''Shahbanu'' (, ) was a title for empress regnant or empress consort in Persian and other

Iranian languages The Iranian languages, also called the Iranic languages, are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European language family that are spoken natively by the Iranian peoples, predominantly in the Iranian Plateau. The Iranian langu ...

. The title was specifically used by Farah Pahlavi, the wife of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran ( Persia). During

Sassanid The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

times, the principal queen was titled '' banbishnan banbishn'' ("Queen of Queens") analogous to the emperor's title '' shahanshah'' (lit. "King of Kings") to distinguish her from the other queens in the royal household. Farah Pahlavi sometimes continues to be referred to as ''Shahbanu'', as is customarily done internationally for titleholders associated with abolished monarchies, but the title is no longer valid in Iran. According to the Persian Constitution of 1906, Yasmine Pahlavi would currently hold this title.

References

{{Reflist Queens consort of Persia Imperial titles Titles in Iran Persian words and phrases

See also

References