| Bazoo-band | Armlet. An armlet given to the Pahlavan of the nation by the Shah on the first day of the Iranian new year (March 21st) as a recognition of his Pahlavani championship. |
| Ferdowsi | The greatest Iranian mythical poet/historian and the author of the epic work Shah-nameh, the Book of Kings. |
| Gol Rizan | In English it literally means "Flower Throwing." In Pahlavani tradition it means a gathering upon which all Pahlavans and veterans join together in a Zoorkhaneh in order to do fundraising for the Zoorkhaneh or another worthy cause. Additionally, there will be a Pahlavani practices and exhibitions. From time to time, there will also be a wrestling amongst Pahlavans. |
| Jahan Pahlavan | A rank of Pahlavani in the Iranian army before the Islamic Era. A title given to Rostam, the legendary Pahlavan of Ferdowsi's Shah-nameh. The contemporary Gholamreza Takhti is another Pahlavan who is given this title. |
| Khorasan | The largest province of Iran with national borders with Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. It is the birthplace of local brand of wrestling named Koshti Choukheh. |
| Koshti | Wrestling |
| Mazandaran | One of Northern provinces of Iran bordering the Caspian Sea. According to Ferdowsi's Book of Kings, many of Rostam's epic stories occurred in Mazandaran. It is also the birthplace of a local brand of wrestling named Koshti Loocho |
| Mithraism | A religion that appeared in Iran during the Parthian Empire rivaling Christianity. Varzesh-e Pahlavani takes many of its rituals from Mithraism. |
| Pahlavan | Heroes of Varzesh-e Pahlavani |
| Pahlavan-e Bozorg | A rank of Phalavani. It literally means Grand Pahlavan. The most equivalent title in the oriental martial arts could be the Grand Master. It is only given to two or three Pahlavans such as Pouriyay-e Vali and Seyyed Hassan Razaz, also known as Pahlavan-e Bozorg Shoja-at. |
| Parthia | The territory under the control of Parthian Empire including today's Iran. |
| Qum | A holy city 160 Km. south of Tehran. One of the cradles of Varzesh-e Pahlavani. |
| Shahzadeh | Related to a shah of Qajar family. It literally means a Prince, a son or daughter of the king. |
| Shi'ah | A branch of Islam. It recognizes Ali, Prophet Mohammad's cousin, as the only true and legitimate successor (Imam) to Prophet Mohammad. The followers are called Shiites. The vast majority of the Iranians are Muslims of the Shiite sect. |
| Sufi | A devout follower of School of Sufism. Sufism is a mystical and spiritual sect of Islam. |
| Tehran | Capital of Persia and later Iran since early nineteen century. |
| Varzesh-e Bastani | It literally means the Ancient Sport. It mistakenly refers to Varzesh-e Pahlavani. |
| Varzesh-e Pahlavani | Traditional Iranian Martial Arts |
| Vatan | Homeland, nation. |
| Yazd | A pre-Islamic city and region located in Central Iran next to Dasht-e Kavir (Kavir Desert). It is also the city with the largest number of Zoroasterians. |
| Zoorkhaneh | The place where rituals of Varzesh-e Pahlavani are practiced. |
E-mail: ish@sportestan.com