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Overview | Summary of Courses

Offered By:	ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
Academic Contact:	Dr Hossein Heirani Moghaddam

Persian language (Farsi) is the mother tongue of more than 150 million people in the Middle East and Central Asia.� Persian is spoken today primarily in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan.� There are also speakers of Persian in a number of other countries in the region.� Historically, Persian was widely understood from the Mediterranean to India, and has a rich historical and cultural legacy.� Many distinguished works by writers such as Ferdousi, Khayyam, Saadi, Rumi and Hafiz have been produced in Farsi, and Persian literature influenced the works of European writers such as Victor Hugo, Voltaire, Alphonse de Lamartine, Maeterlinck, Goethe and F. Scott Fitzgerald.� The influence of Persian literature can also been seen in many Arabic, Turkish and Urdu writings, and many Persian words are retained in those language.

Requirements

The Arts major in Persian requires a minimum of 42 units (normally 7 courses) consisting of 12 units at first year level (2 courses) plus 30 units at later year level (5 courses).

The sequence of courses for the Persian major is dependent on the student's reading and language ability.

1. Major for beginners:
MEAS2000 Iranian History and Culture or MEAS2106 The History of Persian Art plus six language courses.

2. Major for post-beginners:
MEAS2000 Iranian History and Culture or MEAS2106 The History of Persian Art plus language courses dependent on language proficiency and additional courses to achieve the requirement for 42 units.

With the permission of the Convener, a student with appropriate language competence may enter the major at Intermediate Persian or Advanced Persian level.