Qajar (Kadjar) Princely Families

The Prince Royals and their immediate families aside, the Qajars (Kadjars) count among them a great number of princely families, the oldest of which date back to the children of Fath Ali Shah. Qajar (Kadjar) princely families distinguish amongst themselves based on their rank. Rank is assigned in a variety of ways: How old the particular family is; how close it is to the current royal household; how close it is to previous royal households; from which royal household it stems; which prince is the ancestor ("jadd" in Persian); whether both parents are Qajars (Kadjars); whether both parents are Qajar (Kadjar) royals; whether both parents are Qajar (Kadjar) prince and princess. However, to be a Qajar (Kadjar) prince or princess, one's father must be a Qajar (Kadjar) prince [Qajars (Kadjars) are on a patrilineal descent system]. If only one's mother is a Qajar (Kadjar) princess, then one is referred to as having Qajar (Kadjar) blood, but the title of prince or princess does not transfer to offspring whose fathers are not Qajar (Kadjar) princes.

With his ascendancy to the throne, Reza Shah Pahlavi decreed that all families must have last names as a sign of a modern country. Many Qajars (Kadjars) thus took names of their original ancestor, -- or one to whom they felt close -- as their last names, since the last name "Qajar" (Kadjar) was out of the question. Many also took part of their honorific titles as their last names. However, the dynastic name "Qajar"(Kadjar) was always implied, and many families would still refer to themselves as whatever their new last name now was and Qajar (Kadjar) [For example Farmanfarmaian-e Qajar]. With the advent of the revolution of 1979, and the condition of diaspora for many Iranians and Qajars (Kadjars), many Qajars (Kadjars) have in fact re-adopted the dynastic name as part of their last name, often with hyphens or simply as an add on, making their prior last name something of a middle name.

In view of the large number of children of Fath Ali Shah, and in view of the many generations of Qajars (Kadjars) since his lifetime, there are a great many Qajar (Kadjar) princely families. So many, in fact, that it is rare to find anyone who could list them all accurately. The following list, far from complete, is meant to give an insight into the origins of the modern family names. Any omission is unintended and would be rectified if notified at the following e-mail address: meskandariqajar@gmail.com

~The Shajarehnaameh Project~

The Shajarehnaameh or "Family Tree" Project is designed to record the lineages and family relations within the larger Qajar (Kadjar) clan. The aim is to make accessible to all interested a source of information on Who is Who and Who was Who within the Qajar (Kadjar) clan.

Prominent Qajar (Kadjar) Families

Kadjar Imperial House (Genealogy) NEW!

Kadjar Imperial Family (Succession) NEW!

Afsar

Afsari

Ahmad

Ahmadi

Amin

Amini

Amiralai NEW!

Amir Ebrahimi

Amirghahari (See also Kamrani)NEW!