Ayatollah

Ayatollah (Arabic: آية الله; Persian: آيت‌الله) is a high title given to major Shia clergymen. The word means 'sign of God', and those who carry the title are experts in Islamic sciences such as jurisprudence, ethics, philosophy and mysticism, and usually teach in schools (hawza) of Islamic sciences.

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The title is granted by consensus, rather than ceremonially: an esteemed imam who has earned the respect and admiration of a great following is approached by a congregant who addresses him as Ayatollah. Others pass on this event by word of mouth, and if people generally agree, then the imam is known henceforth as Ayatollah; and if not, people continue to address him as Imam.

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A handful of the most important Ayatollahs are accorded the title Grand Ayatollah (ayat ullahi 'l-`udhma), or Marja al-taqlid ("object of emulation"). There is usually only one Grand Ayatollah in Iraq and a few in Iran. There are six living Grand Ayatollahs: Ali Khamenei, Ali al-Sistani, Sayyid Ali, Kazem al-Haeri, Muhammad Fazel Lankarani and Mohammad Taqi al-Modarresi.

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When Western people say 'the Ayatollah', they usually mean Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who brought the word into the international limelight during the 1979 Iranian Revolution; a possible secondary meaning would be the term's use to indicate the serving Supreme Leader of Iran.

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