When I was in New York a couple of weeks ago, my brother-in-law Fathali mentioned an interesting historical fact (he's a walking encyclopaedia of information about Iranian heritage). Do you know the origin of the "parting shot" he asked. I had no idea. He said it comes from the "Parthian shot" -- a unique method used by ancient Iranian warriors to shoot arrows in battle.

Here's a description I found online: "That derivation of 'parting shot' appears to be very simple and straightforward. Not so fast; enter the Parthians and their 'Parthian shots'. The Parthians were an ancient race who lived in north-east Persia. They were renowned archers and horsemen and were known for their practice of confusing the enemy by pretending to flee and firing arrows backwards while retreating - not the easiest thing to do on a galloping horse."