Browse Names

Abbas عبّاس m Arabic, Persian, Azerbaijani, Urdu
Means "austere" in Arabic. This was the name of the Prophet Muhammad's uncle. It was also borne by a son of Ali, the fourth caliph.

Abdolhossein عبدالحسین m Persian
Means "servant of al-Husayn" from Arabic عبد (ʿabd) meaning "servant" combined with حسین (Ḥoseyn), the Persian form of Arabic Husayn. This name refers to Husayn ibn Ali, the son of Ali.

Abdolreza عبدالرضا m Persian
Means "servant of al-Rida" from Arabic عبد (ʿabd) meaning "servant" combined with رضا (Reẕā), the Persian form of Arabic Rida. This name refers to the 9th-century Shia imam Ali al-Rida.

Adel عادل m Persian, Arabic
Persian form of Adil, as well as an alternate transcription of the Arabic name.

Akbar اکبر m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Pashto, Indonesian, Indian (Muslim)
Means "greater, greatest" in Arabic, a derivative of كبير (kabīr) meaning "great, big". This was the name of a 16th-century Mughal ruler who expanded the empire to include most of India.

Alborz البرز m Persian
From the name of a mountain range (of unknown etymology) in northern Iran.

Ali 1 علی m Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, Pashto, Indonesian, Malay, Avar, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik, Dhivehi, Albanian, Bosnian
Means "lofty, sublime" in Arabic, from the root علا (ʿalā) meaning "to be high". Ali ibn Abi Talib was a cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad and the fourth caliph to rule the Muslim world. His followers were the original Shia Muslims, who regard him as the first rightful caliph.... [more]

Amin امین m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Indonesian, Malay
Derived from Arabic أمين (ʾamīn) meaning "truthful". This was the name of the sixth Abbasid caliph.

Anahita آناهیتا f Persian, Persian Mythology
Means "immaculate, undefiled" in Old Persian, from the Old Iranian prefix *an- "not" combined with *āhita "unclean, dirty". This was the name of an Iranian goddess of fertility and water. In the Zoroastrian religious texts the Avesta she is called 𐬀𐬭𐬆𐬛𐬎𐬎𐬍 (Arəduuī) in Avestan, with 𐬀𐬥𐬁𐬵𐬌𐬙𐬀 (anāhita) appearing only as a descriptive epithet. In origin she is possibly identical to the Indian goddess Saraswati. She has historically been identified with the Semitic goddess Ishtar and the Greek goddess Artemis.

Arya 1 آریا m & f Persian, Hindi, Malayalam
From an old Indo-Iranian root meaning "Aryan, noble". In India, this is a transcription of both the masculine form आर्य and the feminine form आर्या. In Iran it is only a masculine name.

Arzhang ارژنگ m Persian, Persian Mythology
Meaning uncertain, possibly from Old Persian meaning "message of truth". This is the name of a holy book in Manichaeism, written by Mani. It is also the name of a character in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Ashraf اشرف m & f Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Malay
Means "nobler, more illustrious" in Arabic (a superlative form of Sharif). As a Persian name it is typically feminine.

Azad آزاد m Persian, Hindi, Bengali, Azerbaijani, Turkish, Kurdish
Means "free" in Persian. This word has derivatives in several other languages, such as Hindi and Turkish.

Aziz عزیز m Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Indonesian, Malay
Means "powerful, respected, beloved" in Arabic, derived from the root عزّ (ʿazza) meaning "to be powerful" or "to be cherished". In Islamic tradition العزيز (al-ʿAzīz) is one of the 99 names of Allah. A notable bearer of the name was Al-'Aziz, a 10th-century Fatimid caliph.

Babak بابک m Persian
From Middle Persian 𐭯𐭠𐭯𐭪𐭩 (Papak) meaning "little father". This was the name of the father of Ardashir, the founder of the Sasanian Empire in Persia. It was also borne by the 9th-century resistance leader Babak Khorramdin.

Bahman بهمن m Persian, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Avestan 𐬬𐬊𐬵𐬎 𐬨𐬀𐬥𐬀𐬵 (Vohu Manah) meaning "good mind". This was the name of a Zoroastrian god (one of the Amesha Spenta) associated with domestic animals. The eleventh month of the Iranian calendar was named for him.

Bahram بهرام m Persian, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Avestan 𐬬𐬆𐬭𐬆𐬚𐬭𐬀𐬖𐬥𐬀 (Vərəthraghna) meaning "victory over resistance". This was the name of a Zoroastrian god (one of the Amesha Spenta) associated with victory and war. It was also borne by several Sasanian emperors. It is also the Persian name for the planet Mars.

Behnam بهنام m Persian
Means "reputable" in Persian, from به (beh) meaning "good, excellent" and نام (nām) meaning "name".

Eslam اسلام m Persian, Arabic
Persian form of Islam, as well as an alternate transcription of the Arabic name.

Esmail اسماعیل m Persian, Arabic
Usual Persian form of Ishmael, as well as an alternate Arabic transcription. This was the name of the founder of the Safavid Empire in Iran in the early 16th century.

Farhad فرهاد m Persian
From Parthian 𐭐𐭓𐭇𐭕 (Frahat) meaning "gained, earned". This was the name of several rulers of the Parthian Empire. Their names are often spelled Phraates after the Hellenized form Φραάτης.

Farid فرید m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Bengali
Means "unique, precious" in Arabic, derived from فرد (farada) meaning "to be unique, to be alone". This was the name of a 13th-century Persian poet.

Farrokh فرّخ m Persian
Means "happy, auspicious" in Persian. This was the birth name of the musician Freddie Mercury (1946-1991), who was born on Zanzibar to Parsi parents.

Fereydoun فریدون m Persian, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Old Iranian *Thraitauna meaning "the third". In the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh this is the name of a virtuous king who ruled for 500 years. The Avestan form of the name 𐬚𐬭𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀𐬊𐬥𐬀 (Thraētaona) appears in the earlier texts of the Avesta.

Firouz فیروز m Persian
From Persian پیروز (pīrūz) or فیروز (fīrūz) meaning "victorious". This name was borne by Firuz Shah Tughlaq, a 14th-century sultan of Delhi who did much to build the city's infrastructure.

Gohar گوهر f & m Persian, Armenian, Urdu
From Persian گوهر (gōhar) meaning "jewel, gemstone". This name is typically feminine in Iran and Armenia, but masculine in Pakistan.

Golshan گلشن f & m Persian
From an archaic Persian word meaning "rose garden", a derivative of گل (gol) meaning "flower, rose".

Hasan حسن m Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Indonesian, Malay, Albanian, Bosnian
Means "handsome" in Arabic, from the root حسن (ḥasuna) meaning "to be beautiful, to be good". Hasan was the son of Ali and the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. He was poisoned by one of his wives and is regarded as a martyr by Shia Muslims. This was also the name of two kings of Morocco. It is sometimes transcribed as Hassan, though this is a distinct name in Arabic.

Hassan حسن m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Malay, Dhivehi
Most commonly this is a variant of the Arabic name حسن, which is typically transcribed Hasan.... [more]

Hayat حیات f & m Arabic, Persian, Urdu
Means "life" in Arabic, from حيي (ḥayiya) meaning "to live". In Arabic and Persian it is a feminine name, while in Urdu it is masculine.

Isa 1 عیسی m Arabic, Persian, Albanian, Bosnian, Indonesian, Malay
Arabic form of Jesus. This form is found in the Quran and is used as a given name by Muslims. Arabic-speaking Christians instead use يسوع (Yasūʿ) to refer to Jesus Christ.

Jahan جهان m Persian
Means "world" in Persian. This name was borne by Shah Jahan, a 17th-century Mughal emperor who is best known as the builder of the Taj Mahal.

Jahanara جهانآرا f Persian (Archaic), Bengali
From Persian جهان (jahān) meaning "world" and آرا (ārā) meaning "decorate, adorn". This was the name of the eldest daughter of the 17th-century Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

Jahangir جهانگیر m Persian, Urdu
Means "world conqueror, world seizer" in Persian, from جهان (jahān) meaning "world" and گیر (gīr) meaning "catch, seize, conquer". This was the name of a 17th-century Mughal emperor.

Jamshid جمشید m Persian, Uzbek, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Avestan 𐬫𐬌𐬨𐬀⸱𐬑𐬱𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀 (Yima Xshaēta), which meant "shining Jam". This was the name of a mythological king of Persia who ruled during a golden age. He is known as either Jamshid or Jam, where Jamshid is a combination of his original name and an honorific.

Katayoun کتایون f Persian, Persian Mythology
Meaning unknown. This is the name of the wife of King Goshtasb in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Khorshid خورشید m & f Persian, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Avestan 𐬵𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬆⸱𐬑𐬱𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀 (Huuarə Xshaēta) meaning "shining sun". In Zoroastrianism this was the name of a Yazata (a holy being) who was associated with the sun.

Leila لیلا f Persian, Arabic, Kurdish, English, French, Georgian
Variant of Layla, and the usual Persian transcription.... [more]

Mahmud محمود m Arabic, Persian, Pashto, Uzbek, Bengali, Indonesian, Malay
Means "praised" in Arabic, from the same root as Muhammad. This was the name of the first Muslim ruler of India (11th century). It was also borne by two Ottoman sultans.

Manijeh منیژه f Persian
Meaning uncertain, possibly of Parthian origin. This is the name of a princess in Bijan and Manijeh, a story that forms part of the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Maryam مریم f Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Indonesian, Bashkir, Tatar
Arabic form of Miryam (see Mary) appearing in the Quran. It is also the form used in several other languages. In Iran it is also the name of a flower, the tuberose, which is named after the Virgin Mary.

Mehr مهر m & f Persian, Persian Mythology
Modern Persian form of Mithra. As a Persian vocabulary word it means "friendship, love, kindness". It is also the name of the seventh month of the Persian calendar. All of these derive from the same source: the Indo-Iranian root *mitra meaning "oath, covenant, agreement".

Mehrab مهراب m Persian, Persian Mythology
From Persian مهر (mehr) meaning "sun" or "friendship" and آب (āb) meaning "water". This is the name of the king of Kabul in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Mehrdad مهرداد m Persian
From Persian مهر (mehr) meaning "sun" or "friendship" and داد (dād) meaning "given". Since مهر is also the Modern Persian form of Mithra, this name can also function as a modern form of Mithridates.

Mehrnaz مهرناز f Persian, Persian Mythology
From Persian مهر (mehr) meaning "sun" or "friendship" and ناز (nāz) meaning "delight, comfort". This is the name of a character in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Mitra 2 میترا f Persian
Modern variant of Mithra used as a feminine name. The true Modern Persian form of Mithra is in fact Mehr.

Nahid ناهید f Persian Mythology, Persian, Bengali
Modern Persian form of Anahita. This is also the Persian name for the planet Venus.

Nima 2 نیما m Persian
Persian name of uncertain meaning, possibly "just, fair" or "half moon".

Noor-Ali نورعلی m Persian
From Persian نور (nūr) meaning "light" (of Arabic origin) combined with the name Ali 1. Though usually transcribed into Latin characters with a dash or a space, it is not written with a space in Persian.

Parvin پروین f & m Persian, Urdu, Hindi
Means "the Pleiades" in Persian. The Pleiades are a group of stars in the constellation Taurus. This name is typically feminine in Iran, but unisex in India.

Parviz پرویز m Persian, Tajik
Means "fortunate, happy" in Persian. This name was borne by a son of the Mughal emperor Jahangir.

Ramin رامین m Persian, Azerbaijani
Derived from Middle Persian 𐭥𐭠𐭬 (rʾm) meaning "peace, joy". This is the name of a character in the Persian epic Vis and Ramin, written by the 11th-century poet Fakhruddin As'ad Gurgani.

Roshanara روشنآرا f Persian (Archaic)
From Persian روشن (rōshan) meaning "light" and آرا (ārā) meaning "decorate, adorn". This was the name of the second daughter of the 17th-century Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

Sam 2 سام m Persian, Persian Mythology
Means "fire" in Persian (from an earlier Iranian root meaning "black"). This is the name of a hero in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Shahin شاهین m Persian, Arabic, Bengali
Means "falcon" in Persian, referring more specifically to the Barbary falcon (species Falco pelegrinoides). The bird's name is a derivative of Persian شاه (shāh) meaning "king".

Shahram شهرام m Persian
Means "king Ram", from Persian شاه (shāh) meaning "king" combined with the name of the Yazata Ram 3.

Shahrazad شهرزاد f Persian (Rare), Arabic
Possibly means "noble lineage" from Persian چهر (chehr) meaning "lineage, origin" and آزاد (āzād) meaning "free, noble". Alternatively, it might mean "child of the city" from شهر (shahr) meaning "city, land" combined with the suffix زاد (zād) meaning "child of". This is the name of the fictional storyteller in The 1001 Nights. She tells a story to her husband the king every night for 1001 nights in order to delay her execution.

Shahrokh شاهرخ m Persian
Means "royal face" in Persian, from شاه (shāh) meaning "king" and رخ (rokh) meaning "face". This was the name of a 15th-century ruler of the Timurid Empire (a son of Timur).

Shams شمس f & m Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Semitic Mythology
Means "sun" in Arabic. This was the name of a pre-Islamic Arabian goddess of the sun, identified with the Akkadian sun god Shamash (whose name is related) and the northern Arabian goddess Nuha.

Shapur شاپور m History, Persian
From Middle Persian 𐭱𐭧𐭯𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭩 (Shahpuhr) meaning "son of the king". This was the name of three Sasanian emperors.

Shirin شیرین f Persian
Means "sweet" in Persian. This was the name of a character in Persian and Turkish legend.

Siavash سیاوش m Persian, Persian Mythology
Persian form of Avestan 𐬯𐬌𐬌𐬁𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬱𐬀𐬥 (Siiāuuarshan) meaning "possessing black stallions". This was the name of a virtuous prince in Iranian mythology. He appears briefly in the Avesta, with a longer account recorded in the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh.

Sina سینا m Persian
From the Persian name for Mount Sinai or the Sinai Peninsula.

Sohrab سهراب m Persian, Persian Mythology
From Persian سهر (sohr) meaning "red" and آب (āb) meaning "water". In the 10th-century Persian epic the Shahnameh this is the name of the son of the hero Rostam. He was tragically slain in battle by his father, who was unaware he was fighting his own son.

Soroush سروش m Persian Mythology, Persian
Modern Persian form of Avestan 𐬯𐬭𐬀𐬊𐬱𐬀 (Sraosha) meaning "obedience". In Zoroastrianism this was the name of a Yazata (a holy being), later equated with the angel Gabriel.

Tahmasp طهماسب, تهماسب m Persian (Archaic)
From Persian تهم (tahm) meaning "brave, valiant" and اسب (asb) meaning "horse". This name was borne by two Safavid shahs of Persia (16th and 18th centuries).

Yahya یحیی m Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Indonesian, Malay
Arabic form of Yoḥanan (see John) appearing in the Quran, as well as the Turkish and Persian form. This name honours John the Baptist, a prophet in Islam.

Yaser یاسر m Persian, Turkish, Arabic
Persian and Turkish form of Yasir, as well as an alternate transcription of the Arabic name.

Zahra 1 زهرا f Arabic, Persian
From Arabic زهراء (zahrāʾ), the feminine form of أزهر (ʾazhar) meaning "shining, brilliant, bright". This is an epithet of the Prophet Muhammad's daughter Fatima.... [more]