- Title: The Journey to the Formation of Regional Identity in West Asia beyond Otherness
- Author: Gi Yeon Koo, Yuihyun Hwang
- Journal: Asia Review 11(2)
- Publication Date: August, 2021
- Abstract
The geographical and political concept of the Middle East, first proposed from a Western geopolitical perspective in the 19th century, has always been at the center of controversy. In these days, Western academia continues to debate unique characteristics of Middle East society, the central location of Islam in the Middle East, and the appropriateness of the concept of the Middle East itself. The concept of West Asia, which is widely used in South Korea, adds the complexity in defining the Middle East. In this context, efforts have also been made to overcome the ambiguity of the concept of the Middle East or West Asia and define it in a more appropriate way. This study first looks at how the concept of the Middle East, which was invented by the West, has changed, and analyzes how discourses on the Middle East as an object of otherization have developed. This study also presents alternative concepts proposed by Marshall Hodgson to replace the Middle East, and discusses perspectives of Middle Easterners themselves on the concept of the Middle East (or West Asia), particularly Iranian intellectuals. Furthermore, this study aims to demonstrate the process of constructing a distinct Iranian identity differentiated from the East or the West. The discussion presented by this study will contribute to a more detailed understanding on complexity and diversity of the so-called Middle East or West Asia.
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