What is "Seyed"?

If you've met an Iranian with a two-part name like "Seyed Pooyan," you may have wondered: what does that first part mean? "Seyed" (or Seyyed) is not a name but a title; and if it exists in the family line, Iran's civil registry forces you to keep it. That's how today, more than 6 million Iranians carry the title 1.

What many don't realize is that even most Iranians assume "Seyed" is just an Arabic title and stop there. That's why some dislike it, because it reminds them of the Arab invasions of Persia 14. The word is Arabic; true, but its role in Iran is tied to Persian, Armenians, and Iranian history.

So next time you hear "Seyed something", remember that Seyed is not the first name, and is just a title; meaning Sir. The actual name is what comes after it. Since Iran never developed a title system, those titles ended up inside IDs as if it were part of the first name. This is confusing especially for Europeans because they assume:

• Seyed = first name (WRONG)
• What comes after that = middle name (WRONG)
• The last part = Family name (correct)

Which is absolutely wrong; but unfortunately, culturally, Europeans learn to assume things without understanding them. The correct form is:

• Seyed = title = Sir (correct)
• What comes after that = first name (correct)
• The last part = Family name (correct)

Okay, but you only see Seyed for men; for women the pattern is a bit different. Instead of "Seyed" at the beginning, the word "Sadat" is added at the end of the first name. So Maryam becomes Maryam Sadat.

Iranian, not Arabic

While "Seyed" literally means "Sir" in Arabic, its political and cultural use is distinctly Iranian. The Safavids (1501–1736) 18 made Shia Islam the official religion and gave Seyyeds, descendants of the Prophet, positions in their court and clergy to legitimize their rule 23.

Shah Abbas I (1588–1629) 15 tried to strengthen the empire against both Ottoman Turks and the rising power of Arabia. He rebuilt Isfahan as a new capital, moved people across regions, and brought Armenians from the north into a new district called Jolfa 45. His policy was not always kind. Armenians were uprooted in forced migration known as the Great Surgun, but once in Isfahan they were allowed to keep their religion and culture. (This was what he wanted the most, to mix Iranians and reduce the influence of Arab invasion.)

But there was a deeper purpose: Shah Abbas brought Armenians to central Iran to preserve and transmit the ancient Iranian tradition. This is why they came to Isfahan. Today, they are known as Iranian Armenians who practice Christianity, and they helped preserve the ancient Iranian tradition even under the dominance of Shia Islam. They held onto traditions with deep Iranian roots, like the festival of Vardavar, a celebration that goes back to Mithraism and Zoroastrian rituals 16 long before Christianity 7. These layers of culture, preserved by Armenians, became part of the Persian story once more.

Mithraism was the ancient Iranian religion that predated Zoroastrianism, worshiping Mithra, the god of sun, justice, contracts, and war. After Alexander the Great conquered Persia 17, Mithraism spread throughout the Roman Empire in the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE, where it became known as Mithraism and rivaled early Christianity. When Emperor Theodosius I issued the Edict of Thessalonica in 380 CE, he made Christianity the only legal religion of the Roman Empire and outlawed all other faiths, including Mithraism 1011. This was the final blow to the ancient Iranian religion in the West.

Yet Christianity itself had already absorbed many elements from Mithraism. This is why Armenians in Lebanon believe they are descendants of Christ (Masih, which itself refers to Mithra), and why Christmas (or Jule or Yule) was copied from Yalda Night (Shab-e Yalda or Yule), the Iranian winter solstice celebration 12, that dates back more than 5000 years ago and was celebrated by Iranians even before Zoroastrian, which is another Iranian religion. Yalda Night represents the rebirth of the world in Mithraism. From that day forward, days become longer than nights, symbolizing the victory of light over darkness. The celebration of December 25th, now called Christmas, carries this ancient Iranian meaning of cosmic renewal.

Unfortunately, after this period, English colonizers tried to distort this Iranian religion through their agents and practically went to war against Shia and Iranian identity under the guise of clerical authority. This is why, after the revolution, the emblem in the center of the flag changed. The Lion and Sun are symbols of Emam Ali in Shia Islam, and each element (the lion and the sun) are also symbols of Mithraism, representing the divine and the religious tradition itself 13. These symbols connect the ancient Iranian faith to the Shia tradition, showing how deeply intertwined they are.

Safavid dynasty

The Safavids originated from Ardabil; from a Kordish Iranian tribe who lived in the Azerbaijan region of northwestern Iran 18, who was Turkified and forced to speak Turkish after being attacked by the Mongols 19 and other Turkic tribes who were constantly invading the northern parts of Iran: the region that now is called Armenia and Azerbaijan, plus a part of what is now in modern Turkey. With the invasion of Iskandar 17 and others, those Armenian Iranians decided to preserve our ancient beliefs, the Mithraic rituals, through Christianity. But later, when Arabs attacked 14, being protected by the tall mountains in that area, helped them save themselves from the influence of Islam that was forced by the Arabs (the ones who lived in what is now called Saudi Arabia); the Arabs invaded Iran with the help of the new rulers of Byzantine 20.

Safavid kings, who were from that region, wanted to push back the Sunni Arabic culture that was pushed toward Iranians, but they needed to gain legitimacy to establish their power. To establish that power, they claimed to be descendants of the Prophet Muhammad and united various Armenian/Iranian tribes (Qizilbash) 21 around that area who were forced to convert to speak Turkish. Later they brought Armenians from the North and West, to create a new Twelver Shi'ism 22, which was based on Iranian values and resistance. Some of those Armenians remained Christian, continued to live in Isfahan with the full protection of the king, but some converted to Shia to help the king bring back Iranian values.

That's why, later, Shah Abbas made Shia the national religion. He did that to reduce the influence of Arabs and Byzantines. Shia, a religion that was first created by our Assyrian 23 Iranian ancestors in Egypt to resist the Arabic tribes who took down an advanced civilization that was founded based on the alliance between Persians 32, Assyrians 23, and Egypt.

Who is Arab? Iranian? Armenian? Lebanese? etc. etc.

When I say "Arabs", I mean the tribes who lived in an area that is called Saudi Arabia these days and attacked all the people who lived peacefully together, for a few centuries, under the big name of Persia. Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Iran, UAE, etc. etc. none of them were Arabs, and all were a part of one big culture that was hated by those Arab tribes.

Armenians, Iranians, Assyrians 23, Maads 30, Paarts 31, Aryans 33, Persians 32, all living peacefully together, as the foundation parts of one shared civilization, until:

• Some were forced by the invaders to speak Arabic.
• Some were forced by the invaders to speak Turkish and Russian.

Later, some of us had the chance to bring back our cultures and languages with the help of poets and legendary literature like Ferdowsi 24, Sa'di 25, Hafez 26, and Khayyam 27. But even with that, our languages mixed with all those foreign languages and that's why we have all these different shades of a few foundational languages. The more you go to the West, the more you see the influence of Arabic; the more you go to the North, the more you see the influence of Turkish and Russian. The more you go to places were a bit far from the reach of invaders, the more you see the original forms of the language: Farsi and the two original variations of it: Kordish and Armenian. That's why when you listen to the sentences on the inscriptions/tablets 36 of Persepolis (Jamshid's throne) 37, you see that words and grammar are very similar to modern Farsi, but with the Armenian/Kordish dialect.

That's why Shia first began in Egypt, as the first attempt of resistance; that's why culture, literature, and art are important; and that's why the colonial puppets constantly attack our multi-ethnicity diverse Iranian/Armenian/Assyrian values.

The more you read history, the more you realize that all of us in Armenia, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq, etc. are different shades of a combination of Persians 32, Armenians, Assyrians 23, Maads 30, Paarts 31, Kords 34, Turks, Lors 35, Rus, etc. etc. No matter what language we speak (Armenian, Farsi, Kordish, etc.) and no matter what language our ancestors were forced to speak (Azeri, Turkish, Arabic, Russian).

Kordish? Armenian? Farsi?
They are all different shades of the same language; some influenced more by Arabic (Farsi and Kordish), some influenced more by Turkish (Kordish and Armenian).

Seyed as resistance

The title "Seyed" also became a way of remembering resistance. Shia Islam itself was born from defiance. Emam Hossein stood against Yazid, the king of the Arabian tribes who ruled as part of the Abbasid dynasty 28. Hossein's stand at Karbala 29, where he was killed, became the ultimate example of refusing tyranny. For Shia, Hossein is not just a martyr but the eternal symbol of justice against authoritarian kings.

Persia's weakness made this story powerful. Long before Arabia's tribes swept through, Iran had been exhausted by endless wars with Byzantium 20. Once allies, the two empires turned on each other after a court murder. Retaliation turned into decades of war. Armies drained, treasuries emptied, and ordinary people carried the weight. Corruption among kings and Zoroastrian priests 16 made things worse. Many Persians lost faith and even sided with outsiders, thinking salvation might come from them, much like today when some believe promises of the United States or Israel about "freedom." Into that chaos came the tribes of Arabia, who made life even harsher than before.

But "Arabs" here means specifically the tribes of Arabia, what is now Saudi Arabia. The people of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt carried Iranian and Assyrian heritage. That is exactly why Saudi rulers and Israel dislike those nations today, because they are tied to civilizations that resisted domination.

In Egypt, the Fatimid dynasty (969–1171) ruled with Shia identity and built schools and institutions in Cairo that carried heavy Iranian influence 9. This kept alive traditions that were more than tribal Islam, and later inspired the Safavid project in Iran. When the Safavids made Shia the state religion, they were not simply importing Arab Islam, they were reshaping it into something Iranian, a continuation of resistance to foreign domination.

A family thread from Lebanon

My father's side is rooted in Isfahan, but my grandfather used to tell us that our family had migrated from Lebanon a few centuries ago. Years later, I searched online and found people with our family name still living there. I connected with one woman on Instagram. She looked strikingly like one of my aunts on my father's side, and she told me the same story, that some of their family had moved to Iran centuries earlier.

I asked her, "If I'm Seyyed, are you also Seyyed and Muslim?" She laughed and said, "No, we're Christian and always have been." Then she explained that just as Shia Muslims believe they are descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, in her community, they believe that they are descendants of Jesus, and that families in Lebanon still trace their lineage this way.

That made me wonder: if Shia, branded today as "Muslim," also carry roots connected to Jesus and even older Iranian traditions, what does this really mean? That question initiated a deeper search to understand who we really are. This research led me to discover the connections between Shia, Mithraism, and Christianity; how Armenians (who were an important part of the Persian heritage) preserved ancient Iranian traditions, and why Armenians in Lebanon believe they are descendants of Christ (Masih, which itself refers to Mithra), and why the same group who migrated to Iran became Shia Muslims. It revealed why the same forces that crucified Jesus, and their inheritors through history, hate us, whether Shia, Mithraic Iranians, or Christians who preserve that lineage. That's why Israel and Saudi Arabia hate us; and that's why they've trained terrorists like Joulani to mass murder us in Syria.

Who are we today?

Modern Iran, Armenia, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and even Azerbaijan are not single-blood nations. We are the result of centuries of mixture: Persians, Assyrians, Armenians, Turks and Mongols, Arabs, and others. Geography shaped how traditions survived or blended. Some regions kept stronger Persian or Assyrian roots, others carry more Turkic or Arab influences. But all of us are shades of the same story.

Colonial powers have always tried to weaponize these differences. They spread lies: Persians against Arabs, Turks against Armenians, Sunnis against Shias. Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon are not "pure Arabs" at all, they are heirs of ancient Assyrian and Persian civilizations. Even Azerbaijan, which today claims superiority over Armenians, is itself a blend of Iranian Armenians and Turkic Mongols who settled around the Caspian and Ararat mountains before coming under Russian influence. Those same steppe tribes that reached Europe only became culturally strong after absorbing Persian knowledge and traditions.

Those who believe that one group is inherently better than another miss the deeper truth: we are all connected. Our strength has always come from learning from one another while resisting outsiders who seek to divide us. The title "Seyed" is one reminder of that connection. It ties together Persia, Assyria, Mithra, Zoroaster, Jesus, and Muhammad. That is why the aggressors fear it. This is why the United States and Israeli Zionists, together with the rulers of Saudi Arabia, support movements against Shia. The same satanic cult that once crucified Jesus, together with its puppets, now seeks to erase the hope of God and the spirit of resistance.

Why is this title enforced in Iran?

Iran's new theocratic system (which is a kind of constitutional kingdom) enforces titles like "Seyed" because it wants symbols of loyalty to its ideology built directly into people's names. On paper, enforcing the title seems to be about religion; but in reality, it is all about politics. If millions of citizens are registered as Seyed, then the state can claim that:

"Seyed = Shia && Khamenei = Shia leader —> Seyyed = fans of Khamenei" — which is 100% wrong

This way, the system thinks that the existence of Seyeds can be used to bring them legitimacy. Interestingly, Israel also keeps repeating the same propaganda that the leader says; and then they use that as an excuse to target everyone with that title, because they know it's a sign of resistance. That's one of the many stupid things that the leader/king/whatever has done to help the colonial script.

Yet, this enforcement has backfired. Instead of pride, many Iranians feel resentment. What could have been a cultural bridge between everyone in our region became another reminder of control, used by a bunch of idiots who follow colonial scripts. That's why, in Iran, people often reject the title outright, even though it has deep cultural history behind it.

A real story in Denmark

I once had an Iranian friend in Denmark. He and his wife spent months finding a Persian name for their son that Danes could pronounce easily. When they went to register it at the Iranian embassy, the officials told them the given name had to begin with "Seyed," because of his family lineage. They were frustrated, but there was nothing they could do. Even outside Iran, the rule follows you.

What it reminds us

At the end of the day, this is what "Seyed" represents. Not just a title, not just a law in passports, but a living thread of memory. It ties us back to Persia, to Assyria 23, to Armenians who kept ancient Iranian rituals, to Zoroaster 16 and Mithra, to Jesus who stood against tyranny, and to Emam Hossein who stood against tyranny 29. That is why it is feared; because as long as we remember, colonial powers, Zionists, and Saudi-backed rulers cannot easily erase us. That's why their "super Muslim" extremist puppets have done everything to devalue it.

We should always remember that:

Our identity is not theirs to control. It is ours to carry.

Extra notes

[1] Wikipedia – Sayyid: Iran section (~6 million people, Safavid role)

[2] Encyclopædia Iranica – Jabal 'Amil scholars in Safavid Iran

[3] Abisaab, R. J. (JSTOR) – The Ulama of Jabal 'Amil in Safavid Iran

[4] Encyclopædia Iranica – Isfahan in the Safavid period

[5] Wikipedia – Great Surgun (1604–1605): Armenian deportations

[7] Wikipedia – Vardavar: Armenian festival with pre-Christian roots

[9] Wikipedia – Fatimid dynasty in Egypt (969–1171)

[10] Wikipedia – Edict of Thessalonica (380 CE): Theodosius I makes Christianity the state religion

[11] Britannica – Mithraism: Ancient Iranian religion that influenced Christianity

[12] Wikipedia – Yalda Night (Shab-e Yalda): Iranian winter solstice celebration with Mithraic roots

[13] Wikipedia – Lion and Sun

[14] Wikipedia – Arab conquest of Iran (7th century CE)

[15] Britannica – Abbas I: Shah of Persia (1588–1629)

[16] Britannica – Zoroastrianism: Ancient Iranian religion

[17] Britannica – Alexander the Great: Conquest of Persia (4th century BCE)

[18] Wikipedia – Safavid dynasty: Origins from Ardabil, Kordish Iranian roots

[19] Wikipedia – Mongol invasion of Persia (13th century)

[20] Wikipedia – Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628

[21] Wikipedia – Qizilbash: Turkic tribal confederation that supported the Safavid dynasty

[22] Wikipedia – Shia Islam

[23] Britannica – Assyria: Ancient Mesopotamian empire

[24] Britannica – Ferdowsi: Persian poet, author of Shahnameh (c. 940–1020)

[25] Britannica – Sa'di: Persian poet and prose writer (c. 1213–1291)

[26] Britannica – Hafez: Persian lyric poet (c. 1325–1390)

[27] Britannica – Omar Khayyam: Persian poet, mathematician, and astronomer (1048–1131)

[28] Britannica – Abbasid dynasty: Islamic caliphate (750–1258 CE)

[29] Britannica – Battle of Karbala (680 CE): Martyrdom of Emam Husayn

[30] Britannica – Māda (or Media in Turkic-originated English): Ancient Iranian kingdom established by the Māds in northwestern Iran (7th century BCE); Wikipedia – Mād (also known as Medes in Turkic-originated English) Māda means a Farsi word that means the middle of something; unfortunately British histories who tried to document these things were not aware of the context and most other related things.

[31] Britannica – Parthia: Ancient Iranian empire established by the Parthians (3rd century BCE–3rd century CE); Wikipedia – Parthian Empire

[32] Britannica – Persian: Ancient Iranian people who established the Achaemenid Empire (6th century BCE); Wikipedia – Persians

[33] Britannica – Aryan: Indo-Iranian peoples who migrated to the Iranian plateau in ancient times; Wikipedia – Aryan

[34] Wikipedia – Kords (also known as Kurd in Arabic and Arabic-originated English)

[35] Wikipedia – Lors (also known as Lurs in Arabic and Arabic-originated English)

[36] Wikipedia – Persepolis Administrative Archives

[37] Wikipedia – Persepolis (Takht-e Jamshid or Jamshid's throne)