shah

/ʃɑ/

Other forms: shahs

In Iran, an emperor or king was historically called a shah. The last shah was overthrown in 1979, during the Iranian Revolution.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last shah of Iran, is often simply referred to as "the Shah." During his rule, he gave himself the title Shahanshah, or "king of kings." Shah has a Persian root, and the history of shahs goes all the way back to the Persian Empire in the sixth century BCE. Iran's last shah was exiled to Egypt during the Iranian Revolution, and the monarchy was officially abolished.

Definitions of shah

1. noun

   title for the former hereditary monarch of Iran
   synonyms: Shah, Shah of Iran

   examples:

   Mohammed Reza Pahlavi

   Shah of Iran who was deposed in 1979 by Islamic fundamentalists (1919-1980)

   type of:

   crowned head, monarch, sovereign

   a nation's ruler or head of state usually by hereditary right