Majlise

Majlise, also spelled majlis, majles, or meclis, is a term used across Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Turkic languages to denote an assembly, council, or gathering. The root majlis comes from Arabic and literally means “place of sitting,” but it is widely used to refer to formal or informal assemblies and deliberative bodies. In political contexts, majlis names are used for legislative or consultative bodies and for formal meetings. The form and spelling vary by language: in Persian and Arabic contexts majlis or majles is common; in Turkish-influenced orthography meclis is used; and in Azerbaijani and other Turkic languages variants such as məclis or meclis appear in transliterations.

Notable uses include Iran’s parliament, the Islamic Consultative Assembly, often transliterated as Majles-e Shoraye Eslami; Saudi Arabia’s Majlis ash-Shura, the Shura Council; and Azerbaijan’s Milli Məclis. In social and cultural contexts, a majlis also refers to a traditional sitting room or reception area where guests are hosted, and to formal ceremonial gatherings.

The word’s broad meaning—assembly, council, or meeting—appears in many country names and institutions, reflecting its longstanding role in governance and social life across the region. Related terms in different languages include majlis, meclis, and məclis, each bearing a similar core sense of an official or communal gathering.