I. Persian Court, Officials, and Administration:;xNLx;;xNLx;Ahasuerus (Esther 1:1, and throughout): The Hebrew name for the Persian king, generally identified by historians as Xerxes I, who reigned from 486 to 465 BC. He was known for his vast empire and a major (though ultimately unsuccessful) invasion of Greece.;xNLx;Provinces (Esther 1:1, 3, 22; 2:3, 18; 3:8, 12-14; 4:3, 11, 16; 8:5, 9, 11-12, 17; 9:1-4, 12, 16, 18-20, 26, 28, 30): Administrative divisions of the Persian Empire, which stretched from India to Ethiopia (Cush). The empire was divided into numerous such regions, each often governed by a satrap or governor.;xNLx;Satrap (Not explicitly used in Esther ESV, but implied by "princes" and "governors" of provinces. The ESV uses "princes" or "governors" where other translations might use "satraps" for high-ranking provincial rulers, e.g., Esther 3:12, 8:9, 9:3): The governor of a major province (satrapy) in the Persian Empire. These officials wielded significant power in their respective territories.;xNLx;Princes / Nobles / Officials (e.g., Esther 1:3, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21; 2:2-4, 18; 3:1, 3, 12, 14; 4:11; 5:8, 11, 14; 6:9; 8:9, 13, 17; 9:3): High-ranking individuals in the Persian court and administration, including military leaders, advisors to the king, and governors of provinces. The "seven princes of Persia and Media" (Esther 1:14) were an elite group of counselors.;xNLx;Chamberlain / Eunuch (Hebrew: saris) (e.g., Esther 1:10, 12, 15; 2:3, 14-15, 21; 4:4-5; 6:2, 14; 7:9): Officials who served in the royal court, often in close attendance to the king or queen. While saris can specifically mean a castrated male, it was also used more broadly for court officials, some of whom held positions of great trust and responsibility, such as overseeing the king's harem or attending to the queen.;xNLx;Susa the citadel / Susa the capital (Esther 1:2, 5; 2:3, 5, 8; 3:15; 4:8, 16; 8:14-15; 9:6, 11-15, 18): One of the capital cities of the Persian Empire, where the main events of the Book of Esther take place. The "citadel" refers to the fortified administrative and royal complex within the city.;xNLx;Royal court / King's gate (e.g., Esther 1:2, 5, 9; 2:8, 11, 13, 19, 21; 3:2-3; 4:1-2, 6, 9, 11; 5:1-2, 9, 13; 6:4-5, 10, 12; 8:1, 7, 15): The palace complex where the king resided and conducted state affairs. The "king's gate" was likely a main entrance to this complex where officials gathered and business was transacted. Mordecai often sat at the king's gate.;xNLx;Decree / Edict / Law (Hebrew: dat - also a Persian loanword) (e.g., Esther 1:8, 13, 15, 19-20, 22; 2:8, 12; 3:8-9, 12-15; 4:3, 8, 11, 13, 16; 5:4 [implied by feast]; 7:3 [implied by request]; 8:5, 8, 10-14, 17; 9:1, 13-14, 20-22, 25, 27, 29, 31-32): An official order, proclamation, or law issued by the Persian king. A distinctive feature of Persian law mentioned in Esther is that a royal decree, once written and sealed with the king's ring, could not be revoked (Esther 1:19; 8:8).;xNLx;Letters / Dispatches (e.g., Esther 1:22; 3:12-13; 8:5, 8-10; 9:20, 23, 26, 29-30): Official written communications, often sealed with the king's signet ring, used to convey royal decrees and orders throughout the empire via a system of couriers.;xNLx;Signet ring (Esther 3:10, 12; 8:2, 8, 10): The king's personal seal, used to authenticate official documents and decrees, giving them the force of law. Ahasuerus gave his signet ring first to Haman and later to Mordecai.;xNLx;Scribes (Esther 3:12; 8:9): Royal officials responsible for writing and recording laws, decrees, and other official documents.;xNLx;Couriers / Posts (Esther 3:13, 15; 8:10, 14): Messengers, often on swift horses, who carried royal decrees and letters throughout the vast Persian Empire.;xNLx;Tribute (Esther 10:1): Payment or taxes levied by the Persian Empire on its subject peoples and provinces.;xNLx;Book of the Chronicles / Annals (of the kings of Media and Persia) (Esther 2:23; 6:1; 10:2): Official court records where notable events, royal acts, and important information were recorded. The king had these read to him, which played a crucial role in Mordecai's eventual honor.;xNLx;II. Social Customs, Items, and General Terms:;xNLx;;xNLx;Banquet / Feast (e.g., Esther 1:3, 5, 9; 2:18; 5:4-8, 12, 14; 6:14; 7:1-2, 7-8; 8:17; 9:17-19, 21-22): Elaborate and often lengthy meals with drinking, a common feature of Persian court life and social celebrations. The book opens with a series of grand banquets hosted by Ahasuerus. Esther also uses banquets strategically.;xNLx;Harem / House of the women (Esther 2:3, 8-9, 11, 13-14): The secluded part of the royal palace where the king's wives and concubines lived, often under the supervision of eunuchs.;xNLx;Myrrh / Spices / Ointments / Cosmetics (Esther 2:12): Aromatic substances used for purification, beautification, and anointing, particularly in the extensive beauty treatments for the women chosen for the king's harem.;xNLx;Royal crown / Royal robes (e.g., Esther 1:11; 2:17; 5:1; 6:8-9, 11; 8:15): Symbols of kingship and royal status.;xNLx;Sackcloth and ashes (Esther 4:1-3): Traditional signs of mourning, grief, repentance, or deep distress. Mordecai and the Jews throughout the empire donned sackcloth and ashes upon hearing Haman's decree.;xNLx;Fast / Fasting (Esther 4:3, 16; 9:31): Abstaining from food (and sometimes drink) for a period, usually for religious reasons such as mourning, seeking divine intervention, or repentance. Esther called for a three-day fast before she approached the king.;xNLx;Lots (Hebrew: pur) (Esther 3:7; 9:24, 26): Objects (perhaps dice or stones) cast to make a decision by apparent chance, though often believed to be divinely guided or to reveal fate. Haman cast the pur to determine the day for the destruction of the Jews. The festival of Purim gets its name from this.;xNLx;Purim (Esther 9:26-32): The annual Jewish festival established to commemorate the deliverance of the Jewish people from Haman's plot to exterminate them in the Persian Empire. Its name comes from the word pur (lot).;xNLx;Gallows / Stake / Pole (Hebrew: ets - literally "tree" or "wood") (Esther 2:23; 5:14; 6:4; 7:9-10; 8:7; 9:13, 25): An instrument of execution. Haman prepared a high gallows/stake for Mordecai but was himself hanged on it.;xNLx;Agagite (Esther 3:1, 10; 8:3, 5; 9:24): The designation of Haman, likely indicating he was a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites (an ancient enemy of Israel, notably opposed by King Saul, an ancestor of Mordecai from the tribe of Benjamin). This ancestral animosity may have fueled Haman's hatred.;xNLx;Diaspora / Exile (Implied by the setting of the Jewish community in Persia): The dispersion of Jewish people living outside of the land of Israel. The Book of Esther is set entirely within the Jewish diaspora in Persia.;xNLx;Sponsor / Guardian (Mordecai for Esther) (Esther 2:7, 10-11, 15, 20): Mordecai took his orphaned cousin Esther (Hadassah) and raised her as his own daughter.;xNLx;Beauty treatments / Purification (Esther 2:3, 9, 12): The elaborate, lengthy process of cosmetic and aromatic treatments that women underwent before being presented to the Persian king.;xNLx;To perish / Be destroyed / Be annihilated (Esther 3:6, 9, 13; 4:7-8, 13-14, 16; 7:4; 8:5-6, 11; 9:5-6, 12, 16, 24): Central terms describing Haman's genocidal intent against the Jewish people and the potential fate from which they were delivered.;xNLx;This list covers many of the culturally specific and narratively important terms in the Book of Esther (ESV). Understanding these will aid in appreciating the historical setting, the intricacies of the plot, and the overarching themes of divine providence (though God is not explicitly named in the book), courage, and the survival of the Jewish people.