What it means
سلول (sellul) means “cell” in biology, the basic structural and functional unit of all living organisms. It also carries the meaning of a prison cell, borrowed from the same French source. The word came into Persian from French cellule, which derives from Latin cellula, a small room. In biology class and in medical contexts سلول is the standard term. A compound often heard in Iranian media is سلولهای بنیادی (sellulhay-e bonyâdi), meaning stem cells, a topic that has received significant research attention in Iran.
How to use it
- بدن انسان از تریلیونها سلول تشکیل شده. (Badan-e ensân az triliyon-hâ sellul tashkil shode.) “The human body is made up of trillions of cells.”
- سلولهای پوستم خشک شدن. (Sellulhay-e pustam khoshk shodan.) “My skin cells have dried out.”
- تحقیقات روی سلولهای بنیادی خیلی پیشرفته. (Tahqiqât ru-ye sellulhay-e bonyâdi kheyli pisharafte.) “Research on stem cells has advanced a lot.”
- اون متهم سه سال تو سلول انفرادی بود. (Un mottaham se sâl tu sellul-e enferâdi bud.) “That defendant spent three years in solitary confinement.”
Cultural note
Iran has invested heavily in biological sciences research since the 1990s, and سلولهای بنیادی (stem cells) became a term known well beyond laboratories. Iran is among a small number of countries that permits therapeutic cloning research under Islamic jurisprudence rulings that distinguish embryos at early stages, making its stem-cell policy notably permissive compared to some Western countries. This scientific context means سلول is a word Iranians encounter not just in school but in newspaper headlines and policy debates.