurist). This structure vests ultimate legal and political authority in a senior male cleric and severely limits pluralism in religious interpretation.<ref name="Ansari2016" />

In contrast, Sunni-majority states that apply Islamic law often combine it with civil legal codes, and some have allowed modest reforms in family law and greater participation of women in the judiciary. The Shiʿa emphasis on continuous ijtihad has thus far not translated into progressive gender reform in Iran's legal system, despite its doctrinal potential to do so.<ref name="Sabaruddin2023" />

== Resistance, reform, and women as legal actors ==

Despite institutional constraints, women have successfully advocated for legal reforms. In 2003, Article 1169 of the Civil Code was amended to allow mothers custody of their children until age seven, regardless of gender.<ref name="BahramitashHooglund2011">{{cite book |last1=Bahramitash |first1=Roksana |last2=Hooglund |first2=Eric J. |title=Gender in Contemporary Iran: Pushing the Boundaries |year=2011 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-77443-7}}</ref> The [[One Million Signatures|2006 One Million Signatures Campaign]] aimed to gather public support for revising discriminatory laws. Though activists faced arrests and state suppression, the campaign built a sustained network of legal reform advocates.

The [[Murder of Mona Heydari|2022 femicide of Mona Heydari]] brought renewed focus to gender-based violence. Femicide refers to killing a female on account of their gender. She had been married at 12 and was murdered by her husband at 17. His sentencing was viewed by many as lenient, illustrating a broader pattern described by Rahbari as "[[himpathy|legal himpathy]]" - where judicial systems extend sympathy toward male perpetrators, particularly in honor-related cases.<ref>Rahbari, L. 'Legitimating Misogyny and Femicide: Legal Himpathy and (State) Violence against Women in Iran.' Societies, vol. 13, no. 11, 2023. [https://doi.org/10.3390/soc13110229]</ref>

== Employment law and economic participation ==

While Iranian law permits women to work, family law imposes restrictions. Article 1117 of the Civil Code allows husbands to prevent their wives from working in professions deemed harmful to family interests.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" /> Under the 1967 and 1975 Family Protection Laws, judicial approval was required for such prohibitions, but those protections were repealed after 1979. Courts today seldom rule in favor of women who contest employment restrictions imposed by their spouses.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" />

Following the revolution, female labor force participation declined from 12.9% in 1976 to 6.1% in 1986. Although there has been a gradual increase, participation rates remain low relative to educational attainment levels.<ref name="Gilani2021">{{cite journal |last1=Gilani |first1=P. |last2=Rook |first2=C. |last3=Razeghi |first3=Y. |last4=Carr |first4=M. |title=Swimming against the Current: Negotiating Leadership Challenges for Women in Iran |journal=Leadership |volume=18 |issue=1 |year=2021 |pages=162–185 |doi=10.1177/1742715021992006 |doi-broken-date=January 1, 2026 }}</ref>

Employment opportunities are shaped by gender norms and segregation laws. Women are primarily employed in education and healthcare, often due to regulations requiring female professionals in women-only spaces. Leadership roles in government and the judiciary remain largely inaccessible to women.<ref name="Nayyeri2013" />

Women are explicitly prohibited from serving as full judges. Although some work as legal advisors or investigative judges, they are not permitted to issue final rulings. This restriction is rooted in religious interpretations and codified in the [https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/iran_notes_-_1_-_judiciary_-_september_2023.pdf 1982 Law on the Qualifications for Appointment of Judges].<ref name="Farzaneh2014" />
Even when women obtain employment, cultural and legal barriers persist. Discrimination in hiring, promotion, and legal recourse remains widespread, contributing to continued gender disparities in workplace advancement and income.<ref name="Gilani2021" />

=== Women and Iran's anti-government protests ===
The human rights organization [[Amnesty International]] has reported that it has received reports of several cases of rape of women and men detainees in Iran's prisons. On January 17, 2020, Raha Bahreini, Amnesty International's special reporter on Iran, revealed a case of sexual assault on an Iranian woman who had been detained in Tehran during the protests that erupted after the downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.radiofarda.com/a/amnesty-says-security-agent-sexually-assaulted-a-detained-female-protester-in-iran/30385341.html|title=Amnesty Says Security Agent Sexually Assaulted A Detained Female Protester In Iran|website=RFE/RL|date=January 19, 2020 }}</ref>

==Politics==
{{see also|Women's fraction|Vice Presidency for Women and Family Affairs|List of female members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly|List of female members of the Cabinet of Iran}}
{| class="wikitable floatright" style="font-size:85%;text-align:left;"
|+ Current women's representation 
! Body
! Seats
|-
|[[Cabinet of Iran|Cabinet]]|| {{composition bar compact|2|31|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Parliament of Iran|Parliament]]|| {{composition bar compact|17|290|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Assembly of Experts]]|| {{composition bar compact|0|88|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Guardian Council]]|| {{composition bar compact|0|12|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Expediency Discernment Council|Expediency Council]]|| {{composition bar compact|0|39|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|align=center colspan="2"|[[City and Village Councils of Iran|City Councils]]
|-
|[[Tehran City Council|Tehran]]|| {{composition bar compact|6|21|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Mashhad City Council|Mashhad]]|| {{composition bar compact|2|15|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Isfahan City Council|Isfahan]]|| {{composition bar compact|2|13|#FF69B4|per=1}}

|-
|[[Shiraz City Council|Shiraz]]|| {{composition bar compact|2|13|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|-
|[[Tabriz City Council|Tabriz]]|| {{composition bar compact|1|13|#FF69B4|per=1}}
|}

Women in Iran were granted the right to vote in 1963.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.alertnet.org/db/cp/iran.htm |title=Reuters Foundation Alertnet.org Iran |publisher=Thomson Reuters Foundation |website=Alertnet.org |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=November 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119104429/http://alertnet.org/db/cp/iran.htm }}</ref> They were first admitted to Iranian universities in 1937.<ref>Lorentz، J. Historical Dictionary of Iran. 1995. {{ISBN|0-8108-2994-0}}</ref> Since then, several women have held high-ranking posts in the government or parliament. Before and after the [[1979 revolution]], several women were appointed ministers or ambassadors. [[Farrokhroo Parsa]] was the first woman to be appointed Minister of Education in 1968 and [[Mahnaz Afkhami]] was appointed Minister for Women's Affairs in 1976.

Some, such as [[Tahereh Saffarzadeh]], [[Masumeh Ebtekar]], [[Azam Taleghani]], [[Fatemeh Haghighatjou]], [[Elaheh Koulaei]], [[Fatemeh Javadi]], [[Marzieh Dabbaq]] and [[Zahra Rahnavard]] came after the revolution. Other Iranian women, such as [[Goli Ameri]] and [[Farah Karimi]], hold positions in Western countries.

There are currently 17 women in parliament, of a total of 290 parliamentarians.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www7.irna.ir/fa/News/82075165/ |title=رکورد جدید حضور زنان در مجلس ایران، پیام بزرگی دارد/ خواستار توسعه روابط با ایران هستیم |language=fa |publisher=[[Islamic Republic News Agency|IRNA]] |date=May 15, 2016 |access-date=May 26, 2016 |archive-date=May 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160523223913/http://www7.irna.ir/fa/News/82075165/ }}</ref> This was up from nine in the previous elections.

Currently, there are several all-female political organizations active in Iran, including:
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left; font-size:85%; line-height:16px;"
|-
!Party
!Secretary-General
!Camp
|-
|[[Zeynab Society]] || Azam Haji-Abbasi<ref>{{citation|url=https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/iran-news-round-up/iran-news-round-up-july-18-2013|title=Iran News Round Up|date=July 17, 2013|work=Critical Threats|access-date=August 25, 2017 |author=Will Fulton |author2=Amir Toumaj |author3=Mary Ella Simmons}}</ref> || [[Iranian Principlists|Principlist]]
|-
|Association of the Women of the Islamic Revolution || Sedigheh Hejazi<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Mohammadi|first1=Elnaz|title=حزب تشكيل دهيد، 50 نماينده در مجلس داشته باشيد|script-title=fa:حزب تشكيل دهيد، 50 نماينده در مجلس داشته باشيد|journal=[[Bahar (newspaper)|Bahar newspaper]]|date=July 27, 2013|page=11|url=http://baharnewspaper.com/News/92/05/05/15831.html|access-date=September 29, 2017|location=[[Tehran]]|language=fa|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131018184252/http://baharnewspaper.com/News/92/05/05/15831.html|archive-date=October 18, 2013}}</ref> || [[Iranian Principlists|Principlist]]
|-
|[[Islamic Assembly of Ladies]] || [[Fatemeh Karroubi]] || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
|[[Association of the Women of the Islamic Republic]] || [[Zahra Mostafavi Khomeini]] || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
| Women Journalists Association || Jaleh Faramarzian<ref>{{citation|url=https://financialtribune.com/articles/people/6729/need-for-positive-discrimination|title=Need For 'Positive Discrimination'|date=December 14, 2014|work=[[Financial Tribune]]|access-date=August 25, 2017}}</ref> || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
|Reformist Women's Party || [[Zahra Shojaei]]<ref>{{citation|url=https://www.independent.co.ug/irans-rouhani-names-female-vps-reformists-slam-male-ministers/|title=Iran's Rouhani names female VPs as reformists slam all-male ministers|work=[[Agence France-Presse]]|date=August 10, 2017|access-date=August 25, 2017|via=The Independent}}</ref> || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
|Society of Progressive Muslim Women || [[Fatemeh Rakeei]]<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.zamaaneh.com/enzam/2010/08/iranian-women-condemn-reg.html|title=Iranian women condemn "regressive" articles of family legislation|work=[[Radio Zamaneh]]|date=August 27, 2010|access-date=August 25, 2017}}</ref> || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
| Women's Society of the Islamic Revolution || [[Azam Taleghani]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Vakil|first1=Sanam|title=Women and Politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran: Action and Reaction|date=2011|publisher=[[A & C Black]]|isbn=978-1-4411-9734-4|page=85|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WB3m-cBtrQ4C&pg=PA85}}</ref> || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|-
| Society for Support of Women's Rights || [[Shahindokht Molaverdi]]<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sadr-ol-odabaee|first1=Maryam|last2=Hassan-Miri|first2=Fahimeh|title=دبیر کل جمعیت حمایت از حقوق بشر زنان: می گویند زنان تجربه مدیریتی ندارند؛ این تجربه باید ازکجا شروع شود؟|url=http://www.khabaronline.ir/detail/290158/society/family|publisher=Khabar Online|access-date=September 29, 2017|language=fa|date=May 1, 2013}}</ref> || [[Iranian Reformists|Reformist]]
|}

==Education==
{{main|Women's education in Iran}}

[[File:Female alumni of Isfahan University of Technology.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Female alumnae of [[Isfahan University of Technology]]. According to UNESCO data from 2012, Iran has more female students in engineering fields than any other country in the world.<ref name="factfish">{{cite web|url=http://www.factfish.com/statistic/enrolment%2C%20engineering%2C%20manufacturing%20and%20construction%2C%20tertiary%2C%20female|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140805064915/http://factfish.com/statistic/enrolment%2C%20engineering%2C%20manufacturing%20and%20construction%2C%20tertiary%2C%20female|title=Factfish Enrolment, engineering, manufacturing and construction, tertiary, female world statistics and data as Table|publisher=factfish.com|archive-date=August 5, 2014|access-date=September 23, 2014}}</ref>]]
The importance of education for Iranian Women is characterized by the main role of what the education can provide directly or indirectly helping them to gain consciousness and skills to fill the gap of gender inequality. It can also be useful to understand the reasons of their injustice and how women can make better their marginal social positions.<ref name="Rezai-Rashti Moghadam 2011">{{Cite journal |author=Goli M. Rezai-Rashti |author2=Valentine M. Moghadam |title=Women and higher education in Iran: What are the implications for employment and the "marriage market"? |journal=International Review of Education |volume=57 |date=August 2011 |issue=3–4 |pages=419–441 |doi=10.1007/s11159-011-9217-9|bibcode=2011IREdu..57..419R |s2cid=143810098 }}</ref>

Education held an important role in Iranian society, especially as the nation began a period of modernization under the authority of [[Reza Shah|Reza Shah Pahlavi]] in the early 20th century when the number of women's schools began to grow. Formal education for women in Iran began in 1907 with the establishment of the first primary school for girls.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Esfahani|first=Kouhi|date=2014|title=Iranian Women: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back|journal=Middle Eastern Studies / Ortadogu Etütleri|volume=5|issue=2|pages=36, 38, 39, 40|ref=kouhi}}</ref> By mid-century, legal reforms granting women the right to vote and raising the minimum age for marriage offered more opportunities for women to pursue education outside the home.<ref name=":0" /> After periods of imposed restrictions, women's educational attainment continued its rise through the Islamification of education following the Iranian Revolution of 1979, peaking in the years following radical changes such as correcting contradictions<ref name="Rezai-Rashti Moghadam 2011" /> that have marked its educational system, like the curriculum and composition of classrooms.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Mehran|first=Golnar|date=August 1, 2003|title=The Paradox of Tradition and Modernity in Female Education in the Islamic Republic of Iran|journal=Comparative Education Review|volume=47|issue=3|pages=269–286|doi=10.1086/378248|s2cid=145588558|issn=0010-4086}}</ref> By 1989, women dominated the entrance examinations for college attendance.<ref name=":12">{{Cite journal|last=Shavarini|first=Mitra K.|date=January 1, 2005|title=The Feminisation of Iranian Higher Education|jstor=25054545|journal=International Review of Education|volume=51|issue=4|pages=329–347, 331, 333, 334, 335|doi=10.1007/s11159-005-7738-9|bibcode=2005IREdu..51..329S|s2cid=145051381}}</ref>

Women's participation in education has not slowed despite efforts to impose restrictions on the increasingly female-dominated educational sphere. The changes in women's education have split into increased usage and dominance of the opportunities available to women, and the imposition of strict requirements governing their role in education, including gender-segregated classes, Islamic dress, and the channeling of women into "feminine" majors that prevent the pursuit of certain careers.<ref name=":2" />

Illiteracy among women has been on a decrease since 1970, when it was 54 percent, to the year 2000 when it was 17.30 percent.<ref name="Iran 2004">{{Cite journal | last = Bahramitash | first = Roksana | title = Market fundamentalism versus religious fundamentalism: women's employment in Iran | journal = [[Middle East Critique|Critique: Critical Middle Eastern Studies]] | volume = 13 | issue = 1 | pages = 33–46 | publisher = [[Taylor & Francis]] | doi = 10.1080/1066992042000189706 | date =Spring 2004 | s2cid = 220378330 }}</ref> Iranian female education went from a 46 percent literacy rate, to 83 percent.<ref name="Iran 2004"/> Iran ranked 10th in terms of female literacy in the 1970s, and still holds this position.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/>

According to a [[UNESCO]] world survey, at the primary level of enrollment, Iran has the highest female-to-male ratio in the world among sovereign nations, with a girl-to-boy ratio of 1.22: 1.00.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/edu_gir_to_boy_rat_pri_lev_enr-boys-ratio-primary-level-enrolment |title=Girls to boys ratio, primary level enrolment statistics - countries compared |publisher=NationMaster |access-date=May 20, 2013}}</ref> According to UNESCO data from 2012, Iran has more female students in engineering fields than any other country in the world.<ref name="factfish"/>

The first university Iranian girls could attend was the [[University of Tehran]] in 1932.When the universities re-opened in 1982, the Government made a structural revolution of the courses, eliminating those considered unnecessary, like music and counselling, and limiting the women's access to other subjects. However, girl's attendance in school only occurred after the Islamic revolution in 1979. In 2005, there were 62% university entrees. Furthermore, the first exam took place after [[the Cultural Revolution]] in 1984, 42% of females accepted examinees, and 32% of male applicants and 68% were accepted into the program. In addition, there was an 8% chance for girls to be accepted, and 12.2% for males in 1984. Between 1984 and 2003 the demand for women's higher education was greater than men's, and the percentage of entrees shifted upward. In 2001, the "National Report on Women's Status in the Islamic Republic of Iran" included educational matters for women, like curriculum issues, management positions and academic quotas; in 2002 - 2003 women had the regular access to all courses except engineering.<ref name="Rezai-Rashti Moghadam 2011" /> In 2002, the percentage of female students compared to male students in the tertiary education increased from 37.4% to 100.5% and in the same year almost the majority of women in academies (from 26.8% to 49%) were hired as assistant professors.<ref name="Rezai-Rashti Moghadam 2011" />

Moreover, the advantage of women's higher education decrease underdevelopment, backwardness, and compensation. The other factors that motivate women to obtain higher education are justice and equality in society, increase girl knowledge, participation in the social culture and politics, and change the traditional attitudes. Due to higher education, women were involved in decision-making because of their knowledge. Lastly, the general purpose of girls obtaining higher education is for social status, and before the Islamic revolution, higher education was basically for wealthy women and women from royal families. On the other hand, education was the only factor to upgrade women's social status because they wanted to further themselves and be involved in economics and politics after the Islamic revolution and anti-shah rallies. Another factor that motivates girls' education is the increase in the age of marriage. Thus, women's education has a greater demand, then they could get involved in private and public investment findings jobs. As women progress in higher education, they get more involved in the labor market argued by Kelli. However, the percentage of women in the labor market is very low, and organizations, governmental and nongovernmental prioritize men. Even though there was changes in economic, social, cultural, and political there still is gender stereotyping. In addition, the number of educated women increased, but there still remains a problem with unemployment in the labor market for women. Finally, when it comes to education and employment, there is no relationship between girls' education and employment, and 50% of graduated students have jobs, which unrelated to their studies.

==In economy==
{{See also|Economy of Iran#Labor force}}
Since the 1970s, Iran has experienced significant economic and social changes. Women's workforce participation rate went from 9.1 percent in 1996 to 14 percent in 2004 to 31.9 in 2009.<ref name="Afshar, Haleh 1997">{{Cite journal | last = Afshar | first = Haleh | title = Women And work in Iran | journal = [[Political Studies (journal)|Political Studies]] | volume = 45 | issue = 4 | pages = 755–767 | publisher = [[Wiley-Blackwell|Wiley]] | doi = 10.1111/1467-9248.00110 | date = September 1997 | s2cid = 144860396 }}</ref><ref>United Nations Development Programme</ref> That is a 22.8 percent increase in 13 years. Women make up over half of the Iranian population, yet they only make up a small percentage of the workforce. Official statistics reported by the [[Census Bureau]] suggest that women's labor force participation remains quite low.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> Despite this, while women make up almost 30 percent of the Iranian labor force, and the percentage of all Iranian women who are economically active has more than doubled from 6.1 percent in 1986 to 13.7 percent in 2000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/orgs/jlg/vol28/halper.pdf |title=Law and women's agency in post-revolutionary Iran |access-date=May 20, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.payvand.com/news/09/feb/1110.html |title=Where are Iran's working women? |publisher=Payvand.com |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=May 1, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501230508/http://www.payvand.com/news/09/feb/1110.html }}</ref> In 2004, there were 18&nbsp;million people employed in Iran, Women made up only 12.9 percent (or roughly 2,160,000) of the employed population. Men, on the other hand, made up 64 percent, or roughly 11,520,000.<ref>{{Cite journal | last = Mollahosseini | first = Ali | title = Gender and employment in Iran | journal = [[Indian Journal of Gender Studies]] | volume = 15 | issue = 1 | pages = 159–162 | publisher = [[SAGE Publications|SAGE]] | doi = 10.1177/097152150701500110 | date = January 2008 | s2cid = 144486202 }}</ref> The ILO data, however, suggest that female unemployment has been consistently higher than men's in recent years (Olmsted). Women are concentrated in the typically female jobs of teaching and caring. 82.7 percent of female civil servants work in teaching and education followed by administrative, financial, clerical, health, and medical professions.<ref name="Afshar, Haleh 1997"/> However, according to the International Labour Organization, the top three areas of female employment are agriculture, manufacturing, and education. One factor in the increase in women's employment is an increase in their literacy rates. The illiteracy among women has been a decrease from 1970 when it was 54 percent to the year 2000 when it was 17.30 percent.<ref name="Iran 2004"/> Iranian female education went from a 46 percent literacy rate to 83 percent.<ref name="Iran 2004"/> Iran ranked 10th in terms of female literacy in the 1970s, and still holds this position today.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> Women's labor force participation rate and literacy rate have been on the rise. Yet the unemployment rate for women compared to that of men is still considerably higher. Take, for example, that in 1996, the unemployment rate for women was 13.4 percent whereas, for men, the unemployment rate was 8.4 percent.<ref name="Iran 2004"/> The unemployment rate for both men and women has increased since 1996, with the [[gender gap]] in unemployment still present. In 2008 for example, [[male unemployment]] was 9.1 percent and female was 16.7 percent<ref>(International Labour Organization).</ref> According to the OECD/GWEP (2025) report “Bridging the Finance Gap for Women Entrepreneurs”, an estimated 15% of Iranian women were engaged in entrepreneurial activity as of 2022, compared to approximately 25% of men. The study identifies key barriers including high interest rates, lack of collateral, and low institutional trust affecting women entrepreneurs. It recommends policies such as strengthening networks of senior women managers, supporting women-led knowledge-based start-ups and developing crowdfunding and micro-finance platforms to reduce dependence on traditional banking.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-02 |title=Iran: Policy insights on how culture influences access to finance: Bridging the Finance Gap for Women Entrepreneurs |url=https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/bridging-the-finance-gap-for-women-entrepreneurs_75b52972-en/full-report/iran-policy-insights-on-how-culture-influences-access-to-finance_bb97f384.html |access-date=2025-11-07 |website=OECD |language=en}}</ref>
[[File:Iranian surgical technologist with hijab 09.jpg|thumb|175px|Iranian surgical technologists]]
Studies concerning female labor force participation vary. One factor to this is the difference between measurements. The Iranian Census provides one measurement for labor force participation, and the Labor Force survey provides another.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> The Iranian census for example, used different ages for the cut off age, 10 for the 1976 census, and used 6 for the 1986 census (Olmsted) While the International Labour Organization uses 15.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011">{{cite book | last = Olmsted | first = Jennifer C. | contribution = Gender and globalization: the Iranian experience | editor-last1 = Bahramitash | editor-first1 = Roksana | editor-last2 = Salehi Esfahani | editor-first2 = Hadi | title = Veiled employment: Islamism and the political economy of women's employment in Iran | publisher = Syracuse University Press | pages = [https://archive.org/details/veiledemployment0000unse/page/25 25–52] | location = Syracuse, New York | year = 2011 | isbn = 978-0-8156-3213-9 | url = https://archive.org/details/veiledemployment0000unse/page/25 }}</ref> The World Bank and International Labour Organization have different data on recent female employment; the ILO reports an employment rate of 17.1 percent which is considerably higher than that of the World Bank.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> Overall, there seems to be a common upward trend in employment over time.

Women in Iran had previously been restricted to the private sphere, which includes the care of the home and the children, they have been restricted from mobility, and they needed their husband's permission in order to obtain a job.<ref name=Moghadam>{{cite web | last = Moghadam | first = Valentine M. | title = Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran: legal status, social positions, and collective action | date = 2004 | access-date = September 20, 2012 | url = http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/ValentineMoghadamFinal.pdf | publisher = Wilsoncenter.org | archive-date = June 11, 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140611050044/http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/ValentineMoghadamFinal.pdf }}</ref> Employers depict women as less reliable in the workforce as opposed to men.<ref name="Ghorayshi-paid-work">{{cite journal |last1=Ghorayshi |first1=Parvin |title=Women, Paid - Work and the Family: In the Islamic Republic of Iran |journal=Journal of Comparative Family Studies |date=October 1996 |volume=27 |issue=3 |pages=453–466 |doi=10.3138/jcfs.27.3.453 |jstor=41603457 }}</ref> However, the Islamic Revolution had some influence in changing this perception.<ref name="Bahramitash_Brown">{{Cite journal | last = Bahramitash | first = Roksana | title = Revolution, Islamization, and women's employment in Iran | journal = [[Brown Journal of World Affairs]] | volume = IX | issue = 2 | pages = 229–241 | publisher = [[Brown University]] | date = 2003 | url = https://www.brown.edu/initiatives/journal-world-affairs/92/revolution-islamization-and-womens-employment-iran }} [http://www.watsoninstitute.org/bjwa/archive/9.2/Iran/Bahramitash.pdf Pdf.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130526165843/http://www.watsoninstitute.org/bjwa/archive/9.2/Iran/Bahramitash.pdf |date=May 26, 2013 }}</ref> Secular feminists and the elite were not happy with the revolution, while other feminists such as Roksana Bahramitash argue that the revolution did bring women into the public sphere.<ref name=Bahramitash_Brown /> The 1979 Revolution had gained widespread support from women who were eager to earn rights for themselves. A woman's responsibility and obligation was in the home, which was the underlying basis of the Islamic Republic.<ref name="Afshar, Haleh 1997"/> Olmsted adds to this by stating that women have this "double burden".<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> In addition, men had the right to inhibit their wives from entering the labor force. Ali Akbar Mahdi is in agreement with Parvin Ghorayshi in that through the domestication of women and confinement to the private sphere, they were being exploited in non-wage activities.<ref name="Mahdi">{{citation | first = Mahdi | last = Ali Akbar | contribution = Iranian women: between Islamicization and globalization | editor-last = Mohammadi | editor-first = Ali | title = Iran encountering globalization: problems and prospects | pages = 47–71 | publisher = Routledge | location = London | year = 2006 | edition = 2nd | isbn = 978-0-415-39178-8 | postscript = . | url = http://go.owu.edu/~aamahdi/women%20and%20globalization-final.pdf | access-date = December 17, 2012 | archive-date = June 30, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200630011351/http://go.owu.edu/~aamahdi/women%20and%20globalization-final.pdf }}</ref> In Karimi's viewpoint, after the revolution, even though it had been accepted on paper that women had an equal right to employment, she believed that this did not show in practice.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008">{{Cite journal | last = Karimi | first = Zahra | title = International trade and employment in labour-intensive sectors in Iran: the case of carpet-weavers | journal = Iranian Economic Review | volume = 13 | issue = 22 | pages = 41–68 | publisher = [[EconLit]] | date =Autumn 2008 | url = https://ier.ut.ac.ir/article_32665_4355.html }}</ref> Comparing the pre-revolution and post-revolution era, between 1976 and 1986, the labor force participation of women had declined immensely from 12.9 percent down to 8.2 percent.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> In addition, during the 1990s, women were being compensated for their housework due to the domestic wage law which allowed women to demand compensation from their husbands for their housework in the event of a divorce.<ref name=Bahramitash_Brown />
[[File:Firefighting training in Mashhad (2).jpg|thumb|right|Female firefighters in [[Mashhad]]]]
In 1979 the United States imposed an economic boycott on Iran, which has affected many of their economic sectors.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008"/> In particular, the boycott affected the carpet industry. As a result, the boycott influenced women's participation in the labor force.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> Weaving is a common occupation for women, as it can be done inside the family home.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008"/> If the market is volatile, merchants can simply remove or add looms to the worker's home in response to demand. Therefore, women who have children to take care of can be inside the home while tending to their work.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008"/> Carpet weaving was very common among women from rural areas. Thus, carpet weaving was a valuable method of increasing the economic involvement of women in rural neighborhoods.<ref>Moafian, Abdolhamid, comp. Human Development Report of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1999. Rep. no. 185. Trans. Ghodratollah Memarzadeh. N.p.: Plan and Budget Organization, n.d. UNDP. Web. September 20, 2012. [http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/national/asiathepacific/iran/iran_1999_en.pdf Pdf.]</ref> In 1996, over 91 percent of the female industrial employees were in the textile industry which consisted largely of carpet weaving.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008"/> Nonetheless, this all changed due to sanctions. Before the Islamic Revolution, Iranian firms were combined with firms in the United States where Iranians produced rugs for the United States market. However, due to the United States inflicting sanctions on Iran, Iranian imports were banned from the country. The demand for Iranian carpets was still high. In response, Americans bought carpets with Iranian designs from other countries that produced the same carpets, such as China and India.<ref name="Karimi, Zahra 2008"/> From 1994 to 2005 the export of carpets had declined drastically. In 1994 Iran sold over $2&nbsp;million worth of carpets, but by 2005 it went to under $500 in carpet exports. In other words, the total share of carpet in non-oil exports had declined from 44.2 percent to 4.2 percent; a drastic decrease.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/> Olmsted concurs with Moghadam this would drastically affect women in the labor market, since the majority of carpet weavers consisted of less-educated women.<ref name="Syracuse UP 2011"/><ref name=Moghadam />

=== Income Inequality ===
A study conducted in Iran revealed a significant gender income gap across all income and ethnic groups. Women, regardless of their ethnic background (with ethnic backgrounds defined by the language individuals speak), earn less than men. However, the gap is even wider for women from non-Fars ethnic groups. This means that non-Fars women experience greater income inequality than their Fars counterparts. Furthermore, the gap is widest among poorer households and narrowest among middle-class households. The study underscores the need for targeted policies that address the intersection of gender and ethnicity, particularly for marginalized groups such as non-Fars women. In terms of income inequality, non-Fars women are in a worse position than Fars women, non-Fars men, and Fars men; consequently, they require additional support and attention.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Mohammad Hassan |first1=Pedram |last2=Oryoie |first2=Ali Reza |date=2024 |title=Income Inequality and the Intersectionality of Gender and Ethnicity in Iran |url=https://jwdp.ut.ac.ir/article_98706_en.html?lang=fa |journal=Woman in Development & Politics |volume=22 |issue=4 |pages=917–939}}</ref>

===Entrepreneurship===
{{see also|Banking in Iran#Venture capital|Communications in Iran#Technology start-ups|l1=Venture capital in Iran|l2=Technology start-ups in Iran}}
According to the 2012 ''Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report'', the rate of entrepreneurship in Iran for women between the ages 18 to 64 fluctuated from 4 to 6 percent between 2008 and 2012 while their overall economic participation makes up only 13 percent of the entire economy.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://medium.com/iran-startups/women-and-entrepreneurship-in-iran-5b14daa4d44c|title=Women and Entrepreneurship in Iran — Iran Startups|author=Leila Piran|work=Medium|date=November 11, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldcrunch.com/business-finance/female-entrepreneurs-fuel-a-changing-iran/entrepreneurship-private-sector-economy-women-nuclear-deal/c2s19320/#.VbZArKPLcif|title=Female Entrepreneurs Fuel A Changing Iran|work=worldcrunch.com|date=July 22, 2015|access-date=July 27, 2015|archive-date=April 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418230242/https://www.worldcrunch.com/business-finance/female-entrepreneurs-fuel-a-changing-iran/entrepreneurship-private-sector-economy-women-nuclear-deal/c2s19320#.VbZArKPLcif|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Prostitution and sex industry ===
{{Main|Prostitution in Iran}}

Iranian female prostitutes sometimes go to neighboring countries to work. From the 1990s, [[Dubai]] became famous in the [[United Arab Emirates]] as a place for the sex trade of Iranian women, but it was from the late 2000s that other countries neighboring Iran, including [[Turkey]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], and [[Iraqi Kurdistan]], had a high number of Iranian female prostitutes hosted. After this, Iranian women quickly became more popular throughout [[Middle East|the region]] for prostitution. The income of Iranian female prostitutes in neighboring countries is considered high but risky.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |last=Rostami |first=Nilofar |title=چه‌‌طور می‌توانیم از باندهای قاچاق زنان ایرانی شکایت کنیم؟ |url=https://iranwire.com/fa/practical-resources/30389 |website=iranwire.com}}</ref>

The exact number of prostitutes working in Iran is unknown, but in 2017 it was estimated that there were 228,700 female prostitutes in Iran and that the number was on the rise.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |date=December 2020 |title=Experiences and challenges of Prostitute Women in Iran: A phenomenological qualitative study |journal=Heliyon |pmid=33319103|pmc=7724161 |last1=Yoosefi Lebni |first1=J. |last2=Irandoost |first2=S. F. |last3=Ziapour |first3=A. |last4=Mohammadi Gharehghani |first4=M. A. |last5=Ebadi Fard Azar |first5=F. |last6=Soofizad |first6=G. |last7=Khosravi |first7=B. |last8=Solhi |first8=M. |volume=6 |issue=12 |article-number=e05649 |doi=10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05649 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2020Heliy...605649Y }}</ref>

Leather boots are widely used by Iranian prostitutes for [[Financial domination|findom]] and better control over men. Iranian men have accepted boots as a symbol of women's power. A report in 2020 showed a high number of men donated a large portion of their income to Iranian girls wearing boots.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-10-24 |title=درآمد خوب روسپی‌ها مانع حرفه آموزی آنها می‌شود؟ / 30 سال، میانگین سنی کارگران جنسی در ایران |url=https://www.khabaronline.ir/news/593368/درآمد-خوب-روسپی-ها-مانع-حرفه-آموزی-آنها-می-شود-30-سال-میانگین |access-date=2023-07-08 |website=خبرآنلاین |language=fa}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |title=مروری بر روسپی‌گری در ایران و تبعات آن تحقیق و پژوهش فصل یکم |journal=Azad |pages=18, 19, 20, 21}}</ref><ref name=":14">{{Cite web |last=اقتصاد24 |first=پایگاه خبری، تحلیلی |date= |title=گردش مالی هنگفت صنعت روسپیگری بر بستر فضای مجازی/ وضعیت هشدارآمیز بحران بیکاری زنان و تاثیر آن بر روسپیگری {{!}} اقتصاد24 |url=http://eghtesaad24.ir/fa/news/102651 |access-date=2023-07-08 |website=fa |language=fa}}</ref>

Another report in 2021, said prostitution in Iran became more widespread using the Internet and some websites listed millions of women from all over Iran.<ref name=":15">{{Cite web |last=اقتصاد24 |first=پایگاه خبری، تحلیلی |date= |title=گردش مالی هنگفت صنعت روسپیگری بر بستر فضای مجازی/ وضعیت هشدارآمیز بحران بیکاری زنان و تاثیر آن بر روسپیگری {{!}} اقتصاد24 |url=http://eghtesaad24.ir/fa/news/102651 |access-date=2023-07-08 |website=fa |language=fa}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-04-13 |title=افشاگری یک رسانه درباره تن‌فروشی میلیون‌ها زن روسپی در ایران |url=https://farsi.alarabiya.net/2021/04/13/%DA%86%D9%86%D8%AF-%D8%B2%D9%86-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%A7%DB%8C%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%87-%DA%A9%D8%A7%D8%B1%DA%AF%D8%B1%DB%8C-%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%B3%DB%8C-%D9%85%D8%B4%D8%BA%D9%88%D9%84%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%9F |access-date=2023-07-08 |website=العربیه فارسی |language=fa}}</ref>

==Iranian women's movement==
{{Main|Iranian women's movement|Women's rights in Iran}}

The movement for women's rights in Iran is particularly complex within the scope of the political history of the country. Women have consistently pushed the boundaries of societal norms and were continually gaining more political and economic rights. Women heavily participated at every level of the revolution. Within months of the formation of the Islamic republic by [[Ruhollah Khomeini]] many important rights were repealed,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2267/is_2_67/ai_63787337 |title= Nikki R. Keddie, Social Research via findarticles.com |date=Summer 2000 |access-date=September 21, 2008}}</ref> but in mid-1980s replaced by a far more protective laws.<ref name="Hoodfar">[[Homa Hoodfar|Hoodfar, Homa]] (fall 1993). ''The Veil in Their Minds and On Our Heads: The Persistence of Colonial Images of Muslim Women'', Resources for feminist research (RFR) / Documentation sur la recherche féministe (DRF), Vol. 22, n. 3/4, pp. 5–18, Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE), {{ISSN|0707-8412}}</ref>

After the constitutional Revolution (1905-1906), the fall of the Qajar dynasty and the ascension to the throne of the Pahlavi dynasty, Iranian women decided to experiment with state-feminism. The new sovereign decided that he would have followed the same principles as the Turkish president Atatürk; forcefully eliminating the obligation to wear the veil and opening the access to universities for women.<ref name="Vanzan">{{Cite book |author=Anna Vanzan |chapter=Women at work: la lotta delle iraniane e i nuovi femminismi locali |title=I movimenti delle donne in Nord Africa e Medio Oriente: percorsi e generazioni "femministe" a confronto |editor=Pepicelli R. |editor2=Vanzan A.}}</ref>

During Reza Shah Pahlavi's reign the feminist movement grew stronger. Though they never achieved their main goal, universal suffrage.<ref name="Vanzan" />

During Reza Shah Pahlavi's son, Mohammad Shah, reign Iranian women managed to gain access to the newborn Communist party Tudeh and some of these activists founded parallel alloys still fighting for the right to vote that they managed to obtain in 1962.<ref name="Vanzan" />

After a short attempt made by the prime minister Mossadegh to overthrow him he regained his place as leader and decided to review some articles in family law: in 1967 divorce became a legal procedure that had to be carried out only in court and the minimum age for marriage became 18.<ref name="Vanzan" />

In 1978/1978 the regime was overthrown by the people and women played an important part in the accomplishment of the Revolution.<ref name="Vanzan" />

After this the already modified family law was modified again reinstating the minimum age for marriage at 13.<ref name="Vanzan" />

Under the presidency of Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005) feminist movements are on the rise. The president was in fact elected thanks to their support.<ref name="Vanzan" />

In 2003, [[Shirin Ebadi]], Iran's first female judge in the Pahlavi era, won the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in promoting human rights.<ref name="BBC Profile">{{cite news|title=Profile: Shirin Ebadi|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3181992.stm|work=article|publisher=BBC News|date=November 27, 2009}}</ref>

In 2005 president Khatami was replaced by the conservative Mahmud Ahmadinejad.<ref name="Vanzan" />

In 2009 before the spring elections numerous organisations for example Madraseh-ye Feminist decided to team up to present a united front to the 4 candidates to ask for a betterment in women's conditions.<ref name="Vanzan" />

In the same year the Green Movement was founded, the principal original and important element is the feminist leadership. This movement started off as a pro-democracy revolt guided mainly by women who were part of the urban middle class.<ref name="Ghaffari">{{Cite web |author=Rassa Ghaffari |title=Donna Vita Libertà. Il timbro femminista di una protesta che sa di rivoluzione |url=https://centroriformastato.it/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Rassa-Ghaffari_Donna-Vita-Liberta.-Il-timbro-femminista-di-una-protesta-che-sa-di-rivoluzione.pdf |website=Centro per la Riforma dello Stato |language=it}}</ref>

The president was re-elected and this meant that women's conditions were going to be overlooked. The day of the result of the elections women protested and in particular one of these became the symbol of women's right movement; this woman was Neda Agha-Soltan.<ref name="Vanzan" />

During the last few decades, Iranian women have had a significant presence in Iran's [[Science in Iran|scientific movement]], [[Iranian modern and contemporary art|art movement]], [[Persian literature|literary new wave]] and the new wave of [[Iranian cinema]]. According to the research ministry of Iran, about 6 percent of full professors, 8 percent of associate professors, and 14 percent of assistant professors were women in the 1998–99 academic year. However, women accounted for 56 percent of all students in the natural sciences, including one in five Ph.D. students.<ref name="sciencemag">{{cite journal|title= IRANIAN SCIENCE: Iranian Women Hear the Call of Science|doi=10.1126/science.290.5496.1485|pmid= 17771221|volume=290|issue= 5496|journal=Science|page=1485|year= 2000|last1= Koenig|first1= R.|s2cid=153275092}}</ref> In total 49.8 percent of the university students in Iran are women.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.factfish.com/statistic/enrolement,+tertiary,+female+of+total+enrolment|title=factfish Enrolement, tertiary, female of total enrolment world statistics and data|website=www.factfish.com|access-date=May 21, 2019}}</ref>

With the 2005 election of President [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]], Western media said that women's rights declined.<ref name=HRW2>[https://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/09/18/iran19845.htm "UN: Hold Ahmadinejad Accountable for Iran Rights Crisis"], ''[[Human Rights Watch]]'', September 18, 2008. Retrieved September 21, 2008.</ref><ref name=Sun>[http://www.nysun.com/new-york/iranian-dissidents-at-forum-speak-on-ahmadinejad/64730/ Iranian Dissidents at Forum Speak On Ahmadinejad, Women's Rights], ''[[New York Sun]]'', October 17, 2007. Retrieved September 21, 2008.</ref><ref name=LAT>[http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-marriage3-2008sep03,0,5861662.story victory on marriage legislation], Borzou Daragahi, ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', September 3, 2008. Retrieved September 21, 2008.</ref> After Ahmadinejad's re-election in 2009, the first female minister was appointed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8235264.stm |title=BBC: "Iran backs first woman minister", September 3, 2009 |publisher=BBC News |date=September 3, 2009 |access-date=May 20, 2013}}</ref>

In 2022 the Green Movement became fully political and achieved a frontal position creating a new symbology able to help comprehend important definitions.<ref name="Ghaffari" />

== Fashion and clothing ==
{{See also|Fashion in Iran}}
[[File:2018 Tehran and a Photo of an Persian teenage (3).jpg|thumb|An Iranian woman wearing boots in Tehran (2018)]]
Iranian female fashion models usually receive a high salary in [[Tehran]], the capital of the country, and fashion in Tehran has usually been the pioneer of [[Fashion in Iran|Iranian women's fashion]].

Iran has an advanced [[Iranian leather industry|leather industry]] for women's clothing, including boots and tops.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-11-15 |title=صنعت چرم کشور در انتظار توسعه فناوری |url=https://www.irna.ir/news/84109804/صنعت-چرم-کشور-در-انتظار-توسعه-فناوری |access-date=2022-08-25 |website=ایرنا |language=fa}}</ref>

Ancient [[Persians]] used to wear leather high-heeled boots. Both Persian women and men wore varieties of "tall" boots. In modern era, boot became a main and common footwear among Iranian women, and this influenced the Iranian fashion industry. The sale of women's boots in Iran was reported ten times more than men's boots in a report in the 2000s.<ref name=":13">{{Cite book |title=هشت هزار سال تارىخ پوشاک اقوام ايرانى - نسخه اصلاح و به‌روزشده ۱۴۰۲ - ۴۵ تا ۵۶}}</ref> One of the main features of Iranian women's fashion is wearing high-heeled boots.<ref name=":13" />

===Mandatory veiling under Islamic Republic===
After the [[Islamic Revolution]], the policy inherited from the Kashf-e hijab was turned around. Instead of being forced to remove their veil, women were now subjected to the reversed ban against unveiling, and the veil were now enforced upon all women.<ref name="foran 2003">{{cite book |last1=Foran |first1=John |title=Theorizing revolutions |date=2003 |publisher=Routledge |location=London |isbn=978-1-134-77921-5|language=en|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Z2FAgAAQBAJ}}</ref> The non-conservative women, who had worn the veil as a symbol of opposition during the revolution, had not expected veiling to become mandatory, and when the veil was first made mandatory in February 1979 it was met with protests and demonstrations by liberal and leftist women,<ref name="foran 2003"/> and thousands of women participated in a [[International Women's Day Protests in Tehran, 1979|women's march on International Women's Day, 8 March 1979]], in protest against mandatory veiling.<ref name="Vakil 2011">{{cite book |last1=Vakil |first1=Sanam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WB3m-cBtrQ4C&dq=ataturk+veils&pg=PA67 |title=Women and politics in the Islamic republic of Iran: Action and reaction |date=2011 |publisher=Continnuum-3PL |isbn=978-1-4411-9734-4 |location=New York}}</ref> The protests resulted in the temporary retraction of mandatory veiling.<ref name="foran 2003"/>

When the left and the liberals were eliminated and the conservatives secured solitary control, however, veiling was enforced on all women.<ref name="foran 2003"/> This began with the 'Islamification of offices' in July 1980, when unveiled women were refused entry to government offices and public buildings, and banned from appearing unveiled at their work places under the risk of being fired.<ref>{{cite report |last1=Justice for Iran |title=Thirty-five Years of Forced Hijab: The Widespread and Systematic Violation of Women's Rights in Iran |date=March 2014 |publisher=www.Justiceforiran.org |url=https://justice4iran.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Hejab-Report-JFI-English.pdf}}</ref> On the streets, unveiled women were attacked by revolutionaries, and two slogans of the revolution were: "Wear a veil, or we will punch your head" and "Death to the unveiled".<ref name="DW-2020">{{cite news |title=Why Iranian authorities force women to wear a veil |url=https://www.dw.com/en/why-iranian-authorities-force-women-to-wear-a-veil/a-56014027 |access-date=30 August 2021 |agency=DW |date=21 December 2020}}</ref> In July 1981, an edict of mandatory veiling in public was introduced, which was followed in 1983 by an Islamic Punishment Law, introducing a punishment of 74 lashes on unveiled women.<ref name="Vakil 2011"/>{{rp|67}} The law was enforced by members of the [[Islamic Revolution Committees]] patrolling the streets, and later by the [[Guidance Patrol]]s, also called the Morality Police.

Since hijab was legally imposed on all Iranian women in 1984,<ref name="Ramezani10">Ramezani, Reza (spring 2007). [http://www.magiran.com/view.asp?Type=pdf&ID=429897 ''Hijab dar Iran az Enqelab-e Eslami ta payan Jang-e Tahmili''] ''[Hijab in Iran from the Islamic Revolution to the end of the Imposed war]'' (Persian), Faslnamah-e Takhassusi-ye Banuvan-e Shi'ah [Quarterly Journal of Shiite Women] '''11''', Qom: Muassasah-e Shi'ah Shinasi, pp. 251-300, {{ISSN|1735-4730}}</ref> post revolutionary Iranian women's fashion has seen Iranian women attempt to work within the narrow confines of the Islamic modesty code, with the typical attire gradually evolving from the standard black chador to a rousari (simple headscarf) combined with other colorful elements of clothing.<ref name="Heath">Heath, Jennifer (2008). ''The Veil: Women Writers on Its History, Lore, and Politics'', Berkeley; Los Angeles: University of California Press, pp. 66, 252–253, 256, 260, {{ISBN|9780520255180}}</ref><ref name="Beeman">Beeman, William Orman (2008). ''The Great Satan vs. the Mad Mullahs: How the United States and Iran Demonize Each Other'', 2nd ed, Chicago: [[University of Chicago Press]], pp. 108, 152, {{ISBN|9780226041476}}</ref> In 2010, 531 young females (aged 15–29) from different cities in nine provinces of Iran participated in a study the results of which showed that 77 percent prefer stricter covering, 19 percent loose covering, and only 4 percent do not believe in veiling at all.<ref name="AhmadiBigdeliMoradiSeyedEsmaili">Ahmadi, Khodabakhsh; Bigdeli, Zahra; Moradi, Azadeh; Seyed Esmaili, Fatholah (summer 2010): ''Rabete-ye e'teqad be hijab va asibpaziri-e fardi, khanvedegi, va ejtema'i [Relation between belief in hijab and individual, familial and social vulnerability]'' (Persian), Journal of Behavioral Sciences (JBS), Vol. 4, n. 2, pp. 97–102, Tehran: Baghiatallah University of Medical Sciences, {{ISSN|2008-1324}}</ref> A tendency towards Western dress correlated with 66 percent of the latest non-compliance with the dress-code.<ref name="AhmadiBigdeliMoradiSeyedEsmaili"/> In Tehran, police will no longer arrest any women seen violating modest code but will instead be fined or given classes by the police.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1379359/women-will-no-longer-be-arrested-for-flouting-dress-code-tehran-police|title=Women will no longer be arrested for flouting dress code: Tehran police|last=AP|date=December 28, 2017|work=DAWN.COM|access-date=December 28, 2017|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Compulsory hijab protests ==
{{see also|Iranian protests against compulsory hijab|Homa Darabi|Mahsa Amini protests}}There have been many changes in Iran's society in the years since the revolution, often referred to as the "generation gap". This gap is overreaching and affects issues such as lifestyle, familial relationships, politics, and religion.<ref>Ministry of Islamic Guidance, Data Analysis of Iranians' Values and Attitudes: Generation Gap and Continuity (Tehran: Tarh-haye Melli [National Plans]), AH 1382/2003</ref> For many of the young women one topic gaining popularity is the issue of the veil. After the 1979 revolution, the Hijab became compulsory as well as modesty requirements; loose-fitting clothing as well as a Rusari (headscarf) that covers all the hair.<ref>Ramezani, Reza (2010). Hijab dar Iran az Enqelab-e Eslami ta payan Jang-e Tahmili [Hijab in Iran from the Islamic Revolution to the end of the Imposed war] (Persian), Faslnamah-e Takhassusi-ye Banuvan-e Shi'ah ''[Quarterly Journal of Shiite Women]'', Qom: Muassasah-e Shi'ah Shinasi</ref> There has also been a rise in baddhi-jab, or girls who wear the legal requirements but not to the letter of the law, often having the majority of their hair showing. Many young urban Iranian women claimed that they are becoming less traditional. Many view their clothing style as a personal choice include the choice to veil. Issues and protests against the veil became symbolic as resistance against the Islamic regime.

[[Masih Alinejad]] in 2015 launched [[My Stealthy Freedom]], which encouraged Iranian women to post pictures without their hijab. After December more than 35 protesters were arrested in just Tehran.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44040236|title=Iranian women threw off the hijab - then what?|first=Nassim|last=Hatam|work=BBC News|date=May 19, 2018|access-date=May 21, 2019}}</ref> The reaction from the government has been severe; police have stated that any women that participate in demonstrations against compulsory hijab could face up to 10 years in prison. The situation had become more tense in April after a video was shared showing a woman being slapped by a female member of Gast-e-Ersade (morality police) for wearing a loose headscarf. This incident also drew international attention to the issues Iranian women were facing.

The Gasht-E-Ershaad (also known as the [[Guidance Patrol]]) is a part of Iranian [[Islamic religious police]], which is tasked with enforcing Iran's headscarf and dress code laws. They have the authority to chastise and even arrest women who do not conform to dress "modesty tests".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kenyon |first1=Peter |title=Springtime In Iran Means The 'Morality Police' Are Out In Force |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/05/03/476511439/springtime-in-iran-means-the-morality-police-are-out-in-force |website=NPR.org |date=May 3, 2016 |access-date=January 29, 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
Women who are arrested for demonstrating against compulsory hijab claim that they are held in [[solitary confinement]] and subjected to torture and beatings.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44040236|title=Iranian women threw off the hijab - what happened next?|work=BBC News |date=May 18, 2018}}</ref> Protests against compulsory hijab continued with the response becoming larger. In December 2017 and January 2018, several women took off their headscarves to protest. These women became known as "the Girls of Revolution Street". One of "the Girls of Revolution Street",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/04/18/iran-release-anti-compulsory-hijab-activists-0|title=Iran: Release Anti-Compulsory Hijab Activists|date=April 18, 2019|website=Human Rights Watch|access-date=May 21, 2019}}</ref> [[Vida Movahed]]i, was arrested for crimes against public morals, encouraging corruption and prostitution, and was sentenced to a year in prison. Punishment is given out to not only those who protest but also those who defend them; [[Nasrin Sotoudeh]],<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/she-defended-iranian-women-who-removed-their-hijabs-now-shes-been-given-38-years-in-prison/2019/03/17/b1720fea-45b1-11e9-aaf8-4512a6fe3439_story.html Board, Editorial. "She Defended Iranian Women Who Removed Their Hijabs. Now She's Been given 38 Years in Prison." ''The Washington Post'', WP Company, 17 March 2019]</ref> an Iranian human rights lawyer who defended women who were being prosecuted for protesting compulsory hijab, was sentenced to 38 years in prison and 148 lashes. She was tried on the charges of [[Unlawful assembly|assembly]] and [[collusion]] against national security, propaganda against the state, membership in various human rights groups, encouraging corruption and prostitution, appearing at the judiciary without Islamic hijab, disturbing public peace and order, and publishing falsehoods with the intent to disturb public opinion. Protests have continued to occur where on May 13, 2019, there was a vast peaceful protest of both male and female students on the campus of Tehran University, but they were assaulted by other protesters who were chanting "Students may die, but we will not tolerate indignity".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.voanews.com/a/pro-iran-government-activists-assault-student-protesters-in-tehran/4915798.html|title=Pro-Iran Government Activists Assault Student Protesters in Tehran|website=VOA|date=May 13, 2019 |access-date=May 21, 2019}}</ref> This protest was created to bring together Iranians in order to show their frustration with the government and an effort to receive change that has been sought for a long time. The protest turned violent when Iranian officers became involved.<ref name="Abrahamian">Abrahamian, Ervand (2008). ''A History of Modern Iran'', Cambridge, UK; New York: [[Cambridge University Press]], pp. 84, 94–95, {{ISBN|9780521528917}}</ref>

In June 2018, Iranian human rights lawyer [[Nasrin Sotoudeh]], who represented women arrested for removing their headscarves, was arrested and sentenced to 38 years in prison and 148 lashes for national security-related offenses. She is one of the seven human rights lawyers arrested in Iran in 2018.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-47531312|title=Nasrin Sotoudeh: Iran lawyer who defended headscarf protesters jailed|date=March 11, 2019|publisher=BBC News|access-date=March 11, 2019}}</ref>

{{multiple images
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| image1            = Amir Kabir University uprising September 2022 (3).jpg
| image2            = Uprising in Tehran, Keshavarz Boulvard September 2022 (3).jpg
| footer            = protests all around the world in response of the [[Death of Mahsa Amini]].
| image3            = Iran solidarity demonstration Berlin 2022-10-22 45.jpg
| image4            = Iran solidarity demonstration Berlin 2022-10-22 153.jpg
}}
On 16 September 2022, a 22-year-old Iranian woman named [[Mahsa Amini]] was arrested for alleged wearing her [[Hijab]] improperly and later died after according to eyewitnesses, she had been severely beaten by [[Guidance Patrol|religious morality police]] officers. Amini's death received global attention and became a symbol of [[Human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran|violence against women under the Islamic Republic of Iran]], sparking a series of [[Mahsa Amini protests|anti-compulsory hijab protests]] across the world.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-09-16 |title=Iranian woman dies 'after being beaten by morality police' over hijab law |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/sep/16/iranian-woman-dies-after-being-beaten-by-morality-police-over-hijab-law |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref> At least 481 protesters including 64 minors killed ([[Iran Human Rights]]) as of January 9, 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=List of 109 Protesters at Risk of Execution, Death Penalty Charges or Sentences; At Least 481 Protesters Killed |url=http://iranhr.net/en/articles/5687/ |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=iranhr.net |language=en}}</ref> The protests have been "nationwide, spread across social classes, universities, the streets [and] schools", and called the "biggest challenge" to the government of Iran since the [[Iranian Revolution|Islamic Revolution]] in 1979.<ref>{{Cite web |agency=Agence France-Presse |date=2022-11-06 |title=Fresh protests erupt in Iran's universities and Kurdish region |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/06/iran-fresh-protests-universities-kurdish-region |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref> The protests soon shaped the "[[Woman, Life, Freedom|Women, Life, Freedom]]" movement, with notable protesters such as [[Death of Nika Shakarami|Nika Shakarami]], [[Death of Sarina Esmailzadeh|Sarina Esmailzadeh]], [[Death of Hadis Najafi|Hadis Najafi]], [[Killing of Khodanur Lojei|Khodanur Lojei]] and [[Killing of Kian Pirfalak|Kian Pirfalak]] being the well-known faces of the movement.

==In culture==

===Persian literature===
{{See also|Persian literature}}

Over the past two centuries, women have played a prominent role in Persian literature, however, it mostly remained predominantly male-focused. The literary work of women was repressed for many years and even denied to them.<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book |last=Milani |first=Farzaneh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bOMwi_XXlsYC&q=importance+of+the+veil+for+women+in+Iran&pg=PR8 |title=Veils and Words: The Emerging Voices of Iranian Women Writers |date=September 1, 1992 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |isbn=978-0-8156-2557-5 |language=en}}</ref> Contemporary Iranian poets such as [[Simin Behbahani]], [[Forough Farrokhzad]], [[Parvin Etesami]] and [[Mina Assadi]] have helped in the inclusion of woman literature in Iran. Simin Behbahani has written passionate love poems as well as narrative poetry enriched by a motherly affection for all humans.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://iranianstudies.ca/behbahani/molavi.htm |title=The international symposium on Simin Behbahani |publisher=Iranianstudies.ca |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=September 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930181119/http://iranianstudies.ca/behbahani/molavi.htm }}</ref> She has been an advocate for individual rights regardless of anyone's gender, class or religion.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Milani|first=Professor Farzaneh|date=February 1, 2008|title=Simin Behbahani: Iran's National Poet|journal=Iranian Studies|volume=41|issue=1|pages=3–17|doi=10.1080/00210860701786546|s2cid=154159058|issn=0021-0862}}</ref> In addition, Behbani does not compete in her literature but instead writes and empowers both man and woman. Behbahani is president of The Iranian Writers' Association and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature in 1997.

Contemporary authors include [[Simin Daneshvar]], [[Mahshid Amirshahi]], Shahrnush Pârsipur, Moniru Ravânipur and [[Zoya Pirzad]] to name a few. Daneshvar's work spans pre-Revolutionary and post-Revolutionary Iranian literature. Her first collection of short stories, ''Âtash-e khâmush'' (Fire Quenched), was published in 1948. It was the first collection of short stories published by a woman in Iran. In 1969, she published ''Savushun'' (Mourners of [[Siyâvash]]), a novel that reflected the Iranian experience of modernity during the 20th century. It was the first novel published by a woman in Iran. Daneshvar was the first president of the Iranian Writers' Association. Shahrnush Pârsipur became popular in the 1980s following the publication of her short stories. Her 1990 novel, ''Zanân bedûn-e Mardân'' (Women Without Men), addressed issues of sexuality and identity. Many people criticized her work for being too outspoken and because she challenged many traditional views such as sexual oppression, virginity, and sexuality.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Golbarg|first=Bashi|date=2000|title=The "Boom" in Prose Writing by Iranian Women Authors in the 1990s Within the Context of the Situation of Women in Contemporary Iran|url=http://www.parstimes.com/women/boom_in_prose_writing.pdf}}</ref> As a result, it was ultimately banned by the Islamic Republic. Moniru Ravânipur's work includes a collection of short stories, ''Kanizu'' (The Female Slave), and her novel ''Ahl-e gharq'' (The People of Gharq). Ravânipur is known for her focus on rituals, customs, and traditions of coastal life.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iranian.com/Bashi/2005/November/Prose/index |title=Feminist Ink |access-date=November 18, 2007 |author=Golbarg Bashi |date=November 25, 2005 |publisher=iranian.com |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071111171013/http://www.iranian.com/Bashi/2005/November/Prose/index <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = November 11, 2007}}</ref>

===Iranian music===
{{See also|Persian women musicians|Iranian women and Persian music}}
[[File:Sahar Persian singer 2.jpg|thumb|[[Sahar (singer)|Sahar]], known for her contributions to [[Iranian pop music|Persian pop music]]]]
[[File:Googoosh in concert (2010).png|right|thumb|[[Googoosh]], One of the most popular and prolific entertainers in Iran<ref>{{Cite web |title=Googoosh {{!}} Biography, Albums, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Googoosh |access-date=2023-09-05 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>]]
Perhaps [[Qamar ol-Molouk Vaziri]] was the first female master of Persian music who introduced a new style of music and was praised by other masters of Persian music of the time.{{Citation needed|date=September 2007}} Several years later, Mahmoud Karimi trained women students—Arfa Atrai, Soosan Matloobi, Fatemeh Vaezi, Masoomeh Mehr-Ali, and Soosan Aslani—who later became masters of Persian traditional music. [[Soodabeh Salem]] and [[Sima Bina]] developed Iranian children's music and [[Iranian folk music]] respectively.

Innovations made by Iranian women are not restricted to Persian music. For instance, [[Lily Afshar]] is working on a combination of Persian and Western classical music.

[[Googoosh]] is one of the most famous Iranian singers. Her legacy dates back to pre-Revolutionary times in Iran, where her fame in Iran reached heights equivalent to [[Elvis Presley]] or [[Barbra Streisand]]. She became iconic when, after the 1979 [[Iranian Revolution]], she lived unheard of for more than 20 years. In 2000, she emerged from Iran with an international tour.

===Modern art===
{{See also|Modern and contemporary art in Iran}}
[[File:Shohreh Aghdashloo (3) (38111500402) (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Shohreh Aghdashloo]], who has received various accolades, including a [[Primetime Emmy Award]] and a [[Satellite Awards|Satellite Award]], in addition to a nomination for an [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]].]]
Iranian women have played an important role in gaining international recognition for Iranian art and in particular Iranian cinema.

Since the rise of the Iranian [[Iranian New Wave (Cinema)|''New Wave'']] of Persian cinema, Iran has produced record numbers of film school graduates; each year more than 20 new directors, many of them women, make their debut films. In the last two decades, the percentage of Iranian film directors who are women has exceeded the percentage of women film directors in most Western countries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archiv.hkw.de/en/dossiers/iran_dossierroseissa/kapitel2.html |title=Haus der Kulturen der Welt |publisher=Archiv.hkw.de |access-date=May 20, 2013 |archive-date=July 18, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718110723/http://archiv.hkw.de/en/dossiers/iran_dossierroseissa/kapitel2.html }}</ref> The success of the pioneering director [[Rakhshan Bani-Etemad]] suggests that many women directors in Iran were working hard on films long before director [[Samira Makhmalbaf]] made the headlines. Internationally recognized figures in [[Women's cinema|Persian women's cinema]] are [[Tahmineh Milani]], [[Rakhshan Bani-Etemad]], [[Zahra Dowlatabadi]], [[Niki Karimi]], [[Samira Makhmalbaf]], Mahin Oskouei, [[Pari Saberi]], [[Hana Makhmalbaf]], Pouran Rakhshandeh, Shirin Neshat, Sepideh Farsi, [[Maryam Keshavarz]], [[Yassamin Maleknasr]], and Sara Rastegar.

Iranian writer-director [[Rakhshan Bani-Etemad]] is probably Iran's best known and certainly most prolific female filmmaker. She has established herself as the elder stateswoman of Iranian cinema with documentaries and films about social pathology. One of the best-known female film directors in the country today is [[Samira Makhmalbaf]], who directed her first film, ''[[The Apple (1998 film)|The Apple]]'' when she was only 17 years old. Samira Makhmalbaf won the 2000 [[Cannes Film Festival|Cannes]] Jury Prize for ''[[Blackboards]]'', a film about the trials of two traveling teachers in [[Kurdistan Province (Iran)|Kurdistan]].

In [[Persian literature]] one can find references to women as far back as Pre-Islamic times.<ref>Brosius, Maria. Women in Ancient Persia, 559–331&nbsp;B.C. Oxford Classical Monographs. Oxford University Press (UK), 1998.</ref>

And many creators of classical verse and prose were women themselves as well. One can mention [[Qatran Tabrizi]], [[Rabia Balkhi]], [[Táhirih]], [[Simin Behbahani]], [[Simin Daneshvar]], [[Parvin E'tesami]], [[Forough Farrokhzad]], [[Mahsati]] and [[Mina Assadi]] in this group to name nine of them.

==See also==
{{Portal|Society|Iran}}
*[[Andaruni]]
*[[Women's rights in Iran]]
*[[Iranian women's movement]]
*[[List of Iranian women]]
*[[List of Iranian women artists]]
*[[Women in Asia]]
*[[Women's rights]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
*''Persian Women & Their Ways'' Clara Colliver Rice. 1923. Seeley, Service & Co.
*''Voices from Iran: The Changing Lives of Iranian Women''. Mahnaz Kousha. [[Syracuse University]] Press. 2002.
*''Veils and Words: The Emerging Voices of Iranian Women Writers''. Farzaneh Milani. Published 1992 by I.B.Tauris
*Piyrnia, Mansoureh. ''Salar Zanana Iran''. 1995. Maryland: Mehran Iran Publishing.
*Brosius, Maria. ''Women in Ancient Persia, 559–331 B.C.'' Oxford Classical Monographs. Oxford University Press (UK), 1998.
*[[Sattareh Farman Farmaian|Farman Farmaian, Sattareh]]. 1992. Daughter of Persia: A Woman's Journey from Her Father's Harem Through the Islamic Revolution. New York: Three Rivers Press.
* Najmeh Khalili Mahani, ''Women of Iranian Popular Cinema: Projection of Progress'', Offscreen, Vol. '''10''', Issue 7, July 31, 2006, [http://www.offscreen.com/biblio/phile/essays/women_of_iran/].
* Hamideh Sedghi, "Women and Politics in Iran: Veiling, Unveiling, and Reveiling", New York: published 2007
* {{cite journal |last1=Moinifar |first1=Heshmat Sadat |title=Higher Education of Women in Iran: Progress or Problem? |journal=International Journal of Women's Research |date=1 April 2012 |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=43–60 |url=https://ijwr.ut.ac.ir/article_21840.html }}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Women of Iran}}
*[http://www.IranDokht.com ''IranDokht''] – A comprehensive portal and magazine
*[http://www.sssup.it/context_eng.jsp?ID_LINK=7935&area=47 Iran Electoral Archive – Women in Politics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303195157/http://www.sssup.it/context_eng.jsp?ID_LINK=7935&area=47 |date=March 3, 2016 }}
*[http://www.parstimes.com/women/ Iranian Women Resources]
*[http://www.qajarwomen.org/en Qajar Women Archive], a digital archive of primary-source materials related to the lives of women during the Qajar era (1786–1925) in Iran. The Harvard University Library (HUL) central infrastructure accommodates and catalogs the archive.
*[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/education-xxv-womens-education-in-the-qajar-period ''WOMEN'S EDUCATION IN THE QAJAR PERIOD''], ''Encyclopædia Iranica''
*''[https://iranicaonline.org/articles/education-xxvi-womens-education-in-the-pahlavi-period-and-after WOMEN'S EDUCATION IN THE PAHLAVI PERIOD AND AFTER]'', ''Encyclopædia Iranica''
*[http://www.karanfilm.org/photography ''Women of IRAN'''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507022852/http://karanfilm.org/photography/ |date=May 7, 2010 }}, Social Documentary photos of Behrouz Reshad
* ''History of Iranian Photography. Women as Photography Model: Qajar Period'', photographs provided by Bahman Jalali, Iranian Artists' site, [https://web.archive.org/web/20071011111127/http://kargah.com/history_of_iranian_photography/qajarwomen/index.php?other=1 ''Kargah'']

{{Iran topics}}
{{Asia topic|Women in|titlestyle = background:#FFCBDB}}
{{Asia topic|prefix=Gender inequality in|countries_only=yes}}
{{gender equality}}
{{Feminism}}
{{Masculinism}} 

[[Category:Women in Iran| ]]
[[Category:Women by country|Iran]]