بهمن

بهمن is the month of late winter and of the 1979 Revolution. The name carries a Yazata; the date carries a regime.

What it actually means

بهمن (bahman) is the 11th month of the Iranian solar calendar, running from roughly January 21 to February 19. It is the second month of winter (زمستان, zemestân). The word also has two non-calendar meanings in Persian: it can mean “avalanche” (a heavy snow-slide on a mountain) and it is a common male given name. Iranians named Bahman are typically born in this month or named for the historical-mythical figure of the same name.

Where it comes from

The month is named for Vohu Manah (Avestan), the Yazata of “good thought” or “good purpose,” one of the six Amesha Spentas (the highest order of divine beings in Zoroastrian theology). Vohu Manah → Pahlavi Wahman → New Persian بهمن. The 2nd day of every month is also called Bahman, and Bahmangân (بهمنگان), held when day and month align, is a winter festival historically marked with a meal of mixed grains and herbs called آش بهمنگان. The avalanche meaning developed separately, possibly from بهمن “a great mass” via metaphor.

Note: 22 Bahman

On 22 Bahman 1357 (11 February 1979) the Pahlavi monarchy fell and the Islamic Republic was established. The date is a state holiday: 22 بهمن is celebrated annually with official rallies and the slogan دهه فجر (dahe-ye fajr, “Decade of Dawn,”) covering the 10 days leading up to it. For Iranians the date is not neutral. Some commemorate it as a national victory; others mark it privately as the day a different country began. The vocabulary around it (انقلاب, enghelâb “revolution”; پیروزی, piruzi “victory”) is itself contested.

How to say it

Formal (نوشتاری): بهمن · bahman · “Bahman (11th month / male name / avalanche)”

Colloquial (محاوره): بهمن · bahman · same form

In a sentence

• بهمن ماه آخر زمستان نیست، اسفند است. · bahman mâh-e âkhar-e zemestân nist, esfand ast. · Bahman is not the last month of winter; Esfand is.
• بیست‌ودو بهمن تعطیل رسمی است. · bist-o-do bahman ta’til-e rasmi ast. · The 22nd of Bahman is an official holiday.
• در کوه بهمن آمد. · dar kuh bahman âmad. · An avalanche came down on the mountain.

Cultural note

The fact that the month-name carries a Yazata of good thought, an avalanche, a revolution, and a popular boy’s name says a lot about how Persian time-words layer. Classical poetry uses بهمن mostly for cold and storm; modern Iranian historical writing uses it almost entirely for the date 22 Bahman. The state has invested heavily in claiming the entire month rhetorically, with murals, broadcast specials, and school programs each year. For ordinary Iranians, بهمن remains a month of cold, of preparing for Nowruz, and of an anniversary that is felt differently in different households.

Related

Adjacent months: دی (before) and اسفند (after). For the calendar background see the Persian solar calendar guide.