Development of Fashion in the Middle East in the 20th Century: Lebanon and Iran

This research paper is devoted to the study of the history of fashion in Lebanon and Iran in the middle part of the 20th century. The aim of this paper was to study the fashion phenomenon in Lebanon and Iran in the 1950-1970s. and compare its development in these countries. In order to achieve the goal, the sociocultural prerequisites for the development of fashion in Lebanon during the French mandate (1920-1943) and Iran under the Qajars (1796-1925) were analyzed, the clothing law in Lebanon and Iran in the first half of the 20th century was studied, and the social functions of fashion in the modern society of Lebanon and Iran were determined and examined, the works of such Lebanese fashion designers such as Raife Salha (Arabic: رئيفة صالحة)(1968-1925), William Khoury (Arabic: ويليم خوري)(2016-1946), Joseph Harouni (Arabic: جوزيف هاروني)(died 1960s), Jacques Cassia (1929-2015), Anna-Marie Malek (Arabic: آنا ماريا مالك), Amal Lahoud (Arabic: أمل لحود)(born 1950), and also works of Iranian fashion designers, such as Ghazaleh Saba (Persian: غزاله صبا)(died 2020), Mimi Fayazi (Persian: منیژه (میمی) فیاضی)(born 1947), Cleopatra Broumand (Persian: کلئوپاترا برومند)(born c. 1944 – c. 1945), and Keyvan Khosrovani (Persian: کیوان خسروانی)(born 1938) were reviewed. Overall, the research paper revealed the sociocultural prerequisites for the development of fashion in Lebanon and Iran in the mid-20th century, identified similarities and differences in the development of fashion in Lebanon and Iran in the 1950-1970s, determined the social functions of fashion in modern Lebanese society and Iran, and analyzed the works of Lebanese and Iranian fashion designers and fashion houses.