A Persian woman here as depicted during the Safavi period of Iran. From wall painting in Chehel-sotoon Palace, Isfahan.

A Persian Woman usually refers to a woman of or from the traditional Persia culture. Download high resolution version (548x733, 632 KB)Persian woman pouring wine. ... Download high resolution version (548x733, 632 KB)Persian woman pouring wine. ... An example of Safavid architecture Safavi is an adjective, created for the name Safi. Translated to English, Safavi would correspond roughly to Safi-ish or Safidian Safavi is the correct Persian Language reference to Safi, the name of Sheikh Safi Al-Din Ardebili. ... Isfahan or Esfahan can refer to either a city or a province in Iran: Isfahan (city) Isfahan (province) Isfahan (rugs) Ispahan a kind of rose and an older pronounciation of the citys name. ... This article is about the Persians, a nationality and an ethnic group. ...

Although she is seen as Iranian, the Persian woman need not be from any specific nationality or ethnicity, and can be thought to be associated with any of the peoples sharing the Persian culture.

Persian women in history

Amazon warrior women were known to have been of North Iranian stock( Scythia, northern Persian empire, peoples who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus and eastern Europe). These Iranians were replaced by the Turks and Mongols and some Arabs. They are known as Tats and live in the region of Daghestan in the Caucasus. It is little known that the armies of Sassanian Persia included women as fighters who (according to Roman sources) gave an excellent account of themselves. see following image: http://www.u.arizona.edu/~memcinto/archery/images/LXXXV_85_a_sm.jpg Some historians in fact argue that it was Cyrus the Great who, ten centuries before Islam, established the custom of covering women to protect their chastity. According to their theory, the veil passed from the Achaemenids to the Seleucids. They, in turn, handed it to the Byzantines, from whom the Arab conquerors inherited it, transmitting it over the vast reaches of the Arab world.[1] But even if one were to accept this theory, it wouldn't change the fact that the view toward women in Iran changed significantly with the arrival of Islam in Iran. The name Amazon may refer to several concepts: The legendary Amazons, women renowned in antiquity for their prowess in battle. ... Scythia was an area in Eurasia inhabited in ancient times by people probably speaking Indo-Iranian languages, known as the Scythians. ... The Caucasus , a region boardering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... For other uses, see Arab (disambiguation). ... Tomb of Cyrus the Great in Pasargadae Cyrus II the Great (Persian: کوروش کبیر) (about 576 - July, 529 BC) was a king of Persia, famous for his military prowess and mercy. ... Islam  listen? (Arabic: al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second largest religion. ... Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Dynasty was a dynasty in the ancient Persian Empire, including Cyrus II the Great, Darius I and Xerxes I. At the height of their power, the Achaemenid rulers of Persia ruled over territories roughly emcompassing some parts of todays Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon... The Seleucid Empire was one of several political states founded after the death of Alexander the Great, whose generals squabbled over the division of Alexanders empire. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ...

The perspective on women in Iranian society has not always been the same: A nude Sassanid woman undulates on this silver-gilt ewer.

At the dawn of the 20th century, many Iranian modernists who had traveled to Europe for higher education, came back to view the Islamic veil as a symbol of backwardness. Its removal, in their view, was essential to the advancement of Iran and its dissociation from Arab-Islamic culture. For the counter-modernists who wanted to uphold the Islamic social and gender orders, the European woman became a scapegoat and a symbol of corruption, immorality, and Westernization. In the Iranian body-politic the imagined European woman provided the subtext for political maneuvers over women's rights and appearance in the public space. A Sassanid woman. ... A Sassanid woman. ... Sassanid Empire at its greatest extent The Sassanid dynasty (also Sassanian) was the name given to the kings of Persia during the era of the second Persian Empire, from 224 until 651, when the last Sassanid shah, Yazdegerd III, lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the Umayyad Caliphate...

Iran's Constitutional Revolution of 1905-11 became a turning point in the lives of Iranian women. Women participated in huge numbers and gained important positions for expressing their views, including journals, schools, and associations that flourished in the following period (1911-24).[2]

Reformist MP Fatemeh Haghighatjou, a staunch advocate of women's rights, was sentenced by Iran's Judiciary to 22 months in prison for "working against the Islamic Republic". She resigned in 2004 amidst the defeat of reformists in Parliament.

But the defeat of the constitutionalists (1921-5) and the consolidation of power by Reza Shah (1925-41) had two contradictory impacts. Independent women's journals and groups were destroyed, while the state implemented social reforms such as mass education and paid employment for women. Reza Shah also initiated his controversial policy of Kashf-e-Hijab, banning the wearing of the Islamic Hijab in public. But like other sectors of the society in those years under Reza Shah's rule, women lost the right to express themselves and dissent was repressed. Fatemeh Haghighatjoo, Member of Irans Sixth Parliament. ... Fatemeh Haghighatjoo, Member of Irans Sixth Parliament. ... Fatemeh Haghighatjou (فاطمه حقیقت‌جو in Persian) was a member of the Iranian Parliament. ... Shah Reza Pahlavi Reza Pahlavi (Persian: رضا پهلوی), (March 16, 1877–July 26, 1944), called Reza Shah the Great after his death, was Shah of Persia (later Iran) from December 15, 1925 to September 16, 1941. ...

With the advent of Iran's revolution in 1979, women's rights took yet another wild swing toward religious conservatism. Despite the decree of many of Iran's top clerics such as Ayatollah Taleghani, the state, under the rule of Ayatollah Khomeini made wearing the Hijab mandatory for all women, implementing strict religious codes for women in society. Ayatollah Khomeini founded the first modern Islamic republic Ayatollah Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini (آیت‌الله روح‌الله خمینی in Persian) (May 17, 1900 – June 3, 1989) was an Iranian Shia cleric and the political and spiritual leader of the 1979 revolution that overthrew Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the then Shah of Iran. ...

In May 1997, a large number of women participated in presidential elections and overwhelmingly voted for Hojatolislam Mohammad Khatami, a reformist cleric who had promised reduction of repression and toleration of civil society institutions. His election opened a period when women could voice their ideas one again, with many becoming increasingly bolder in their demands and in their criticisms. The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian human rights and feminist activist, further emboldened Iranian feminists inside Iran and cemented their relationships with Iranian feminist activists abroad. Khatami may refer to either of two Iranian reformist politicians: Mohammad Khatami, President of Iran since 1997, Mohammad Reza Khatami, Vice Speaker of Iranian Parliament from 2001 to 2004 and brother of Mohammad Khatami; or it may refer to a conservative cleric: Ahmad Khatami, one of the scribes of the... Shirin Ebadi Shirin Ebadi (Persian: شیرین عبادی; born 1947) is an Iranian lawyer and human rights activist. ... Feminism is a social theory and political movement primarily informed and motivated by the experience of women. ...

The Sixth Majles saw the emergence of some of Iran's most strongest advocates of women's rights. Almost all of the 11 female lawmakers of The 190-seat Majles took on the challenge of trying to change some of Irans more conservative laws amidst a male dominated culture. However, during the elections for the Seventh Majles, all of those representatives were banned to run for office by the all male Council of Guardians, only allowing conservative females to run for election. The new representatives, as expected, upon their arrival into office began reversing many of the laws passed by the reformist 6th Majles. مجلس شورای اسلامی - The Majles; Irans Parliament. ... The Guardian Council of the Constitution (شورای نگهبان قانون اساسی in Persian) is a high office within the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran which has the authority to interpret the constitution and to determine if the laws passed by the parliament are in line with the constitution of...

Famous Iranian women and female entities

The conservatively religious view toward women is a relatively new phenomenon in Iran; The traditional image of a Persian woman holding a cup of wine, as depicted at Hasht-behesht palace, Isfahan, 17th century Iran.

• Táhirih
• Nassim Sahar, vegan activist.
• Shermine Shahrivar, Miss Europe 2005.[1]
• Shirin Ebadi, 2003 Nobel Laureate.
• Shahrazad of 1001 Nights
• Parvin E'tesami, poetess.
• Lily Afshar, world class guitarist.
• Forough Farrokhzad, poetess.
• Shahr-banu, princess.
• Farah Pahlavi, empress.
• Anahita, Goddess.
• Parisa Khosravi
• Nazanin Afshin-Jam, Miss Canada 2004.
• Shohreh Aghdashloo, Actress.
• Goli Ameri, Republican politician.
• Anousheh Ansari: X Prize named after her.
• Ladan and Laleh Bijani, conjoined twins.
• Zahra Kazemi, slain photographer.
• Simin Behbahani
• Azar Nafisi
• Marjane Satrapi
• Mansoureh Hosseini
• Aidin Aghdashloo
• Samira Makhmalbaf, director.
• Christiane Amanpour, CNN news anchor.
• Rudi Bakhtiar, CNN news anchor.
• Shadi Sadr
• Masoumeh Ebtekar, Iranian Vice President.
• Nafiseh Fayyazbakhsh
• Fatemeh Haghighatjou, former Member of Parliament.
• Faezeh Hashemi Rafsanjani, daugther of Hashemi Rafsanjani.
• Elaheh Koulai, former Member of Parliament.
• Maryam Rajavi, opposition leader, president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
• Azam Taleghani
• Leila Arab
• Delkash
• Googoosh, singer.
• Leila Forouhar, singer.
• Sima Bina
• Marzieh, singer.
• Foozieh of Egypt, former Queen.
• Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiari, former Queen.
• Leila Pahlavi, princess.
• Zahra Eshraghi
• Mehrangiz Kar, lawyer.
• Farrokh Karimi, Iranian female Dutch Member of Parliament.[2]
• Mandana Naderian, German TV hostess.[3]
• Mina Borati, wife of Joschka Fischer, the German Foreign Minister.[4]
• Mina Bissel, Director of UC Berkeley Life Sciences Division. [5]
• Fariba Adelkhah, Director of Research at Centre for International Studies and Research, France. [6]
• Simin Nikbin Meydani, Senior Scientist and Director at Tufts University. [7]
• Nahid Shahmehri, Director of the Laboratory for Intelligent Information, Linköpings Universitet, Sweden. [8]
• Tamara Stronach, star of the blockbuster movie The Neverending Story.
• Mariam Kamkar, Head of the Department of Computer and Information Science, Linköpings Universitet, Sweden. [9]
• Azadeh Tabazadeh, Stanford University scientist from NASA. [10] Article about her in TIME magazine
• Manijeh Razeghi, Director, Center for Quantum Devices, Northwestern University. [11]
• Patricia L. Mokhtarian, Associate Director, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis. [12]

A Persian Woman dancing. ... A Persian Woman dancing. ... Isfahan or Esfahan can refer to either a city or a province in Iran: Isfahan (city) Isfahan (province) Isfahan (rugs) Ispahan a kind of rose and an older pronounciation of the citys name. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... Shirin Ebadi Shirin Ebadi (Persian: شیرین عبادی; born 1947) is an Iranian lawyer and human rights activist. ... Scheherazade or Shahrazad (Persian: شهرزاد Shahrzad) is the (fictional) storyteller of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights. ... Parvin Etesami is one of Irans greatest poetesses. ... Says Classical Guitar Magazine in 2002: Lily Afshar is a guitarist of the highest order. ... External links A Website Dedicated to Forough Iran Chambers Article on Forough A Website Dedicated to Forough Categories: People stubs | 1935 births | 1967 deaths | Iranian poets ... Shahr Banu was a daughter of the last Sassanid emperor, Yazdegerd III. After the defeat of her father, she was taken captive by the Arab armies and sent to Medina where she was married to Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad. ... Farah Diba Farah Diba, as she appeared during the visit of US president Richard Nixon to Iran on May 30, 1972. ... Anahita (or Nahid in Modern Persian), whose name means unstained or immaculate, was an ancient Persian deity. ... Nazanin Afshin-Jam (نازنین افشین جم in Persian), born 1977 in Tehran, Iran, is a former Miss Canada. ... Shohreh Aghdashloo Shohreh Aghdashloo (Persian: شهره آغداشلو, born 11 May 1953 in Tehran, Iran is a Los Angeles-based, Persian actress and self-proclaimed activist. ... Goli Ameri Goli Ameri (in Persian:گلی عامری) is a Republican Iranian-American businesswoman who ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon. ... Anousheh Ansari is co-founder and CEO of Telecom Technologies, Inc. ... The X prize logo shows a stylised letter X representing a spacecraft trajectory and containing a starfield. ... Ladan and Laleh Bijani (in Persian: لادن و لاله بیژنی) (January 17, 1974–July 8, 2003) were Iranian law graduates. ... Zahra Kazemi Zahra Ziba Kazemi-Ahmadabadi (زهرا کاظمی احمدآبادی)‎ (1949 - July 11, 2003) was an Iranian-born freelance photographer, residing in Montreal (Canada), who was killed by Iranian officials during an interrogation following her arrest in her native country. ... Simin Behbahani (in Persian: سیمین بهبهانی; born in 1927, Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian poetess. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Marjane Satrapi (born in 1969 in Rasht, Iran) is a contemporary graphic novelist and illustrator. ... Samira Makhmalbaf Samira Makhmalbaf (born February 15, 1980, Tehran) is an Iranian filmmaker, the daughter of Mohsen Makhmalbaf, the famous film director and writer. ... Christiane Amanpour is chief international correspondent for CNN. Based out of CNNs London bureau, Amanpour is one of the most recognized and distinguished international correspondents on American television. ... Rudi Bakhtiar (born June 21, 1966 in Fresno, California) (born Rudabeh Bakhtiar, in Persian:رودابه بختیار) is a contributor to Anderson Cooper 360° on CNN. Although born in California, Bakhtiar was raised in Iran until the revolution when her family moved to the United States. ... Categories: Possible copyright violations ... Fatemeh Haghighatjou (فاطمه حقیقت‌جو in Persian) was a member of the Iranian Parliament. ... President Rafsanjani Akbar Hashemi Bahramani kharkosteh (Persian: اکبر هاشمی بهرمانی), famously known as Hashemi Rafsanjani (هاشمی رفسنجانی) (born August 25, 1934) is one of the most influential Iranian politicians, and the Chairman of the Expediency Discernment Council of Iran. ... Maryam Rajavi, Iranian political activist, born in 1953 in Tehran, Iran. ... Leila (real name: Leila Arab) moved to London after the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran. ... Esmat Bagherpour (عصمت باقرپور), known as Delkash (دلکش), (February 26, 1925 - September 2, 2004) was an Iranian female singer, singing in Persian and the local Iranian languages of Guilaki and Mazandarani. ... Googoosh (گوگوش in Persian), Iranian pop singer and actress. ... Marzieh or Marziyeh is a Persian traditional singer. ... Fawzia bint Fuad of Egypt Her Royal Highness Princess Fawzia bint Fuad of Egypt (Alexandria, Egypt, November 5, 1921 -) was the first wife of the last Shah of Iran and a sister of King Farouk I. Though referred to as a princess out of courtesy, she is legally Fawzia Shirin... Princess Soraya of Iran Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiari (b. ... Leila Pahlavi (March 27, 1970 - June 10, 2001) was a Princess of Iran Born in Tehran, Iran, Princess Leila was the youngest daughter of His Majesty Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, and his third wife, Farah Diba. ... Joschka Fischer Joseph Martin Joschka Fischer (born April 12, 1948 near Crailsheim) has been the German foreign minister and deputy chancellor in the red-green coalition since 1998. ... The University of California, Berkeley (also known as Cal, UC Berkeley, UCB, or simply Berkeley) is a prestigious, public, coeducational university situated in the foothills of Berkeley, California to the east of San Francisco Bay, overlooking the Golden Gate and its bridge. ... Tufts University is a university located in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts (near Boston). ... Tami Stronach, (born Tamara Stronach in Teheran, Iran, 31 July 1972), is a dancer and choreographer, and has worked as an actor. ... The Neverending Story (Die Unendliche Geschichte) is a fantasy novel by Michael Ende, first published in 1979. ... For other meanings of Stanford, see Stanford (disambiguation). ... The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (established 1958) is the government agency responsible for the United States of Americas space program and long-term general aerospace research. ... The Arch, the main entrance to Northwesterns Evanston campus Northwestern University is a private university situated in Evanston, Illinois, on a 240 acre (970,000 m²) campus along the shores of Lake Michigan. ... The University of California, Davis, commonly abbreviated to UC Davis or UCD is one of the ten University of California campuses. ...

Further Info

• Zan
• Iran-Dokht
• Iran Women's Study Foundation
• Article: Women against Women, in the 7th Majles
• Iranian Female MP is arrested.

Sources

1. The Iranians: Persia, Islam and the Soul of a Nation, by Sandra Mackey. (Penguin Group, 1996).
2. J. Afary, The Iranian constitutional revolution, 1906-11. Grassroots democracy, social democracy, and the origins of feminism, New York 1996.