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Galla Placidia

(Encyclopedia)Galla Placidia gălˈə pləsĭdˈēə [key], c.388–450, Roman empress of the West, daughter of Theodosius I. Captured by Alaric I in the course of his Italian campaign, she was held by the Visigoth...

Sari

(Encyclopedia)Sari särēˈ [key], city (1991 pop. 167,602), capital of Mazandaran prov., N Iran, near the Caspian Sea. It is the trade center for a farm region where citrus fruit, cotton, rice, and sugarcane are g...

Qa'em Shahr

(Encyclopedia)Qa'em Shahr käˈĕm shär [key], city (1991 pop. 123,684), Mazandaran prov., N Iran. Manufactures include textiles and food products; a thermal power plant is there. It is a road and rail transport c...

Istakhr

(Encyclopedia)Istakhr ĭstäˈkər [key], old town, S Iran. Built largely from the ruins of ancient Persepolis, 3 mi (4.8 km) away, it was a capital of the Sassanid dynasty. Istakhr stubbornly resisted (640–49) t...

Middle East

(Encyclopedia)Middle East, term traditionally applied by western Europeans to the countries of SW Asia and NE Africa lying W of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. Thus defined it includes Cyprus, the Asian part of T...

Sistani, Ali Husaini

(Encyclopedia)Sistani, Ali Husaini or Husayni ho͞osānˈē äl– [key], 1930–, Shiite grand ayatollah in Iraq, b. Mashhad, Iran. Educated in religious schools in his native Iran, he went to Shiite holy city of ...

Soleimani, Qasem

(Encyclopedia)Soleimani, Qasem, or Qassem Suleimani käˈsəm Sōləmänˈē [key], 1957–2020, Iranian general. He joined the Revolutionary Guards following the 1979 revolution and was considered a hero of the Ir...

Sahand

(Encyclopedia)Sahand sähändˈ [key], peak, 12,140 ft (3,700 m) high, NW Iran, S of Tabriz. It is snow-covered most of the year and is traditionally associated with the prophet Zoroaster. ...

Khatami, Mohammad

(Encyclopedia)Khatami, Mohammad khätˈämē [key], 1943–, Iranian religious and political leader. From a prominent clerical family, Khatami opposed the regime of Muhammad Reza Shah Pahlevi in the 1960s and 70s, ...

Firuzabad

(Encyclopedia)Firuzabad fĭro͞oˈzəbädˌ [key], town, Fars prov., S Iran, near Shiraz. The town has a noteworthy ...