Authors: Farideh Goldin
aftabeh:
water jug
agha:
sir, Mr., also a common name for father
ameh:
paternal aunt
aragh:
an alcoholic drink
aroosak:
a little bride, a doll
baba:
father
bakht:
luck, fortune
bamieh:
confectionary
bandandaz:
a woman who removes body hair
baseh:
enough
bebakhshid:
please forgive me
befarmaid:
a polite way of proffering
beoft:
fall
besalamati:
to your health
biaboon:
desert
bolbol:
nightingale
boro:
go
bozorg:
great, big
brakha:
prayer (Hebrew)
brit-milah:
the circumcision ritual (Hebrew)
chador:
a full body covering
choobak:
a shrub whose bark was used as soap
daee:
maternal uncle
dard:
pain
dard-e-del:
talking of the ache in one’s heart
dayan:
judge, spiritual leader (Hebrew)
del:
heart
doft:
daughter (Judi)
farangee:
foreigner
galoo:
throat
gele-zard:
yellow clay, soaked and used as hair conditioner
gha’edeh:
a woman’s period
ghaltak:
a cylindrical stone for packing earthen roofs
ghalyan:
waterpipe, hookah
ghalyoon:
waterpipe in the dialect of Shiraz
gherti:
a show off
ghorbat:
being away from home
goh:
excrement
gom:
lost
gomsho
or
gom sho:
get lost
halwa:
sweets
hamam:
bath, public baths
hamami:
a bath keeper
hejab:
veil, modesty
hejleh:
wedding canopy
holoo:
peach
jaan:
dear
javeed:
long live
jendeh:
whore
jihad:
holy war
jude-koshi:
killing the Jews, pogrom
Judi:
Judeo-Persian, a language spoken only among Jews of Shiraz
kaleh:
head
khaleh:
maternal aunt
Khan:
a leader; Mr.
khanom:
lady, Mrs.
khanom-bozorg:
a great lady, a title we used for my grandmother
khastegar:
a suitor
khastegaree:
marriage proposal
khatam:
inlaid wood and ivory
khebeen, khesheen:
are you well? (Judi)
khoda:
God
khodaye bozorg:
the Great God
khoshgel:
beautiful
khupa:
wedding canopy (Hebrew)
kiddush:
prayer over wine (Hebrew)
kilim:
a pileless, woven tapestry rug
kippa:
prayer cup (Hebrew)
kiseh:
a square glove used as a washcloth
kol isha:
the voice of a woman (Hebrew)
konar:
pulverized leaves used to wash hair
koofteh:
large meatballs made with rice, herbs, and chopped beef
mahaleh:
a place, also a ghetto
maman:
mother
mamno'ol khorooj:
forbidden to leave
manghal:
brazier
mashalah:
what wonders God has fashioned, or may you be preserved from the evil eye
matalak:
dirty phrases
mava:
mother (Judi)
mazal tov:
congratulations, good luck (Hebrew)
meeshee:
become
mikvah:
a ritual bath (Hebrew)
mola:
a religious leader, Jewish or Moslem
moshaverat:
gathering of elders to make a decision
naan:
bread
najeeb:
chaste
najes:
dirty, often refers to more than physical uncleanness
naneh:
mother (Judi or old Persian)
pa-do-ak:
“running legs,” boys who run errands
rafigh-baz:
the game of having friends
sabzee:
greens, herbs
salam:
hello
setar:
a musical instrument
shadee:
happiness
shagh:
stiff
shalomalekhem (shalom alekhem):
may peace be with you (Hebrew)
shamee:
potato and chopped meat pancakes
sharbat:
a fruit drink
shavua tov:
a good week (Hebrew)
shekhitah:
ritual slaughtering (Hebrew)
shema:
refers to the Jewish people’s proclamation of their belief in a single God (Hebrew)
shiva:
the seven-day mourning period (Hebrew)
shokhet:
a kosher butcher (Hebrew)
shytel:
wig (Yiddish)
siah:
black
sigheh:
temporary marriage
simkha:
a happy event (Hebrew)
sofreh:
a cloth that is often spread on the floor underneath the food
taarof:
the custom of exchanging polite words and niceties
taher:
pure
tamei:
impure (Hebrew)
tanoor:
clay oven
Tehilim:
Psalms of comfort
toman:
Iranian currency
tonbak:
Iranian drum
tsedakah:
charity (Hebrew)
vasoonak:
a collection of wedding poetry often sung by Jewish women of Shiraz
verag:
one who talks too much
veragi:
talking too much
zaben-deraz:
one with a long tongue, one who talks back
zaifeh:
the weak one (female)
zarbol-masal:
Persian proverbs
ziarat:
pilgrimage