A Typology of Pro-Hijab Approaches in Iran from the Naseri Era to the End of the First Pahlavi Period (1848–1948)

This study presents a typology of pro-hijab approaches in Iran from the Naseri era to the end of the First Pahlavi period. Using qualitative content analysis, it examines hijab advocates' views in response to the dissident current. The findings identify two types of advocates: “maximalist traditionalist” (with explanatory and promotional sub-approaches) and “religious modernist” (with a reformist approach). The explanatory approach emphasized rational and textual necessities of maximal covering, while the promotional approach promoted hijab through rational and social arguments. The religious modernist type, relying on new interpretations of Quranic concepts, sought a novel understanding of hijab in society and distanced itself from maximal hijab. Notable points include the two currents' inverse movement: dissidents moved from easy hijab to unveiling, while advocates moved from maximal hijab to more comfortable hijab. State repression during the First Pahlavi period shifted advocates’ strategy from producing scientific content to minimally preserving religion. This intellectual confrontation became one of the most important cultural conflicts in contemporary Iranian history.