List of Zoroastrians

This is a list of Zoroastrians with a Wikipedia article.

From Greater Iran

• Cyrus the Great, (Old Persian: 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 Kūruš; Kourosh; New Persian: کوروش Kuruš; Hebrew: כורש, Modern: Kōréš, Tiberian: Kōréš; c. 600–530 BC) : commonly known as Cyrus the Great, and also called Cyrus the Elder by the Greeks, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian Empire. Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Western Asia and much of Central Asia
• Darius the Great, (Old Persian: Dārayava(h)uš, New Persian: داریوش Dāryuš; Hebrew: דָּרְיָוֶשׁ, Modern: Darəyaveš, Tiberian: Dāryāwéš; c. 550–486 BCE) : was the fourth Persian king of the Achaemenid Empire
• Farhang Mehr, (1923-2018): former Deputy Prime Minister of Iran
• Arden Pala, (born 1923): famed pianist, writer, actor, traveler, martial arts enthusiast and budding inventor. He started acting when he was 6 years old.
• Jamshid Bahman Jamshidian, (1851–1933): pioneer of modern banking in Iran
• Keikhosrow Shahrokh, (1864–1929): proponent of the Iranian civil calendar and designer of the Ferdowsi mausoleum
• Xerxes I, (/ˈzɜːrksiːz/; Old Persian: 𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠 Xšayaṛša (About this soundKhshāyarsha (help·info)) "ruling over heroes",Greek Ξέρξης Xérxēs [ksérksɛːs]; 519–465 BC): called Xerxes the Great, was the fifth king of kings of the Achaemenid dynasty of Persia

From The Indian Subcontinent

In science and industry

• Aban Pestonjee: Sri Lankan entrepreneur
• Adi Bulsara (born 1952): physicist
• Adi Kanga (1923–2013): Indian Civil engineer, planned city of Navi Mumbai and Vashi bridge
• Ardaseer Cursetjee (1808–1877) of the Wadia shipbuilding family: first Indian elected Fellow of the Royal Society
• Ardeshir Darabshaw Shroff (1899–1965): Indian economist; delegate at the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference; co-author of the Bombay Plan; founder-director of the Investment Corporation of India; first Indian chairman of the Bank of India
• Ardeshir Godrej (1868–1936): Indian inventor; co-founder (with his brother Piroj) of the Godrej industrial empire
• Avabai Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy (b. c. 1793) Lady: continued her husband Sir Jamsetji Jeejeebhoy philanthropic work; builder of Mahim Causeway, connects two islands of Bombay and Salsette (north Bombay)
• Byram Dinshawji Avari (born 1942): Pakistan hotelier; founder and chairman of the Avari Group of companies
• Zubin Damania (born 1973), physician, comedian, internet personality, musician, and founder of Turntable Health
• Byramjee Jeejeebhoy (1822–1890) Esq., CSI: Indian philanthropist and founder of B.J. Medical College, Pune
• Cowasjee Jehangir, Sir (1879–1962): Indian civil engineer; master constructor of Bombay
• Cowasji Shavaksha Dinshaw (Adenwalla) (1827–1900): Indian entrepreneur
• Cowasji Jehangir Readymoney Sir, (1812–1878): 1st Baronet, philanthropist, including various academic buildings of the Bombay University
• Cyrus Chothia (1942–2019): molecular biologist
• Cyrus Pallonji Mistry (born 1968): former chairman of Tata Group; Irish citizen businessman
• Cyrus Poonawalla (born 1945): Indian Industrialist, pharmacologist; co-founder of the Serum Institute of India
• Dhunjibhoy Bomanji, Sir (1862 – 1937): Indian Shipping Magnate, philanthropist
• Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, Sir (1823–1901): founded the first textile factories in India
• Dorabji Tata, Sir (1859–1932): Indian industrialist and philanthropist, Sir Dorab Tata Trust
• Fardunjee Marzban (1787–1847): publisher, founded the first vernacular newspaper on the Indian subcontinent Bombay Samachar
• Feroze Gandhi (1912 - 1960) publisher of The National Herald and The Navjivan newspapers and husband of Indira Gandhi Prime Minister of India
• Framji Cowasji Banaji, Esq (1767 - 12 February 1851): merchant, philanthropist, lease holder of Powai
• Homi Jehangir Bhabha (1909–1966): nuclear scientist and first chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Commission
• Homi Maneck Mehta, Sir (1871–1948): industrialist in textiles, insurance, banking, chemicals & sugar. Represented India at League of Nations, Chairman of Bombay War Gift Fund and President of Victory Thanksgiving Fund.
• Homi Nusserwanji Sethna (1923–2010): Padma Vibhushan awardee, chemical engineer; guided the development of India's first nuclear explosive device
• Sir Hormusjee Naorojee Mody (1838–1911): financier and industrialist in Hong Kong. He contributed $150,000 to help establish the University of Hong Kong.
• Sir Temulji Bhicaji Nariman (1848–1940): obstetrician. Co-founded one of Bombay's first Lying-in hospitals in 1887 and was knighted in 1914 for his work during the plague epidemic in India at the turn of the 19th century.
• Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy (J. R. D.) Tata (1904–1993): industrialist; founder of Air India, India's first commercial airline
• Jamsetji Jeejeebhoy, Sir (1783–1859): opened sea trade with China; philanthropist, J J Hospital,
• Jamsetji Tata (1839–1904): industrialist; founder of the Tata Group of companies, titled a "One-Man Planning Commission" by Jawaharlal Nehru
• Jehangir Ghandy, Sir (1896–1972): built Tata Steel at Jamshedpur
• Jehangir Hormusjee Ruttonjee (1880–1960): industrialist; founded Hong Kong's first brewery; established the first anti-tuberculosis sanatorium in the Andajat
• John Abraham A well known Actor in Bollywood who acted in many films
• Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia (1702–1774): shipwright and naval architect; builder of the first dry-dock in Asia
• Nadirshaw Edulji Dinshaw (18??–1924?): industrialist and philanthropist; NED Engineering College
• Nariman Mehta (1920-2014): organic chemist and inventor of bupropion, the most commonly used antidepressant drug
• Nergis Mavalvala (b. 1968): astrophysicist and professor at MIT
• Neville Wadia (1911-1996): businessman and son-in-law of Muhammad Ali Jinnah
• Nusli Wadia (b. 1944): chairman of the Wadia Group
• Ness Wadia (born 1972): joint-managing director of Bombay Dyeing
• Noshir Gowadia (b. 1944): aircraft engineer and convicted spy
• Nowroji Saklatwala (1875-1938): Chairman of Tata group of companies from 1932 until death by heart attack in 1938
• Pallonji Mistry (born 1929): construction tycoon
• Pirojsha Burjorji Godrej (1882–1972): entrepreneur; co-founder (with his brother Ardeshir) of the Godrej industrial empire
• Ratan Tata (born 1937): chairman emeritus of Tata Sons; former chairman of the Tata Group of companies; member of the central board of the Reserve Bank of India
• Russi Mody (1918-2014): former Chairman and Managing Director of Tata Steel Limited; son of Sir Homi Mody and brother of Piloo Mody
• Rustom Jal Vakil (1911–1974): cardiologist
• Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (1856–1926): a noted chairperson of Tata Group and Tata Sons; father of J. R. D. Tata
• Sir Sorabji Nusserwanji Pochkhanawala (1881–1937): banker, co-founder of the Central Bank of India
• Shiraz Minwalla (born 1973): theoretical physicist, String theorist
• Spenta R. Wadia (b. 1950): theoretical physicist
• Ratan Tata (1871–1918), Sir: younger son of Jamsetji Tata; industrialist and philanthropist; Sir Ratan Tata Trust
• Villoo Morawala-Patell (b.1955), MD of Avesthagen: Officer of the National Order of Merit holder

In academia

• Kaikhosrov D. Irani (1922–2017): former protégé of Albert Einstein; emeritus professor of Philosophy of Science at the City College of New York
• Homi K. Bhabha (born 1949): cultural-studies theorist; Professor, Harvard University
• Jamshed Bharucha (born 1956): President, Cooper Union. Formerly, Dean of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences at Dartmouth College (first Indian American to serve as the dean of a school at an Ivy League institution)
• Mahzarin Banaji (b. 1956): Professor of Psychology, Harvard University
• Noshir Contractor (born 1959): Award-winning Professor of Behavioral Sciences, Communication and Management at Northwestern University
• Rusi Taleyarkhan: Professor of Nuclear Engineering at Purdue University
• Rohinton Kamakaka: Professor of Molecular Cell Developmental biology at University of California, Santa Cruz
• Thrity Umrigar (born 1961): Armitage Professor of English at Case Western Reserve University
• N. H. Wadia (1925–2016): Prominent neurologist; Director of Neurology at Grant Medical College and Sir J. J. Group of Hospitals for 25 years
• Vistasp Karbhari: President, University of Texas at Arlington

Military

• Lieutenant General FN Billimoria (1933–2005): Former Indian Army officer and head of Wellington Cantonment, father of Indo-British entrepreneur Karan Bilimoria, Lord Bilimoria
• Admiral Jal Cursetji (1919–1991): Former Chief of the Naval Staff, Indian Navy
• Air Marshal Aspy Engineer (1912–2002): Former Chief of the Air Staff, Indian Air Force
• Air Marshal Minoo Merwan Engineer (1921–1997): Former Indian Air Force AOC-in-Chief of Eastern and Western Air Commands
• Vice Admiral Rustom K. S. Ghandhi (1924–2014): Indian Navy Commander-in-Chief, Western Naval Command and former Aide-de-camp to Governor-General of India Lord Louis Mountbatten
• Kavasji Jamshedji Petigara (1877–1941): First Indian Deputy Commissioner of the Mumbai Police
• Lieutenant General Adi M. Sethna (d. 2006): Former Vice Chief of the Army Staff, Indian Army
• J. P. B. Jeejeebhoy (1891–1950), first Indian pilot in the Royal Flying Corps
• Lieutenant Colonel Ardeshir Tarapore (1923–1965):, Indian Army officer and commanding officer of the Poona Horse, winner of the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest award for gallantry
• Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major (born 1947): Former Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force
• Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw (1914–2008): Former Indian Chief of Army Staff and the first Indian with the rank of Field Marshal
• Major General Cyrus Addie Pithawalla (b. 1957): Recipient of the Ashoka Chakra

In entertainment, religion, sports

• Aban Marker Kabraji (born 1953): Pakistani ecologist, Asian regional director of IUCN
• Amyra Dastur (born 1993): model, film actress, television presenter

• Aneela Mirza, or Anila Mirza (born 8 October 1974), Danish singer who has found success as a member of the pop group Toy-Box and as a solo artist under the name of Aneela
• Ardeshir Cowasjee (1926–2012): investigative journalist and newspaper columnist
• Aruna Irani (born 18 August 1946), Bollywood actress and dancer
• Bapsi Sidhwa (born 1938): author and screenwriter; vocal proponent of women's rights
• Behram "Busybee" Contractor (1930–2001): journalist and columnist
• Behramji Malabari (1853–1912): poet, publicist, author, and social reformer
• Bejan Daruwalla (born 1931): astrologer
• Burjor Khurshedji Karanjia (1919–2012): Indian film journalist and editor, chairman NFDC
• Cyrus Broacha (born 1971): MTV India VJ and stand-up comedian
• Cyrus Poncha (born 1976): Asian Squash Federation Junior Coach of the Year 2003–04
• Deena M. Mistri (1924–2011): author and educationalist; recipient of Pakistan's "Pride of Performance" medal
• Diana Eduljee (born 1956): first captain of the Indian women's Cricket team – from 1978 till 1993
• Diana Penty (born 1985): Actress and model
• Dinyar Contractor: Parsi stage actor, Comedian and Bollywood actor
• Dolly Nazir: wife of Rashid Byramji. competed 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
• Erick Avari (born 1952): Hollywood actor.
• Farokh Engineer (born 1938): cricketer.
• Farrukh Dhondy (born 1944): novelist, short story writer, screenwriter, journalist.
• Firdaus Kanga (born 1960): author, actor and screenwriter.
• Freddie Mercury (Farrokh Bulsara, 1946–1991): rock icon and lead singer for Queen.
• Fredoon Kabraji (1897–1986): poet, writer, journalist, and artist writing in English.
• Gary Lawyer: singer
• Godrej Sidhwa (born 1925): theologian and historian.
• Goshpi Avari (born 19??): first Pakistani woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Games.
• Homai Vyarawalla (1913–2012): India's first woman photojournalist, Padma Vibhushan.
• Homi Adajania (born 1972): Film Director, Writer and Scuba Diving Instructor
• Jim Sarbh (born 1987): Actor on film, stage and television.
• Jivanji Jamshedji Modi Sir: Zoroastrian scholar, Ph.D from Heidelberg, Germany, recognition and awards, for scholarship, from Sweden, France, and Hungary.
• Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji (1892–1988): composer, music critic, pianist, and writer.
• Kaizad Gustad (born 1968): film director.
• Karl Umrigar (1960–1979): Indian jockey
• Keki Daruwalla (born 1937): poet and writer
• Maneckji Nusserwanji Dhalla (1875–1956): high priest and religious scholar.
• Mehli Mehta (1908–2002): musician; founder of the Bombay Philharmonic and Bombay String Orchestras.
• Mehr Jesia Indian model
• Nariman "Nari" Contractor (born 1934): cricketer; coach at the CCI Academy.
• Nauheed Cyrusi (born 1982): model, film actress, television presenter
• Nazneen Contractor (born 1982): film actress
• Nina Wadia (born 1968): British-Indian comedian and television actress, currently and most notably from EastEnders.
• Perizaad Zorabian (born 1973): model, film actress
• Persis Khambatta (1950–1998): actress and model. Miss India in 1965.
• Phiroz Mehta (1902–1994): writer on religious topics and philosopher.
• Pahlan Ratanji "Polly" Umrigar (1926–2006): cricketer.
• Rachel Viccaji Pakistani singer and musician.
• Rashid Byramji Horse trainer
• Rohinton Mistry (born 1952): novelist, short story author, screenplay writer.
• Rustom Khurshedji Karanjia (1912–2008): journalist & editor, founder of India's first tabloid, Blitz.
• Sanaya Irani (born 1983): Indian Actress
• Sanaya Pithawalla: Actress, TV personality.
• Sam Dastor (born 1941): television actor and director.
• Shapur Kharegat (1932–2000): journalist, editor and director of The Economist (Asia).
• Shiamak Davar: Bollywood choreographer
• Sohrab Modi (1897–1984): stage and film actor, director and producer.
• Sooni Taraporevala (born 1957): screenwriter, author and photographer.
• Tara Sutaria (born 1995) : Actress.
• Varun Toorkey (born 1990): television and film actor.
• Viraf Phiroz Patel (born 1980): The Grasim Mr. India 2005, model turned actor
• Zarin Mehta (born 1938): musician; executive director of the New York Philharmonic since 2000
• Zarnak Sidhwa (born 1972): Pakistani Chef with a TV show on Masala TV.
• Zerbanoo Gifford (born 1950): human rights campaigner
• Zoe Viccaji (b. 1983): Pakistani singer and musician
• Zubin Mehta (born 1936): musician; Musical Director for Life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, former director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic and Bavarian State Opera.
• Zubin Surkari (born 1980): Canadian international cricketer.
• Zubin Varla (born 1970): stage actor.

Politicians, activists and bureaucrats

• B. P. Wadia (1881–1958), Indian theosophist and labour activist. Pioneered the creation of workers unions in India.
• Cowasji Jehangir (Readymoney) (1812–1878): J.P.; introduced income tax in India; first baronet of Bombay.
• Frene Ginwala (born 1932): member of the ANC and aided Nelson Mandela in abolishing apartheid in South Africa. Later served for 7 years as Speaker Of the House of Parliament in South Africa
• Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta (1886–1952): former Mayor of Karachi for 12 consecutive years.
• Jamsheed Marker (1922–2018): Pakistani diplomat, ambassador to more countries than any other person; recipient of Hilal-i Imtiaz.
• Justice Dorab Patel (1924–1997): former Chief Justice of Sindh High Court, former Justice of Supreme Court of Pakistan and human rights campaigner.
• K. N. Choksy (1933–2015): Minister of Finance of Sri Lanka
• Mancherjee Bhownagree (1851–1933): politician, second Asian to be elected to the House of Commons (Conservative).
• Minocher Bhandara (1937?–2008): Pakistani parliamentarian and owner of Muree Brewery.
• Minoo Masani (1905–1998): author, parliamentarian and a member of the Constituent Assembly.
• Piloo Mody (1926–1983): architect, parliamentarian, one of the founder-members of the Swatantra Party.
• Rustam S. Sidhwa (1927–1997): judge on the Supreme Court of Pakistan as well as one of the original eleven judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
• Sanjay Gandhi (1946–1980): the younger son of Indira Gandhi and Feroz Gandhi, who followed his father's Parsi religion throughout his life.
• Shapurji Saklatvala (1874–1936): socialist, workers' welfare activist, third Asian to be elected to the House of Commons (Communist, Labour).
• Zerbanoo Gifford (born 1950): author and founder of the ASHA Centre made political history being elected as the first non-white woman for the Liberal Party in 1982.

Indian independence movement

• Bhikaiji Cama (1861–1936): political activist, co-creator of the Indian nationalist flag.
• Dadabhai Naoroji (1825–1917): economist, political activist, first Asian to be elected to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom (Liberal), first to publicly demand independence for India.
• Feroze Gandhi (1912–1960): journalist and politician; Indian MP under his father-in-law Jawaharlal Nehru; husband of Indira Gandhi, father of Rajiv Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi, and grandfather of Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and Varun Gandhi.
• Khurshed Framji Nariman (18??–19??): social activist, Mayor of Bombay. Member of the Indian National Congress.
• Pherozeshah Mehta, Sir (1845–1915): political activist, co-founder and a President of the Indian National Congress, founder of the Bombay Municipal Corporation

Law

• Fali Sam Nariman (born 1929): jurist, recipient of the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan
• Nanabhoy ("Nani") Palkhivala (1920–2002): prominent jurist and economist
• S. H. Kapadia (1947–2016): 38th Chief Justice of India
• Sam Piroj Bharucha (born 1937): Chief Justice of India
• Soli Jehangir Sorabjee (born 1930): former Attorney-General of India
• Hormasji Maneckji Seervai (1906–1996): eminent Indian jurist
• T. R. Andhyarujina (1933–2017): senior advocate
• Cornelia Sorabji (1866–1954): first female graduate of Bombay University, first female to read law at Oxford University and first woman to practice law in India and Britain
• Rohinton Fali Nariman (b. 1956): Judge, Supreme Court of India; Delhi University; Harvard University
• Shiavax Jal Vazifdar (b. 1956): Chief Justice, Punjab and Haryana High Court
• Karl Jamshed Khandalavala (1904–1995): the defence lawyer of KM Nanavati in the case of K. M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra
• Neomi Rao (b. 1973): Circuit Judge of United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, former Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (converted to Judaism)

Others

• Bhicaji Balsara (1872–1962): first Indian to become a naturalized US Citizen
• Bukhtyar Rustomji (1899–1936): Mumbai-born Lancaster doctor executed for murdering his wife and a maid
• Dossabhoy Muncherji Raja (1873–1947): first Indian to be appointed appraiser of precious stones to British Indian customs. Awarded the title of Khan Sahib
• Lady Frainy Dhunjibhoy Bomanji (14 September 1893 - 1986): Lady Harrogate, philanthropist, Honorary Freemanship of the Borough in 1984
• Jimmy Bharucha (d. 2005): Sri Lankan broadcaster
• Keiki R. Mehta: ophthalmologist and Padma Shri awardee
• Rattanbai Petit (1900–1929): second wife of Muhammad Ali Jinnah
• Goshpi Avari: Asian Games gold-medalist and Pride of Performance honorary
• Jehangir Hormasji Kothari (1857–1934): philanthropist and world traveller.

In arts

• Fredoon Kabraji (1897–1986): poet
• Hormazd Narielwalla (born 1979): collage artist and author, based in London
• Jehangir Sabavala (1922–2011): painter
• Karl Keki Singporewala (born 1983): architect & sculptor
• Shirin Darasha (1938–2012): playwright

Fictional characters

• The Cake "Parsee" (colloquial British spelling of Parsi) in "How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin", a chapter in Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Kipling names him as Pestonjee Bomonjee in the illustration accompanying the story.

See also

• Irani
• List of Zoroastrians

References

Ratan Tata : Ratan Naval Tata is an Indian industrialist, philanthropist, and a former chairman of Tata Sons.

References