Bazaar is the Farsi word for “market”. However, visitors to Iran may be surprised to discover that the bazaar is more than just a place for shopping- it is the commercial centre of each city or town, and the Tehran bazaar is the trading hub of the country.

A bazaar is like a city within a city. A typical Iranian bazaar consists of many small shops and businesses within a sheltered, enclosed area. It usually includes a mosque and perhaps even a school, a post office, public baths, banks, and restaurants. Bazaars have a unique banking system which operates on the basis of reputation. Many of the shops in large bazaars are bases for major import, export, and manufacturing businesses, with storage facilities all over Iran.

In hot, central Iran, most bazaars are located underground, down a flight of stairs. Entering one is like walking into a vast maze. Beyond the gateway, the paths seem to go on forever. Each shop is filled with wares of some sort: traditional crafts; locally grown spices and dried peas, beans, and lentils; and imported toys, clothes, and kitchenware.

The bazaar merchants of Iran have strong family, social, and business ties with the country's religious leaders and helped overthrow the monarchy of Iran by withdrawing their political and commercial support. The Tahran bazaar generates over half of all retail trade activity in the country and brings in a third of Iran's imported goods.