Last updated: March 2026

Character Name

Manijeh

Meaning — From Middle Persian "Manizha" or "Manijeh", possibly meaning "shining" or "precious jewel" — a name associated with light and rare value. In the Shahnameh, Manijeh is the Turanian princess who falls in love with the Iranian hero Bijan, hides him in a pit to save his life, and endures great suffering to keep him alive — one of Ferdowsi's most moving portraits of female devotion.·Persian origin·Female·mah-NEE-zheh

Manijeh Manijeh embodies love as total, self-sacrificing devotion that crosses every boundary of politics, clan, and personal safety. Characters named Manijeh are often portrayed as fiercely passionate women who love so completely that they would endure any humiliation or hardship to protect the person they have chosen.

Best genres for Manijeh

RomanceMythologyHistorical FictionLiterary Fiction

Famous characters named Manijeh

Manijeh

Shahnameh (Book of Kings) — Ferdowsi

The Turanian princess who risks everything to protect the imprisoned Iranian hero Bijan, begging food for him in the streets — a portrait of love that transcends political enmity.


Variations & nicknames

ManijehManizhaManija

Pairs well with

Manijeh ShiraziManijeh TehraniManijeh EsfahaniManijeh HosseiniManijeh MoradiManijeh Rashidian

Writing a character named Manijeh?

Hearth's distraction-free editor helps you develop characters and write every day.

Start writing free

Related names

Shirin

Persian · “From the Persian word "shīrīn" meaning sweet, pleasant, or charming. Shirin is the heroine of one of the most celebrated love stories in Persian literature — the tale of Khosrow and Shirin by the poet Nizami Ganjavi — in which the Armenian princess Shirin is fought over by the Sassanid king Khosrow II and the sculptor Farhad.”

Parisa

Persian · “From Persian "parī" (fairy, supernatural being of great beauty) and the suffix "-sā" (like, resembling), meaning "like a fairy" or "fairy-faced". The "pari" in Persian mythology is an angelic being of luminous beauty, distinct from the mischievous spirits of Western folklore — they are creatures of light, grace, and divine favor.”

Tahmineh

Persian · “From Persian "Tahmineh", possibly derived from Middle Persian elements meaning "strong" or "the mighty one". In the Shahnameh, Tahmineh is the daughter of the King of Samangan who seeks out the hero Rostam to bear his child, and becomes the mother of the tragic Sohrab — a woman who acts with agency and desire in a world that rarely allows women either.”

Rudabeh

Persian · “From Old Persian or Middle Persian, with "Ruda" possibly related to Old Iranian "raodha" meaning growth, or a reference to a river (rud in Persian means river). Rudabeh is the daughter of the King of Kabul in the Shahnameh, who falls in love with the white-haired hero Zal and famously lets down her long hair from the tower window for him to climb — a Persian Rapunzel centuries before the European tale.”


More Persian names

Bahar

“Directly from the Persian word "bahār" meaning spring — the season of renewal, blossoming flowers, and returning life after winter. Spring is the most celebrated season in Persian poetry and culture, associated with Nowruz (Persian New Year), youth, beauty, and the short-lived intensity of bloom before the heat of summer.”

Soraya

“From Persian "Sorayā", the Persian name for the Pleiades star cluster — the same constellation called "Parveen" in classical Persian poetry. The Pleiades were used to mark seasons for agriculture and navigation, and their Persian name carries associations of celestial beauty, rare clustering of brilliance, and the melancholy beauty of distant stars.”

Aslan

“From the Turkic and Persian "arslan" meaning lion — one of the oldest and most widespread Turkic names, carried by Seljuk sultans and Persian heroes. The lion has been the supreme symbol of courage, royalty, and divine power across Iranian, Turkic, and Arab cultures for millennia.”

Farhad

“From Old Persian or Middle Persian, meaning "happy" or "joyful prosperity", related to Persian "farr" (divine glory or royal splendor). Farhad is the stonecutter who falls hopelessly in love with Shirin in the Persian epic Khosrow and Shirin by Nizami Ganjavi — his unrequited devotion, expressed through carving a milk canal through a mountain, became the archetype of self-destructive romantic obsession.”

Siavash

“From Avestan "Syāvarshān" or Middle Persian "Syāwaxsh", meaning "owner of the black stallion" or "black stallion" — combining "siyāh" (black) and "asp" (horse). Siavash is one of the most beloved and tragic figures in the Shahnameh: a prince of exceptional purity and beauty who is falsely accused by his stepmother and seeks exile, only to be murdered in a foreign land.”

Shirin

“From the Persian word "shīrīn" meaning sweet, pleasant, or charming. Shirin is the heroine of one of the most celebrated love stories in Persian literature — the tale of Khosrow and Shirin by the poet Nizami Ganjavi — in which the Armenian princess Shirin is fought over by the Sassanid king Khosrow II and the sculptor Farhad.”


Explore more