Illustration of sāndīses found at www.razavi-canning.com

The reason this word was in the news this past week as that such fruit drinks were distributed at pro-government events. Green Movement adherents disparagingly referred to those who turned out at rallies in support of the government as ساندیسخوران (sāndīskhūrān) or “fruit juice drinkers,” the implication being that the government had bought their support for the price of a few fruit drinks.

I haven’t yet learned the etymology of sāndīs, though I suspect it may be a trade name that has become generic. The sāndīses shown in the illustration above are marketed under the label taqdīs (blessing).