| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Persia | Modern day Iran. Did not become Iran until 1935 |
| Dynasty | a succession of rulers from the same family |
| Achaemenid Dynasty | Persian Empire. 550-336 BC. Was the ruling Dynasty of Persia, starting with Cyrus the Great |
| Persepolis | Ancient capital of the Achaemenid Dynasty built by Darius |
| Cuneiform | Ancient writing system from Mesopotamia and Persia- Wedge shaped characters impressed in clay tablets |
| CIA | Central Intelligence Agency for USA |
| SAVAK | National Inteligence and Security Organization; the CIA of Iran |
| Mullah | a Muslim learned in Islamic theology and sacred law; sometimes function the way our mayors do |
| Depraved | immoral or wicked |
| Majlis | Iran's Parliament |
| White Revolution | in 1962, the Shah's attempt to quiet the people from rebelling for economic and and political reform: creates land reform, profit, sharing, literacy corp instead of army and women's right to vote |
| the Shah of Iran | Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, last monarch of Iran, took throne in 1941 |
| Evin Prison | Iran's biggest and most feared and most notorious prison in Tehran |
| Ayatollah | "Sign of God" and a learned, prestigious scholar who has a significant following; inspires, writes, teaches, highest honor in Shia branch |
| Fatwa | ruling on a point of Islamic law given by a recognized authoriy |
| Cleric | a priest or religious leader in any religion |
| Clergy | the body of all people ordained for religious duties |
| Monarchy | A form of government with a monarch at the hear- a member of the royal family, usually shah, queen or king |
| Licentious | unprincipled in sexual matters |
| Dissident | a person who opposes official policy |
| Chador | a large piece of dark cloth, worn by Muslim women, wrapped around the head and upper body to leave only the face exposed |
| Theocracy | government by a god regarded as the ruling power or by officials claiming divine santion |
| Fundamentalist | a person who has rigid adherence to religious principles and is often intolerant of other views; often opposes secularism |
| Ramadan | the 9th month of the Muslim year, during which strict fasting is observed from sunrise to sunset |
| Martial law | military government that suspends ordinary law |
| Political asylum | the protection granted by a nation to someone who has left their native country as a political refugee |
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