Iran

Question 1

Ali Khamenei

Answer 1

supreme leader 1989- now

Question 2

Ali Khamenei

Answer 2

current supreme leader (1989)

Question 3

Ashura

Answer 3

Shia religious holidays, commemorating the death of Hussein, grandson of Muhammad

Question 4

Assembly of Experts

Answer 4

88 members (men Islamic scholars) elected for 8 years terms
main function is choosing the supreme leader

Question 5

ayatollah

Answer 5

Shia title for scholars with highly advanced knowledge of Islamic law and religion

Question 6

Basij (Peoples Militia)

Answer 6

formed after revolution as a grassrots civil defence forms
public morals police

Question 7

bonyads

Answer 7

parastatal foundations made in part from assets nationalized after Iranian revolution

Question 8

chief justice

Answer 8

head of judiciary, understanding of Sharia
appointed by supreme leader for 5years term

Question 9

Expediency council

Answer 9

members appointed by supreme leader for 5years terms
mediates between the Majlis and the Guardian council legislature disputes

Question 10

Farsi

Answer 10

language spoken in Iran (closer to european languages)

Question 11

Guardian council

Answer 11

12 members for 6years terms:
6 lawyers nominated by chief of justice and approved by majlis
6 clerics specialized in religious law appointed by a supreme leader
power to review legislation from Majlis
vets candidates for office

Question 12

Hassan Rouhani

Answer 12

president elected in 2013, reformist limited by conservative institutions

Question 13

imams

Answer 13

descendants of prophet Muhammad considered by Shia to be true religious and political leaders of Islam

Question 14

Iran-Iraq war

Answer 14

1980-1988, destructive and brutal war with use of chemical weapons, Khomeini died shortly after
started by Iraq

Question 15

Islamic republic of Iran

Answer 15

violent birth, executions for revolutionary justice
postrevolutionary Iran

Question 16

islamism (islamin fundamentalism)

Answer 16

transformation of faith into ideology

Question 17

Koran

Answer 17

main spiritual text of Islam

Question 18

Mahdi

Answer 18

Shia term for hidden imam, descendant of Muhammed who will return to earth

Question 19

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Answer 19

president elected in 2005 for 2 terms (2013), increased conservatism

Question 20

Majlis

Answer 20

290 members over 30 years of age directly elected for 4 years terms
one seat for Zoroastrians, one seat for Jewish,
3 seats fro Christians

Question 21

Mohammad Khatami

Answer 21

president elected in 1997-2005, but his power was limited by religious conservatives

Question 22

Mohammad Mosaddeq

Answer 22

prime minister of Iran, deposed in 1953 by operation Ajax

Question 23

moharebeh

Answer 23

rebellion against god

Question 24

Muhammad

Answer 24

main prophet of Islam

Question 25

ostan

Answer 25

30 provinces

Question 26

Persia

Answer 26

name of Iran before 1935

Question 27

president

Answer 27

directly elected for 4years terms control over state budget, cabinet of ministers, foreign policy the head of government

Question 28

quietist

Answer 28

vision that wordly political power cannot be reunited with Islam until return of the Mahdi rejecting of theocracy and direct role of religio n in state

Question 29

Ruhollah Khomenei

Answer 29

religious leader in Iranian revolution 1979 first supreme leader

Question 30

Second Khordad Front

Answer 30

reform party which won 189 majlis seats in 2000

Question 31

Shah Reza Pahlavi

Answer 31

monarch of iran, 1925-1941

Question 32

Sharia

Answer 32

religious law of Islam

Question 33

Shiism

Answer 33

minority form of Islam (10%), changes in its belief regarding the rightful heir of the prophet Muhammad

Question 34

Supreme court

Answer 34

clerics, men familiar with religious law

Question 35

supreme leader

Answer 35

most powerful office elected for life representing charismatic power and political ideology control over arm forces, Guardian council, judical system, economic assets appointed or removed by assembly of experts

Question 36

The revolutionary guard (Pasdaran)

Answer 36

paramilitary force from 1979 charged with defending the regime from domestic anf internal enemies independent and direct player

Question 37

theocracy

Answer 37

religious elite dominates the regime

Question 38

ummah

Answer 38

community whose members were expected to act as unified group that embodied and served the revolution refer to Islamic communities everywhere

Question 39

velayat-e faqih

Answer 39

clerical rule, system of government by a clergy trained in Islamic jurisprudence

Question 40

White revolution

Answer 40

1963-1979 by Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (Shah), reforms for modernization, led to riots and protests

Question 41

White revolution

Answer 41

policy of reforms enacted by Shah Reza to modernize and westernize Iran in 1963