دانشگاه شهید بهشتی مجله تاریخ ایران 2008-7357 18 2 2025 09 23 Investigation of the Evolution of Street Sweeping in Pahlavi-era Shiraz: From Daily Duties to Social Challenges بررسی تحولات رفتگری در شیرازِ عصر پهلوی: از وظایف روزمره تا چالش‌های اجتماعی 184 208 106058 10.48308/irhj.2025.240050.1422 FA سلیمان حیدری دانشیار گروه تاریخ، دانشگاه شیراز، ایران. بنفشه ضرابی دانشجوی دکتری ایران شناسی، دانشگاه بامبرگ، آلمان. Journal Article 2025 05 21 The sweeping system in Shiraz during the Pahlavi era, as part of the urban modernization process, encountered significant social transformations and structural challenges. This study addresses two primary research questions: What social, institutional, and economic challenges did sweepers, as an emerging group shaped by modernity in a traditional city like Shiraz, face? And how did the central government’s modernization and centralization policies impact the sweeping system and its structural changes in Pahlavi-era Shiraz? Employing a descriptive-analytical method, this research draws on archival documents, local press reports, and library resources. The findings reveal that sweepers, beyond their technical duties such as street cleaning and waste management, performed multifaceted roles, including ditch dredging, transporting waste outside the city, irrigating trees, and even participating in firefighting operations. These activities not only contributed to improved urban hygiene and order but also served as a symbol of state authority and social order in public spaces. In line with the Pahlavi regime’s centralizing policies and the strengthening of local bureaucratic institutions, sweepers’ activities became more structured. However, this group faced numerous challenges, including low wages, frequent delays in payment, lack of social insurance, job insecurity, spatial discrimination in the allocation of urban resources, and the absence of institutional housing. The introduction of mechanized tools, modern division of labor, and the use of uniforms, while improving the outward appearance of their work, failed to address deep-seated social and class inequalities. This study demonstrates that, despite their critical role in ensuring urban order, safety, and hygiene, sweepers lacked sufficient legal and livelihood support. Introduction Urban cleaning has long been recognized as a fundamental pillar for establishing order, public health, and enhancing the quality of life in cities. In Iran, the enactment of the Baladieh Law on 11 Khordad 1286 (2 June 1907) marked the institutionalization of urban cleaning and public hygiene management. Modeled on Western urban management frameworks, this law delegated the responsibility of organizing public spaces and city hygiene to municipalities (baladieh). Within this modern structure, the " street sweeping " or "roftgar" emerged as a key agent of urban order, tasked with duties such as street cleaning, waste collection, and waste management. The term "sopur," derived from the Turkish verb "süpürmek" (to sweep), was commonly used in the early Pahlavi period but was gradually replaced by "roftgar" following the establishment of the Persian Language and Literature Academy in 1314 (1935). In Shiraz, the formation of the municipality, roughly concurrent with Tehran, laid the foundation for the street cleaning profession. However, the nascent institution faced inefficiencies due to its novelty, a shortage of skilled labor, and the turbulent political-social conditions following World War I. With the onset of the Pahlavi era, the government’s modernization and centralization policies brought significant transformations to Shiraz. The Law on the Construction and Expansion of Streets, enacted on 22 Aban 1312 (13 November 1933), transformed street construction and the redefinition of public spaces into symbols of modernization. Streets such as Karim Khan Zand and Lotfali Khan Zand became new hubs of social and economic activity, replacing traditional bazaars. Urban cleaning evolved beyond a mere service function, becoming integral to the discourse of modern power and discipline, institutionalizing order, transparency, and oversight in the city. Street cleaners, in addition to their service roles, became symbols of state authority and social order in public spaces. This study examines the role of street sweeping in the urban modernization of Shiraz, its social, economic, and institutional challenges, and the impact of the Pahlavi government’s centralizing policies on the street sweeping system. Employing a descriptive-analytical method and relying on archival documents, local newspapers, and library resources, this study analyzes the multifaceted role of street sweeping and its structural inequalities. Materials And Methods This study adopts a descriptive-analytical approach, with data collected from diverse sources, including archival documents, local newspapers, and library resources. Primary sources from the National Library and Archives of Iran (SAKMA) provide comprehensive information on the duties, working conditions, livelihood challenges, and institutional structures of street sweeping. These documents include municipal performance reports, administrative correspondence, public complaints, and supervisory meeting minutes. Local newspapers, such as Pars, Estakhr, and Jam-e Jam, were analyzed to examine public perceptions of street sweeping issues and citizens’ perspectives. Library resources were reviewed to contextualize the historical and social background of urban modernization and the role of urban services during the Pahlavi era. Data analysis involved qualitative coding of documents and the extraction of key themes, such as the multifaceted duties of street sweeping, economic inequalities, weak citizen cooperation, and the impact of modernization policies. To enhance the validity of findings, data from various sources (archives, newspapers, and books) were cross-referenced to ensure accuracy and comprehensiveness. The study focuses on two primary research questions: 1) What were the social, institutional, and economic challenges faced by street sweeping in Pahlavi-era Shiraz? 2) How did the government’s modernization and centralization policies influence the street cleaning system and its structural changes? Research limitations include incomplete access to some archival documents and a scarcity of prior studies on street sweeping in Shiraz, which were mitigated through meticulous analysis of available sources. Theoretical frameworks, such as Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital and Putnam’s theory of social capital, were employed to analyze the social and institutional dimensions of the issues. Result and Discussion Street sweeping in Pahlavi-era Shiraz played a pivotal role in urban order and hygiene. Their duties extended beyond street cleaning to include dredging water channels, transporting waste outside the city, irrigating green spaces, and even participating in firefighting operations. These activities not only improved urban hygiene and physical order but also reproduced state authority in public spaces as part of the modern disciplinary discourse. The Pahlavi modernization policies, such as the 1312 (1933) Law on Street Construction, expanded street development and paving, introducing mechanized tools like water-spraying machines (1310/1931) and waste transport vehicles (1940s). These advancements enhanced the efficiency of urban services and modernized the city’s appearance. However, structural inequalities persisted as significant barriers. Low wages, frequent payment delays, and the absence of insurance until the late 1940s imposed severe financial burdens on street sweeping. Strikes in the 1940s, particularly during the World War II crisis, reflected growing class consciousness and resistance to unjust conditions. Weak citizen cooperation, rooted in low cultural capital and discriminatory attitudes toward street cleaners, undermined public participation in urban cleaning. Stringent municipal oversight, dismissals due to illness or military service obligations, and a lack of job security exacerbated institutional challenges. The introduction of uniforms in the 1940s and mechanized tools improved the appearance of the profession but failed to address class disparities. Spatial discrimination in resource allocation between affluent and traditional neighborhoods marginalized older districts and altered their demographic structures. The allocation of land for municipal housing in 1961 was a positive step, but within the framework of modernization policies, it maintained social-geographical distances between street sweeping and higher classes. These findings indicate that urban modernization, despite physical advancements like asphalt paving and street curbing, failed to achieve social justice for street cleaners. Putnam’s social capital theory highlights the lack of effective communication between citizens and street cleaners, hindering trust and civic participation. Additionally, Goffman’s theory of social performance confirms uniforms as symbols of urban order and control, yet this symbolism could not resolve deep social inequalities. Conclusions Street sweeping in Pahlavi-era Shiraz was a key actor in urban order and hygiene, with multifaceted roles extending beyond street cleaning to include dredging water channels, waste transport, green space irrigation, and firefighting. These duties underscored their significance in the urban modernization process. However, challenges such as low wages, payment delays, lack of insurance until the 1950s, and weak citizen cooperation—rooted in low cultural capital—undermined their social and economic status. The Pahlavi modernization and centralization policies, through bureaucratic structures and mechanized tools, enhanced the efficiency of urban services but failed to address structural inequalities. Spatial discrimination in resource allocation and the marginalization of traditional neighborhoods exacerbated class disparities. The allocation of land for municipal housing in the 1960s was a step toward improvement, but insufficient. This study demonstrates that urban modernization, despite its physical achievements, did not achieve social justice for street sweeping, emphasizing the need to examine the social history of marginalized groups in the modernization process. نظام رفتگری در شیراز دوره پهلوی، به ‌عنوان بخشی از فرایند نوسازی و مدرنیزاسیون شهری، با تحولات اجتماعی و چالش‌های ساختاری مواجه بود. دو سؤال اصلی پژوهش این است که رفتگران به عنوان قشر نوپدیدِ برآمده از مدرنیته، در شهری سنتی مانند شیراز با چه چالش‌های اجتماعی، نهادی و اقتصادی مواجه بودند؟ و سیاست‌های نوسازی و تمرکزگرایی دولت مرکزی چه تأثیری بر نظام رفتگری و تغییرات ساختاری آن در شیراز دوره پهلوی داشت؟ این مطالعه با رویکرد توصیفی-تحلیلی و با بهره‌گیری از اسناد آرشیوی، گزارش‌های مطبوعات محلی و منابع کتابخانه‌ای انجام شده است. یافته‌ها نشان می‌دهد که رفتگران، فراتر از وظایف فنّی، نظیر نظافت معابر و مدیریت پسماند، نقش‌های چندوجهی شامل لایروبی جوی‌ها، حمل زباله به خارج شهر، آبیاری درختان و حتی مشارکت در عملیات آتش‌نشانی ایفا می‌کردند. این فعالیت‌ها نه ‌تنها به بهبود بهداشت و نظم شهری کمک کرد، بلکه به‌ عنوان نمادی از اقتدار دولت و نظم اجتماعی در فضاهای عمومی عمل می‌کرد. هم‌راستا با سیاست‌های تمرکزگرایانۀ پهلوی و تقویت نهادهای بوروکراتیک محلی، فعالیت‌های رفتگران ساختارمند شد، اما این قشر با مشکلات متعددی مثل حقوق ناچیز، تأخیر مکرر در پرداخت‌ها، نبود بیمۀ اجتماعی، فقدان امنیت شغلی، تبعیض فضایی در تخصیص منابع شهری و نبود مسکن سازمانی مواجه بودند. ورود ابزارهای مکانیزه، تقسیم کار نوین و استفاده از لباس فرم، اگرچه ظاهر کار را بهبود بخشید، اما نتوانست نابرابری‌های عمیق اجتماعی و طبقاتی را برطرف کند. این پژوهش نشان می‌دهد که رفتگران با وجود نقش کلیدی در تأمین نظم، امنیت و بهداشت شهری، از حمایت‌های حقوقی و معیشتی کافی برخوردار نبودند.

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