Book Review:

Oral History Methodology/National Archives and Library Organization of Iran, Archives Research Institute

Gholamreza Azizi
Professor Emeritus, Archives Research Institute, Oral History Researcher
Translated by Mandana Karimi

2025-12-22

1) Introduction

The necessity of compiling a methodology and presenting work methods in every profession is of interest to all those who have been at the beginning of that profession and need manuals that will guide their actions, teach them the right way and method of work, and protect them from mistakes and trials. On the other hand, educated people or the ones who have accumulated experience in a profession, involved in work for years, and are well acquainted with the challenges and solutions of their profession are suitable options for preparing and compiling occupational and professional manuals and methodologies.

The history of official oral history activities in the National Archives and Library Organization dates back to January 1992 and the establishment of the Oral Archives Department within the Archival Services Management Department of the (former) National Archives and Library Organization of Iran. However, the first steps in compiling and publishing a manual related to this matter in that organization followed several years later.

After the merge of the National Library of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the National Archives and Library Organization of Iran and the emergence of the National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Oral Archives Department continued its activities in 2006 under a new organization called the “Visual and Audiovisual Resources Information Group” in the General Directorate of Information and Communications.

As far as the author remembers, in 2007, when the discussion of handing over oral history plans and projects in the National Archives and Library Organization of Iran to external individuals was first raised, the need to compile a manual (including forms and work methods) to comply with the organization’s demands and opinions for this important task was felt; therefore, in December 2007, colleagues in the Visual and Audiovisual Resources Information Group prepared, under my supervision, the 9-page "Standards for Preparing and Implementing Oral History Plans in the National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran."

At the same time, and in fulfillment of the order of the then head of the organization (Mr. Ash’ari), the author of these lines prepared and presented to him the "Plan for Examining Priorities in Oral History Interviews." A few years later, in order to organize oral history in the Deputy for Documents and regional/provincial managements of the organization, a workshop entitled “Uniformities of Oral History Activities in the National Archives and Library Organization of Iran” held on January 10, 2011. In this workshop, oral history guidelines and manuals presented to the participants in the form of three chapters in a compact disc.

This work continued at a close distance in order to prepare guidelines at the level of the Deputy for National Archives, and emphasized in the meeting on January 22, 2012 under the title “Preparing guidelines or minimum working procedures for all activities of the group.”

In the same year, oral history colleagues prepared the second edition of that manual, which included five chapters with the titles of introduction to oral history, general information about the oral history working method, guide to conducting oral history interviews, implementing and editing the text of oral history interviews, and guide to describing oral history sources. In addition, information on current guidelines and regulations for using oral history interviews was included in the appendices. In subsequent revisions, this collection supplemented with an article on how to convert analog audio cassettes to digital sources.

Due to the necessity of disseminating oral history sources in the form of books and press releases, a working group formed to develop a method for “preparing oral history sources for printing and publishing.” After holding six meetings by experts, discussing, and exchanging opinions on this matter, the working group developed the initial draft of this guideline. Then, one of the experts compiled the materials presented. Then, by referring to authoritative and authoritative sources, its accuracy and validity examined. Then, another colleague compiled the first draft of the guideline in June 2012 and provided it to the working group members. After being review and revision by the working group members, its final version was prepared and completed.

In the next step, the “Methodology for Classification of Visual and Audiovisual Resources” prepared in 2012.

Finally, the collection of these methods reviewed in several stages and a new edition uploaded to the organization’s website in September 2015 with the motive of being utilized by provincial administrations (and other interested parties). After that, this work stopped for more than a decade; apparently, it neither revised nor published in the form of a book.

Finally, thanks to the efforts of the colleagues of the Institute of Documents, in November 2015, the book “Oral History Methodology/National Archives and Library Organization of Iran, Institute of Documents” published. That is, after more than three decades since the beginning of oral history activities in the National Archives and Library Organization of Iran (and the National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran), the first book of the organization’s oral history methodology in its true sense was printed and published.

Fortunately, the publication of this book has provided a valuable opportunity for those interested in oral history and those working in this field to become familiar with the methods of this organization and to benefit from this book as a manual for carrying out their own projects and research on the subject and position of oral history (from idea to archive).

2) Introduction to the work

Book title: Oral History Methodology/National Archives and Library of Iran Organization, Archives Research Institute

Creator: National Archives and Library of the Islamic Republic of Iran Organization, Archives Research Institute

Publication date: 1404 (2025)

134 pages.

1,400,000 Rials

The book “Oral History Methodology/National Archives and Library of Iran Organization, Archives Research Institute” is organized in 7 chapters after the publisher’s speech and an introduction written by Dr. Seyyed Mahmoud Sadat, the organization’s esteemed deputy for research and digital resources.

The first chapter, titled “An Introduction to Oral History,” examines the meaning, concept, and background of oral history in the following 6 sections to familiarize and prepare readers for the main topic: What is oral history?, The importance of oral history in contemporary historiography?, Types of historical research, a brief history of oral history in the world, Oral history activities in Iran, and Oral history in the National Archives and Library of Iran.

The second chapter examines the practical aspects of oral history and provides general information about the oral history methodology, from (choosing a topic, preparing a plan and asking questions, conducting an interview, to providing information).

The third chapter, titled “Guidelines for conducting an oral history interview,” is organized in 7 sections: 1. Interviewee (including sub-sections: interviewee selection criteria, methods of identifying and accessing interviewees, interviewee rights in the National Archives and Library of Iran); 2. The interviewer; 3. The topic of the interview (referring to topic-based interviews, personality-based interviews, and hybrid interviews); 4. Choosing the interview location; 5. Tools and equipment needed; 6. Conducting the interview; 7. Interview report. This chapter concludes with some “Necessary Recommendations.”

Chapter 4, titled “Implementation (transcription) and editing of oral history interview texts,” consists of three main sections: implementation (without subtitles, containing twenty topics); typing of the interview text; and binding and archiving of the interview text.

Chapter 5 describes how to describe oral history sources and its conditions and consists of three sections: 1. The process and stages of describing oral history sources; 2. Documenting descriptors using the Rasa Document Bank; and 3. Inserting descriptive and analytical information into description tools and retrieval software.

Chapter 6, entitled “Procedure for Preparing Oral History Interview Texts for Printing and Publishing,” consists of seven sections: 1. Topics covered in the procedure for preparing oral history interview texts for printing and publishing (criteria for selecting interviewees, reviewing permission to use the interview, reviewing the needs of the research community, selecting the interview text), 2. The process of proposing to publish the interview (submitting an initial proposal for publishing the interview, submitting a proposal to the Publications Council for publishing the interview, handing over the audio and text files), 3. Oral history interviews for preparation for printing and publishing.

How to prepare the interview (structuring the text, editing the text); 4. Use of punctuation marks (square brackets [ ], quotation marks " "); 5. Text clarification and correction (clarification of names of persons, clarification of place names, clarification of specialized terms (Quranic verses and narrations of the Infallibles); 6. How to prepare footnotes; ("Ownership rights" and ...); 7. How to prepare pre- and post-text (preparation of pre-text, preparation of post-text).

The final chapter is also dedicated to "Guide to the Classification of Visual and Audio Resources in the National Archives of Iran".

3) Review of the work

While leafing through the book, the following points noted.

3-1) The size and cut of the book are very suitable for a manuscript book that is not intended to be read only once. The book has good printing. The font used is pleasing to the eye and prevents eye fatigue. The design and execution of the cover are beautiful. Some may say that with the changes in technology and the use of digital recordings, it is not interesting to bring the image of a cassette tape on the cover (due to the obsolescence of this tool); But there are those (including the author) for whom the image of a cassette tape on the book cover evokes a nostalgic mood; especially with that bold graphic trick of quoting from a cassette tape.

3-2) The title of the book appears in at least two forms. One is the long form "Oral History Methodology / National Library and Archives Organization of Iran, Documents Research Institute" (on the cover, FIPA on page 2, page 5 and the ID on page 6) and the second is the short and of course more interesting form "Oral History Methodology" (on page 3 and the header of all even pages of the book).

In addition to everything that can say about the book’s merits, there are also a few slip-ups in the final preparation of the work for publication. For example:

3-3) According to the information on page 31 of the book, the second chapter contains eleven topics: 1. Choosing the topic; 2. Preparing the outline; 3. Asking questions; 4. Conducting the interview; 5. Recording the interview document; 6. Copying the produced document; 7. Implementing (transcribing) and organizing the interview text; 8. Preservation and maintenance and organization of oral history audio and video resources; 9. Describing the interview; 10. Determining and observing the right of access; 11. Disseminating information about oral history.

However, from pages 32 to 47, 12 items (not 11 items) discussed and examined. The twelfth item (which is not on page 31) is “Ownership rights of oral history interviews in the National Archives and Library of Iran.”

4-3) As mentioned, Chapter Four consists of three main sections; but apart from the fact that the first section (i.e. “Implementation”) lacks a title and number, it is not clear why the second and third sections are titled “8. Typing the interview text” and “9. "Binding and archiving the interview text" numbered (instead of 2. Typing the interview text, and 3. Binding and archiving the interview text).

3-5) There is also a kind of confusion, similarity, and repetition in Chapter 5. For example, the "titles" of the following two pairs of detailed subsections are the same:

- Subsection "1-1. Extracting descriptive information" (beginning on p. 70) with "1-3-1. Extracting descriptive information" (middle on p. 70)

- Subsection "2-1. Extracting analytical information" (p. 70) with "3-3-1. Extracting analytical information" (p. 77)

3-6) Perhaps it would have been better if the contents under subsection "8-3-1. Documenting descriptors" (p. 84) had been placed under subsection "2- Documenting descriptors with the help of a clear document bank" (p. 85), and the section title had been amended to include two subsections.

7-3) It would also have been better if the subsection “8-3-1. Documenting descriptors” (p. 84) had come immediately after the subsection “4-3-1. Extracting descriptors” (p. 79) so that the thematic connection and coherence of the material would have been better maintained.

8-3) Another important point about the book - which could have been one of the prominent and important points of the manual in the form of a chapter - is the legal discussion of oral history interviews. In the current situation, the important discussion of interview rights in the book is scattered in proportion to the subject, which seems correct and accurate from an aspect; but considering the fragmentation of this discussion in the book, it would have been better if all this material organized under one chapter. For example:

- In the second chapter “Executive Issues of Oral History”, under the twelfth section, “Ownership Rights of Oral History Interviews in the National Archives and Library of Iran” discussed.

- Also, in the first part of the third chapter, which is dedicated to the interviewee, there is an article entitled "Interviewee's Rights in the National Library and Archives Organization of Iran".

- In the sixth chapter, which is dedicated to "Procedures for Preparing Oral History Interview Texts for Printing and Publishing", the inclusion of the topic of "Property Rights" along with an excerpt from the "Law on the Protection of the Rights of Authors, Writers and Artists", "Interviewer’s Intellectual Rights" and "FIPA Executive Regulations", after the discussion on "How to Prepare Footnotes" and before "How to Prepare the Preface and Postscript" of the book, seems to be irrelevant and should be included as an income for the proposed chapter.

3-9) Despite the appropriate editing and sophistication of the language - which is a characteristic of the organization’s publications in the last year - and has prevented the appearance of spelling or grammatical errors in the text, there are still some minor slips in the text, which it is hoped will be corrected in subsequent editions of the work.

For example, in this sentence: "Currently, the National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, apart from oral history sources, is a service system for various audio and video sources. Because the aforementioned sources are not identified and lack organization and description tools, as well as lack classification, and are arranged together only based on their structure and physical characteristics." (p. 121) The first sentence is incorrect and meaningless.

The correct sentence would be: "Currently, the National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran lacks a service system for all types of audio and video resources, other than oral history resources." Apparently, the respected editor removed the word "not" from the first sentence (similar to the two "not"s used in the second sentence, but in fact without parallel) and destroyed the first sentence.