Persian/Print version

From Wikibooks, the open-content textbooks collection

Jump to: navigation, search


Nuvola apps bookcase.svg

This is the print version of Persian
You won't see this message or any elements not part of the book's content when you print or preview this page.


Infobox/Persian
Persian/Print version
Hafez-8.JPG
زبان فارسی
Welcome to the Persian Language Wikibook!
Click to Continue to Contents
Wikibooks-logo.svg

Persian/Print version edition of Wikibooks.
Wikipedia-logo.png

Wikipedia has related information at
Persian
Document-print.svg

A printable version of Persian is available. (edit it)
Wiktionary-logo-en.png

See Persian on Wiktionary
II This is a Category II Language.

Not a book title page. Please remove {{alphabetical}} from this page.

[edit] Contents

Louvre lion gate DSC00914.jpg


Persian Language


[edit] Cover

[edit] Contents

[edit] Appendices

[edit] Development

[edit] Introduction

Introduction


[edit] The Persian Language

Persian (local names: Parsi, Farsi or Dari ) is an Indo-European language, the dominant language of the Indo-Iranian language family and is a major language of antiquity. After the 7th century Persian absorbed a great deal of Arabic vocabulary. Persian is the official language of Iran, Afghanistan (Farsi-e-Dari) and Tajikistan (Farsi-e-Tajiki) along with a sizable number of overseas Persian speakers in Western countries. Persian is also a popular language in academia and business. Related languages include Pashto , Kurdish, Ossetian and Balochi. Additionally both Urdu and Turkish have a sizable vocabulary from Persian.

the distribution of Iranian languages

[edit] Persian or Farsi?

Farsi is an Arabized form of the word Parsi, one of the original names in Persian for the Persian language. Since there is no "p" sound in Arabic, Parsi became Farsi after the Arab conquest of Persia. Farsi then became the name of Persian in that language, whilst Europeans still knew the language as "Persian". Therefore there is a strong body of opposition to using the name Parsi which is the name of Persian in Persian, just as we do not call German Deutsch or Chinese Hanyu in English. Furthermore, some fear this usage could result in a seperation between the well-respected Persian culture and heritage and its language in the Western world. Using the word Farsi as the English equivalent of the word Persian has been officially banned by the Academy of Persian language and literature, which is an international body responsible for preserving the beauty of Persian and supporting the development of the language.

[edit] Persian and English

Since Persian and English are both members of the Indo-European language family many basic words will already be familiar to the learner. For example "madar" (Mother), "pedar" (Father) and "baradar" (brother).

[edit] Pronunciation

Persian is an Indo-European language as is English and, although it is influenced by Arabic, English speakers should not find it too difficult to pronounce Persian letters fairly well. Thankfully the glottal 'ayn of Arabic is barely pronounced in Persian. The difficult Arabic letter dh is pronounced "z" in Persian.

It is important to listen to Persian as often as possible and to try to take every available opportunity to use the language. Pronunciation guides can only closely convey the sounds of Persian but are never totally exact, therefore good pronunciation needs to be learnt from listening to native speakers.

[edit] Vocabulary and Grammar

In learning to read or speak any language that you have minimal acquaintance with (that is, are not a native speaker of), the two aspects to be mastered are vocabulary and grammar. Acquiring vocabulary is a "simple" matter of memorization. For the language(s) we learn as children, this process is so transparent that we have trouble conceiving of the importance of having a large vocabulary. By the age of conscious recognition of our communicating with others through speech, we have already learned the meaning of thousands of words. Even words we have trouble defining, we readily understand the use of in conversation. This process can be "reactivated" as it were, by immersion in a second language: a method of learning a new language by moving to a place where that language is spoken and having to get around and live without use of one's native tongue.

Without the opportunity of residing in a Persian-speaking area, the student of the language must make a substantial effort to learn words, what they mean, how to pronounce them, and how they are used in sentences. Be sure to "learn" and commit to memory all of the vocabulary words in each lesson as they are presented. Early lessons have simple sentences because it is assumed that the student's vocabulary is limited. But throughout the text, more complex discourses (often as photo captions) are included to introduce the student to regular Persian in use. It may be helpful to translate these using a Persian-English dictionary (access to one is very helpful). Other sources of Persian, such as newspapers, magazines, web sites, etc. can also be useful in building vocabulary and developing a sense of how Persian is put together.

[edit] Transcription

This book uses transcription in the latin alphabet throughout. There is no one official system of transcription for Persian, so the learner may experience different forms of transcription.

[edit] Wider Sources

With the growth of the Internet there is now a wide variety of sources available to the learner which can aid you in your study. You can refer to the appendix of this book for a selection of some of the best sources:

Websites

[edit] The Alphabet

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.


[edit] The Perso-Arabic Alphabet: Alefba الفبا

Persian is written using the Arabic alphabet, and the name of which is the "Alefba" which is the equivalent of the English "ABC". It has six vowels and 23 consonants, and is a modified version of the Arabic alphabet, with four extra Persian letters to represent sounds which do not exist in Arabic.

Name Isolated Initial Middle End Pronunciation
Alef ا — ﺎ a as in cat, â as in father, o as in on or e as in well
Be ﺏ ﺑ ﺒ ﺐ b as in "big"
Pe ﭖ ﭘ ﭙ ﭗ p as in park
Te ﺕ ﺗ ﺘ ﺖ t as in "tea"
Se ﺙ ﺛ ﺜ ﺚ s as in salad
Jim ﺝ ﺟ ﺠ ﺞ J as in jade
Che ﭺ ﭼ ﭽ ﭻ ch as in cheese
He ﺡ ﺣ ﺤ ﺢ h as in house
Khe ﺥ ﺧ ﺨ ﺦ ch as in "Bach or "Loch"
Dâl ﺩ — ﺪ d as in dog
Zâl ﺫ — ﺬ z as in zoo
Re ﺭ — ﺮ r as in rain
Ze ﺯ — ﺰ z as in zoo
Zhe ﮊ — ﮋ j as in mirage or French je
Sin ﺱ ﺳ ﺴ ﺲ s as in sand
Shin ﺵ ﺷ ﺸ ﺶ sh as in sugar
Sâd ﺹ ﺻ ﺼ ﺺ s as in sand
Zâd ﺽ ﺿ ﻀ ﺾ z as in zoo
Tâ ﻁ ﻃ ﻄ ﻂ t as in tiger
Zâ ﻅ ﻇ ﻈ ﻆ z as in zoo
Eyn ﻉ ﻋ ﻌ ﻊ a as in cat
Gheyn ﻍ ﻏ ﻐ ﻎ gr as grin
Fe ﻑ ﻓ ﻔ ﻒ f as in France
Qâf ﻕ ﻗ ﻘ ﻖ gr as in
Kâf ک ﻛ ﻜ ک k as in kid
Gâf ﮒ ﮔ ﮕ ﮓ g as in golf
Lâm ﻝ ﻟ ﻠ ﻞ l as in love
Mim ﻡ ﻣ ﻤ ﻢ m as in music
Nun ﻥ ﻧ ﻨ ﻦ n as in new
Vâv ﻭ — ﻮ a, u, o and v as in
He ﻩ ﻫ ﻬ ﻪ h as in horse
Ye ى ﻳ ﻴ ى y as in year

[edit] Extra Symbols

Name Isolated Initial Middle End Pronunciation
Hamze ء
Alef hamze أ
Vâv hamze ؤ
Alef Tanvin اً
Tashdid ً
Short "a" ـَ
Short "o" ـُ
Short "e" ـِ

[edit] Transcription

The following system is used as a guide to pronunciation in this book:

  ا ب پ ت ث ج چ ح خ د ذ ر ز ژ س ش
Name alef be pe te se jim che he khe dâl zâl re ze zhe sin shin
Wikipedia â (') b p t s j ch h kh d z r z zh s sh


  ص ض ط ظ ع غ ف ق ک گ ل م ن و ه ى
Name sâd zâd tâ zâ eyn gheyn fe qâf kâf gāf lâm mim nun vâv he ye
Wikipedia s z t z (') gh f gh k g l m n u, w h i, y

[edit] Pronunciation

Most letters in this system of transcription can be pronounced like their English equivalents, but some deserve special attention:

  • â (letter: ا ) is a longer and deeper sound than the short a, and resembles the long "a" in "father" or "war". This sound must be distinguished clearly from a short "a" (as in "cat").
  • zh (letter: ژ ) sounds as the g in "mirage", or if you know French, the "j" in "je".
  • kh (letter: خ ) is similar to the "ch" in "Bach" but pronounced low in the throat.
  • r (letter: ر ) is similar to an "r" in English (excluding the heavier "r" of American English), and is often rolled like a Spanish "r".

[edit] Differing Systems of Transcription

There are several different systems of transcription in use for Persian, and no one official system. This can cause difficulties when more than one textbook is consulted, and may lead an absolute beginner to confuse the different letters. There are too many differences to be listed here, but it is useful to be familiar with the most significant examples:

Some common differences include:‎

  • The long "a" listen (help·info) may be distinguished from a short "a" as "ā","á", capital "A"or simply written as "a" with no distinction between the long and short sounds; for example "bābā", "bábá", "bAbA" or "baba" (in this book written as "bâbâ").
  • The short "a" listen (help·info) may be distinguished from a long "a" as æ, meaning a simple "a" would represent a long "a"); for example "baba" (in this book written as "bâbâ") and "æbr" (in this book written as "abr").
  • چ may be transcribed as c; for example "cetor", "ce" (in this book written as "chetor" and "che").
  • خ may be transcribed as x; for example "xub" (in this book written as "khub").
  • ﺵ may be transcribed as s; for example "soma" (in this book written as "shomâ").
  • A long "u", may be written as oo; for example "doost" (in this book written as "dust").

[edit] Duplicate Letters

[edit] Diacritical Markings

[edit] Lesson One

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.

.

ا · ب · پ · ت · ث · ج · چ · ح · خ · د · ذ · ر · ز · ژ · س · ش


· ض · ط · ظ· ع · غ · ف · ق · ک · گ · ل · م · ن · و · ه · ی

[edit] In This Lesson

• Basic greetings.
• Letters: Alef, Be, Pe, Te, Se, Jim, Che, He and Khe.
• Grammar: changing letter shapes.
• Grammar: unwritten vowels.
• Exercises: word breakdown and letter recognition.

[edit] Salâm!

Shirin sees Arash in passing. The following dialogue takes place:

Shirin: Salâm, Ârash. chetori?
Ârash: Salâm! Mamnoon, man khub hastam. Shomâ chetorin?
Shirin: Mamnoon, man khub hastam. Khodâ hâfez.
Ârash: Khodâ hâfez, Shirin!

English:

Shirin: Hello Arash. How are you?
Arash: Hi, Thank you, I'm fine. And you?
Shirin: Thank you, I'm fine. Goodbye.
Arash: Goodbye Shirin!

Explanation

Salâm is (loaned from arabic) a casual way of saying "hello", and literally means "peace".

Arash and Shirin are Persian personal names.

Mamnoon means Thanks.

Man is a personal pronoun meaning "I".

Khub means "good".

Hastam is the verb "to be" in the first person, so "man (adjective) hastam" means "I am (adjective)".

The word khodâ means "God". Khodâ hâfez means "good-bye" and literally "May God be with you". It is similar to the Spanish word "adiós", which means both "Good-bye" and "to God".

[edit] The Alphabet

Persian is written from right to left, the opposite way to English. In ancient times it was written using its own cuniform alphabet, but due the influence of Arabic and Islam the Arabic alphabet was adopted for writing Persian. The whole alphabet is summarized in the Alphabet table. In addition to the normal Arabic alphabet, Persian uses four extra letters to represent sounds that do not exist in Arabic. پ (pe), چ (che),ژ (zhe) and گ (gâf).

Just as some letters in English change shape when we write them "joined-up", some Persian letters similarly change shape when they are connected to other letters.

[edit] Alef

ا and آ
Alef آ ا

These are the two forms of our first letter in Persian, written with one simple stroke downwards, sometimes with a small "hat" on top which you can look closely to see in the example on the right. The name of the letter is alef. The "hat" of the alef changes the way it is pronounced. The "hat" on آ represents a second alef written over the top of the first, to avoid writing ا ا. With a "hat" at the beginning of a word it is read as (long) "â":

آب
آب

In this word,آ(alef) is read as "â", so the whole word is read (right to left) as "âb" (with a long "a" rhyming with "car"). In contrast, consider the following word:

اسم
اسم

"Alef" without a "hat" at the beginning of a word is read as (short) "a", "e" or "o", so the hatless alef in this word is read as "e", so the whole word is read as:

اسم = م + س + ا
esm = m + s + e

,or "esm" which means "name". In this word the sound of ا (Alef) is "e" (as in "end" not "bee").

Note.svg Distinguishing a and â:
Decide whether the "alef" in the following words stands for (short) a or (long) â. You do not need to be able to read the whole word at this stage!
1. ابشار
2. المان
3. آبی
4. آن
5. اب
6. المان
7. اسب
8. آق

Answers

[edit] Be, Pe, Te, Se

ب پ ت ث

This group of letters is read "Be, Pe, Te, Se" (from right to left).

ب
ب

ب(be) rhymes with "bay" in English. Combined with a hatless alef makes the word "bâbâ", with both the alef in medial positions representing long "â" sounds:

بابا
بابا
بابا = ا + ب + ا + ب
bâbâ = â + b + â + b

It means "father," but informal. More like "daddy."


پ "pe" rhymes with "pay". listen (help·info)

پا
پا

پا can be broken down as:

پا = ا + پ
pâ = â + p

It means "foot."

ت
ت

ت (Te)is prounounced similarly to the sound "t" in English. With an alef it combines to spell:

تا

تا can be broken down as:

تا = ا + ت
tâ = â + t

It means "until".

ث


ث

ث is used mainly in words of Arabic origin and is not a very common letter.

اثاث

The word اثاث is made up of ا which was the first letter studied in this lesson, and ث "se". This word once again demonstrates the difference between a hatless initial ا alef which represents a short "a" and an alef in the middle of a word which represents â, a long "a" sound. The spelling of the word is:

اثاث = ث + ا + ث + ا
asâs = s + â + s + a

Asâs means "furniture".

[edit] Jim, Che, He, Khe

ج چ ح خ

ج is called "jim" and sounds similar to an English "j". Combined with اmakes:

جا = ا + ج
jâ = â + j

pronounced "jâ", meaning "place" or "space". It can be seen from this example that the shape of the letter "jim" ج has changed when connected to the alef ا.

چ is pronounced "che".

چرا = ا + ر + چ
cherâ = â + r + ch

Ch+r+a= chera. You might have noticed that the "e" sound is not represented. That is because in Persian, the short vowels "a", "e" and "o" are not usually written. Another example of this can be seen using our next letter, ح, "he" (which is closer to rhyming with "hay" than "she").

حب = ب + ح
hab = b + h

حب (hab) means "pill". It is written as h + b, with the short vowel "a" unwritten.

From the above example it can also be seen that ح is written differently when connected to another letter. The shape of some of the letters of the Persian alphabet vary depending on whether they are at the start, middle, or end of a word. Therefore it is important to learn to recognize the different forms of each letter.

[edit] Grammar Points

[edit] Changing letter shapes

Most Persian letters take different forms depending on their position in a word, except for seven letters which do not change shape. Some letters look fairly similar in their different forms, while others look quite different in their initial, middle and final forms.

[edit] Unwritten vowels

As can be seen from the examples of the first words in this lesson, in Persian there is an important distinction between short and long vowels. Short vowels are not usually written, therefore both the written form of a word and its pronunciation must be memorized, and when you come across a new word in writing you might have to find out how it is pronounced from a dictionary or someone who speaks Persian. Although there is a system of marking vowel sounds (see Alefba), it is only usually seen in children's books, because it disrupts the normal layout of text. In contrast, long vowels have their own letters and are written down.

[edit] Culture Point: тоҷикӣ

The Coat of Arms of Tajik SSR

Not all dialects of Persian are written using the Perso-Arabic alphabet. The Tajik language, a variant of Persian spoken mainly in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, is written in the Cyrillic alphabet.

[edit] Exercises

Note.svg Try to memorize the letters of the alphabet studied in this lesson.


ج →

jim



ا →

alef



ﺙ →

se



آ →

alef (â)



ت →

te



ﺏ →

be



پ →

pe



ا →

alef



خ →

khe



ح →

he



Note.svg Which four letters were added to the Arabic alphabet by Persians to represent sounds which do not exist in Arabic?


Answers

پ (pe), چ (che),ژ (jeh) and گ (gaf).

Note.svg Which sounds have no letters of their own in Persian?


Answers

Short vowels.

Note.svg Which letters stay the same whether they are at the beginning, middle or the end of a word ? (Hint: consult the alphabet chart)


Answers

ا Alef, ﺩ Dâl, ﺫ zâl, ﺭ re, ﺯ ze , ژ zhe and ﻭ vâv.

Note.svg Read these words by breaking them down into their component parts:

آب


بابا


اسم


چرا


اثاث


Example: جا

جا = ا + ج
jâ = â + j


Answers

{{{1}}}
آب = ب + آ
âb = b + â
بابا = ا + ب + ا + ب
bâbâ = â + b + â + b
اسم = م + س + ا
esm = m + s + e
چرا = ا + ر + چ
cherâ = â + r + che
اثاث = ث + ا + ث + ا
asâs = s + â + s + a

Note.svg Practise using the following phrases in a short dialogue:

• Salâm.

• Shomâ chetorin?

• Man khubam, mersi.

• Khodâ Hâfez.

[edit] Vocabulary

Persian Pronunciation English
آب âb water
بابا bâbâ Dad, Papa
اسم esm name
اثاث asâs furniture
جا jâ place, space
تا tâ until
چرا cherâ why
حب hab pill

[edit] Phrases

Persian English
Salâm Hello
Shomâ chetorin How are you?
Man khub hastam I'm fine
Khodâ hâfez Goodbye



|}

[edit] Lesson Two

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.

.

ا · ب · پ · ت · ث · ج · چ · ح · خ · د · ذ · ر· ز · ژ · س · ش


ص · ض · ط · ظ · ع· غ · ف · ق · ک · گ · ل · م · ﻥ · و · ه · ی

[edit] In This Lesson

• Letters: Dâl, Zâl, Sad, Zad, Ta and Za
• Grammar: duplicate letters.
• Exercises: word breakdown and letter recognition.

[edit] Dâl and Zâl

د ذ

listen (help·info) listen (help·info)

دم

listen (help·info)

This word is pronounced "dom" and it means "tail".

دم = م + د
dom = m + d

ذ is called "zâl" and is similar to an English "z" sound.

[edit] Re, Ze, Zhe

ر ز ژ
در = ر + د
dar = r + d

listen (help·info)

ژ (zhe) sounds like the "g" in "mirage", or if you know French, the "j" in "je". If you open your Persian-English dictionary at the letter ژ, you can see that it is not used in very many words. It occurs in many loanwords of French origin, such as zhâpon (Japan), zhâkat (jacket), zhen (gene) and zhad (jade).

ژاد = د + ا + ژ
zhâd = d + â + zh

[edit] Sin and Shin

س ش
سگ = گ + س
sag = g + s

listen (help·info)

سیب = ب + ی + س
sib = b + i + s

listen (help·info)

[edit] Sâd, Zâd, Tâ and Zâ

ص ض ط ظ
listen (help·info)
listen (help·info)
listen (help·info)
listen (help·info)
صد = د + ص
sad = d + s

listen (help·info)

طناب = ب + ا + ن + ط
tanâb = b + â + n + t

listen (help·info)

[edit] Grammar Point

[edit] Duplicate Letters:

In Persian there is more than one letter available for some sounds. There are three "s"s, four "z"s, two "t"s and two "d"s. They are not all used equally, for example x is more common than x.

[edit] Culture Point

[edit] Exercises

Note.svg Try to memorize the letters of the alphabet studied in this lesson.


ﺵ →

shin



ﺩ →

dâl



ﺱ →

sin



ژ →

zhe



ﻅ →

sâ



ﺫ →

zâl



ﺹ →

sâd



ﺽ →

zâd



ﺯ →

ze



ﻁ →

tâ



ﺭ →

re



Note.svg Read these words by breaking them down into their component parts:

صبح


بابا


اسم


چرا


اثاث


توت


صبح = ح + ب + ص
sobh = h + b + s

Note.svg See if you can recognize these familiar words:


ژاكت →

zhâkat



بازار →

bâzâr



بد →

bad



[edit] Vocabulary

Persian Pronunciation English
در dar to, for at
دم dom tail
رز roz rose
سگ sag dog
سیب sib apple
شب shab evening
شی shir milk
صد sad hundred
طناب tanâb rope

[edit] Phrases


Stub

This section of the Persian Language Wikibook is a stub.
You can help Wikibooks by expanding it.


Lessons: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12
• Contents • Introduction • Alphabet • Glossary • Handwriting •


[edit] Lesson Three

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.


ا · ب · پ · ت · ث · ج · چ · ح · خ · د · ذ · ر · ز · ژ · س · ش


ص · ض · ط · ظ · ع · غ · ف · ق · ک · گ · ل · م · ن · و · ه · ی

[edit] In This Lesson

• Letters: Eyn, Qeyn, Fe, Qaf, Gaf, Kaf and Lam.
• Grammar: Duplicate Letters.
• Culture:
• Exercises: word breakdown and letter recognition.


[edit] Eyn and Qeyn

ﻉ ﻍ

listen (help·info) listen (help·info)

[edit] Fe and Qaf

ﻑ ﻕ

listen (help·info) listen (help·info)

[edit] Gaf and Kaf

ک گ

listen (help·info) listen (help·info)

[edit] Lâm

ﻝ

listen (help·info)

لا

listen (help·info)

[edit] Grammar Point

[edit] Duplicate Letters

By now you might have noticed that in Persian there are more than one letter available for some sounds. One reason for this is that sometimes words imported from Arabic are spelled using their Arabic spelling, but do not retain that pronunciation.

[edit] Exercises

Note.svg Try to memorize the letters of the alphabet studied in this lesson.


ﻑ →

fe



ﻝ →

lam



گ →

gaf



ﻕ →

qaf



ﻉ →

ain



ﻍ →

gain



ک →

kaf



Note.svg See if you can recognize these familiar words:


بازار →

bâzâr



چادر →

châdor



بانک →

bânk



چک →

chek



[edit] Vocabulary

Persian Pronunciation English
غذا qazâ food
عسل asal honey
فرش farsh carpet
گل gol flower
لب lab lip
ليمو limo lemon

[edit] Lesson Four

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.


ا · ب · پ · ت · ث · ج · چ · ح · خ · د · ذ · ر · ز · ژ · س · ش


ص · ض · ط · ظ · ع · غ · ف · ق · ک · گ · ل · م · ن · و · ه · ی

[edit] In This Lesson

• Letters: Min, Nun, Vâv, He and Ye.
• Grammar: long vowels at the beginning of a word.
• Culture: haft sin.
• Exercises: word breakdown and letter recognition.

[edit] Mim

م

listen (help·info)

م (Mim) sounds like "m" in English.

[edit] Nun

ن

listen (help·info)

The name of this letter "nun" is pronounced rhyming with "noon" and not "nun". Note the difference between ن nun and ﺏ be, in be the dot is below the curve and in nun it is above. The shape of nun is also narrower than the "be, pe, se, te" group of letters.

[edit] Vâv

ﻭ

listen (help·info)

[edit] He

ﻩ

listen (help·info)

[edit] Ye

ى

listen (help·info)

The initial form of this letter varies a lot from its stand-alone form.

یک
یک = ک + ی
yek = k + y

In this word, the letter Ye is preceded by an alef.

ايران = ک + ی
yek = k + y

[edit] Grammar Point

[edit] Long Vowels at the beginning of a word

The only long vowel which can begin a word is â. This means that in words such as ايران (Irân) and اين (in), alef ا is placed before the initial long "eee" sound.

[edit] Culture Point: هفت سین

a Haft sin table in Iran
Do you remember the letter "sin" from leson 3? Combined with "haft" from this lesson makes an important Iranian New Year tradition of "Haft Sin", or the "Seven Ss". During the Persian New Year (Nowruz), the haft sin table is arranged with seven items beginning with the letter "s". That might include:

1. Sabzeh 2. Sib 3. Sir 4. Samanu 5. Senjed 6. Serkeh 7. Somâk Originally called هفت چین,
Note.svg Which of the following items would go on your traditional هفت سین table? (Clue: Sabzeh, Sib, Sir, Samanu, Senjed, Serke and Somâq).
سیب زمینی →

sib zamini (potato)- no


سیب →

sib (apple)- yes


سگ →

sag (dog)- no


ستاره →

setareh (star)- no


سير →

sir (garlic)- yes


سركه →

serke (vinegar)- yes


سوسک‌ →

(beetle)- no


سبزه → 
sabzeh (wheat, barley or lentil sprouts)- yes


سیگار →

sigar (cigar)- no


سنگ →

sang (stone)- no


سماق → 
somâq (sumac berries)- yes


سنجد →

senjed (senjed, the dried fruit of the oleaster tree )- yes


سمنو →

samanu (wheat pudding)- yes


[edit] Exercises

Note.svgTry to memorize the letters of the alphabet studied in this lesson.


ﻭ →

vâv



ى →

ye



ن →

nun



ﻩ →

he



م →

mim



Note.svg Read these words by breaking them down into their component parts:

ما


ماه


نه


هفت


Example: ما

ما = ا + م
mâ = â + m


Answers

{{{1}}}
ماه = ه + ا + م
mâh = h = â + m
نه = ه + ن
nah or noh = h + n
هفت = ت + ف + ه
haft = t + f + h

Note.svg Sort these words into groups of words with no unwritten vowels and words with unwritten vowels (vowels not included in the spelling of the word):

ما


ماه


نه


چرا


هفت


آب


بابا


اسم


چرا


اثاث


توت



Answers

Words with unwritten vowels include:چرا, هفت, نه

Note.svg ُSee if you can recognize these familiar words:


شاه →

shâh



افغانستان →

Afqânistân



زعفران →

zaferân



پايجامه →

payzhâma



[edit] Vocabulary

Persian Pronunciation English
سیب sib apple
سي sir garlic
سنجد senjed senjed, the dried fruit of the oleaster tree
سمنو samanu samanu, a kind of wheat pudding
ما mâ we, us
ماه mâh moon, month
مرد mard man
نه nah no
نه noh new
و va and
ولی vali but
هفت haft seven

[edit] Phrases

Persian English
Salâm Hello
Shomâ chetorin How are you?
Man khub hastam I'm fine
Khodâ hâfez Goodbye

[edit] Lesson Five

Baustelle.svg This page of the Persian Language Wikibook is under construction.
It may be incomplete or contain errors. See this module's talk page for discussion.


[edit] In This Lesson

• Basic greetings.
• Grammar: .
• Culture: haft sin.
• Exercises: forming basic sentences.

[edit] Greetings

Persian:

شیرین:سلام

آرش:سلام:::

شیرین

Pronunciation Guide:

Shirin: Salaam, Arash. Shoma chetorin?
Arash: Salaam! Merci, man khoob hastam. Shoma chetorin?
Shirin: Merci, man khoob hastam. Khoda hafez.
Arash: Khoda hafez, Shirin!

English:

Shirin: Hello Arash. How are you?
Arash: Hi, Thank you, I'm fine. And you?
Shirin: Thank you, I'm doing fine. Goodbye.
Arash: Goodbye Shirin!

Explanation

The word Khodâ means "God". Khodâ hafez means "Good-bye" and literally "May God be with you". It is similar to the Spanish word "adiós", which means both "Good-bye" and "to God".

[edit] Grammar 1: Simple sentence structure

Composing a simple sentence in Persian is not very difficult if you remember the following formula:

  • Subject - Predicate - Verb

The main verb always comes last. Let's make a simple sentence, "The University is big":

Daneshgah-e bozorg ast.

This can be broken down: "daneshgah" is "University", "bozorg" means big and "ast" is the verb for "to be" in the present tense he/she/it form.

Another example is "She is a student":

U daneshju ast

U is "he/she it" (often omitted in sentences because the verb explains the subject), daneshju is student (gender neutral) and ast, as mentioned above is the "to be" verb in the present tense, he/she/it form.

Here is one more...: "Mr Shahidi is a professor".

Agha-ye Shahidi ustaad ast.

The words used were "agha" for Mr, "Shahidi" is the professors name and "ustaad" is Persian for Professor.

So, now you might be wondering about that odd little "-e" and "-ye" you are seeing. That is called a Ezafe in Persian, and is explained in the next section.

[edit] Grammar 2: The Ezafe (linking element)

One of the most important aspects of Persian (next to the basic sentence structure) is the handy little linking element called the Ezafe. The Ezafe is a short vowel pronounced like "e" in French (eh) and is never stressed.

Note that if the word the ezafe links to ends with a vowel; a,i u or o the ezafe must be pronounced as a "-ye". If the word the ezafe links to ends in a consonant, this is not the case and a simple "e" is used.

The Ezafe has 3 possible meanings. The two most common and basic are as follows...

[edit] Possession

  • First and most common is it shows possession, i.e. "belonging to".

example: roosari-ye zan.

The women's(zan) scarf (roosari-ends with a vowel!). The ezafe (-e, -ye) shows that the women owns the scarf.

Another example:

mu-ye pesar

The boy's hair.


[edit] Adjectival Use

  • Secondly, it can join a noun to a qualifying adjective, with the noun always coming first.

example: zan-e arabi.

Can you guess what it means? The Arabic woman.

another example, Daneshju-ye irani

The Iranian student, because the nationality of the student (Iranian) is the adjective and "student" is the noun.

[edit] Exercises

Note.svg 1.Translate the following sentences into English:

Note.svg 2.Using the vocabulary below make 5 simple sentences using the Ezafe:


Answers

{{{1}}}

[edit] Vocabulary

Persian Pronunciation English
شیرین Shirin n Shirin (female given name)
سلام salaam hi, hello
آرش Arash Arash (male given name)
شما shoma you (singular, polite) and plural
مرسی mersi thank you
من man I, me
خوب khub adj. good
هستم hastam v (I) am
خدا حافظ khoda hafez goodbye

[edit] Appendix One: Persian Handwriting

[edit] نسخ Naskh

Naskh script (sometimes written as "Nasx") is a commonly-used script of the Arabic alphabet used in printed Persian. Due to its simple and clear style, most modern fonts used in Persian word processing are based on the Naskh script; therefore it is the style you will see used in this book. It is also the style of writing taught to children.


[edit] نستعلیق Nastaliq

Nastaliq (sometimes written as nastalique, nastaleeq or nastaligh) is a flowing and stylized form of the Arabic alphabet which originated in then Persia (modern Iran) during the 14th and 15th centuries. Its origins lay in a combination of the Naskh and Ta'liq styles, hence the name "nastaliq". Since the Mughals ruled over Northern India at that time, a simplified version of nastaliq is still used for writing Urdu.

A comparison of Naskh and Nasta'liq writing

[edit] شکسته Shekasteh

Shekasteh is a form of handwritten Persian, parts of which are based upon the Nastiliq form. Literally meaning "broken", it is difficult to read for the beginner so some time must be spent in learning to read this script.

[edit] Appendix Two: Glossary

ا · ب · پ · ت · ث · ج · چ · ح · خ · د · ذ · ر· ز · ژ · س · ش


ص · ض · ط · ظ · ع · غ · ف · ق · ک · گ · ل · م · ن · و · ه · ی

Contents



[edit] ا

Persian Transliteration English
آب âb water
آبی âbi blue
اثاث asas furniture
اسم esm name
این in this


[edit] ب

[edit] ت

توت tut berry

[edit] د

دم dom tail
در dar 1) door 2) to, for, at

[edit] س

سگ sag dog
سیب sib apple

[edit] ش

شیرین Shirin Shirin (female personal name)
شم shoma you (plural) and you (singular, polite)

[edit] ل

لب lab lip
ليمو limoo lemon

Ŵ== م ==

ما mâ us
مرد mard man

[edit] ن

نه nah no
نو noh new

[edit] و

و va and

[edit] ه

هفت haft seven

[edit] ی

ایران Irân Iran
یک yek one

[edit] Appendix Three: Websites

[edit] Lessons

Modern Persian

Old Persian

[edit] Online Dictionaries

[edit] Language Tools, Games and Software

[edit] Persian Media

[edit] Discussion Forums

[1]Persian Media

[edit] Universities teaching Persian as a Foreign Language

Europe

East Asia

Middle East

America

[edit] Language Exchange

[edit] Foundations and Trusts


[edit] Appendix Four: Further Reading

[edit] Further Reading

[edit] Textbooks

  • Abrahams, Simin. Modern Persian: A Course-Book, RoutledgeCurzon, 2005. ISBN 0700713271
  • Amuzegar, Hooshang. 'How to Speak Read and Write Persian, Ibex Publishers, 2nd edition, 2003. ISBN 0936347058
  • Farzad, Narguess.Teach Yourself Modern Persian, McGraw-Hill, 2004. ISBN 007141908X
  • Thackston, W.M. An Introduction to Persian, Ibex Publishers, 3rd revised sub-edition, 2003. ISBN 0936347295


[edit] Grammars

  • Lambton, Ann K.S. Persian Grammar, Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN 0521091241
  • Mace, John. Persian Grammar: For Reference and Revision, RoutledgeCurzon, 2002. ISBN 0700716955

[edit] Dictionaries

  • Aryanpur-Kashani, Abbas. The Combined New Persian-English & English-Persian Dictionary, Mazda Publishers, 1986. ISBN 0939214288
  • Dehghani, Yavar. Persian-English English-Persian Learner's Dictionary, Ibex Publishers, 2006. ISBN 1588140342

[edit] GNU FREE DOCUMENTATION LICENSE

Version 1.2, November 2002

Copyright (C) 2000,2001,2002  Free Software Foundation, Inc.
51 Franklin St, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA  02110-1301  USA
Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.

0. PREAMBLE

The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other functional and useful document "free" in the sense of freedom: to assure everyone the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without modifying it, either commercially or noncommercially. Secondarily, this License preserves for the author and publisher a way to get credit for their work, while not being considered responsible for modifications made by others.

This License is a kind of "copyleft", which means that derivative works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense. It complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft license designed for free software.

We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for free software, because free software needs free documentation: a free program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms that the software does. But this License is not limited to software manuals; it can be used for any textual work, regardless of subject matter or whether it is published as a printed book. We recommend this License principally for works whose purpose is instruction or reference.

1. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS

This License applies to any manual or other work, in any medium, that contains a notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed under the terms of this License. Such a notice grants a world-wide, royalty-free license, unlimited in duration, to use that work under the conditions stated herein. The "Document", below, refers to any such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee, and is addressed as "you". You accept the license if you copy, modify or distribute the work in a way requiring permission under copyright law.

A "Modified Version" of the Document means any work containing the Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with modifications and/or translated into another language.

A "Secondary Section" is a named appendix or a front-matter section of the Document that deals exclusively with the relationship of the publishers or authors of the Document to the Document's overall subject (or to related matters) and contains nothing that could fall directly within that overall subject. (Thus, if the Document is in part a textbook of mathematics, a Secondary Section may not explain any mathematics.) The relationship could be a matter of historical connection with the subject or with related matters, or of legal, commercial, philosophical, ethical or political position regarding them.

The "Invariant Sections" are certain Secondary Sections whose titles are designated, as being those of Invariant Sections, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. If a section does not fit the above definition of Secondary then it is not allowed to be designated as Invariant. The Document may contain zero Invariant Sections. If the Document does not identify any Invariant Sections then there are none.

The "Cover Texts" are certain short passages of text that are listed, as Front-Cover Texts or Back-Cover Texts, in the notice that says that the Document is released under this License. A Front-Cover Text may be at most 5 words, and a Back-Cover Text may be at most 25 words.

A "Transparent" copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy, represented in a format whose specification is available to the general public, that is suitable for revising the document straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images composed of pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some widely available drawing editor, and that is suitable for input to text formatters or for automatic translation to a variety of formats suitable for input to text formatters. A copy made in an otherwise Transparent file format whose markup, or absence of markup, has been arranged to thwart or discourage subsequent modification by readers is not Transparent. An image format is not Transparent if used for any substantial amount of text. A copy that is not "Transparent" is called "Opaque".

Examples of suitable formats for Transparent copies include plain ASCII without markup, Texinfo input format, LaTeX input format, SGML or XML using a publicly available DTD, and standard-conforming simple HTML, PostScript or PDF designed for human modification. Examples of transparent image formats include PNG, XCF and JPG. Opaque formats include proprietary formats that can be read and edited only by proprietary word processors, SGML or XML for which the DTD and/or processing tools are not generally available, and the machine-generated HTML, PostScript or PDF produced by some word processors for output purposes only.

The "Title Page" means, for a printed book, the title page itself, plus such following pages as are needed to hold, legibly, the material this License requires to appear in the title page. For works in formats which do not have any title page as such, "Title Page" means the text near the most prominent appearance of the work's title, preceding the beginning of the body of the text.

A section "Entitled XYZ" means a named subunit of the Document whose title either is precisely XYZ or contains XYZ in parentheses following text that translates XYZ in another language. (Here XYZ stands for a specific section name mentioned below, such as "Acknowledgements", "Dedications", "Endorsements", or "History".) To "Preserve the Title" of such a section when you modify the Document means that it remains a section "Entitled XYZ" according to this definition.

The Document may include Warranty Disclaimers next to the notice which states that this License applies to the Document. These Warranty Disclaimers are considered to be included by reference in this License, but only as regards disclaiming warranties: any other implication that these Warranty Disclaimers may have is void and has no effect on the meaning of this License.

2. VERBATIM COPYING

You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License applies to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you add no other conditions whatsoever to those of this License. You may not use technical measures to obstruct or control the reading or further copying of the copies you make or distribute. However, you may accept compensation in exchange for copies. If you distribute a large enough number of copies you must also follow the conditions in section 3.

You may also lend copies, under the same conditions stated above, and you may publicly display copies.

3. COPYING IN QUANTITY

If you publish printed copies (or copies in media that commonly have printed covers) of the Document, numbering more than 100, and the Document's license notice requires Cover Texts, you must enclose the copies in covers that carry, clearly and legibly, all these Cover Texts: Front-Cover Texts on the front cover, and Back-Cover Texts on the back cover. Both covers must also clearly and legibly identify you as the publisher of these copies. The front cover must present the full title with all words of the title equally prominent and visible. You may add other material on the covers in addition. Copying with changes limited to the covers, as long as they preserve the title of the Document and satisfy these conditions, can be treated as verbatim copying in other respects.

If the required texts for either cover are too voluminous to fit legibly, you should put the first ones listed (as many as fit reasonably) on the actual cover, and continue the rest onto adjacent pages.

If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy a computer-network location from which the general network-using public has access to download using public-standard network protocols a complete Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material. If you use the latter option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated location until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to the public.

It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of the Document well before redistributing any large number of copies, to give them a chance to provide you with an updated version of the Document.

4. MODIFICATIONS

You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release the Modified Version under precisely this License, with the Modified Version filling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution and modification of the Modified Version to whoever possesses a copy of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modified Version:

A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title distinct from that of the Document, and from those of previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed in the History section of the Document). You may use the same title as a previous version if the original publisher of that version gives permission.
B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or entities responsible for authorship of the modifications in the Modified Version, together with at least five of the principal authors of the Document (all of its principal authors, if it has fewer than five), unless they release you from this requirement.
C. State on the Title page the name of the publisher of the Modified Version, as the publisher.
D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document.
E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modifications adjacent to the other copyright notices.
F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license notice giving the public permission to use the Modified Version under the terms of this License, in the form shown in the Addendum below.
G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant Sections and required Cover Texts given in the Document's license notice.
H. Include an unaltered copy of this License.
I. Preserve the section Entitled "History", Preserve its Title, and add to it an item stating at least the title, year, new authors, and publisher of the Modified Version as given on the Title Page. If there is no section Entitled "History" in the Document, create one stating the title, year, authors, and publisher of the Document as given on its Title Page, then add an item describing the Modified Version as stated in the previous sentence.
J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document for public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and likewise the network locations given in the Document for previous versions it was based on. These may be placed in the "History" section. You may omit a network location for a work that was published at least four years before the Document itself, or if the original publisher of the version it refers to gives permission.
K. For any section Entitled "Acknowledgements" or "Dedications", Preserve the Title of the section, and preserve in the section all the substance and tone of each of the contributor acknowledgements and/or dedications given therein.
L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document, unaltered in their text and in their titles. Section numbers or the equivalent are not considered part of the section titles.
M. Delete any section Entitled "Endorsements". Such a section may not be included in the Modified Version.
N. Do not retitle any existing section to be Entitled "Endorsements" or to conflict in title with any Invariant Section.
O. Preserve any Warranty Disclaimers.

If the Modified Version includes new front-matter sections or appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no material copied from the Document, you may at your option designate some or all of these sections as invariant. To do this, add their titles to the list of Invariant Sections in the Modified Version's license notice. These titles must be distinct from any other section titles.

You may add a section Entitled "Endorsements", provided it contains nothing but endorsements of your Modified Version by various parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text has been approved by an organization as the authoritative definition of a standard.

You may add a passage of up to five words as a Front-Cover Text, and a passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end of the list of Cover Texts in the Modified Version. Only one passage of Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be added by (or through arrangements made by) any one entity. If the Document already includes a cover text for the same cover, previously added by you or by arrangement made by the same entity you are acting on behalf of, you may not add another; but you may replace the old one, on explicit permission from the previous publisher that added the old one.

The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this License give permission to use their names for publicity for or to assert or imply endorsement of any Modified Version.

5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS

You may combine the Document with other documents released under this License, under the terms defined in section 4 above for modified versions, provided that you include in the combination all of the Invariant Sections of all of the original documents, unmodified, and list them all as Invariant Sections of your combined work in its license notice, and that you preserve all their Warranty Disclaimers.

The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single copy. If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name but different contents, make the title of each such section unique by adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the original author or publisher of that section if known, or else a unique number. Make the same adjustment to the section titles in the list of Invariant Sections in the license notice of the combined work.

In the combination, you must combine any sections Entitled "History" in the various original documents, forming one section Entitled "History"; likewise combine any sections Entitled "Acknowledgements", and any sections Entitled "Dedications". You must delete all sections Entitled "Endorsements."

6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS

You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other documents released under this License, and replace the individual copies of this License in the various documents with a single copy that is included in the collection, provided that you follow the rules of this License for verbatim copying of each of the documents in all other respects.

You may extract a single document from such a collection, and distribute it individually under this License, provided you insert a copy of this License into the extracted document, and follow this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of that document.

7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS

A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other separate and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of a storage or distribution medium, is called an "aggregate" if the copyright resulting from the compilation is not used to limit the legal rights of the compilation's users beyond what the individual works permit. When the Document is included in an aggregate, this License does not apply to the other works in the aggregate which are not themselves derivative works of the Document.

If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one half of the entire aggregate, the Document's Cover Texts may be placed on covers that bracket the Document within the aggregate, or the electronic equivalent of covers if the Document is in electronic form. Otherwise they must appear on printed covers that bracket the whole aggregate.

8. TRANSLATION

Translation is considered a kind of modification, so you may distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section 4. Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special permission from their copyright holders, but you may include translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the original versions of these Invariant Sections. You may include a translation of this License, and all the license notices in the Document, and any Warranty Disclaimers, provided that you also include the original English version of this License and the original versions of those notices and disclaimers. In case of a disagreement between the translation and the original version of this License or a notice or disclaimer, the original version will prevail.

If a section in the Document is Entitled "Acknowledgements", "Dedications", or "History", the requirement (section 4) to Preserve its Title (section 1) will typically require changing the actual title.

9. TERMINATION

You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document except as expressly provided for under this License. Any other attempt to copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Document is void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License. However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such parties remain in full compliance.

10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE

The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions of the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. See http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/.

Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version number. If the Document specifies that a particular numbered version of this License "or any later version" applies to it, you have the option of following the terms and conditions either of that specified version or of any later version that has been published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation. If the Document does not specify a version number of this License, you may choose any version ever published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Persian/Print_version"