Things We Left Unsaid (33 page)

‘Butterflies migrate, too,’ he had said.

I looked at the sky. It was blue. Not even a spot of cloud.

Places and proper names of people and foods that Anglophone readers would not generally find familiar are given in the text with capital letters, and briefly explained
below. Most of the italicized words in the text are English words (or book and film titles), borrowed as such into Persian or Armenian, especially by people in Abadan working for the National
Iranian Oil Company, which was British-run until 1951, and especially influenced by the English language.

Abadan, a city planned and built up around the oil refinery, which opened in 1913, after the British discovered oil at Masjed-Soleiman. The oil industry and the huge refinery
dominated the economy, making Abadan into a company town. Abadan city was divided into neighborhoods or districts, with the factory workers generally living in a neighborhood just southeast of the
refinery. Pirouzabad, on the northeast side of the airport, was for labor personnel. See also Bawarda and Braim, the neighborhoods that mostly appear in the story. The city, which is right across
from the border with Iraq, and about twenty miles from Basra, suffered immense destruction during the Iran–Iraq war in the 1980s.

Adab School in Abadan was a private school, elementary through high school, for Armenians. The curriculum was partly in Persian and partly in Armenian, the Armenians being one
of the few linguistic minorities in Iran (where Persian is the national language but Arabs, Azeris, Baluchis, Kurds, etc., speak a different mother tongue), allowed to run schools in their own
language.

Ahmadabad, a neighborhood in Abadan to the northeast of Bawarda, largely for the poorer inhabitants.

Anoush
, a 1912 opera by Armen Tigranian, inspired by Armenian folk music and based on the poem ‘Anoush’ (1892, by Hovhaness Toumanian, on whom see below). It
is a central work in the Armenian musical repertoire, recounting the story of a village girl, Anoush, who falls in love with the shepherd, Saro. Anoush’s brother, who has been humiliated in a
wrestling match with Saro, kills him, leading Anoush to throw herself from a cliff. Quite apart from the character of the opera, in conversation the word
anoush
(said in response to a
compliment to the chef or hostess), means, may the food nourish your soul.

April 24th Ceremonies, a day of mourning observed in commemoration of the victims of the Armenian genocide, the beginning of which is dated to ‘Red Sunday’ on 24
April 1915, when the Ottoman government in Istanbul rounded up and later executed some two to three hundred prominent Armenians. This day is observed in Armenia, and by Armenians in diaspora, as
Genocide Remembrance Day (estimates of the number of Armenians killed in Ottoman territory during 1915–1918 run anywhere from half a million to 1.5 million).

Armenian Revolutionary Federation, or ARF (Dashnaktsutyun) was an International Socialist Party formed in 1890 in Tiflis with the goals of national self-determination for the
Armenian people (then subject to Ottoman rule), democracy, and social justice. It helped to establish the first Armenian Republic in 1918, but in 1920 it was disbanded by the Soviet Union and its
leaders exiled, many of them coming to Iran. It continued to fight for Armenian independence.

Barev, Armenian for ‘hello.’ Armenians in Iran live in a bi-lingual, sometimes tri-lingual environment, with Persian being the standard language of wider
communication, Armenian being the language of communication between Armenians in Iran, and English being a medium understood to some extent by many of the employees of the National Iranian Oil
Company in Abadan.

Bawarda, a district or neighborhood of Abadan, where Clarice and Artoush live. It is the older central and southern part of Abadan. See also Braim.

Boupacha, Djamila. A young activist for the Armée de Libération Nationale in the Algerian war for independence against the French, who was arrested in 1960 and
accused by the French of planting a bomb. She was tortured and brutally raped in detention. Simone de Beauvoir and other French intellectuals formed a committee to defend her and Djamila became a
cause célèbre of French liberal opinion against the Algerian war.

Braim, a newer, chic neighborhood of Abadan, to the northwest of the refinery, and southeast of the airport. It was the part of the city where the English employees of the
Anglo-Iranian Oil Company lived, before it was nationalized under Mossadegh in 1951, becoming the National Iranian Oil Company (N.I.O.C.). Braim was itself subdivided into Sehgoush Braim, Braim
Village, Braim Estates, and the inhabitants of these various neighborhoods were segregated by their job ‘Grade’ and standing in the National Iranian Oil Company. Through the 1950s,
employee housing was rented, and only for the duration of employment. But plans were made in 1959 so that employees could purchase homes from the Oil Company and continue to live in them after
retirement.

Chelow Kebab, the traditional Persian grilled meat dish, usually lamb, served with white rice. In older culinary tradition, a raw egg yolk was served on top of the rice.

Cinema Rex was one of the larger cinemas in Abadan. In 1978, many years after the events of the novel, it was set on fire and burned to the ground, killing over 400 people, in
one of the seminal events of the Iranian revolution.

Cinema Taj, one of the larger, modern and more fashionable cinemas in Abadan, between the city center and Bawarda. In the early 1960s, this cinema showed dubbed foreign films,
American and European, almost exclusively.

Delon, Alain. The great French heart-throb actor of the 1960s and 70s, who enjoyed great popularity in Iran, as well. See also Schneider, Romy.

Döner Kebab, or ‘Turkish Kebab’ as it is known in Iran, thin slices of spit-roasted meat, usually lamb, similar to Gyros or Shawarma.

Ejmiatsin, a town to the west of Yerevan in Armenia (also spelled Echmiadzin), home to the Mother Cathedral of Holy Ejmiatsin, a church built circa 303
C
.
E
. that remains the central seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Chief Catholicos of all Armenians, who is the chief bishop, or pope, of the Armenian
Church.

Farah Charitable Society (Anjoman-e khayriyye-ye Farah), a charitable organization dedicated to pre-school education of Iranian children and assistance to orphans. It was
established by Farah Diba in 1960 after becoming queen consort of Mohammad-Reza Shah (it was his third marriage) in 1959, at the age of twenty. Many charities run by her office emphasized bettering
the situation of Iranian women.

Fesenjan, a tart Persian casserole dish made with ground walnuts and pomegranate paste, and nuggets of meat or poultry. Like other casseroles (
khoresht
, sometimes called
‘stews’), it is usually served with rice/pilaf.

Gata, a kind of Armenian puff pastry; some are made with a sweet filling, whereas others are unsweetened, or ‘salted.’

General Mode, a well-known department store in Tehran.

Ghormeh-sabzi, a traditional Iranian casserole, eaten with rice pilaf, containing sautéed chopped parsley and fenugreek, leeks, dehydrated lemons, kidney beans, and
usually lamb. It is considered a dish for special occasions, often served to honored guests.

Golestan Club, a large club in Braim for Senior and Junior Grade employees of the National Iranian Oil Company.

Halva, a confection popular from the southern Mediterranean to South Asia. The name derives from Arabic. It comes in two forms: a semolina flour-based paste made with oil and
sugar, saffron and sometimes with rosewater. A second type, made from tahini or nut butter and sugar, forms a crumbly loaf.

Ikra, Russian eggplant ‘caviar,’ a kind of dip or spread made out of pureed vegetables, using either eggplant or squash, along with onions, carrots, tomatoes,
vegetable oil, and cayenne pepper.

Iran–Soviet Society, see VOKS.

Istanbuli Polow, or Estamboli Polow as pronounced in Persian, is a rice pilaf made with cubes of red meat, potatoes, tomato paste, and onions. In Armenian it is called
‘Red Pilaf.’

Julfa, or New Julfa, a section or neighborhood of Isfahan where Armenians have lived in large numbers since the early 1600s. The Safavid Shah Abbas forcibly relocated them to
his capital at Isfahan, having turned them into laborers as the result of an Iranian military victory in Armenia. There are many pre-modern Armenian churches still in use in this neighborhood.

Kebab, see Chelow Kebab and Döner Kebab, above.

Khorramshahr, a major port city about ten kilometers north of Abadan, at the confluence of the Shatt al-Arab (through which the Tigris and Euphrates empty into the Persian
Gulf) and the Karun rivers. Formerly called Mohammereh, a diversionary channel of the Karun river was dug here a millennium ago, creating the Bahmanshir and the man-made Haffar branches of the
Karun, between which sits the island of Abadan, and Abadan city.

Lavash, a flat, thin unleavened bread made of flour, water and salt, and traditionally slapped on the wall of a clay oven to bake. It is popular in Iran, Turkey, Armenia, and
Georgia, and can be stored by rolling, when moist. When dried it has the consistency of a thin cracker.

Lubia Polow, a traditional Persian pilaf dish of rice mixed with green beans, often with red meat, flavoured with a tomato sauce with onions, cinnamon, and saffron.

Lusaber
(Armenian for ‘Light-bringer’), the name of a monthly Armenian-language children’s magazine published for the Armenians in Iran.

Maash Polow, a mung bean pilaf, with tomatoes, onions, saffron, and other subtle spices.

Majles, the Parliament, established by the first Iranian revolution of 1906–1911 as a constitutional check on the power of the Qajar Monarch. In 1963 the Majles approved
a law granting Iranian women the right to vote (see the Six Reform Bills).

Masjed-Soleiman, city northeast of Abadan in the province of Khuzestan. The British first discovered oil in this ancient Iranian city in 1913.

Mashhad, a large city in the northeast of Iran and a center of pilgrimage for Shiite Muslims as the shrine and burial place of Imam Reza, the eighth Imam of Twelver Shiism.

Naft Club, a club with an open-air cinema, located near the Annex Restaurant, north of the city center of Abadan.

Namagerd is one of the rural Armenian farming villages in Peria (Fereydan), to the west of Isfahan, a district where in the seventeenth century Georgian and Armenian farmers
were forcibly relocated to help revive the Safavid agrarian economy.

Nazouk, an Armenian butter pastry.

Norouz is the Persian new year, a big national and largely secular holiday occurring at the Spring Equinox.

Oil Company, the National Iranian Oil Company (N.I.O.C) dominated the city of Abadan, the refinery of which was one of the world’s largest. The company was established by
the British in 1908 as the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, rechristened Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (it is now British Petroleum), before it was nationalized in the early 1950s under Prime Minister
Mohammad Mossadegh (deposed by an American and British covert operation in 1953) as the National Iranian Oil Company. After nationalization, N.I.O.C. subcontracted to American and European
companies to help refine the oil.

Parinj, explained in the text in Chapter 44.

Perok, an Armenian fruit glaze pastry.

Piroshki, a deep-fried bun with a meat, vegetable, or sweet filling, popular in Iran through the influence of Russian cuisine (similar to a donut).

Pirouzabad, see Abadan.

Polow, pilaf (the English word comes from the Persian, via British India) a general term for Persian rice dishes, either cooked together with vegetables or other ingredients
and eaten as a main entrée, or eaten plain with a casserole (khoresht), or curry.

Red Pilaf, see ‘Istanbuli Polow,’ above.

SAVAK, Iran’s secret police, the National Intelligence and Security Organization, established with the help of the CIA in 1957 and widely feared for its torture of
political dissidents and activists.

Sayat Nova, the eighteenth-century national poet-singer (
ashik
) of Armenia, who composed in Azeri Turkish, Armenian, and other languages, using the Georgian
alphabet.

Schneider, Romy, the Austrian actress. She married Alain Delon in 1959, only to part ways, amicably, in 1963.

Senior Grade
, an English term borrowed into Persian by the Iranian National Oil Company, which hired engineers and doctors at
Senior Grade
, and other educated
employees at the lesser rank of
Junior Grade
. Ordinary workers ranked below both these ‘
Grades
.’

Shatt al-Arab, a waterway formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers before they flow into the Persian Gulf. In the twentieth century, it became the
international border separating Iran, specifically the province of Khuzestan, from Iraq.

Sherbet, a cold refreshing sweet drink made from fruit juice or fruit syrup, similar to lemonade, but made in various flavors, such as rosewater, sour cherry, plum, etc.

Shad-shad lav
, Armenian for ‘very well, very good.’

Six Reform Bills were a series of initiatives introduced to the Majles (Iranian Parliament) by Mohammad-Reza Shah Pahlavi as part of his ‘White Revolution.’ The
first six reforms were submitted to a popular referendum and approved in January 1963 (the novel takes place in the spring of 1962). These included expropriation of lands from feudal lords to make
them available to sharecroppers for purchase below market value, thus enabling sharecroppers to become small landowners; nationalization of forests and pasturelands; privatization of
government-owned factories; awarding factory workers a 20 percent share in profits; formation of a national literacy corps; and women’s suffrage.

Tabriz, a large city in the northwest of Iran, in the province of Iranian Azerbaijan, that has had a sizeable Armenian enclave since the Mongol invasions.

Tahdig, literally ‘bottom of the pot’ in Persian, a thin layer of bread or potatoes cooked to a crisp at the bottom of a pot of rice, and considered the most
delectable portion of the rice.