Persian Jews (Hebrew: יהודי פרס, Persian: یهودیان ایرانی) are Jews historically associated with Iran, traditionally known as Persia in Western sources.
Judaism is among the oldest religions practiced in Iran and the Biblical Book of Esther contains references to the experiences of the Jews in Persia. Jews have had a continued presence in Iran since the time of Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid Empire. Cyrus invaded Babylon and freed the Jews from Babylonian captivity.
Today, only 8,756 Persian Jews remain in Iran, with much larger diaspora populations living in Israel and the United States.
Read more about Persian Jews: Terminology, Demographics, History, Current Status in Iran, Jewish Education in Iran, Related Jewish Communities, Languages
Famous quotes containing the words persian and/or jews:
“The threadbare trees, so poor and thin,
They are no wealthier than I;
But with as brave a core within
They rear their boughs to the October sky.
Poor knights they are which bravely wait
The charge of Winter’s cavalry,
Keeping a simple Roman state,
Discumbered of their Persian luxury.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“No doubt Jews are most obnoxious creatures. Any competent historian or psychoanalyst can bring a mass of incontrovertible evidence to prove that it would have been better for the world if the Jews had never existed. But I, as an Irishman, can, with patriotic relish, demonstrate the same of the English. Also of the Irish.... We all live in glass houses. Is it wise to throw stones at the Jews? Is it wise to throw stones at all?”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)