Dānish — the First Women’s Journal in Iran: A Contribution to the Study of the Discourse of the Early Iranian Women’s Movement

Abstract

In this article, I explore the content of Iran’s first women’s newspaper, Dānish (‘Knowledge’), published in Tehran in 1910–1911. Using the method of close reading, I address the question of the model of womanhood that was pre - sented in the pages of the weekly. In this regard, I examine selected articles that appeared in the surviving issues of Dānish , distinguishing three dominant themat - ic areas: the education of girls and women; marital relationships; child rearing, hygiene, and health care. By putting the journal’s discourse in the context of the discussion on ‘women’s issues’ that was ongoing in the press during the Constitu - tional Revolution (1905–1911), I reflect on the relationship between the agenda of the early Iranian women’s movement and the discourse of constitutionalist nationalism.