شاهین
شاهین (shahin) means peregrine or shaheen falcon in Persian, a pure-Persian word from Middle Persian meaning ‘kingly, majestic.’ It is also a widespread given name across the Persian-speaking world.
Glossary
چکاوک
چکاوک (chakavak) is the Persian name for the lark or skylark, a pure-Persian word of Middle Persian origin. It carries a distinctly poetic register and appears most often in classical verse.
قو
قو (qu) is the Persian word for swan, borrowed from Turkic languages (ultimately Proto-Turkic *kugu). It appears in poetry and everyday speech across Iran and the broader Persophone world.
پرستو
پرستو (parastou) is the Persian word for swallow, a small migratory bird beloved in Persian poetry as a messenger of spring and warmth returning after winter.
گلپر کوهی
گلپر کوهی (golpar-e kuhi) is Persian hogweed, a wild mountain plant whose dried, ground seeds are used as a tart, earthy spice in Iranian cooking and street food.
نخودچی
نخودچی (nokhodchi) are roasted, salted chickpeas eaten as a crunchy street snack in Iran. The word blends a Persian root with a Turkic agentive suffix.
کشمش آبی
کشمش آبی (keshmesh-e âbi) means blue raisin or dried black grape in Persian. Keshmesh is a Turkic loanword for raisin, while âbi simply means blue, referring to the deep purple-black colour of this dried fruit variety.
گوجه فرنگی
گوجه فرنگی (gojeh-ye farangi) means tomato in Persian. The compound joins gojeh, a native Persian word for a small plum-like fruit, with farangi, meaning European or foreign, because tomatoes arrived in Iran from Europe.
بادنجان
بادنجان (bâdenjân) means aubergine or eggplant. The word entered Persian from Arabic بَاذِنْجَان, which itself traced back to Sanskrit, making it one of Persian’s oldest culinary loanwords from Arabic, and the chain later gave Spanish, French, and English their own words for the vegetable.
غوره
غوره (ghure) is the unripe, sour grape harvested before full ripeness, pressed for verjuice in Iranian cooking. It is a pure Persian word and a cornerstone souring agent in traditional Persian cuisine.