Persian Language Online
This website and the associated set of ‘Gorbeh’ apps for young children, are owned and supported by the Iran Heritage Foundation, a UK registered charity that aims to promote and preserve the history, languages, and cultures of Iran and the Persianate world.
Through these projects, IHF seeks to provide freely available, high quality, Persian language-learning resources, supported by a team of noteworthy contributors from institutions including SOAS, University of London, the University of Cambridge, the University of St Andrews and Farhang Foundation.
Persian Language Online owes a great debt to its founder, Dr Ali Sattaripour, a successful business man and philanthropist who worked tirelessly to build many of the resources you see today through his charity the Persian Language Foundation, before passing away in May 2016. The Persian Language Foundation was absorbed into IHF in 2019.
Behind Persian Language Online
Narguess Farzad is the Senior Fellow in Persian and a member of Academic Board at SOAS, University of London, where she convenes the degree programme in Persian. She teaches many courses on beginner to advanced levels of Persian language, classical and modern Persian poetry, and translation studies. Drawing on her long experience teaching Persian, Narguess is behind much of the material available on this website. Since 2019 she has been the chair of the Persian Language Online sub-committee at IHF.
Narguess Farzad
Dr Ali Sattaripour, a successful businessman and philanthropist, established the Persian Language Foundation in 2012. Concerned by the lack of resources available to Persian language learners—especially members of the Persian diaspora for whom this language provides a crucial link to their cultural heritage—he worked tirelessly to build the Persian Language Foundation over four years, before passing away in May 2016.
Dr Ali Sattaripour
Ali M Ansari is Professor of Iranian History & Founding Director of the Institute for Iranian Studies at the University of St Andrews; Senior Associate Fellow, Royal United Services Institute. In 2016 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Ali Ansari
Ben Joseph was born in Tehran, Iran and came to the UK in 1970. After completing degrees in Medical Sciences and Neuroscience he has been involved in the founding and running of various educational organisations, including Southbank International Schools and ASW2 Ltd (Bright Future)—an online school for ‘A’ Level courses. He was a co-founder and trustee of the Persian Language Foundation and since 2019 has been a member of the Persian Language Online sub-committee at IHF.
