Making a Living in Reza Shah's Iran, 1940-41

Unlike the political and intellectual elite, the lifes and life situation of the common people during the rule of Reza Shah have found relatively little attraction - a fact which can be explained by the lack of reliable data.
This presentation is intended to give a deeper insight into the economic situation of Iran and the Iranians at the eve of World War II by using data collected by a German institution, the Deutsches Auslandswissenschaftliches Institut (German Institute for Foreign Studies). Founded in 1940 by the German Government and Nazi party offices, this institution was formed for the training of regional experts for the requirements of the foreign ministry, secret services and the German economy. Aside from an extensive library, the institute also held a number of country specific dossiers, which, in the case of Iran, contain a wealth of data on the country's administrative, economic and social affairs. The information collected in those files allow us to gain a comprehensive overview over Iran's economic situation at the end of Reza Shah's rule, the progress of industrialization, it's effects on the daily life of the Iranian population, and not least on subjects such as the availability and price of commodities, inflation, and the living standard of average Iranians.