# List of Iranian women

This is a list of Iranian women, of all Iranian ethnic backgrounds, including both women born in Iran and women that are of the Iranian diaspora.

## Nobel laureates

* Shirin Ebadi (born 1947), 2003 Nobel Laureate (Peace)

## Scientists and engineers

* Azar Andami (1926–1984), physician and bacteriologist noted for her development of a cholera vaccine
* Anousheh Ansari (born 1966), first female space tourist, leading telecommunication entrepreneur, and namesake of the X Prize
* Niloufar Bayani (born 1986), wildlife conservation biology researcher and activist; jailed in Iran
* Azita Emami, engineer working on low-power mixed-mode circuits in scalable technologies; Professor of Electrical Engineering and Medical Engineering at Caltech
* Marjan Mashkour, zooarchaeologist focused on research projects in Iran and the Near East
* Maryam Mirzakhani (1977–2017), mathematician and the first woman to win Fields Medal
* Maryam Sadeghi (born 1980) Iranian-born Canadian computer scientist and businesswoman in the field of medical image analysis
* Homa Shaibany (born 1913), Iran's first female surgeon
* Nahid Shahmehri, Director of the Laboratory for Intelligent Information, Linköpings Universitet, Sweden
* Alenush Terian (1921–2011), astronomer
* Saba Valadkhan, biomedical scientist and professor
* Iranian women scientists and engineers

## Business

* Fatemeh Moghimi (born 1958), engineer, entrepreneur, and politician
* Marzieh Shah-Daei (born 1962), former Executive Director of National Petrochemical Company; Iranian Deputy Minister of Petroleum (2017–present)
* Farzaneh Sharafbafi (born 1973), former CEO of Iran Air
* Afsaneh Beschloss, former treasurer of the World Bank, entrepreneur, and investor
* Shahrzad Rafati, CEO of BroadbandTV Corp (BBTV)
* Sepideh Nasiri, founder of Persian Women In Tech (PWIT)

## Academia

* Roksana Bahramitash (born 1956), sociologist, author, and professor
* Janet Afary, activist and researcher in history, religious studies and women studies; teaches at University of California, Santa Barbara
* Lady Amin (1886–1983; also known as Banoo Amin), 20th century jurisprudent, theologian and great Muslim mystic
* Jaleh Amouzgar (born 1939), Iranologist, professor and chair at Tehran University
* Noushafarin Ansari (born 1939), professor within the Faculty of Library and Information Science at University of Tehran; Secretary General of Children's Book Council of Iran
* Mina Bissell, biochemist, Director of University of California, Berkeley Life Sciences Division
* Shirin Ebadi (born 1947), lawyer, lecturer at Tehran University (2003 Nobel Laureate)
* Azita Emami, engineer working on low-power mixed-mode circuits in scalable technologies; Professor of Electrical Engineering and Medical Engineering at Caltech
* Farideh Heyat, British-Iranian anthropologist and a writer; retired lecturer of SOAS, University of London and American University of Central Asia
* Marjan Jahangiri, professor of cardiac surgery at St George's, University of London, first female professor of cardiac surgery in the United Kingdom and Europe
* Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet (born 1967), Professor of History at University of Pennsylvania; novelist
* Fatemeh Keshavarz (born 1952), Chair of Asian and Near Eastern Languages and Literature Department, Professor of Persian and Comparative Literature, Washington University in St. Louis
* Elaheh Koulaei (born 1956), Professor of Political sciences, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences, Tehran University; politician
* Amy Malek (c. 1979/1980), American scholar, and sociocultural anthropologist
* Farzaneh Milani (born 1947), Director of Studies in Women and Gender; Professor of Persian and Women Studies at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States
* Maryam Mirzakhani (1977–2017), mathematician, former Professor at Stanford University
* Valentine Moghadam (born 1952), Professor of Sociology and International Affairs; Director of International Affairs Program and Director of Middle East Studies Program, Northeastern University
* Azar Nafisi (born 1948), former lecturer at Tehran University and Johns Hopkins University
* Afsaneh Najmabadi (born 1946), Professor of History and of Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality at Harvard University
* Nasrin Rahimieh, writer of Iranian culture and Persian literature; professor of Comparative Literature at the University of California, Irvine
* Zahra Rahnavard (born 1945), first female chancellor of a university, Alzahra University (1998–2006) after the Iranian Revolution
* Pardis Sabeti (born 1975), geneticist at Harvard Medical School
* Reihaneh Safavi-Naini, cryptographer; professor of computer science; head of the Telecommunications and Information Technology Research Institute at University of Wollongong
* Fatemeh Shams (born 1983), literary scholar at University of Oxford
* Saba Soomekh, professor of religious studies at UCLA and Loyola Marymount University
* Nayereh Tohidi, professor and Chair of the Women's Studies Department at California State University, Northridge; research associate at the Center for Near Eastern Studies at UCLA, US
* Iranian women in academia

## Writers and poets

* Masoumeh Abad (born 1962), writer, conservative politician, author
* Mahnaz Afkhami (born 1941), writer, politician, women's rights activist
* Mana Aghaee (born 1973), poet, translator, and bibliographer
* Farzaneh Aghaeipour, playwright and novelist
* Mahshid Amirshahi (born 1937), novelist, humorist, and translator
* Mina Assadi (born 1943), poet and author; winner of the Hellman/Hammett awards from Human Rights Watch in New York in 1996
* Sousan Azadi (born 1954), memoirist
* Camila Batmanghelidjh (born 1963), psychotherapist, author
* Najmieh Batmanglij (born 1947), Iranian-American cookbook author
* Simin Behbahani (1927–2014), poet, 1997 Nobel Prize nominee
* Niloofar Beyzaie, dramatist, playwright and theatre director
* Simin Daneshvar (1921–2012), academic, novelist and translator of literary texts from several languages into Persian
* Sahar Delijani (born 1983), widely translated novelist; author of Children of the Jacaranda Tree; living between the United States and Italy
* Parvin E'tesami (1907–1941), 20th century poet
* Akram Fahimian (born 1900), poet and photographer
* Forough Farrokhzad (1934–1967), modernist poet and film director
* Rabe'e Ghazdari, poet, 10th century
* Roya Hakakian (born 1966), writer, journalist, and poet
* Sheema Kalbasi (born 1972), poet, writer
* Leila Kasra (1939–1989), poet and lyricist
* Mehrangiz Kar (born 1944), lawyer, author, Radcliffe Fellow at Harvard University (2005–2006)
* Porochista Khakpour (born 1978), novelist
* Mahsati (c. 1089–1159), Medieval poet
* Shokooh Mirzadegi, novelist,
* Azadeh Moaveni (born 1976), writer and journalist
* Akram Monfared Arya (born 1946), Iranian-born Swedish author, poet, aircraft pilot, and the second woman to earn a pilot's license to fly aircraft in Iran
* Roza Montazemi, author of cookbooks
* Granaz Moussavi, poet
* Azar Nafisi (born 1948), writer, Reading Lolita in Tehran
* Shahrnush Parsipur (born 1946), novelist.
* Zoya Pirzad (born 1952), novelist and winner of Hooshang Golshiri Literary Award
* Moniro Ravanipour (born 1952), writer
* Gulrukhsor Safieva (born 1947), national poet of Tajikistan
* Marjane Satrapi (born 1969), graphic novelist of Persepolis, Embroideries and Chicken with Plums
* Hila Sedighi (born 1985), poet, painter
* Louisa Shafia, Iranian-American chef and cookbook writer
* Mahasti Shahrokhi, poet, novelist
* Fatemeh Shams, poet, author
* Tahereh Qorrat Al-'Ayn (c.1814–1852), poet, philosopher and theologist; seventeenth disciple or Letter of the Living of the Báb (mid-19th century)
* Niloufar Talebi, writer, literary translator, multidisciplinary artist, producer
* Lobat Vala (born 1930), poet
* Sholeh Wolpé, (born 1962), poet
* Iranian women writers and poets

## Actors

* Pegah Ahangarani (born 1984), actress and winner of Best Actress award at the 23rd Cairo International Film Festival
* Mahnaz Afshar (born 1978), actress
* Shohreh Aghdashloo (born 1952), actress, Oscar nominee 2003 for House of Sand and Fog
* Desiree Akhavan (born 1984), actress, in the television show Girls, and director, winner, Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize, 2018
* Taraneh Alidoosti (born 1984), Best Actress award winner, Locarno International Film Festival, 2002
* Mary Apick (born 1954), actress, Best Actress award winner (1977) at the 10th Moscow International Film Festival
* Behnoosh Bakhtiari (born 1975), actress
* Catherine Bell (born 1968), actress, JAG, half Iranian
* Nadia Bjorlin (born 1980), American of Swedish-Iranian ethnicity, actress, singer, and model
* Shiva Boloorian (born 1979), playwright, actress, and both a film and theatre director, as well as a television presenter
* Nazanin Boniadi (born 1980), London-based actress
* Zahra Amir Ebrahimi (born 1981), actress and social photographer
* Golshifteh Farahani (born 1983), actress
* Tina Gharavi, screenwriter and director
* Gordafarid, (born 1977), A Naqqal (Epic storyteller) and considered to be the first female Naqqal of Iran.
* Googoosh (born 1950), actress, singer, songwriter
* Azita Hajian (born 1958), actress, Crystal Simorgh winner for Best Actress, 17th Fajr International Film Festival
* Mitra Hajjar (born 1977), actress
* Leila Hatami (born 1972), actress, was in the Academy Award-winning film A Separation
* Rita Jahanforuz (born 1962), Iranian-born Israeli actress and singer
* Niki Karimi (born 1971), actress, film director, and screenwriter
* Maryam Kavyani (born 1970), actress
* Baran Kosari (born 1985), actress, and model; 25th Fajr International Film Festival awards winner
* Aylar Lie (born 1984), Iranian-born Norwegian actress, model, singer, former pornographic actress
* Yassamin Maleknasr (born 1955), actress and director
* Mahvash (1920–1961; also known as Masoumeh Azizi Borujerdi) singer, dancer, film actress and stage performer
* Hengameh Mofid (born 1955), film and theatre actress, film director, dramatist
* Fatemeh Motamed-Arya (born 1961), actress
* Shiva Rose (born 1969), Iranian-American actress and blogger.
* Nahid Persson Sarvestani (born 1960), documentary filmmaker
* Sarah Shahi (born 1980), American actress and former cheerleader, of Iranian-Spanish ancestry
* Yara Shahidi (born 2000), American actress, of Iranian, African American and Native Choctaw heritage
* Bahar Soomekh (born 1975), American actress, Crash and Saw III
* Hāni'eh Tavassoli (born 1979), actress
* Hedyeh Tehrani (born 1972), actress
* Necar Zadegan (born 1982), American actress
* Maryam Zakaria, Swedish-Iranian actress in Bollywood and South Indian Cinema
* Nina Zanjani (born 1981), Iranian-Swedish actress
* Merila Zarei (born 1974), actress
* Irene Zazians (1927–2012), Iranian-Armenian actress
* Iranian women actors

## Filmmakers and theatre directors

* Narges Abyar (born 1970), film director, author and screenwriter
* Rakhshan Bani-Etemad, film director
* Niloofar Beyzaie, playwright, theatre director
* Pouran Derakhshandeh, film director, producer, screenwriter, and researcher
* Aryana Farshad, cineaste and documentary film maker; winner of Audience Award, Telly Award, and Davey Award, 2008
* Niki Karimi (born 1971), actress, film director, and screenwriter
* Maryam Keshavarz (born 1975), film director
* Hana Makhmalbaf (born 1988), filmmaker, director
* Samira Makhmalbaf (born 1980), filmmaker, film director, and script writer
* Yassamin Maleknasr (born 1955), actress and director
* Tahmineh Milani (born 1960), feminist, film director, and film producer
* Hengameh Mofid (born 1955), film and theatre actress, film director, dramatist
* Granaz Moussavi, Iranian-born Australian film director, screenwriter
* Mahin Oskouei (1929–2006), first female Iranian theatre director

## Fine arts

* Shirin Aliabadi (1973 - 2018), multidisciplinary visual artist
* Morehshin Allahyari (born 1985), artist active since 2007, educator, based in Brooklyn
* Akram Monfared Arya (born 1946), Swedish-Iranian painter late in life, but best known as the second licensed female aircraft pilot of Iran
* Iran Darroudi (born 1936), Surrealist painter
* Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian (1922–2019), best known for her mirror mosaics, sculptor, painter, textile designs
* Parastou Forouhar (born 1962), Iranian installation artist
* Mokarrameh Ghanbari (1928–2005), self-taught painter
* Nahid Hagigat (born 1943), Iranian-born American painter and illustrator; based in New York City
* Mansooreh Hosseini (born 1926–2012), painter and art critic
* Shirin Neshat (born 1957), conceptual artist
* Guity Novin (born 1944), painter, graphic artist and founder of Transpressionism movement in painting
* Raha Raissnia (born 1968), best known for her painting, drawing, filmmaking and performance art
* Behjat Sadr (1924–2009), Modernist painter
* Sara Shamsavari, visual artist, photographer, musical artist
* Niloofar Ziae (born 1962), painter, art instructor
* Iranian women fine artists

## Dance

* Rana Gorgani (born 1983), French-Iranian Sufi whirling dervish dancer and a former actress.
* Jamileh (dancer) (born 1946), Iranian-American actress, cabaret performer, and dancer
* Farzaneh Kaboli, a leader in Iranian folkloric and national dance art, actress
* Azita Sahebjam, Canadian–Iranian dancer, director of Vancouver Pars National Ballet

## Design

* Leila Araghian (born 1983) architect, founder of Diba Tensile Architecture, specializing in the design, manufacture, and installation of membrane structures
* Farshid Moussavi (born 1965), architect, founder of Foreign Office Architects
* Nasrine Seraji, Iranian-born French architect, founder of Atelier Seraji Architectes & Associes.
* Marjane Satrapi (born 1969), film director and graphic novelist

### Fashion design

* Farnaz Abdoli, womenswear fashion designer and founder of POOSH-e MA
* Pegah Anvarian, fashion designer, based in Los Angeles
* Arefeh Mansouri (born 1980), fashion and costume designer
* Behnaz Sarafpour, couture fashion designer, based in New York City
* Mahla Zamani, fashion designer, journalist; expert on traditional Iranian dressing

## Journalists

* Christiane Amanpour (born 1958), British–Iranian, CNN's chief international correspondent
* Rudi Bakhtiar (born 1966), American television news anchor
* Sediqeh Dowlatabadi (1882–1961), feminist activist and journalist and one of the pioneering figures in the Persian women's movement
* Sibel Edmonds (born 1970), Iranian Azerbaijani and Turkish ethnicity, editor-in-chief of the independent news website NewsBud; she was a former contract translator for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and whistleblower
* Camelia Entekhabifard (born 1973), journalist and author
* Faezeh Hashemi (born 1963), journalist, women rights activist, and former member of Iranian parliament
* Shadi Sadr (born 1974), feminist activist, lawyer and journalist
* Iran Teymourtash (1914–1991), journalist and early activist; daughter of Abdolhossein Teymourtash
* FakhrAfagh Parsa (1898–?), director of the Women's World magazine and the first female journalist in the Iranian history to be exiled
* Atoosa Rubenstein (born 1972), Iranian-American founder and editor of CosmoGirl magazine; editor of Seventeen

## Musicians

* Leila Arab (born 1971), musician, record producer and DJ based in London
* Roya Arab (born 1967), musician, archaeologist, singer and songwriter
* Sima Bina (born 1945), traditional Iranian musician, singer, composer
* Delkash (born 1925–2004; also known as Esmat Bagherpour Baboli), singer and actress
* Leila Forouhar (born 1959), pop and classical singer
* Shushā Guppy (1935–2008), writer, editor, and singer of Persian and Western folk-songs
* Hayedeh (1942–1990; also known as Ma'soumeh Dadehbala), pop and classical singer
* Ghashang Kamkar, musician, Setar player; in the group The Kamkars
* Anousheh Khalili (born 1983), Iranian–American singer-songwriter
* Mahasti (1946–2007), Persian classical, folk, and pop music singer
* Marzieh (1924–2010), Persian traditional music singer
* Parisa (born 1950; also known as Fatemeh Va'ezi), Persian classical singer, Avaz master
* Laleh Pourkarim (born 1982), Iranian–Swedish singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, actress
* Soodabeh Salem (born 1954), musician, conductor of Iran's Children Orchestra
* Salome (born 1985), hip hop artist
* Sepideh (born 1975), singer
* Shakila (born 1962), Iranian–American singer, winner of Persian Academy Award (2006); based in San Diego, California
* Shohreh Solati (born 1957), Iranian–American singer
* Monir Vakili (1923–1983), singer of western opera and Persian folk music, the first Persian singer to popularize Persian folk songs
* Qamar ol-Molouk Vaziri (1905–1953), radif-e âvâz singer, known as the "queen of Persian music"
* Farzane Zamen, musician, singer, producer, songwriter
* Iranian women musicians

## Athletes

* Forough Abbasi (born 1993), Olympic alpine skier
* Kimia Alizadeh (born 1998), Taekwondo, First Iranian Female Olympic Medalist
* Padideh Boloorizadeh (born 1974), Asian Pentathlon champion, captain of Iranian National Volleyball team
* Leila Ebrahimi (born 1979), former runner
* Nasimeh Gholami (born 1985), futsal player; on the Iran Women's National Futsal Team
* Vida Halimian (born 1988), compound archer
* Marjan Kalhor (born 1988), Olympic alpine skier
* Janet Kohan-Sedq (1945–1972), track and field runner
* Shima Mehri (born 1980), motorcyclist
* Mahtab Parsamehr (born 1989), archer
* Aravane Rezaï (born 1987), French–Iranian tennis player
* Maryam Sedarati (born 1950), former high jumper; first Iranian woman to win a medal at an international athletics competition in 1973
* Laleh Seddigh (born 1977), race car driver, and rally champion of Iran
* Behnaz Shafiei (born 1989), motocross
* Iranian women athletes

## Politicians

* Masoumeh Abad (born 1962) conservative politician, author, university professor
* Marzieh Afkham, Iranian ambassador to Malaysia
* Mahnaz Afkhami (born 1941), first Minister of Women's Affairs in Iran and second woman in the world to hold the position; former professor of English Literature at the National University and former Secretary General of the Women's Organization of Iran
* Haleh Afshar (born 1941; also known as the Baroness Afshar), Iranian-British life peer in the House of Lords
* Goli Ameri (born 1956), Iranian-American businesswoman and former diploma, United States Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs (2008–2009) and under the United States Secretary General for Humanitarian Values and Diplomacy (2010–2012)
* Masoumeh Ebtekar (born 1960), diplomat, the Vice President of Iran for Women and Family Affairs since 2017, Vice President of Iran Head of Department of Environment (2013–2017), member of the City Council of Tehran (2007–2013); additionally former spokeswoman for the students in the Iran hostage crisis
* Shahla Habibi (1958–2017), Iran's Presidential Advisor on Women's Affairs from 1995 to 1999
* Fatemeh Haghighatjou (born 1968), former Member of Parliament of Iran (2000–2004)
* Fatemeh Javadi (born 1959), Vice President and Head of the Department of the Environment (2005–2009)
* Farah Karimi, Iranian-Dutch politician, member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands between 1998 and 2006
* Elaheh Koulaei (born 1956), former Member of Parliament (2000–2008) and professor of political sciences at Tehran University
* Azar Majedi, communist activist and politician
* Farrokhroo Parsa (1922–1980), physician, educator and parliamentarian in the Parliament of Iran (1963–1968), Minister of Education (1968–1971), the first female cabinet minister of an Iranian government.; executed in 1980, following the Iranian Revolution
* Nasrin Soltankhah (born 1963), politician, served as Vice President of Iran from 2009 to 2013, under Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
* Raumesh Akbari (born 1984), Iranian-American and Black politician and lawyer, Tennessee State Representative for District 91
* Nusrat Bhutto (1929–2011), former First Lady of Pakistan, 2nd chairperson of Pakistan People's Party
* Zohreh Tabatabai, diplomat and business coordinator, former chief of the "Focal Point for women for the United Nations system" in the United Nations and Director of Communications for the Director General's Cabinet for the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva
* Iranian women politicians

## Royalty

* Turan Amirsoleimani (1905–1995), third wife of Reza Shah
* Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiari (1932–2001), former queen; second wife of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
* Shahr-banu, princess; supposedly a daughter of Yazdegerd III, the last Sassanid emperor of Persia
* Boran (? – 632; also known as Purandokht), Sassanid crown princess and queen, daughter of Khosrow II
* Esmat Dowlatshahi (1905–1995), last wife of Reza Shah, a member of the Qajar dynasty
* Nur Jahan (1577–1645; also known as Mehr-un-Nissa), Empress; last wife of the Mughal emperor Jahangir
* Tadj ol-Molouk (1896–1982; also known as Nimtâj Âyromlu), Queen of Iran; wife of Reza Shah and mother to Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
* Ashraf Pahlavi (1919–2016; also known as Ashraf ol-Molouk Pahlavi), princess; twin sister of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
* Fatemeh Pahlavi (1928–1987), the tenth child of Reza Shah Pahlavi
* Farah Pahlavi (born 1938; also known as Farah Diba), Empress and third wife of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
* Hamdamsaltaneh Pahlavi (1903–1992), first child of Reza Shah of Iran and Maryam Savadkooh
* Leila Pahlavi (1970–2001), princess; youngest daughter of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Farah Pahlavi
* Shahnaz Pahlavi (born 1940), princess; first child of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Fawzia Fuad of Egypt
* Shams Pahlavi (1917–1996), eldest daughter of Reza Shah and Tadj ol-Molouk
* Parysatis, daughter of Artaxerxes I, Emperor of Persia and Andia of Babylon
* Shirin (? – 628 AD), Persian Queen, wife of the Sasanian Empire Shahanshah (English: the king of kings), Khosrow Parviz
* Stateira II (? – 323 BC; also known as Barsine), wife of Alexander the Great; daughter of Stateira I and Darius III of Persia
* Iranian women in royalty

## Activists

* Mahnaz Afkhami (born 1941), politician and human rights and women's rights activist, served in the Cabinet of Iran (1976–1978)
* Nazanin Afshin-Jam (born 1979), Iranian-Canadian human rights activist, author and public speaker, and former Miss World Canada
* Neda Agha-Soltan (1983–2009), shot during the 2009 Iranian election protests; her name quickly became a rallying cry for the opposition
* Shiva Nazar Ahari (born 1984), human rights activist, co-founder of Committee of Human Rights Reporters
* Bibi Khatoon Astarabadi (1858/9 – 1921), author and pioneer of the Persian women's movement in modern Iran
* Forough Azarakhshi (1904–1963), established the first elementary and secondary schools for girls in Mashhad, Iran
* Homa Darabi (born 1940–1994), political activist affiliated with the Nation Party of Iran; professor of child psychiatry, physician
* Parvin Darabi (born 1941), Iranian–American author and activist; speaking out against Iran's regime and Islam
* Sediqeh Dowlatabadi (1882–1961), feminist activist and journalist and one of the pioneering figures in the Persian women's movement
* Shirin Ebadi (born 1947), human rights lawyer and judge, 2003 Nobel Laureate
* Zahra Eshraghi (born 1964), feminist activist, the granddaughter of Ayatollah Khomeini.
* Parvaneh Eskandari (1939–1998), Dariush Forouhar's wife; murdered during the chain murders of Iran in November 1998.
* Roya Hakakian (born 1966), Iranian-Jewish human rights activist, poet, journalist and writer.
* Faezeh Hashemi (born 1963), journalist, women rights activist, and former member of Iranian parliament (1996–2000)
* Sheema Kalbasi (born 1972), human rights activist, author, poet, filmmaker
* Mehrangiz Kar (born 1944), human rights lawyer and Iranian dissident
* Zahra Kazemi, (1948–2003) Iranian-Canadian freelance photographer, slain political prisoner.
* Shahla Lahiji (born 1942), human rights activist, writer, publisher, translator
* Lily Mazahery (born 1972), Iranian-American disbarred lawyer, formerly a human rights activist.
* Narges Mohammadi (born 1972), human rights activist and Vice President of the Defenders of Human Rights Center.
* Maryam Namazie (born 1966), British–Iranian secularist, communist and human rights activist, commentator, and broadcaster; the leader of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain
* Marina Nemat (born 1965), Canadian–Iranian activist, past political prisoner and memoirist
* Maryam Rajavi (born 1953), President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran; leader of the People's Mujahedin of Iran
* Shadi Sadr (born 1974), lawyer, human rights advocate, essayist and journalist.
* Azadeh Shahshahani (born 1979), Iranian–American human rights lawyer and former president of the National Lawyers Guild
* Shahla Sherkat (born 1956), writer, publisher, editor; a pioneer of the women's movement in modern Iran
* Nasrin Sotoudeh (born 1963), human rights lawyer for opposition activists and politicians
* Badri Teymourtash (1908–1995), first female Iranian doctor; a founder of School of Dentistry, Mashad University; sister of Abdolhossein Teymourtash
* Rayehe Mozafarian (born 1986), women and children rights activist; the founder of Stop FGM Iran
* Iran Teymourtash (1914–1991), journalist and early activist; daughter of Abdolhossein Teymourtash

## Prisoners and detainees

* Fariba Adelkhah (born 1959), French-Iranian anthropologist, imprisoned for conspiring against national security.
* Zahra Bani Ameri (1980–2007), physician, died in a prison in Hamedan after being arrested for breaching modesty laws by sitting in a park with her fiancee.
* Zahra Amir Ebrahimi (born 1981), photographer, television actress, subject of a 2006 sex tape scandal in Iran
* Haleh Esfandiari (born 1940), Iranian-American scholar, former Director of the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, detainee
* Nazanin Fatehi (born 1987), controversially sentenced to death for murder
* Zeynab Jalaliyan (born 1982), Kurdish prisoner
* Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe (born 1978), British-Iranian imprisoned after being found guilty of "plotting to topple the Iranian government"

## Models and beauty pageant titleholders

* Nazanin Afshin-Jam (born 1979), Iranian-Canadian human rights activist, author and public speaker, and former Miss World Canada
* Ramona Amiri, Miss World Canada 2005, first runner up in Miss Universe Canada 2007 pageant
* Sahar Biniaz (born 1985), Miss Universe Canada 2012
* Aylar Lie (born 1984), Iranian-born Norwegian actress, model, singer, former pornographic actress
* Shermine Shahrivar (born 1982), Miss Germany in 2004 and then won the overall title of Miss Europe in 2005 while competing in France
* Samantha Tajik (born 1983), Miss Universe Canada 2008
* Hami Zaker, Miss Earth Iran 2021, first Iranian delegate in the Big Four international beauty pageants

## Others

* Atousa Pourkashiyan (born 1988), chess grandmaster
* Behnaz Mozakka, died in 7 July 2005 London bombings
* Effat Tejaratchi (1917–1999), first Iranian woman to fly an airplane
* Fateme Asadi (1960 – 1984), first Iranian 'martyr' women whose body was found during post-war explorations.
* Ladan and Laleh Bijani (1974–2003), conjoined twins
* Qudsiyyih Khanum Ashraf (1889–1976), Bahá'i teacher and midwife
* Raheleh Tahmasbi, women sea captain from Iran and West Asia.
* Sahar Khodayari (c.1990–2019), attempted to enter a sporting stadium disguised as a man in March 2019; she died by suicide
* Shadi Paridar (born 1986), chess grandmaster