Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel (; born 9 May 1945) is an Iranian

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

and principlist politician and former chairman of the

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. He is currently member of the

Expediency Discernment Council The Expediency Discernment Council of the System ( ''Majma'-e Tašxis-e Maslahat-e Nezâm'') is an administrative assembly of Iran appointed by the Supreme Leader of Iran, Supreme Leader and was created upon the revision to the Constitution of ...

. He was the first non-cleric in the post since the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

of 1979. He was one of the candidates in the 2013 presidential election but withdrew on 10 June, four days before the election. He is part of "neo-principilist" group in the Iranian political scene.

Early life and education

Haddad-Adel was born in Tehran on 9 May 1945 into a business family. He received a bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Tehran and also, a master's degree in physics from

University of Shiraz Shiraz University ( ''Dāneshgāh-e-Shirāz'', formerly known as Pahlavi University دانشگاه پهلوی ''Dāneshgāh-e Pahlavi'') is a public university located in Shiraz, Fars, Iran, established in 1946. Being one of the oldest and mos ...

. He also holds a PhD in philosophy from the

University of Tehran The University of Tehran (UT) or Tehran University (, ) is a public collegiate university in Iran, and the oldest and most prominent Iranian university located in Tehran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as ...

which he received in 1975. He studied

Islamic philosophy Islamic philosophy is philosophy that emerges from the Islamic tradition. Two terms traditionally used in the Islamic world are sometimes translated as philosophy—''falsafa'' (), which refers to philosophy as well as logic, mathematics, and p ...

under

Morteza Motahhari Morteza Motahhari (; 31 January 1919 – 1 May 1979) was an Iranian Twelver Shia scholar, philosopher, lecturer. Motahhari is considered to have an important influence on the ideologies of the Islamic Republic, among others. He was a co-found ...

and also under Sayyed Hossein Nasr who is famous for his critique of

Marxism Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflict, ...

Career

Following the

Haddad-Adel became a member of the

Islamic Republic Party The Islamic Republican Party (IRP; , also translated Islamic Republic Party) was formed in 1979 to assist the Iranian Revolution and Ayatollah Khomeini in their goal to establish theocracy in Iran. It was disbanded in 1987 due to internal confl ...

and he served in many governmental posts, including deputy culture and Islamic guidance minister (1979) and deputy education minister (1982–1993). Since 1995 he has been serving as the head of the Iranian

Academy of Persian Language and Literature The Academy of Persian Language and Literature (APLL) (, ''Farhangestân-e Zabân-o Adab-e Fârsi'') is the regulatory body for the Persian language, headquartered in Tehran, Iran. Formerly known as the Academy of Iran (, ''Farhangestân-e Iran'' ...

(except for August 2004 – 2008). He is also the executive director of the Islamic Encyclopedia Foundation. He contributed to the establishment of the national Scientific Olympiads in Iran. Haddad-Adel served at the Majlis for thirteen years, over four terms. He officially ranked as the 33rd candidate of

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

in the 2000 parliamentary election after recounts by the

Council of Guardians The Guardian Council (also called Council of Guardians or Constitutional Council, ) is an appointed and constitutionally mandated 12-member council that wields considerable power and influence in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The constitution ...

which led to an annulment of 700,000 Tehrani votes and the removal of Alireza Rajaei and Ali Akbar Rahmani from the top 30, and the withdrawal of

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Akbar Hashemi Bahramani Rafsanjani (25 August 19348 January 2017) was an Iranian cleric, politician and writer who served as the fourth president of Iran from 1989 to 1997. One of the founding fathers of the Government of Iran, Islamic Republic, ...

. Haddad-Adel collected the most votes from Tehran four years later, while most Tehranis refused to vote in 2004 election because many

reformist Reformism is a political tendency advocating the reform of an existing system or institution – often a political or religious establishment – as opposed to its abolition and replacement via revolution. Within the socialist movement, ref ...

candidates where not allowed to run. He was supported by the Abadgaran alliance and became the Speaker of Parliament for one year beginning 6 June 2004, with 226 votes out of 259, running unopposed. He became the first non-clerical speaker since the revolution. Since 2008, he has been the advisor to the Supreme Leader

Ali Khamenei Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third President of Iran, president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure ...

. In 2012, he ran for the Majlis speakership, but lost the bid. He is also a member of the High Council of Cultural Revolution and the

Speaker of Parliament

As the speaker of Parliament, he condemned the bombing of Samarra. He added that Islamic countries must promote solidarity through guaranteeing unity and security against common enemies. He is the first senior Iranian parliamentary official to hold negotiations with both his counterpart in Cairo and President Mubarak after the Islamic revolution.

Presidential candidacy

Haddad-Adel run for office in the presidential election held in July 2013. He formed a coalition named ''2+1'' with

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (, born 23 August 1961) is an Iranian Iranian Principlists, conservative politician, former military officer, and current List of Speakers of the Parliament of Iran, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Parli ...

and

Ali Akbar Velayati Ali Akbar Velayati ( ; born 24 June 1945) is an Iranian conservative politician and physician. He is currently a member of the Expediency Discernment Council. Velayati is a distinguished professor at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Scien ...

in October 2012 to one of them be the coalition's candidate in the upcoming election. He was registered as a presidential candidate and was approved to run in the election by the

Guardian Council The Guardian Council (also called Council of Guardians or Constitutional Council, ) is an appointed and constitutionally mandated 12-member council that wields considerable power and influence in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The constitution ...

, a vetting body of clerics and jurists, along with seven other men. He withdrew his candidacy from 14 June presidential election on 11 June. He said in a statement carried by the semi-official

Mehr news agency The Mehr News Agency (MNA; ) is a semi-official news agency sponsored by the government of Iran. It is headquartered in Tehran, and is owned by the Iranian government's Islamic Development Organization (IIDO). Mehr publishes all content on its we ...

"With my withdrawal I ask the dear people to strictly observe the criteria of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution (Khamenei) when they vote for candidates."

He did not endorse a single candidate, but called for a hardline conservative victory. "I advise the dear people to take a correct decision so that either a conservative wins in the first round, or if the election runs to a second round, the competition between two conservatives."

President of Academy of Persian Language and Literature

Haddad-Adel is also the second president of the

. His presidency at the academy has focused on language policy and planning, and promotion of the Persian language in all domains.

Electoral history

Affiliation

Haddad-Adel is a senior member in the conservative umbrella organizations

Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran The Alliance of Builders or Developers of Islamic Iran (; ), usually shortened to Abadgaran (), was an Iranian conservative political federation of parties and organizations. Described as "Iran's neocons", main groups within the alliance were ...

, as well as the

Popular Front of Islamic Revolution Forces The Popular Front of Islamic Revolution Forces (PFIRF; ) is a political organization in Iran, founded in late 2016 by ten figures from different spectrum of Iranian Principlists, conservative factions. The group has pledged to become the main ri ...

(JAMNA) and is considered close to the

Society of Devotees of the Islamic Revolution A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same Politics, political authority and dominant cultural expecta ...

and the

Society of Pathseekers of the Islamic Revolution The Society of Pathseekers of the Islamic Revolution or Society for the Adherents of the Path of the Islamic Revolution () is an Iranian principlist political group, founded in 2008. Members Alireza Zakani is general secretary of the party. Th ...

Public image

According to a poll conducted in March 2016 by ''Information and Public Opinion Solutions LLC'' (iPOS) among Iranian citizens, Haddad-Adel has 51% approval and 27% disapproval ratings and thus a +24% net popularity; while 13% of responders don't know him.

Views

One of Haddad-Adel's most significant views has been on the hijab in western civilization. According to him in the book of '' The Culture of Nakedness and the Nakedness of Culture'', the issue of veiling and clothing in the West is problematic. He believes that materialism is the mentality which is governed by Western culture. The culture is based on the priority of material life, with no value in anything beyond materialism. The origin of materialism as a worldview is humanism, according to the renaissance. According to Haddad-Adel, religion serves an important role in Iranian education. Referring to the dominance of religious thought in education, he pointed out that religious education is one result of the victory of the Islamic revolution. He believes that the problem of human freedom is a permanent one. The problem itself has changed with the appearance of new theories in scientific and philosophic domains, particularly in the field of anthropology. He is also an admirer of the development of non-governmental higher education, and believes that developing such schools would lead to decreased demands on the administration of education and pedagogy.

Personal life

Haddad-Adel's daughter married

Mojtaba Khamenei Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei (born 8 September 1969) is an Iranian politician and cleric who is one of the sons of Ali Khamenei. He served in the Iran–Iraq War from 1987 to 1988. He also reportedly took control of the Basij paramilitary militia t ...

, the son of

Supreme Leader of Iran The supreme leader of Iran, also referred to as the supreme leader of the Islamic Revolution, but officially called the supreme leadership authority, is the head of state and the highest political and religious authority of Iran (above the Presi ...

. This has led to the popular belief that he is among the most trusted and backed allies of Ayatollah Khamenei.

Publications

* ''Farhang-e Berahnegi va Berahnegi-e Farhangi'' ( Culture of Nudity and Nudity of Culture), Soroush, Tehran, 1981, translated into

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, and Turkish. * ''Haj: Namaaz-e Bozorg'' (Hajj: the Grand Prayer), Sana, Tehran, 2000. * ''Daaneshnaame-ye Jahaan-e Eslam'' (The

Encyclopaedia of the world of Islam ''Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam'' (دانشنامه جهان اسلام) (Daaneshnaame-ye Jahaan-e Eslam) is a Persian encyclopedia that deals with Islam and the history, civilization, and culture of Muslims from the beginning of Islam until ...

Encyclopaedia Islamica Foundation The Encyclopaedia Islamica Foundation (بنیاد دائره المعارف اسلامی)(Bonyād-e Dāyerat-al-ma̒āref-e eslāmi ) is a public and non-governmental institution that was established in Tehran in 1983-1984 to undertake preparing ...

, Volumes 2–6 (as supervisor), 1996–2001. * Textbooks on

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

social science Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among members within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the ...

, Civil studies and

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

, for high school and guidance schools. * ''History & Histography'', 2012 * ''Tafsir: Qur'anic Exegesis'', 2012 * ''Hawza-Yi 'Ilmiyya Shi'I Teaching Institution: An Entry from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam'', 2012 * ''Law: Selected Entries from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam - Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam (EWI)'', 2013 * ''Historians of the Islamic World'', 2018 (Editor) * ''Muslim Organisations in the Twentieth Century: Selected Entries from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam'', 2022 (Editor) * ''Historical Sources of the Islamic World: Selected Entries from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam - Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam (EWI)'', 2013 * ''Sufism: An Entry from Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam'', 2013

Translations

* ''Tamhidaat: Moghaddame-i baraaye har Maa-ba'd-ot-tabi'e-ye Aayande ke be onvaan-e yek Elm Arze Shavad'', a translation of

Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German Philosophy, philosopher and one of the central Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works ...

's ''

Prolegomena to any Future Metaphysics ''Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics That Will Be Able to Present Itself as a Science'' () is a book by the German philosopher Immanuel Kant, published in 1783, two years after the first edition of his ''Critique of Pure Reason''. One of Kant ...

'', Iran University Press, Tehran, 1988. * ''Nazariye-ye Ma'refat dar Falsafe-ye Kaant'', a translation of Justus Hartnack's ''Kant's Theory of Knowledge'', Fekr-e Rooz, Tehran, 2000. *Translation of

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

He translated

to Persian. The translation of the Quran by him lasted for 9 years. He tried to use all new and old translations and consult with other scholars of the Quran during the translation. The book has been exhibited in the nineteenth international fair of the Quran in Iran. He tried to pave the way for a more easy understanding of the Quran for all. The translation of Quran according to Hadad is based on the conceptual translation. He pointed out that since many Persian people could not read very well Arabic language then he undertake the task. In 2019, he published a travelogue titled ''I Went to the Desert and Found a Downpour of Love''. Haddad-Adel describes his personal memories and experiences during the 2017 Arbaeen trip in this book. Additionally, he provides a report on this spiritual journey, the emotions of those present at the annual ritual, and the mawkib keepers and organizers who host and assist those traveling to Imam Hussein's (AS) shrine in Karbala for the Arbaeen celebration.

Awards and recognition

* In 2019 the organizers of The 17th Golden Pen Awards honored Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel as the Literary Figure of the Year.

References

External links

*
News tag: Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

Video By Irannegah : Hadad Adel solution for correction of consumption style

List of Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel's publications

Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel's news tag at Tehran Times
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haddad-Adel, Gholam Ali 1945 births Living people University of Tehran alumni Speakers of the Islamic Consultative Assembly Vice ministers of Iran Iranian writers Politicians from Tehran Members of the Expediency Discernment Council Members of the Academy of Persian Language and Literature Candidates for President of Iran Members of the 6th Islamic Consultative Assembly Members of the 7th Islamic Consultative Assembly Members of the 8th Islamic Consultative Assembly Members of the 9th Islamic Consultative Assembly Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran politicians Islamic Republican Party politicians Popular Front of Islamic Revolution Forces politicians Ali Khamenei Iranian Science and Culture Hall of Fame recipients in Philosophy Iran's Book of the Year Awards recipients Faculty of Letters and Humanities of the University of Tehran alumni Iranian individuals subject to U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions