How language became a battleground for cultural influence in war-torn Syriahttps://en.majalla.com/node/298526/culture-social-affairs/how-language-became-battleground-cultural-influence-war-torn
In 2008, Damascus was awarded the title of the capital of Arabic culture after which the regime began to capitalise on the momentum to market the Arabic language and celebrate it as a status symbol and a bridge between Syria and other Arab states.
Language has long been a hot topic in Syria — a diverse country comprised of different ethnic groups, languages and dialects. However, the regime used this momentum, to enforce Arabic as the official medium of communication between the Syrian people and the state.
It also outlawed the use of non-Arabic names for shops and other private-sector establishments. Those who violated these rules were fined. This atmosphere created an overstated Arabisation of foreign commercial names.
Cultural centres became obsessed with honouring Arabic, schoolchildren were taught to be proud of the Arabic language, and local newspapers and magazines were inundated with articles praising Arabic.
Syrian students salute while listening to the national anthem before entering their classrooms at Hassan Shuaib School in Damascus, Syria
But by aggressively intertwining Arabic with the state, the language somehow became seen as a tool of the state. By 2011, at the height of Syria's anti-government protests which kick-started its decade-long war, the regime's insistence on using the language began to diminish as it was no longer able to unify the divided country.
Language has long been a hot topic in Syria — a diverse country comprised of different ethnic groups, languages and dialects.
Enter Iran
The first real challenge to the marriage of Syrian national identity to Arabic came during the civil war when Iran stepped in militarily to prevent the toppling of the regime.
Tehran has been a close ally of the Syrian regime since the early 1980s, but a massive rebellion against the regime that brought it to the brink of collapse forced Damascus to phone in for help. With that help came an unprecedented expansion of Iranian presence in all aspects of Syrian life: political, military, economic — and even cultural.
Iran's entry brought a brand new linguistic and cultural dimension to Syria's already diverse cultural tapestry. But with it came the ideological indoctrination of Ayatollah Khomeini's 'Islamic' Republic intent on exporting its revolution.
It's important to note that there is much overlap between the Farsi language and the Shiite creed which often blurs the boundaries between them.
On its part, Tehran did not want to be seen as just a politically or militarily strong entity, but also a culturally attractive one. It wasn't too hard to impose either since both the regime and the Syrian people were busy fighting each other and both were too weak to resist it.
And since most political and social domains were under the control of the regime, Damascus was able to facilitate Tehran's cultural imposition.
However, this cultural deluge didn't happen in one go — it happened in stages. At first, Damascus and Tehran hid it behind their close relationship and long-standing alliance. But then, the Syrian regime began 'allowing' larger numbers of Iranian pilgrims to visit revered Shiite shrines.
Shiite Muslim devotees attend a gathering to commemorate Ashura, a ten-day period during the Islamic month of Muharram to remember and mourn the seventh-century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein, in Syria's Aleppo
On its part, Tehran helped renovate state schools and publish books based on the Syrian school curriculum. But at the same time, it introduced Farsi lessons at some cultural centres. Iran also tried to get the regime to offer Farsi as an optional language in schools.
The Syrian Ministry of Culture then began publishing books promoting Iran and its culture. Soon after, Iranian 'culture' weeks became a common occurrence, although these events usually carried religious and political undertones.
Iran's entry into Syria brought a brand new linguistic and cultural dimension to the country's already diverse cultural tapestry. But with it came the ideological indoctrination of Ayatollah Khomeini's 'Islamic' Republic intent on exporting its revolution.
Iran's cultural influence peaks
Syrian-Iranian relations ebbed and flowed according to the Syrian regime's need for Iran's help.
Between 2011 and 2023, 19 joint agreements were signed, including one authorising the exchange of scientific expertise between their two ministries of education.
Cooperation between Tehran and Damascus peaked in 2014 with the establishment of an Iranian Shiite religious school in the rural areas of Latakia, and the regime's introduction of the Shiite creed as an optional part of its curriculum. At the same time, Iranian schools in Syrian Shiite urban centres stepped up their activities.
At the same time, Iran was offering scholarships at Syrian universities and upgrading campus facilities, including the building of advanced science labs. Many Syrian students (mostly from Damascus and Latakia), hoping to obtain university scholarships, began to learn Farsi.
But the scholarships came with strings attached. To qualify students had to extensively study the Quran; on their part, girls had to commit to wearing the hijab.
Iranian Consulate in the city of Aleppo in northwest Syria
In 2018, Mansour Gholami, Iran's Minister of Science, Research and Technology opened a branch of the Tarbiat Modares University in Syria. The aim was "to enable Syrian university students to pursue their master's and PhD studies in their own homeland."
Gholami inaugurated a college specialising in teaching Islamic studies in Damascus, as well as a branch of Islamic Azad University.
Iranian scholarships came with strings attached. To qualify students had to extensively study the Quran; on their part, girls had to commit to wearing the hijab.
Enter Russia
However, a new challenge came in 2015 with the entry of Russian boots on the ground in Syria's conflict — and with it came its own respective cultural ambitions.
Russia's entry ended up hindering Iranian ambitions.
It was renowned American linguist Noam Chomsky who highlighted the lack of incentive as an obstacle to attracting people to learn a language. This was exactly what led to the general failure of the Iranian project to spread Farsi in Syria.
Farsi has always had a heavy ideological and political weight that made Syrians in general feel wary of learning it — particularly the youth.
But Russia was a different story.
Russian language class in a government school in Damascus.
It was viewed as an important global power. This status served as a strong motivation for Syria to forge deeper and more meaningful ties with Moscow. Damascus also found the language more appealing because it is free of the religious dogma associated with Farsi.
Additionally, Russia was already a familiar face due to the fact that many Syrians from the previous generation studied at former Soviet Union universities and had nostalgic memories of that era. Some of the Soviet-era graduates even opened up Russian language schools that proved successful, whereas nothing similar was done with Farsi.
The relationship with Russia also had less historical baggage. Arabs and Persians have often fought each other, and traces of that enmity remain. These differences made outward cooperation with Russia much easier than with Iran.
Russia was viewed as an important global power. This status served as a strong motivation for Syria to forge deeper ties with it. Damascus also liked that the Russian language was free of the religious dogma that came with Farsi.
On the first day Russian troops arrived in Syria, the regime's official media broadcasted Russian patriotic songs — mainly from the Soviet era — along with video reels that showcased the capabilities of the Russian military.
Later, these reels featured scenes from battles waged by Russian troops inside Syria against the rebels. Two years after Moscow's military intervention, the Syrian regime officially offered Russian as an optional foreign language in state schools.
Russian Cultural Centre in Damascus.
Unlike the regime's hesitance in promoting Iranian culture, it had no qualms with promoting Russian culture. In fact, it did so enthusiastically, seeing Russia as a global superpower and a status symbol.
This lined up perfectly with Moscow's campaign to promote its own political and cultural agenda, seeing itself as a rising global power with ambitious goals.
Alawite and Shiite areas were generally more receptive to Farsi, whereas Christians naturally felt more comfortable with learning Russian.
Russia offered scholarships solely based on academic needs and the interests of Syrian students. They also offered lessons in Russian accompanied by a promise of jobs that would require the mastery of that language.
As a result, many Syrians lost interest in pursuing their education at Iranian-backed schools which forced many to shut down. Iran found it increasingly difficult to incentivise Syrians to study at their institutions in the face of Russian competition.
Despite Russia's considerable success compared to the largely failed Iranian cultural project in Syria, both languages fell short of popular take-up in the country. English and German continued to dominate most of the linguistic teaching material displayed and sold at Syrian bookstores.
Russia wins cultural war
Nonetheless, it's safe to say that Russia won the culture war against Iran in Syria. Tehran's cultural project peaked in 2014 and ended in failure.
Russia's military intervention which essentially tipped the scales back in favour of the regime, impressed many Syrians. It also helped that Russia's help came with far fewer strings attached than Iran, which was trying to export its Islamic revolution to the country.
Nonetheless, the popularity of Russia's military and cultural presence has diminished in recent years.
Many Syrians who had high hopes when Russia arrived now see that its superpower status has not translated into tangible benefits. Few of their sons and daughters ended up going to Russian universities on scholarships.
Struggling Russian and Iranian economies, which were weakened by international sanctions, seem to have hindered plans to bankroll scholarships for Syrian students. Some Syrian students are continuing to learn Russian, but this is mainly because they cannot afford universities in Western Europe.
Many Syrians had high hopes when Russia arrived, but they now see that its superpower status has not translated into tangible benefits. Few of their sons and daughters went to Russian universities on scholarships.
What next?
Nonetheless, Damascus is still clinging to Russia's cultural project, in the hopes that some of its superpower status trickles down to Syrian students. On its part, Moscow is still trying to up its cultural presence in Syria; it plans to send more Russian teachers to work at its cultural institutions in the country.
Tehran, on the other hand, is no longer interested in spreading Iranian culture in Syria. In fact, it has scaled back its efforts in this regard, cautious not to appear as outwardly backing the regime.
As for the Syrian people, most are fed up with the hollow promises made by the regime and its allies, and many are abandoning their country altogether, hoping to end up in Western Europe.
