Iranian Jews

Iranian Jews, also known as Persian Jews, constitute one of the oldest communities of the Jewish diaspora. Dating back to the biblical era, they originate from the Jews who arrived in Iran as Babylonian captives. Books of the Hebrew Bible (i.e., Esther, Isaiah, Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah) bring together an extensive narrative shedding light on contemporary Jewish life experiences in ancient Iran; there has been a continuous Jewish presence in Iran since at least the time of Cyrus the Great (the 6th century BCE), who led the Achaemenid army's conquest of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and subsequently freed the Judahites from the Babylonian captivity.

After 1979, Jewish emigration from Iran increased dramatically in light of the country's Islamic Revolution and fall of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran. Today, the vast majority of Iranian Jews reside in Israel and the United States.

Terminology

Today, the terms Iranian Jews or Persian Jews are mostly used to refer to Jews from Iran, which was known historically as Persia. In various scholarly and historical texts, the term has extended to be used in reference to Jews who speak various Iranian languages. Iranian immigrants in Israel, nearly all of whom are Jewish, are referred to as Parsim 'Persians'. In Iran, Persian Jews and Jewish people in general are both described with four common terms: Kalimi (Persian: کلیمی), which is known the most proper term; Yahudi (یهودی), which is less formal but correct; Yisrāel (ישראל), the term Jewish people use to refer to themselves as descendents of the Israelites; and Johūd (جهود), a term with highly negative connotations considered offensive by many Jews.

History

Jews had been residing in Persia since around 727 BC, having arrived in the region as slaves after being captured by the Assyrian and Babylonian kings.