Parsis

Parsis

A Parsi Lady (c. 1928) Mahadev V. Dhurandhar
Regions with significant populations
India	57,264[1][2]
Canada	3,630[3][a]
Pakistan	800[4]
Languages
Gujarati, Hindi–Urdu, English (Indian dialect or Pakistani dialect), Avestan (liturgical)
Religion
Zoroastrianism
Related ethnic groups
Iranis

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The Parsis (singular: Parsi /ˈpɑːrsi/)^[5] or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of the Persian Empire (part of the early Muslim conquests) to escape religious persecution.^[6][7] Parsis are the older of the Indian subcontinent's two Zoroastrian communities, the other being the Iranis, whose ancestors migrated to British-ruled India from Qajar-era Iran. According to a 16th-century Parsi epic, Qissa-i Sanjan, Zoroastrian Persians continued to migrate to the Indian subcontinent from Greater Iran in between the 8th and 10th centuries, and ultimately settled in present-day Gujarat after being granted refuge by a local Hindu king, Jadi Rana.^{[8][9][10][11]}

Prior to the 7th-century fall of the Sassanid Empire to the Rashidun Caliphate, the Iranian mainland (historically known as 'Persia') had a Zoroastrian majority, and Zoroastrianism had served as the Iranian state religion since at least the time of the Achaemenid Empire. Despite the retreat of many Iranians to the Indian subcontinent,^[12] a number of Iranian figures remained in active rebellion against the Rashidun army and the later Islamic caliphates for almost 200 years after the Arab conquest.^[13] However, the decline of Zoroastrianism in Iran continued, and most Iranians had adopted Islam by the 10th century.

The word Parsi is derived from the Persian language, and literally translates to Persian (پارسی, Pārsi).^[14]

The Parsi and Irani communities are the sole ethnoreligious groups practising Zoroastrianism in India. However, owing to the more recent migration of the Irani community to the Indian subcontinent, it is legally differentiated from the Parsi community.^[15] Despite this legal distinction, the terms "Parsi" and "Zoroastrian" are commonly utilized interchangeably to denote both communities. Notably, no substantial differences exist between the religious principles, convictions, and customs of Parsis and Irani Zoroastrians.^[16][17]

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