غذا

غذا is borrowed from Arabic غِذَاء (ghidhā', "nourishment"), entering Persian after the 7th century along with much of the religious and intellectual vocabulary of the Islamic period. The native Persian word خوراک (khorāk) predates it and still appears in literary writing and in many traditional dish names: خوراک مرغ, خوراک لپه. In modern Iran, knowing the difference signals register: a TV chef says "غذا" on a cooking show, but a poet writing about hunger reaches for خوراک. The compound غذای روح (ghazā-ye rūh, "food of the soul") shows up everywhere from religious sermons to song lyrics. Iranians treat the act of eating together as more than nourishment. Sharing غذا is what cements relationships, ends arguments, and makes someone count as family. Refusing food at an Iranian table requires a careful set of polite phrases. Saying "سیرم" (I'm full) once is rarely enough.