Kourosh Mall: an Ethnoghraphic Analysis

This ethnographic research is trying to narrate the story of changes from traditional Tehran to the contemporary image of this city by field work around one of the recent symbols of it, Kourosh Mall, relying on interpretive anthropology. The interpretive anthropology defines the culture as the collection of meanings that interprets through symbols and icons and tries to clarifying what is going on the field by analyzing the events and finding the symbols. Commercial, recreational and cultural complex, Kourosh, has over 500 commercial units, 14 movie theaters (the biggest cinematic Campus in Iran), amusement parks, restaurants and coffee shops and it’s one of the largest and most famous commercial centers in the country which is located in the 5th District of Tehran. This narration addressed viewpoint of investors and managers that built Kourosh mall and the image of the city that they want to build. This narration also demonstrates the impact of this symbol on the life style of mall’s shopkeepers, residents and local business owners by analyzing the mall’s happenings and the stories of that people. changes in Tehran’s image,satisfaction and obviously senseations is narrated by interview with key informants and pariticpant-observation.