Safavid conversion of Iran to Shia Islam

The Safavid conversion of Iran from Sunnism to Shiism makes Iran the spiritual bastion of Shia Islam against the onslaughts of Sunni Islam, and the repository of Persian cultural traditions and self-awareness of Iranianhood, acting as a bridge to modern Iran.

It also ensures the dominance of the Twelver sect within Shiism over the Zaydiyyah and Ismaili sects – each of whom had previously experienced their own eras of dominance within Shiism.

Through their actions, the Safavids reunify Iran as an independent state in 1501 and establish Twelver Shiism as the official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning points in the history of Islam.As a direct result, the population of the territory of present-day Iran and neighboring Azerbaijan are converted to Shia Islam at the same time in history.

Both nations still have large Shia majorities, and the Shia percentage of Azerbaijan's population is second only to that in Iran.

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