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The Persian-language magazine Habl al-Matin, one of the most important political journals during the Iran Constitutional Revolution, was published daily in Teheran from 1907 to 1908. |
Among all the newspapers that emerged during Iran’s Constitutional Revolution—those that ostensibly championed freedom, justice, and the rule of law—few are as well-remembered as Habl al-Matin. Published over the years in Calcutta, Tehran, and Rasht by the Kashani family, the newspaper operated under the banner of Islamic unity while promoting progressive political ideas. It was, and still is, often considered one of the most influential publications of its time.
Yet, it is striking to note that more than a hundred years after the Constitutional movement, even the most progressive elements within Iran’s political center continue to uphold the same positions that Habl al-Matin once advanced—especially regarding our mother tongue.
In an editorial dated the 25th of Ramadan, 1325 AH (October 1907 CE), Habl al-Matin wrote:
“A single nation can be described as the inhabitants of a region who are unified in their customs, morals, and religion. A country composed of such a unified nation is more prepared for progress, and its development and civilization will accelerate accordingly. In contrast, in countries where multiple nations coexist, progress and civilization face major obstacles... One of the great calamities brought upon us by the Mongol and Tatar invasions which even today burdens our nation with grief is the spread of the Turkish language in some of Iran’s finest regions, particularly the sacred land of Azerbaijan. The dominance of this language in that region has created a deep rift between brothers and has weakened the political unity of our nation. Our Azerbaijani brothers now see themselves as separate from the Persian race, and many Persian-speaking commoners wrongly view this distinction as rational. Yet we have all suckled from the same mother and been raised under the same roof.”
The ideas expressed here of unity through sameness, of progress through linguistic and cultural homogenization are not relics of a bygone era. They remain deeply rooted in the ideology of Iran’s contemporary centralist establishment. The belief that difference is inherently divisive, and that linguistic and ethnic diversity must be erased for the sake of national progress, continues to shape policy and public discourse to this day.
This enduring mindset is no accident. It reflects a legacy—an inherited narrative that centralism has worn like an old, tattered coat passed down through generations. What’s even more telling is that, even in the early 20th century, the issue of Turkish identity and the right to speak one’s mother tongue stood at the heart of political mobilization in Azerbaijan.
It’s precisely this assertion of identity that seems to have so deeply unsettled the editors of Habl al-Matin to the point of illogic and contradiction. Their vision of unity did not allow space for multiplicity. Their concept of progress required erasure.
And yet, more than a hundred years on, these same demands endure: for recognition, for linguistic rights, for the freedom to exist as we are not as a reflection of someone else’s ideal. Our identity and our language remain central to our struggle.
Meanwhile, the political center still clings to the belief that homogenization ensures stability, and that acknowledging difference invites disintegration.
But history continues to prove otherwise: real unity is not built on forced sameness, but on the respectful inclusion of diverse voices. True progress does not silence differences it grows through them.