نشریه مطالعات خلیج فارس
سال پنجم شماره 1 (پیاپی 17، تابستان 1398)

In the course of history, islands have always been of particular political, social, economic, and military importance. Most of the islands of the Persian Gulf have been inhabited and even had their own governments in their history of existence. Among the famous islands which have always attracted the attention of geographers during the history of Iran and Islam reference can be made to Kharg, Kish, Bahrain, and Laft. These islands, except for short periods of time, have always been under the sovereignty of Iranian governments. Iranian and Muslim geographers have made frequent references to the geographical and historical features of these islands. Following a descriptive method and using library resources, this paper investigates some of the most important islands of the Persian Gulf in the view of some Muslim geographers such as Hamdullah Mostofi, Hafiz-i Abru, Ansari Dameshghi, Abu’l-Fida, Mas’udi, Istakhri, Ibn Khordadbeh, Ibn Bakran, Fasaei, and Ramhormozi.

Al-Asfoor or Usfurids were one of the prominent Shi’i dynasties that initially lived in Bahrain. However, they are said to have immigrated to Bushehr at the invitation of Fath-Alishah Qajar because of the instability and insecurity of that region. The existence of several distinguished scholars and clergymen among the members of this dynasty resulted in the provision of numerous supreme scientific and religious services in Bushehr. Through using library resources, following a descriptive-analytic method, and conducting field studies, the authors have examined the effects of the immigration of Al-Asfoor Dynasty to Bushehr on the political structure and social-cultural texture of this city. The findings of this study indicate that the members of this dynasty played an influential role in the social and cultural changes in Bushehr during the Qajar period and consolidated the position of Shi’ites there.

A study of Iran’s sea borders and the geographical situation of Iranian coasts and islands in the Persian Gulf region indicates that, because of its vast lands along the Persian Gulf, Iran owns the vastest coastal areas of this waterway. Moreover, it has sovereignty over some of its valuable islands at the mouth of the Persian Gulf and in the Strait of Hormuz. However, the United Arab Emirates has always tried to damage Iran’s sovereignty over a part of these Iranian islands by claiming that their sovereignty belongs to it. The historical study of such claims reveals that, since the emergence of the first great Iranian Empires, Iran has always ruled this waterway; however, after the presence of Britain in the region and its competition with Russia in 1903, some of the Iranian islands were illegally occupied by this government, and a number of them were also placed under the rule of al-Qasimi Skeikhs of Sharjah, which was not acceptable to the Iranian government. Upon announcing Britain’s deserting the Persian Gulf and Iran’s withdrawing its claim as to its ownership of Bahrain in 29 December 1971, based on an agreement between Iran and Sharjah, it was decided to return the two Greater and Lesser Tunbs to Iran and renew Iran’s sovereignty over Abu Musa Island. From that date until 1992, Iran’s sovereignty over these islands was not opposed by the United Arab Emirates or any other country. The study of UAE’s legal claims indicates that none of them can function as legitimate arguments for its sovereignty over these islands. Nevertheless, several legal and political proofs, the historical background of the region, and the geographical situation of the Persian Gulf confirm Iran’s territorial sovereignty over the Iranian islands.

The security of the Persian Gulf has turned into an extremely critical issue for the world society since the discovery of oil in this region during the recent decades. Different security systems have been developed there in order to protect the region and guarantee the free flow of energy and the continuity of this process. Most of the related plans, due to the political geography of the Persian Gulf, are based on the idea of joint security. Iranian governments – both before and after the Islamic Revolution – have always tried to develop a security system in conformity with the real conditions and features of the region, free from the tendencies and interferences of trans-regional countries. Nevertheless, the Arab countries of the southern coasts of the Persian Gulf have continually rejected the invitation of their northern neighbor in this regard and, instead, have defined their own security system without the presence and cooperation of Iran within the framework of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The experience of different wars in the region and Arabs’ lack of interest in cooperating with Iran indicates that their model has failed in practice. Therefore, it seems that, given its own particular conditions and potentials, the Islamic Republic of Iran should follow a different path in order to protect its own national security as well as the security of the region.

The present paper investigates the relationships between Qatar and the other countries of the Persian Gulf region during the presidency of Donald Trump in the United States of America within the analytic framework of crisis. Therefore, following the historical-analytic method and a realistic approach, the authors try to provide an answer to the question of what the main reason behind the crisis of Qatar’s relations with its neighbors in June 2017 was. The findings of this study indicate that the dependence of the Arabic governments of the southern coasts of the Persian Gulf on America intensifies this trend of desecuritization in the region. As a country which has completely been dependent on foreign powers in the course of its history, Qatar is a very good example for revealing the effects of this dependence. Based on the research findings, certain projects, such as the establishment of military bases, signing military and security contracts, and executing the project of Istanbul Cooperation Initiative ( ICI) by NATO under the supervision of America in Qatar, have not only resulted in the rise of instability in the region but also threatened the political stability and even the survival of this small country. Finally, the authors conclude that the presence of America in this region is the main reason behind the creation of crisis between Qatar and its neighbors.

Lavan Island is one of the historical and oil-rich islands of Iran near the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf. It has experienced several social and economic changes in the course of history. Once, its inhabitants provided for their livelihood through fishing and pearl hunting and, at another time, the economy of this island was directly and indirectly affected by the discovery of oil there. Various population changes, caused by, for example, frequent emigrations to and from this island, greatly influenced its social structure. Through library research and field studies, this paper explores the historical geography and economic history of Lavan with an emphasis on oil and oil refineries. The economic history of this island and, particularly, the development of oil industry there and the quality of the establishment of this industry in Lavan are among the other important topics discussed in this paper. Despite the rich economic resources, the population of Lavan Island is very small, and not all of them are employed in oil-related sectors and industries. Generally speaking, despite its numerous economic resources, this island lacks uniform development in different social and economic fields.

Climatic conditions are among the most important factors affecting the biological safety of human environments. Accordingly, human beings have always tried to provide some desirable environmental conditions for their life in different regions through taking a number of accurate measures. The traditional architecture of various countries abound in successful examples and experiences in this regard. The hierarchy of climatic architecture in a region plays a significant role in environmental safety conditions, which is still of greater importance in regions with specific climates. The coasts of the Persian Gulf and the southern shores of Iran generally enjoy a hot and humid climate and have long summers and short winters. This has resulted in the creation of a specific kind of architecture in these regions which is in conformity to its climate. Among the particular features of this style of architecture reference can be made to the making of mashrabias. With their various climatic, cultural, and aesthetic functions, during the previous centuries, the mashrabias in Bushehr’s architecture have once again attracted the attention of researchers in the recent decades. Hence, the present paper is intended to explore this specific feature of Islamic architecture. It is necessary to mention that this architectural style, which can only be observed in Bushehr, displays a combination of Islamic and Iranian architectures in this city.