Persian names consist of a given name (Persian: نام, nâm) and a surname or family name (نام خانوادگی, nâm-e khânevâdegi). Given names may be simple or compound and are derived from a variety of sources, including ancient Iranian languages, Persian literature, Islamic tradition, and foreign languages. Hereditary surnames became legally standardized in Iran after 1925 under the Pahlavi dynasty.
Many Persian names are attested in the Old Persian language and originate in the Achaemenid period, such as Dariosh, Koroush, Setareh, and Apameh.[citation needed] Since the Muslim conquest of Persia, some names in Iran have been derived from Arabic, although the majority are Persian in origin.[citation needed][quantify] Persian Christians have Arabic names indistinguishable from those of their Muslim neighbours, except for some explicitly Islamic names such as Mohammad, which are not usually borne by Christians.[citation needed] They can also use Arabic derivations of Christian names (such as saints' names), or Greek, Neo-Aramaic, or Armenian names, as most Christian Iranians are Iranian Armenians, although there are also Iranian Assyrians and Iranian Georgians.[citation needed] Iranian Zoroastrians, meanwhile, often use names of Avestan or Old Persian origin.[citation needed]
Many Persian names originate from the Persian literature book, the Shahnameh or "Epic of Kings".[citation needed] It was composed in the 10th century by Ferdowsi and is considered by many[who?] to be the masterpiece of Persian literature.
Approximately 10%–15% of all Persian names are from Shahnameh.[citation needed]
Before 1919, the Iranian people did not use surnames. An act of the Vosugh od-Dowleh government in 1919 introduced the use of surnames, and the practice expanded during the reign of Reza Shah (r. 1925–1941). Reza Shah passed a law making it mandatory to have surnames. He himself chose Pahlavi as his surname, a name with Sasanian era roots. Before that, a person was often told apart from others by a combination of prefixes and suffixes attached to their name. If it were omitted, that person might be taken for someone else. Since the adoption of surnames, Ahmadi has become the most popular surname in Iran.
Many Iranian families adopted surnames derived from occupations, titles, or social roles. For example, the surname Moazenzadeh (literally "descendant of a muezzin") reflects this tradition, and is notably borne by Salim and Rahim Moazenzadeh Ardabili, both sons of Karim Moazzen Zadeh Ardabili and celebrated Iranian Quranreciters and muezzins.
Among many other secularization and modernization reforms, surnames were enforced by Reza Shah, following similar contemporary patterns in Turkey under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and later in Egypt under Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Khan, served at one time as a title for an honoured person.
Mohyeddin is a personal name for males and as an honorific title in the Islamic tradition.
Mollah, Muslim cleric. The title has also been used in some Jewish communities to refer to the community's leadership, especially religious leadership.
Ostad, a master craftsperson, lecturer or a person who is the master of a profession.
Shah, "king", short for Shahanshah, "King of kings", meaning emperor
Seghatoleslam is an honorific title within the Twelver Shia clergy. Seghatoleslam designates narrators whose justice and trustworthiness have been explicitly verified.
Karbalaei, one who has made the pilgrimage to Karbala
Mashhadi, one who has made the pilgrimage to Mashhad, often shortened to Mashti, or Mash.
Mir, generally indicates the person is a sayyid(a) or is of royal descent.
Suffixes
-i, the most common suffix used for Persian surnames. They are, in fact, adjectives created by adding the suffix "-i" to person names, location names or other names. Surnames with "-i" are also popular in other countries of historic Greater Persia and neighbouring countries such as the Caucasus, Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, and Central Asia.
-ian, like the above case, but with the addition of the plural suffix "-an", common among Iranians and Armenians. Examples are Shaheenian (Persian) and Sargsyan (Armenian).
