Persian name

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A Persian name consists of a given name, sometimes more than one, and a surname.

Given names

Since the Islamic conquest of Persia, some names in Iran have been derived from Arabic, although the majority are Persian in origin. Persian Christians had Arabic names indistinguishable from their Muslim neighbors. They can also use Arabic derivations of Christian names (e.g. saints' names), or Greek, Assyrian, or especially Armenian names. The latter is no surprise because most Christian Iranians are Armenian Iranians.

Many Persian names come from the great Persian literature book, Shahnameh (The Epic of Kings). This great book was composed in the 10th century by Ferdowsi and is considered by many the masterpiece of the Persian literature and is treasured by all Iranians. Approximately 10%-15% of all Persian names are from Shahnameh. A few examples are as follows; Abtin, Ardeshir, Armeen, Arzhang, Babak (Papak), Bijan, Bizhan, Bozorgmehr, Darab, Dariush (Darius), Esfandiar, Esfandyar, Javad, Faramarz, Farhad, Fariborz, Farshid and Farzad.

Surnames

Prior to 1919, the people of Persia (Iran) did not use surnames. An act of Vosough od-Dowleh government in 1919 introduced the use of surnames,[1] and the practice expanded during the reign of Reza Shah (r. 1925–1941). Prior to that, a person was often distinguished from others by a combination of prefixes and suffixes attached to his name which, if omitted, might cause that person to be taken for someone else.[2]

In many cases an individual was known by the name of the district, city, town, or even the village from which they came by using the locality's name as a suffix, for example: Nuri, Khorasani, Mazandarani, Kordestani, Tehrani, Esfahani, Hamedani, and Shirazi.

Among many other secularization and modernization reforms, surnames were required by Reza Shah, following similar contemporary patterns in Turkey under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and later in Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser.[3]

Most common names

Male given names

A selection of male given names found in Iran are as follows:

Female given names

A selection of female given names found in Iran are as follows:

Surnames

A selection of surnames found in Iran, are as follows:

  • Abbasi · Abed · Ahura  · Ardavan  · Aria  · Armand  · Avesta
  • Ebrahimi · Esfahani (Alternative: "Spahany")  · Esfandiari (Alternative: "Spandiary")
  • Farrokhzad
  • Ghorbani  · Gol
  • Hanifnejad  · Homayoun  · Hooshang
  • Jahandar  · Jahangir  · Jahanshah  · Jamshidi  · Jang-Ju
  • Kavoosi  · Kazemi · Khadem · Khiabani  · Khorasani  · Khorram-Din
  • Lajani, a variant of the Persian word Lahijani. Used in Kurdish regions.
  • Madani  · Mazdaki  · Mazdani
  • Mehregan  · Mazandarani  · Mokri  · Mohsen
  • Pahlavi · Paria  · Parsi  · Pouran
  • Rahbar  · Rajavi  · Rezaei  · Rostamian
  • Sassani  · Shamshiri  · Shir-Del (Meaning: Lion's Heart/Brave)  · Shirazi
  • Tehrani  · Teymouri  · Tir  · Turan  · Turani

Name terminology

Honorifics

  • Aga Khan, hereditary title of the Imam of the Nizari Muslims of the Ismaili followers of the Shī‘a sect of Islam, the great imam of Shi`a Islam. As a suffix, it indicates his children, grandchildren, and/or grandchildren
  • Mullah, Muslim cleric. The title has also been used in some Jewish communities to refer to the community's leadership, especially religious leadership.
  • Aqa, Sir, mister. General term of respect
  • Ayatollah, high ranking title given to Usuli Twelver Shī‘ah clerics
  • Darvish, a Sufi mystic or a spiritual Guru
  • Khan, served at one time as a title for an honored person
  • Ostad, a master craftsperson, lecturer or a person who is the master of a profession.
  • Seyed, Sharif, honorific titles that are given to males accepted as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad
  • Shah, king of Persia

Prefixes

  • Haji, one who had made the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca
  • Jenaab, sir, excellency
  • Karbala'i, one who has made the pilgrimage to Karbala, as a suffix, one from Karbala
  • Mashhadi, one who has made the pilgrimage to Mashhad, as a suffix, one from Mashad, often shortened to Mashti, or Mash
  • Mir, generally indicates seyed and/or royal descent

Suffixes

  • -i, the most common suffix used for Persian surnames. These surnames are in fact adjectives created by the adding suffix "-i" to person names, location names or other names. Surnames with "-i" are also popular in other countries of historic Greater Persia and neighboring countries like India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Caucasus, Central Asia and Xinjiang.
  • -ian, similar to above case but with the addition of the plural suffix "-an", common among Persians and Armenians. Examples are Shaheenian (Persian) and Sarkisian (Armenian).
  • -an, similar to English "-s" in "Roberts"
  • -pour, "son of"
  • -zadeh, "descendant of"
  • -nezhad, -nejad, " of race/clan"
  • -nia, "from the ancestor"
  • -far (Faravahar), "the light of"
  • -bakhsh, "granted by"
  • -dad (Middle Persian: Dāta), "given by"

See also

References

  1. ↑ احمد کسروی، تاریخ 18 ساله آذربایجان
  2. ↑ Salmani, Ustad Muhammad-`Aliy-i, the Barber; Gail, Marizieh (tr.) (1982). My Memories of Bahá'u'lláh. Los Angeles, USA: Kalimát Press. p. 123. ISBN 0-933770-21-9. 
  3. ↑ Tehranian, Majid (August 1–5, 2000). "Disenchanted Worlds: Secularization and Democratization in the Middle East". Paper for Presentation at the World Congress of International Political Science Association. Archived from the original on 2006-09-12. Retrieved 2006-09-28. 

External links

Personal names in world cultures
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