Mastoureh Afshar ( fa, مستوره افشار; 1898–1951) was an Iranian intellectual,

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, and a pioneering figure in the women's rights movement in Iran. Alongside contemporary feminists

Mohtaram Eskandari Mohtaram Eskandari ( fa, محترم اسکندری; 1895 – July 27, 1924), was an Iranian intellectual and a pioneer of the Iranian women's movement. She was the co-founder and first leader of Jam'iyat-e Nesvan-e Vatankhah, the first women's ...

and

Noor-ol-Hoda Mangeneh Noor-ol-Hoda Mangeneh ( fa, نورالهدی منگنه; 1902–1986) was an Iranian intellectual and one of the pioneering figures in the women's rights movement in Iran. She was born in Tehran. She was a member of Jam'iyat-e Nesvan-e Vatankhah ( ...

, she co-founded the radicalist Patriotic Women's League of Iran in Tehran in 1922. She became the society's president in 1925 and held the position until 1932.

Early life

Mastoureh Afshar was born in 1898 in Urmia, West Azerbaijan. She was the daughter of Majd al Saltaneh Afshar, an intellectual Iranian nationalist. Afshar was educated in Russia and spoke Persian, Azeri, Turkish and French. She had four siblings; her eldest brother was Jalal Afshar Orami, the father of Iranian

entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

. Her sister Turan Afshar was also an entomologist whereas her other two sisters Alca and Heide were active politically as members of the Patriotic Women's League alongside Mastoureh. In the aftermath of the

Persian Constitutional Revolution The Persian Constitutional Revolution ( fa, مشروطیت, Mashrūtiyyat, or ''Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh''), also known as the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, took place between 1905 and 1911. The revolution led to the establishment of a par ...

, multiple women's rights organizations came into existence. Afshar, alongside her contemporaries Sediqeh Dowlatabadi,

and others, advocated for the creation of girls schools and development of political rights for women. She co-founded the Patriotics Women's League in 1922 which was headed by

until 1925 after Eskandari died of spinal surgery complications at the age of 29. She assumed the leadership role until 1932. She attended the first conference on Muslim women held in

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in 1930, as part of the Iranian delegation alongside Sediqeh Dowlatabadi and Tabatai. In 1932, she was invited by the Iranian government to organize and open the second Eastern Women's Congress in Tehran from November 27 to December 2 of the same year. The congress was attended by women from 15 countries ranging from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and Afghanistan to Zanzibar. The Congress passed a 22-point resolution which promoted women's suffrage, equal opportunities in education and work, the reformation of family law, and prohibition of polygamy and prostitution. However, after the Congress ended, the government took over the Patriotics Women's League and it ceased to exist. She remained unmarried and died in Tehran in 1951 of breast cancer.

Early life

See also

References

Further reading