What it means
ملا (mollâ) denotes a Muslim cleric, scholar, or religious teacher, typically one educated in Islamic jurisprudence and theology. The word comes from the Arabic مولیٰ (mawlâ), meaning “master,” “guardian,” or “lord,” and passed into Persian through centuries of Islamic scholarship. In everyday Persian usage, ملا can carry a neutral or respectful tone when referring to a learned religious figure, but in informal or satirical contexts it can also imply someone rigidly orthodox. A close synonym is آخوند (âkhund), which in modern Iranian Persian often carries a more specifically political or institutional connotation for a cleric in the Islamic Republic.
How to use it
- ملا گفت نماز جمعه این هفته مهمه. (mollâ goft namâz-e jom’e in hafte mohimme.) “The mullah said Friday prayer is important this week.”
- بچهها پیش ملا قرآن یاد میگرفتن. (bachehâ pish-e mollâ qor’ân yâd migereftand.) “Children used to learn the Quran from the mullah.”
- ملای محله ما آدم مهربانیه. (mollâ-ye mahalle-ye mâ âdam-e mehrabâniye.) “The mullah of our neighborhood is a kind person.”
- این کتاب رو یه ملا نوشته. (in ketâb-o ye mollâ neveshte.) “A mullah wrote this book.”
Cultural note
Historically, the ملا served as a community religious authority in towns and villages across Iran, the wider Persianate world, and Central Asia, providing religious instruction, leading prayers, and officiating at ceremonies. In contemporary Iran, the term overlaps with روحانی (ruhâni, cleric) and آخوند (âkhund), though these carry different registers and connotations depending on the speaker’s political outlook. The word ملا also entered Turkish and Urdu with similar meanings, reflecting the broad spread of Islamic educational culture across the region.