Persian people
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[[WP:UNDO|Undid]] revision 226029091 by [[Special:Contributions/134.193.168.242|134.193.168.242]] ([[User talk:134.193.168.242|talk]])Unexplained removal of content, possible censurship
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{{dablink|This article is about Persian-speaking peoples including those found in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and other neighboring countries. For in-depth information about Persian-speakers in [[Iran]] see [[Persian speaking people]] and for Central Asian Persians see [[Tajiks]].}}
[[Image:Persian people - Persians 280507.JPG|thumb|300px|<small>[[Cyrus the Great]] • [[Darius I of Persia|Darius the Great]] • [[Saadi (poet)|Saadi]] • [[Anousheh Ansari]]</small>]]
Persian identity is traced to the ancient [[Indo-European]] [[Indo-Iranians|Aryans]] who arrived circa 2000-1500 BCE. Starting around 550 BCE, from the province of [[Fars]], the ancient Persians spread their language and culture to other parts of the [[Iranian plateau]] through conquest and assimilated local Aryan and [[Elam|non-Aryan]] groups over time. This process of assimilation continued in the face of [[Alexander the Great|Greek]], [[Islamic conquest of Persia|Arab]], [[Ilkhanate|Mongol]] and [[Ghaznavid Empire|Turkic]] invasions and continued right up to Islamic times.<ref>http://www.iranologie.com/history/history9.html</ref><ref name="Iran in Iranica">[http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f2/v13f2024i.html Lands of Iran] Encyclopedia Iranica (July 25, 2005) (retrieved [[3 March]] [[2008]])</ref> Numerous dialects and regional identities emerged over time, while a Persian national orientation fully manifested itself by the 20th century, mirroring developments in [[Young Turk Revolution|post-Ottoman Turkey]], the [[Arab nationalism|Arab world]] and Europe. With the losses of [[Afghanistan]] and territories in the [[Azerbaijan|Caucasus]],<ref>[[Treaty of Turkmenchay]] , [[Treaty of Gulistan]] and [[Anglo-Persian War]]</ref> Persian identity became focused upon the current borders of Iran. Looking to link the modern state with the imperialist past, the [[Reza Shah]] government switched the country name from Persia to [[Iran naming dispute|Iran]] in 1935, signaling the emergence of [[Iranian nationalism]]. Later, following the [[Iranian Revolution]], emphasis shifted to [[Islam in Iran|Shia Islamic]] values. The synonymous usage of ''Iranian'' and Persian persisted over the centuries despite the varied meanings of [[Iranian]], which includes different but related languages and ethnic groups.
Persians, even under [[Politics of Iran|theocratic governments]], have shown a strong predilection towards urbanization and [[modernity]]. Exiled communities in the [[Iranian Americans|United States]] and Europe have continued to maintain close ties with their families in Iran and are a source of Western influence. In addition, with the break-up of the former [[Soviet Union]], Persians have also begun to foster closer cultural ties with closely related groups in the Caucasus including the [[Tats]] and [[Talysh]] as well as [[Tajiks|Central Asian Persians]] in [[Tajikistan]] and [[Afghanistan]].
==Terminology==
{{Expand-section|date=June 2008}}
[[Image:PLATE3CX.jpg|thumb|left|Costumes of an ancient Persian nobleman and soldiers.]]
The term Persia was adopted by all western languages through the Greeks and was used as an official name for Iran by the West until 1935. Due to that label, all Iranians were considered Persian. Therefore, many Western sources, when regarding Iran's history, will label many non-Persian Iranians as Persians, which distinguishes ethnicity. Also, many others who embraced the Persian language and culture are also often referred to as Persian as a part of Persian civilization (culturally and linguistically).
The first known written record about them is from an [[Assyria]]n inscription of the 834 BCE, which mentions both ''Parsua'' (Persians) and ''Muddai'' (Medes).<ref>Abdolhossein Zarinkoob "''Ruzgaran : tarikh-e Iran az aghaz ta soqut-e saltnat-e Pahlevi''" pp. 37</ref><ref>Bahman Firuzmandi "''Mad, Hakhamaneshi, Ashkani, Sasani''" pp. 155</ref> The term used by Assyrians, ''Parsua'', was a general designation to refer to southwestern Iranian tribes (who referred to themselves as Aryans). Greeks rendered this word as ''Persis'', which is where the word ''Persian '' in English comes from. In Arabic as there is no letter ''P'', they referred to Persia and vs as ''Fars'' (''Faras'') and ''Farsis''.
Historically, the term Persian has referenced various [[Iranic]] people including speakers of [[Khwarezmian language|Chorasmian Language]],<ref>For example, Abu Rayhan [[Biruni]], a native speaker of the Eastern Iranian language [[Chorasmian]] mentions in his Āthār al-bāqiyah ʻan al-qurūn al-xāliyah that: "the people of Khwarizm, they are a branch of the Persian tree." See: Abu Rahyan Biruni, "Athar al-Baqqiya 'an al-Qurun al-Xaliyyah"(Vestiges of the past : the chronology of ancient nations), Tehran, Miras-e-Maktub, 2001. Original Arabic quote: "و أما أهل خوارزم، و إن کانوا غصنا ً من دوحة الفُرس" (pg 56)</ref> old Tabari language,<ref>The language used in the ancient Marzbānnāma was, in the words of the 13th historian Sa'ad ad-Din Warawini, “ the language of Ṭabaristan and old, original Persian (fārsī-yi ḳadīm-i bāstān)” See: Kramers, J.H. "Marzban-nāma." Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P. Bearman , Th. Bianquis , C.E. Bosworth , E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill, 2007. Brill Online. 18 November 2007 <http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_SIM-4990> </ref> [[Old Azari language]],<ref>The language of Tabriz, being an Iranian language during the time of Qatran Tabrizi, was not the standard Khurasani Parsi-ye Dari. Qatran Tabrizi (11th century) has an interesting couplet mentioning this fact:<br>
Riyahi Khoi, Mohammad Amin. “Molehaazi darbaareyeh Zabaan-I Kohan Azerbaijan” (Some comments on the ancient language of Azerbaijan), ‘Itilia’at Siyasi Magazine, volume 181-182.<br>
رياحي خويي، محمدامين، «ملاحظاتي دربارهي زبان كهن آذربايجان»: اطلاعات سياسي - اقتصادي، شمارهي
<br>
Also available at: [http://www.azargoshnasp.net/languages/Azari/26.pdf]
<br>
بلبل به سان مطرب بیدل فراز گل
<br>
گه پارسی نوازد، گاهی زند دری
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Translation:<br>
The nightingale is on top of the flower like a minstrel who has lost her heart
It bemoans sometimes in Parsi (Persian) and sometimes in Dari (Khurasani Persian)</ref> Laki and [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]] speakers.<ref>Lady (Mary) Shiel in her observation of Persia during the Qajar describes the Persian tribes and Koords/Laks identified themselves and were identified commonly as Old Persians. See: Shiel, Lady (Mary). Glimpses of Life and Manners in Persia. London: John Murray, 1856. See: [http://www.bahai-library.com/books/glimpses.persia.txt], excerpt:<br>
The PERSIAN TRIBES. The tribes are divided into three races-Toorks, Leks, first are the invaders from Toorkistan, who, from time 'immemorial, have established themselves in Persia, and who still preserve their language. The Leks form the clans of genuine Persian blood, such as the Loors, BekhtiaTees, &c. To them might be added the Koords, as members of the Persian family; but their numbers in the dominions of the Shah are comparatively few, the greater part of that widely-spread people being attached to Turkey. Collectively the Koords are so numerous that they might be regarded as a nation divided into distinct tribes. Who are the Leks, and who are the Koords? This in- quiry I cannot solve. I never met any one in Persia, either eel or moolla, who could give the least elucidation of this question. All they could say was, that both these races were Foors e kadeem,-old Persians. They both speak dialects the greater part of which is Persian, bearing a strong resemblance to the colloquial language of the present day, divested of its large Arabic mixture. These dialects are not perfectly alike, though it is said that Leks and Koords are able to comprehend each other. One would be disposed to consider them as belonging to the same stock,. did they not both disavow the connection. A Lek will- admit that a Koord, like himself, is an 11 old Persian," but he denies that the families are identical, and a Koord views the question in the same light.</ref>
The Arab historian Masudi also refers to various Persian dialects and the speakers of these various Persian dialects as Persian. While considering modern Persian (Dari) to be one of these dialects, he also mentions [[Pahlavi]] and [[Old Azari language|Old Azari]], as well as other Persian languages. [[Al-Masudi|Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn Al-Masudi]] (896-956), the [[Arab]] historian states:<ref>Al Mas'udi, Kitab al-Tanbih wa-l-Ishraf, De Goeje, M.J. (ed.), Leiden, Brill, 1894, pp. 77-8. Original Arabic from www.alwaraq.net: فالفرس أمة حد بلادها الجبال من الماهات وغيرها وآذربيجان إلى ما يلي بلاد أرمينية وأران والبيلقان إلى دربند وهو الباب والأبواب والري وطبرستن والمسقط والشابران وجرجان وابرشهر، وهي نيسابور، وهراة ومرو وغير ذلك من بلاد خراسان وسجستان وكرمان وفارس والأهواز، وما اتصل بذلك من أرض الأعاجم في هذا الوقت وكل هذه البلاد كانت مملكة واحدة ملكها ملك واحد ولسانها واحد، إلا أنهم كانوا يتباينون في شيء يسير من اللغات وذلك أن اللغة إنما تكون واحدة بأن تكون حروفها التي تكتب واحدة وتأليف حروفها تأليف واحد، وإن اختلفت بعد ذلك في سائر الأشياء الأخر كالفهلوية والدرية والآذرية وغيرها من لغات الفرس.''</ref>
{{cquote|
The Persians are a people whose borders are the Mahat Mountains and [[Iranian Azerbaijan|Azarbaijan]] up to [[Armenia]] and [[Arran]], and Bayleqan and [[Derbent | Darband]], and Ray and [[Mazandaran|Tabaristan]] and Masqat and Shabaran and Jorjan and Abarshahr, and that is Nishabur, and [[Herat]] and Marv and other places in land of [[Khorasan]], and Sejistan and Kerman and Fars and Ahvaz...All these lands were once one kingdom with one sovereign and one language...although the language differed slightly. The language, however, is one, in that its letters are written the same way and used the same way in composition. There are, then, different languages such as Pahlavi, Dari, Azari, as well as other Persian languages.}}
The term ''Persians'' also refers to the people speaking the Western dialect of Persian language and living in the modern country of Iran, as well as the descendants of the people who emigrated from the territory of modern-day Iran to neighboring countries, such as the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Turkey and more recently, to the West (notably USA, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada…).
===Sub-groups===
{{main|Tajiks|Farsiwan|Kizilbash|Hazara people}}
Ethnic Persians can also be found outside [[Iran]] and include the [[Tajiks]] and [[Farsiwan]] of [[Afghanistan]], [[Tajikistan]], [[Uzbekistan]], [[Xinjiang]] province of [[China]] and [[Northern Pakistan]]. Like the Persians of Iran, the Tajiks are descendents of various Iranian peoples, including Persians from Iran, as well as numerous invaders. Tajiks and their cousins the Farsiwan have a particular affinity with Persians in neighboring [[Khorasan]] due to historical interaction some stemming from the Islamic period.
Other smaller groups include the [[Qizilbash]] of Afghanistan and Pakistan who are related to the Farsiwan and [[Azerbaijani]]s. In the [[Caucasus]], the [[Tats]] are concentrated in [[Azerbaijan]], [[Armenia]], and [[Russia]]n [[Dagestan]] and their origins are traced to [[Sassanids|Sassanid]] merchants who settled in the region. [[Parsis]], a [[Zoroastrian]] sect of western India and Pakistan, centred around [[Gujarat]] and [[Mumbai]], are also largely descended from Persian Zoroastrians. The [[Irani]]s, another small community in western [[India]], are descended from more recent Persian Zoroastrian immigrants. In addition, the [[Hazara people|Hazara]] and [[Aimak|Aimaq]] are ethnic groups of partial [[Persianization|Persianized]] [[Mongols|Mongol]] and [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] origin.
==History==
{{seealso|Persian Empire|History of Iran}}
The Persians are descendents of the [[Aryan#Indo-Iranian|Aryan]] ([[Indo-Iranians|Indo-Iranian]]) tribes that began migrating from Central Asia into what is now Iran in the second millennium BCE.<ref>[http://wwwa.britannica.com/eb/article-230041?tocId=230041 Iran :: Ethnic groups - Britannica Online Encyclopedia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref name="EncWH">{{worldhistory|quote=The Medes and the Persians, c.1500-559|section=123}}</ref><ref>Bahman Firuzmandi "''Mad, Hakhamanishi, Ashkani, Sasani''" pp. 20</ref> The [[Persian language]] and other [[Iranian languages|Iranian tongues]] emerged as these Aryan tribes split up into two major groups, the Persians and the [[Medes]], and intermarried with peoples [[indigenous peoples|indigenous]] to the [[Iranian plateau]] such as the [[Elam]]ites.<ref name=Columbia>[http://www.bartleby.com/65/ir/Iran.html Iran. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05]</ref><ref>Bahman Firuzmandi "''Mad, Hakhamanishi, Ashkani, Sasani''" pp. 12-19</ref> The first mention of the Persians dates to the 9th century BCE, when they appear as the ''Parsu'' in [[Assyrian]] sources, as a people living at the southeastern shores of [[Lake Urmia]].
[[Image:Map achaemenid empire en.png|right|thumb|250px|Achaemenid Empire at greatest extent.]]
The ancient Persians from the province of Pars became the rulers of a large empire under the [[Achaemenid dynasty]] (''Hakhamaneshiyan'') in the sixth century BCE, reuniting with the tribes and other provinces of the ancient [[Iranian plateau]] and forming the [[Persian Empire]]. Over the centuries [[Persian Empire|Persia]] was ruled by various dynasties; some of them were ethnic Iranians including the [[Achaemenids]], [[Parthians]] (''Ashkanian''), [[Sassanid dynasty|Sassanids]] (''Sassanian''), [[Buwayhid]]s and [[Samanid]]s, and some of them were not, such as the [[Seleucid Dynasty|Seleucids]], [[Ummayyad]]s, [[Abbasid]]s, and [[Seljuk Turks]].
The founding dynasty of the empire, the [[Achaemenids]], and later the [[Sassanids]], were from the southern region of [[Iran]], [[Fārs Province|Pars]]. The latter [[Parthia]]n dynasty arose from the north. However, according to archaeological evidence found in modern day Iran in the form of [[cuneiform]]s that go back to the Achaemenid era, it is evident that the native name of ''Parsa'' (Persia) had been applied to Iran from its birth.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/ebc/article-9374964?query=Islamic%20conquest%20of%20Persia&ct= Persia - Britannica Concise Encyclopedia]</ref><ref>[http://www.geocities.com/Athens/5646/splendor1.html The Splendor of Persia: The Land and the People - by Robert Payne]</ref>
==Language==
{{main|Persian language}}
The Persian language is one of the world's oldest languages still in use today, and is known to have one of the most powerful literary traditions, with formidable Persian poets like [[Ferdowsi]], [[Hafez]], [[Khayyam]], [[Farid al-Din Attar|Attar]], [[Saadi]], [[Nezami]], [[Roudaki]], [[Rumi]] and [[Sanai]]. By native speakers as well as in Urdu, Bengali, Turkish, Arabic and other neighboring languages, it is called ''Fārsī'', and additionally ''[[Dari (Afghanistan)|Dari]]'' or ''[[Tajik language|Tajiki]]'' in the eastern parts of [[Greater Iran]].
Persian is part of the Iranian sub-section of the [[Indo-Iranian]] branch of the [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] family of languages. Today, Persian is has a Western Dialect, forming the marjority in Iran. The Eastern dialect, also called Dari or Tajiki, forms majorities in [[Tajikistan]], and [[Afghanistan]],<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/3717092.stm BBC News - ''Afghan poll's ethnic battleground'']</ref> and a large minority in [[Uzbekistan]]. Smaller groups of Persian-speakers are found in [[Pakistan]], western [[China]] ([[Xinjiang]]), as well as in the [[UAE]], [[Bahrain]], [[Iraq]], [[Kuwait]], [[Oman]] and [[Azerbaijan]].
==Religion==
[[Image:Moschee-isfahan.jpg|thumb|250px|The entrance to [[Shah Mosque]] (aka [[Imam Mosque]] or ''Shah Jame' Mosque'') in Isfahan. This mosque is an example of Persian architecture during the [[Safavid dynasty]].]]
The Persian civilization spawned three major religions: [[Zoroastrianism]], [[Manichaeism]], which heavily influenced [[Saint Augustine]] before he turned to Christianity, and the [[Bahá'í Faith]]. Another religion that arose from ancient Iran is [[Mazdak]]ism, which has been dubbed the first communistic ideology. Both Mazdakism and Manichaeism were sub-branches of [[Zoroastrianism]].
The religion of [[Zoroastrianism]] originates from ancient Persia. [[Zoroastrianism]] is said to be the first [[monotheistic]] religion.
Most Persians in Iran are [[Shia Islam|Shia Muslims]], while some communities of [[Sufism|Shia Sufis]] also exist. There is also a sizeable number of [[Sunni Islam|Sunni Muslims]]. Historically, some of the greatest Sunni Muslim scholars were Persian or had Persian descent, including [[Abu Dawood]], [[Al Muslim]], [[Hakim al-Nishaburi]],[[Salman the Persian]], [[Al-Tabarani]], [[Ghazali]], [[Imam Bukhari]], [[Tirmidhi]], [[Al-Nasa'i]] and [[Abu Hanifa]], amongst many others. There are also smaller communities of [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrians]], [[Christianity|Christians]], [[Judaism|Jews]], and [[Bahá'í Faith|Bahá'ís]]. Bahá'ís are the largest non-Muslim religious minority in the country.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.fidh.org/asie/rapport/2003/ir0108a.pdf | author = Federation Internationale des Ligues des Droits de L'Homme | publisher = fidh.org | accessdate = 2006-10-04 | date = 2003-08 | title = Discrimination against religious minorities in IRAN}}</ref> There are also Persians who are [[Atheism|atheist]] and [[Agnosticism|agnostic]]. ''Also see [[religious minorities in Iran]]''.
==Culture==
{{main|Culture of Iran}}
Persian culture can be defined through its films, as [[Cinema of Iran|Persian cinema]] has attained a substantial amount of international and critical acclaim through such films as ''[[Children of Heaven]]'' and ''[[Taste of Cherry]]'', which give both insights into the current state of Persian culture and profound depictions of the general human condition.
===Arts===
{{main|Persian art}}
<!-- Image with unknown copyright status removed: [[Image:Divan hafez aks2.JPG|thumb|right|190px|Miniature painting by [[Mohammad Tajvidi]] on the cover of the [[Divan]] of [[Hafez (poet)|Hafez]] ("Hafez's Anthology"), published 1969.]] -->
The artistic heritage of Persia is eclectic and includes major contributions from both east and west. Persian art borrowed heavily from the indigenous [[Elam]]ite civilization and [[Mesopotamia]] and later from [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenism]] (as can be seen with statues from the Greek period). In addition, due to Persia's somewhat central location, it has served as a fusion point between eastern and western arts and architecture as Greco-Roman influence was often fused with ideas and techniques from India and China. When talking of the creative Persian arts one has to include a geographic area that actually extends into Central Asia, the Caucasus, Asia Minor, and Iraq as well as modern Iran. This vast geographic region has been pivotal in the development of the Persian arts as a whole.
===Statues===
{{main|Persian miniature}}
Persians' artistic expression can be seen as far back as the [[Achaemenid]] period as numerous statues depicting various important figures, usually of political significance as well as religious, such as the [[Persian Immortals|Immortals]] (elite troops of the emperor) are indicative of the influence of Mesopotamia and ancient Babylon. What is perhaps most representative of a more indigenous artistic expression are [[Persian miniatures]]. Although the influence of [[Chinese art]] is apparent, local Persian artists used the art form in various ways including portraits that could be seen from the [[Ottoman Empire]] to the courts of the [[Safavids]] and [[Mughals]].
===Music===
{{main|Persian Music}}
The music of Persia goes back to the days of ''Barbod'' in the royal [[Sassanid]] courts, and even earlier. As it evolved, a distinct eastern [[Mediterranean]] style emerged as Persian folk music is often quite similar to the music of modern Iran's neighbors. In modern times, musical tradition has seen setbacks due to the religious government's policies in Iran, but has survived in the form of Iranian exiles and dissidents who have turned to Western rock music with a distinctive Iranian style as well as [[Persian Rap|Persian rap]].
===Architecture===
{{main|Persian architecture}}
[[Image:Persepolis recreated.jpg|thumb|right|The ruins of [[Persepolis]] known as the ''Takht-e Jamshid'' or ''throne of Jamshid'' is part of the ancient architectural tradition of Persia.]]
Architecture is one of the areas where Persians have made outstanding contributions. Ancient examples can be seen in the ruins at [[Persepolis]], while in modern times monuments such as the Tomb of [[Omar Khayyam]] are displays of the varied tradition in Persia. Various cities in Iran are historical displays of a distinctive Persian style that can be seen in the Kharaghan twin towers of Qazvin province and the [[Shah Mosque]] found in Isfahan. Persian architecture streams over the borders of Iran and is clearly seen throughout Central Asia as with the [[Bibi Khanym Mosque|Bibi Khanum Mosque]] in [[Samarkand]] as well as [[Samanids]] mausoleum in [[Bukhara]] and the [[Minaret of Jam]] in western [[Afghanistan]]. Islamic architecture was founded on the base established by the Persians. Persian techniques can also be clearly seen in the structures of the [[Taj Mahal]] at Agra and the [[Sultan Ahmed Mosque|Blue Mosque]] in Istanbul.
===Rugs===
{{main|Persian rug}}
[[Gottfried Semper]] called rugs "the original means of separating space". Rug weaving was thus developed by ancient civilizations as a basis of architecture. Persian rugs are said to be the most ldetailed hand-made works of art. Also known as the starus Rugs very important in the culture.
Interworking of fibers to produce cloth was known in Iran as early as the 5th millennium BCE.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Rubinson |first=Karen S | title=carpets :vi.pre-Islamic carpets (pages 858 – 861) | encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica | accessdate=2008-05-11|url=http://www.iranica.com/articles/search/searchpdf.isc}}</ref> When the famous Greek commander [[Themistocles]] was asking for asylum from Persia , the “Persian carpet” was mentioned in his speech:
{| class="toccolours" style="float: middle; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 2em; font-size: 85%; background:#c6dbf7; color:black; width:30em; max-width: 40%;" cellspacing="5"
| style="text-align: left;" | "he [Artaxerxes I of Persia] commanded him to speak freely what he would concerning the affairs of Greece. Themistocles replied, that a man’s discourse was like to a rich '''Persian carpet''', the beautiful figures and patterns of which can only be shown by spreading and extending it out; when it is contracted and folded up, they are obscured and lost; and, therefore, he desired time."
|-
| style="text-align: left;" | [[Plutarch]] (''Plutarch’s Lives'', Chpter 49, Themistocles<ref>[http://www.bartleby.com/12/1.html Themistocles. Plutarch. 1909-14. Plutarch’s Lives. The Harvard Classics<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>)
|}
===Gardens===
{{main|Persian Gardens}}
The Persian gardens were designed to reflect paradise on earth;{{Fact|date=March 2007}} The English word ''paradise'' is thought to come from the Persian word ''Pardis'', which refers to these gardens.
Although having existed since ancient times, the Persian garden gained greater prominence during the Islamic period as Arab rulers cultivated Persian techniques to create gardens of Persian design from [[Al-Andalus]] to [[Kashgar]].{{Fact|date=March 2007}} Persian gardens are immortalized in the [[The Book of One Thousand and One Nights|''One Thousand and One Nights'']] and the works of [[Omar Khayyam]].
==Women==
{{main|Iranian women}}
[[Image:Portrait of a Persian lady in Iran, 10-08-2006.jpg|thumb|right|225px|Portrait of a Persian lady in Iran.]]
Persian women have played an important role throughout history. [[Scheherazade]], though fictional, is an important figure of female wit and intelligence, while the beauty of [[Mumtaz Mahal]] inspired the building of the [[Taj Mahal]] itself. While in ancient times, aristocratic females possessed numerous rights sometimes on par with men, generally Persian women did not attain greater parity until the 20th century. However, [[Táhirih]], the poet, had a great influence on modern women's movements throughout the Middle East. The [[Táhirih Justice Center]] is named after her. Females were given such status in ancient Persia that they were the first to ever serve in a national military.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
Persian women today serve an active role in society. Persian women today tend to take a more active role in social, religious and family affairs than their Arab counterparts.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Persian women can be seen working in a variety of areas such as politics, law enforcement, transportation industries, etc. Universities still tend to be dominated by women in Iran and one may find a large number of female legislators in the Iranian Majlis (parliament),{{Fact|date=April 2007}} even by western standards. Former Vice President [[Masoumeh Ebtekar]], noted for her eloquence in dealing with western media, set a new standard for aspiring Iranian female politicians while serving under President Khatami. Outstanding Iranian female academics, such as Laleh Bakhtiar have forever left a mark in the fields they contribute to.
Because of some restrictions, [[women in Iran]] suffer from inequality in many cases. [[Human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran]] are not very well respected, hence some women prefer to migrate and continue their lives in other countries.
==See also==
{{columns |width=240px
|col1 =
* [[Demographics of Iran]]
* [[History of Iran]]
* [[Iranian-American]]
* [[Iranian Australian]]
|col2 =
* [[Iranian-Canadian]]
* [[Iranian Kuwaitis]]
* [[List of Iranians]]
* [[Tajiks]]
* [[Farsiwan]]
|col3 =
* [[Turko-Iranian]]
* [[Iranian Peoples]]
* [[Irani]]s of India
* [[Parsi people|Parsis]] of India
}}
==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
==External links==
* [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=pes Ethnologue's entry for ''Western Persian'']
*[http://www.pitt.edu/~sorc/iranian/BeingIranian.htm Iranian/Persian Inventions and contribution to human civilization]
</br>
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