31082 - Persian Language and Linguistics 1

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student possesses basic knowledge of Persian grammar (alphabet and elementary morphology of parts of speech) and is able to sustain simple dialogues about the most common everyday life situations. At the level of written skills, he/she is able to read passages of limited syntactic complexity and produce sentences using previously assimilated lexical materials. The goal of the course is to achieve knowledge that is at least between the A1 and A2 levels of the Common European Framework of Reference.

Course contents

LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL INTRODUCTION

Persian is an Indo-European language that has undergone three historical phases: Old Persian, Middle Persian and New Persian. Old Persian was the language spoken during the Achaemenid Empire, for example during the reigns of rulers such as Cyrus the Great, Darius and Xerxes. Middle Persian was spoken roughly from the 3rd century BC to the 9th century AD, particularly during the Sassanid Persian Empire, though not exclusively. New Persian, which is studied as part of a three-year degree programme in the Department of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures, relates to the most recent phase of its development (from the 9th century AD to the present day). In other words, the New Persian language, or simply Persian, has not undergone major changes over these 12 centuries. This important characteristic allows us to study both ancient and more recent texts with relative ease.

From the 7th–8th centuries onwards, the Persian world became part of Muslim civilisation, contributing significantly to its golden age through the work of numerous bilingual authors: scientists, theologians, philosophers, historians, linguists and literary figures active across all fields of knowledge. However, the Persian world also has a strong pre-Islamic cultural background, clearly evident in its arts and literature, which makes it very different from Arab culture.

Being part of the Islamic world – with close and fruitful contacts, mutual influences and periods of integration – did not, however, mean that Muslim Persia failed to preserve its identity and its pre-Islamic traditions. Aside from being based on an Indo-European language rather than a Semitic language such as Arabic or Hebrew, its cultural and literary aspects also feature numerous distinctive elements: the deeply rooted and deeply felt presence of certain pre-Islamic festivals such as Nowruz, Yalda and Mehregan; the memory of the exploits of Iranian heroes said to date back to the beginning of time; and the legendary figures and myths of pre-Islamic Persia which feature abundantly in literature. Above all, however, themes and motifs from the ancient Iranian religion founded by Zoroaster (or Zarathustra) continue to emerge in literary texts, art and cinema to this day, being reinterpreted in an original way in every era. Not to mention certain distinctly Persian literary genres, such as the epic and the verse novel, which were to exert a profound influence on authors in neighbouring literary traditions, particularly those of the Ottoman Turkish and Hindustani worlds. Indeed, for over a millennium, Persian culture profoundly influenced that of the Indian subcontinent and Turkic-speaking Central Asia. Poets writing in Persian were even to be found in Albania and Bosnia during the Ottoman period, right up until the early 20th century. It was from Bosnia that Sudi (16th century) hailed – the greatest commentator on Hāfez, the Petrarch of the Persians and Goethe’s ‘Eastern twin’.

Persian is currently the official language of three countries (Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan) and is also spoken by sizeable minorities in Pakistan, India, Uzbekistan, Turkey and some countries of the former Soviet Union, as well as by numerous emigrants scattered across the world, particularly in the United States and certain European countries. Unlike many Eastern languages, Persian is characterised by great morphological simplicity, and its basic grammar can be learnt in a relatively short time. In the Middle Ages, it was the ‘lingua franca’ of merchants and travellers along the ‘Silk Road’, which linked the Mediterranean to China via Central Asia. Everything of significance written in Arabic during the Middle Ages was always promptly translated into the more accessible Persian. In short, Persian can be regarded as a sort of extraordinary ‘via brevis’ for entering the Muslim world and its vast and varied culture, which has endured for fourteen centuries and has found expression not only in Arabic and Persian, but also in Turkish, Urdu, Malay, etc.

 

COURSE SYLLABUS

The course consists of two parts: Exercises, taught by native speakers (Dr. Negar Abbasi), and a semester-long main course taught by the course's titular Professor, Nahid Norozi.

1. Programme of "Persian Language and Linguistics Exercises 1" (one-year course)

 
The course takes place in two weekly lessons and the first part is dedicated to learning the alphabet and the basic phonetic and morphological aspects of the Persian language. The second part will be devoted to the elementary notions of grammar, with numerous exercises being carried out in class, with the help of a textbook (see bibliography).

A constant part of the Exercises course will be devoted to conversation (self-presentation, simple sentences relating to everyday life, etc.) and the reading and written formulation of simple sentences.

2. Programme of the main course Persian Language and Linguistics 1, taught by Prof. Nahid Norozi (2nd semester)

The Persian Language and Linguistics 1 course begins with an overview of the historical development of the Persian language and its three main phases (Old, Middle and New Persian), with particular emphasis on certain instances of phonological and morphological change from Middle to New Persian. The course aims primarily to illustrate the various basic phonological, morphological, grammatical and syntactic aspects of New Persian through the analysis of relatively simple literary or journalistic texts, with a particular focus on: nouns, plural formation, the indefinite article, indefinite, demonstrative, interrogative and possessive adjectives and pronouns, comparative and superlative formation, cardinal and ordinal numbers, adverbs, prepositions, coordinating and subordinating conjunctions, simple verb tenses and their uses, the construct state (ezafé), and the particle rā. The language studied will be New Persian as spoken in Iran (Farsi), but reference will also be made to the other linguistic varieties of Persian spoken in Tajikistan (Tajik) and Afghanistan (Dari or Afghan), from a comparative linguistic perspective, including through listening to and analysing texts recited by native speakers.

The aim of the course is to achieve a knowledge that lies at least between level A1 and A2 of the Common European Framework of Reference.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

This course is dedicated to three-year students of the Department of Modern Languages Literature and Cultures (LILEC) who have chosen to study Persian as their first or second language.

However, the course is also always open to students of Persian 1 (12 cfu, ARCO), Persian Language and Literature 1 (12 cfu, MA), Persian Language and Culture (10 cfu, SVIC), who are particularly interested in the language or who are applying for a dissertation on Persian.

 

Readings/Bibliography

The Reference Text-book (to be taken to class at all times): N. Norozi e N. Abbasi, Lezioni di Persiano per Principianti. Seconda edizione, Centro Essad Bey – Amazon IP, Seattle, 2025

- Any additional material will be sent, during the course, in the form of telematic handouts.

- Highly recommended for students who wish to continue with the study of Persian Language and Literature]: Coletti A. - Gruenbaum H., Dizionario Persiano-Italiano, Centro Culturale Italo-Iraniano, Roma 1978 (edizione aggiornata 2021)

- Highly recommended for NON-attending students:

Lambton A. K. S., Persian grammar, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1984

For further study (optional):

- Dizionario persiano. Italiano-persiano, persiano-italiano, a cura di F. Mardani, Vallardi

- D. Meneghini e P. Orsatti, Corso di lingua persiana (con 2 CD audio), Hoepli, Milano 2012

- Lambton A. K. S., Persian grammar, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1984

- Coletti A., Grammatica della lingua persiana, Nuova Cultura, Roma 2007

- D’Erme G. M, Grammatica del neopersiano, Istituto Universitario Orientale, Napoli 1979

- Piemontese A. M., Grammatica persiana in nuce, Istituti Editoriali e Poligrafici Internazionali, Pisa-Roma 2004.

Teaching methods

Lectures, including interactive ones; listening to musical texts; possible lectures by invitation of specialists

Assessment methods

A student who attends at least 75% of the lectures is considered to be attending.

The examination of 'Lingua e Linguistica Persiana 1' is conducted in two tests: a written and an oral test that could also take place, if desired, on the same day.

1. The written test consists of: grammar, understanding and ortography exercises, translation, verb conjugation + questions relating to the main course (you may use a dictionary). Please note: part of this exam will be conducted on an ongoing basis

2. Written part: Dictation of a passage, to be held on an ongoing basis throughout December (as part of the Practical Exercises course)

2. The oral test consisting of the correct reading of simple sentences and a short basic conversation learned during the Persian Language and Linguistics Exercise course.

The final grade is given by the arithmetic mean of the marks given in the written test of Persian language and the oral test of Persian language.

IMPORTANT NOTE

The use of artificial intelligence is not permitted during the exam.

 

Teaching tools

Books, lecture notes (particularly those available on the Virtuale platform), PowerPoint or PDF presentations, audiovisual material, journal websites and other useful resources.

Students with DSA or temporary or permanent disabilities: it is advisable to get in touch immediately with the University office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it ) and with the lecturer, in order to seek together the most effective strategies for following the lessons and/or preparing for the exam. Any requests for adaptations must be made within 15 days of the date of the exam, by sending an email to the lecturer and entering the email address disabilita@unibo.it [mailto:disabilita@unibo.it] (in the case of a disabling condition) or dsa@unibo.it [mailto:dsa@unibo.it] (for students with DSA)."

Office hours

See the website of Nahid Norozi