"Eastoxification" supersedes "Westoxification" in Persian

One never ceases to be amazed at the articles one comes upon in Wikipedia.  First, in this comment to a discussion on anti-Westernism in China ("War on foreign names in China" [6/22/19]), I encountered the notion of "Westoxification" in contemporary Iranian discourse.  Reading the Wikipedia article on this subject is so interesting that I copy passages of it here for Language Log readers (the whole article is fascinating and well worth reading):

Gharbzadegi (Persian: غرب‌زدگی‎) is a pejorative Persian term variously translated as 'Westernized', 'West-struck-ness', 'Westoxification', 'Westitis', 'Euromania', or 'Occidentosis'. It is used to refer to the loss of Iranian cultural identity through the adoption and imitation of Western models and Western criteria in education, the arts, and culture; through the transformation of Iran into a passive market for Western goods and a pawn in Western geopolitics.

The phrase was first coined by Ahmad Fardid, a professor of philosophy at the University of Tehran, in the 1940s. it gained common usage following the clandestine publication in 1962 of the book Occidentosis: A Plague from the West by Jalal Al-e-Ahmad. Fardid's definition of the term as referring to the hegemony of ancient Greek philosophy, differed from its later usage as popularised by Al-e Ahmad.

"Gharbzadegi" has now been superseded by a new term commonly used in reference to China's growing presence in Iran. Called "Sharqzadegi", the new term is classed as fear of China's dominance.

So that reference in the last sentence led me to this Wikipedia article on "Eastoxification":

Sharqzadegi or Sharghzadegi (Persian: شرق‌زدگی) is a pejorative Persian term variously translated as "Eastoxification." It is used to refer to the loss of Iranian independence in the fields manufacturing, products and innovation due to the import of cheap Chinese alternatives. This has become especially pertinent in the early half the 21st century with the increase in Chinese automotive companies inside Iran. Unlike "Westoxification", "Eastofixication" does not infer Iranians' interest in Oriental culture, however is in 2015 limited to the appropriation and rise of Chinese industry in Iran. Eastoxifiation first appearance in printed literature in the English languages dates back to 1984, where Martin E. Marty Fundamentalisms and Society: Reclaiming the Sciences, the Family, and Education states that sharqhzadeqi is the act of appreciation of Eastern culture.

Eastoxifiation's first appearance is in a blog in 2006, where the author only called Mohammad writes about the impact of China on Iran. The word also appears in other blogs and written sources from 2006 onwards with increasing usage.

The topic is also in common use among the newswriting community in Iran. In 2014 Khabaronline an online news portal highlights the phrase.

In English the word was first coined by artist Anahita Razmi. It then was used in the English language newspaper the Financial Tribune by writer Morteza Raad, in 2015 about the rise in lower cost Chinese products.

The "References" following this article on Sharqzadegi are particularly suggestive, e.g., Nanquette, Laetitia (2013),Orientalism versus Occidentalism : literary and cultural imaging between France and Iran since the Islamic Revolution(London: I.B. Tauris. ISBN 1848859783.

[Thanks to Brian Spooner and Jamal Elias]

Source: Upenn.edu

Powered by NewsAPI.org

Keywords:

Gharbzadegi • Persian people • Wikipedia • Conversation • China • China • Gharbzadegi • Iranian languages • Discourse • Wikipedia • Language Log • Gharbzadegi • Persian people • Pejorative • Persian people • Western world • Western world • Gharbzadegi • Gharbzadegi • Iranian peoples • Cultural identity • Education • Humanities • Culture • Iran • Market (economics) • Western world • Peon • Western world • Geopolitics • Ahmad Fardid • Philosophy • University of Tehran • Gharbzadegi • Black Death • Western world • Jalal Al-e-Ahmad • Ahmad Fardid • Time • Hegemony • Ancient Greek philosophy • Gharbzadegi • China • Iran • Sharqzadegi • China • Hegemony • Wikipedia • Sharqzadegi • Persian people • Pejorative • Persian people • Iranian peoples • Innovation • China • China • Iran • Gharbzadegi • Iran • Literature • English studies • Martin E. Marty • Society • Science • Family • Education • State (polity) • Eastern world • Blog • China • Iran • Blog • Iran • Phrase • Anahita • Jahangir Razmi • English language • Newspaper • Financial Tribune • History of China • Sharqzadegi • Orientalism • Occidentalism • French Third Republic • Iran • Iranian Revolution • London • I.B. Tauris • Brian Spooner •