Anthropology of the Middle East, Vol. 4, No. 2, Winter 2009: 52–74 © Berghahn Journals doi:10.3167/ame.2009.040205The Fereydani Georgians are Shi’a Muslims, while the Georgians of Georgia are predominantly Orthodox Christians. This article deals with the mechanism by which Fereydani Georgians reaffirm their Shi’a identity in harmony with the Iranian Georgians’ role in the Iranian history. After discussing the theoretical foundation of the relationship between history and ethnic (and national) self-identification, the article describes how Fereydani Georgian identity is represented today and how important historical events are narrated in order to create a cohesive and coherent image of self – an outcome that is called ‘emic coherence’. The concept of historical peak experience is introduced on an ethnic level.
Keywords: emic coherence, ethnic identity, historical peak experiences, Iranian Georgians, self-identification
