Pronunciation

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

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:‎

• آ ‹â› listen may be transcribed as ā, á, A, aa, or a. For example, بابا ‹bâbâ› may be written elsewhere as bābā, bábá, bAbA, baabaa, or baba. In texts where ‹â› is transcribed as a, the short ‹a› sound may be written as æ or there may be no written distinction between the long and short sounds.
• Short ‹a› listen may be transcribed as æ, especially in texts where a represents long ‹â›. For example, ابر ‹abr› may be written elsewhere as æbr and بابا ‹bâbâ› as baba.
• چ ‹c› may be transcribed as ch or č. For example, چطور ‹cetor› may be written elsewhere as chetor or četor.
• خ ‹x› may be transcribed as kh. For example, خوب ‹xub› may be written elsewhere as khub.
• ﺵ ‹š› may be transcribed as sh or s. For example, شما ‹šomâ› may be written elsewhere as shoma or soma.
• Long ‹u›, may be transcribed as oo. For example, دوست ‹dust› may be written elsewhere as doost.

Duplicate Letters

Diacritical Markings

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