What it means
عزادار (azâdâr) means a mourner or a bereaved person, someone who is in a state of grief after a loss. Like عزاداری, it is a mixed-origin compound combining the Arabic noun عزا (azâ, mourning) with the Persian agent suffix -دار (-dâr), which means one who carries or holds. The word functions both as a noun (the mourner) and as an adjective (bereaved, grief-stricken). A partial synonym is داغدار (dâghdâr), meaning one who carries a wound of loss, though عزادار more specifically names someone observed in a formal period of mourning.
How to use it
- خانوادهاش همه عزادارن (khânevâde-ash hame azâdâran) “His whole family are mourners.”
- یه زن عزادار جلو در نشسته بود (ye zan-e azâdâr jolo-ye dar neshaste bud) “A bereaved woman was sitting in front of the door.”
- به عزاداران تسلیت گفتیم (be azâdârân tasliyat goftim) “We offered condolences to the mourners.”
- تو این مجلس همه عزادارن (tu in majles hame azâdâran) “In this gathering everyone is in mourning.”
Cultural note
In Iranian social custom, عزادار carries visible markers: dark clothing, the absence of music in the home, and a restrained manner in public. Visitors who come to offer condolences (تعزیت, ta’ziyat) address the عزادار with phrases such as تسلیت میگم (tasliyat mi-gam, I offer my condolences). The status of عزادار is recognized by the community and comes with expectations of support from neighbors and extended family, including the provision of food for the household during the mourning period.