Diasporas As Influential Global Actors: A Conceptual-Theoretical Clarification and a Functional Analysis

Diaspora is an important concept in the current social sciences. Across the last two decades it has received increasing attentions by scholars from different disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, political sciences and cultural studies, so that diaspora studies is establishing as an emerging interdisciplinary and important area of research. Diasporas are now among the most influential non-governmental actors that have considerable impacts on domestic politics of countries as well as play significant roles in international relations. Although, we see very little publication in Persian language about this concept and its examples, there is a growing body of literature around diaspora in other languages, especially in western universities, media and research centers. This paper is going to answer a key question from an Iranian perspective; what does mean diaspora and what is/are its substantial impact(s)? I use the firsthand scientific resources for analyzing the concept and its conceptual evolution across the history as well as I use case study as the best research method to properly respond to the functionality of diasporas and their impacts in the era of globalization.