What it means
بازماندگان (bâzmândegân) is a pure Persian plural noun built from the verb ماندن (mândan, to remain or to stay) with the prefix باز (bâz, back or behind) and the Persian plural suffix -گان (-egân). Literally it means “those who have remained behind.” In the context of death and mourning it refers to the surviving family members, that is, the spouse, children, siblings, and close relatives of the deceased. In legal and inheritance contexts it can also include any person who survives the deceased. A close synonym in everyday speech is بازماندگان خانواده (bâzmândegân-e khânevâde), though بازماندگان alone is understood in formal contexts.
How to use it
- این ملک به بازماندگان متوفی تعلق دارد. (in melk be bâzmândegân-e motavaffi ta’alloq dârad.) “This property belongs to the surviving family of the deceased.”
- بازماندگان از توجه شما سپاسگزارند. (bâzmândegân az tavajjoh-e shomâ sepâsgozârand.) “The surviving family is grateful for your attention.”
- مبلغ بیمه به بازماندگان پرداخت میشود. (mablagh-e bime be bâzmândegân pardâkht mishavad.) “The insurance sum will be paid to the surviving family.”
- بازماندگان جنگ سالها با آن خاطرات دستوپنجه نرم کردند. (bâzmândegân-e jang sâlhâ bâ ân khâterât dast-o-panje narm kardand.) “The survivors of the war grappled with those memories for years.”
Cultural note
In Iranian obituary announcements published in newspapers or posted on social media, بازماندگان typically appears in a fixed phrase such as: بازماندگان این عزیز از دست رفته (bâzmândegân-e in aziz az dast rafte), meaning “the surviving family of this beloved departed one.” The word carries legal weight in Iranian inheritance law, where it denotes those entitled to the estate. In post-revolution Iran, بازماندگان جنگ (bâzmândegân-e jang, war survivors or bereaved war families) has become a politically significant phrase referring to families who lost members in the Iran-Iraq War of 1980 to 1988.