Persian Across the Persian World

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Afghan Persian

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Introduction to Afghan Persian Part 3 – Grammar

Last week we had a brief overview of the main lexical differences between Afghan Persian and Iranian Persian. I forgot to mention one very important point – the names of months used in Afghanistan.The calendar most currently in use in Afghanistan is the Solar Hijri Calendar identical to the one used in Iran. The difference

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Tajik Persian

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Iskandar Ding: Introduction to Tajik Persian 1 – the Alphabet

Not many learners of Persian have realised that modern Persian, in fact, currently has two official alphabets – the Perso-Arabic one many are familiar with, and the Cyrillic, used to write Tajik. The debate on whether Tajik is a separate language from Persian is a socio-political one and has drawn much controversy both within Tajikistan

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Introduction to Tajik Persian 4 – Differences in Grammar

The Persian language, at its core, represents a continuum of regional dialects standardised in history through convergence and literary prestige, and in modern times through nation building. Although Iranian Persian, Afghan Persian, and Tajik Persian came from one and same literary standard moulded through a long history of common usage, the three Persian-speaking nation states

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Complicated Calendar Conversions

Complicated Calendar Conversions You may have realised already that the Persian-speaking world uses multiple calendar systems. Now, I’m going to be honest with you, converting dates between the Gregorian calendar (January, February, etc.), the Islamic calendar, and the Persian calendar can be a bit of a nightmare. Indeed, it might make you wonder how a

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Iranian Persian

Spoken Persian in Iran

If you eavesdrop on a conversation between two Persian speakers speaking the Farsi of Iran, or listen to any informal programme on the radio or television, then you will soon realize that spoken Persian is quite different from the written language. This is, of course, true of any language, especially of the vernacular of the

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How to Use Nāz Day-to-Day

As explained in a previous blog post, nāz can be a somewhat slippery word to translate for Persian language learners. It is only through exploring the contexts in which it is used and the mood or state which it encompasses, can one begin to grasp its meaning and be able to, in turn, use it

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