Learning a new language is always an exciting journey, and understanding how to talk about time is essential for navigating daily life, making plans, and understanding cultural nuances. In this article, we will explore the time-related vocabulary in the Persian language, also known as Farsi. Persian is an Indo-Iranian language spoken by millions of people in Iran, Afghanistan (Dari), and Tajikistan (Tajik), among other regions. By the end of this article, you’ll have a comprehensive understanding of how to express time in Persian and be able to use this knowledge in practical conversations.

Basic Time Units

Let’s start with the very basics: the units of time. These are the building blocks for more complex expressions and phrases.

Second: ثانیه (sāniyeh)
Minute: دقیقه (daghigheh)
Hour: ساعت (sā’at)
Day: روز (rooz)
Week: هفته (hafteh)
Month: ماه (māh)
Year: سال (sāl)

Understanding these basic units will help you form other time-related expressions and sentences.

Telling Time

When it comes to telling time, Persian has a straightforward approach, similar to English but with its own unique structure.

To ask “What time is it?” you would say:
ساعت چند است؟ (sā’at chand ast?)

To answer, you can structure your response as follows:
ساعت [number] است. (sā’at [number] ast.)

For example:
It’s 3 o’clock: ساعت سه است. (sā’at seh ast.)

Here are some more examples:
1:00 – ساعت یک است. (sā’at yek ast.)
2:30 – ساعت دو و نیم است. (sā’at do va nim ast.)
5:15 – ساعت پنج و ربع است. (sā’at panj va rob’ ast.)
7:45 – ساعت هفت و چهل و پنج دقیقه است. (sā’at haft va chehel o panj daghigheh ast.)

AM and PM

In Persian, the concept of AM and PM is expressed using specific terms. For the morning hours (AM), you use صبح (sobḥ), and for the afternoon and evening hours (PM), you use عصر (asr) or شب (shab).

For example:
8:00 AM – ساعت هشت صبح است. (sā’at hasht sobḥ ast.)
9:00 PM – ساعت نه شب است. (sā’at noh shab ast.)

Days of the Week

Understanding the days of the week is crucial for making plans and understanding schedules. The Persian week starts on Saturday.

Saturday: شنبه (shanbeh)
Sunday: یکشنبه (yekshanbeh)
Monday: دوشنبه (doshanbeh)
Tuesday: سه‌شنبه (sehshanbeh)
Wednesday: چهارشنبه (chahārshanbeh)
Thursday: پنج‌شنبه (panjshanbeh)
Friday: جمعه (jom’eh)

To say “on [day of the week],” you simply use the preposition “در” (dar) before the day:
در شنبه (dar shanbeh) – On Saturday
در یکشنبه (dar yekshanbeh) – On Sunday

Months of the Year

Persian months are based on the Solar Hijri calendar, which is different from the Gregorian calendar used in the West. Here are the months in Persian:

Farvardin (March 21 – April 20): فروردین
Ordibehesht (April 21 – May 21): اردیبهشت
Khordad (May 22 – June 21): خرداد
Tir (June 22 – July 22): تیر
Mordad (July 23 – August 22): مرداد
Shahrivar (August 23 – September 22): شهریور
Mehr (September 23 – October 22): مهر
Aban (October 23 – November 21): آبان
Azar (November 22 – December 21): آذر
Dey (December 22 – January 20): دی
Bahman (January 21 – February 19): بهمن
Esfand (February 20 – March 20): اسفند

To say “in [month],” you use the preposition “در” (dar):
در فروردین (dar Farvardin) – In Farvardin
در مهر (dar Mehr) – In Mehr

Seasons

Seasons are another essential aspect of time-related vocabulary. Here are the Persian terms for the four seasons:

Spring: بهار (bahār)
Summer: تابستان (tābestān)
Autumn: پاییز (pāyiz)
Winter: زمستان (zemestān)

For example:
In the spring – در بهار (dar bahār)
In the winter – در زمستان (dar zemestān)

Days and Parts of the Day

Understanding different parts of the day can help you be more precise in your conversations.

Morning: صبح (sobḥ)
Noon: ظهر (zohr)
Afternoon: بعد از ظهر (ba’d az zohr)
Evening: عصر (asr)
Night: شب (shab)
Midnight: نیمه‌شب (nimeh-shab)

For instance:
In the morning – در صبح (dar sobḥ)
In the evening – در عصر (dar asr)

Frequency Adverbs

To describe how often something happens, you can use frequency adverbs. Here are some common ones:

Always: همیشه (hamisheh)
Usually: معمولا (ma’moolan)
Often: غالبا (ghāleban)
Sometimes: گاهی (gāhi)
Rarely: به ندرت (be nodrat)
Never: هرگز (hargez)

For example:
I always go to the gym – من همیشه به باشگاه می‌روم. (man hamisheh beh bāshgāh miravam.)
She rarely eats fast food – او به ندرت غذای فست فود می‌خورد. (oo be nodrat ghazāye fast food mikhorad.)

Time Expressions

There are various expressions in Persian that incorporate time. These can help you sound more natural and fluent.

Now: حالا (hālā)
Later: بعدا (ba’dan)
Earlier: زودتر (zoodtar)
Before: قبل از (ghabl az)
After: بعد از (ba’d az)
Today: امروز (emrooz)
Tomorrow: فردا (fardā)
Yesterday: دیروز (dirooz)
The day before yesterday: پریروز (parirooz)
The day after tomorrow: پس‌فردا (pasfardā)

For example:
I will call you later – من بعدا با تو تماس می‌گیرم. (man ba’dan bā to tamās migiram.)
She arrived earlier – او زودتر رسید. (oo zoodtar resid.)

Specific Time Phrases

Some specific phrases are frequently used in Persian to talk about time:

In the morning: صبح‌ها (sobḥ-hā)
In the afternoon: بعد از ظهرها (ba’d az zohr-hā)
At night: شب‌ها (shab-hā)
Every day: هر روز (har rooz)
Every week: هر هفته (har hafteh)
Every month: هر ماه (har māh)
Every year: هر سال (har sāl)

For example:
I exercise every day – من هر روز ورزش می‌کنم. (man har rooz varzesh mikonam.)
She studies in the afternoon – او بعد از ظهرها درس می‌خواند. (oo ba’d az zohr-hā dars mikhanad.)

Duration

To talk about the duration of an activity or event, you use expressions like:

For [time period]: برای [زمان] (barāye [zamān])
Since [time]: از [زمان] (az [zamān])
Until [time]: تا [زمان] (tā [zamān])

For example:
I will stay for two hours – من برای دو ساعت می‌مانم. (man barāye do sā’at mimānam.)
She has been here since morning – او از صبح اینجا بوده است. (oo az sobḥ injā budeh ast.)
They will wait until noon – آنها تا ظهر صبر خواهند کرد. (ānhā tā zohr sabr khāhand kard.)

Practice Makes Perfect

The best way to become comfortable with time-related vocabulary in Persian is to practice. Here are a few tips to help you integrate these new words and phrases into your language skills:

1. **Daily Practice**: Try to use new vocabulary in your daily conversations or writings. It could be as simple as telling the time or describing your daily schedule.
2. **Language Exchange**: Find a language partner who speaks Persian and practice time-related conversations. Discuss your plans for the day, week, or month.
3. **Flashcards**: Create flashcards for different time-related terms and review them regularly.
4. **Watch Persian Media**: Listen to Persian songs, watch movies, or follow Persian news. Pay attention to how native speakers use time-related vocabulary.
5. **Write a Diary**: Keep a journal where you write about your daily activities and plans in Persian.

By incorporating these strategies into your learning routine, you’ll find that your understanding and use of time-related vocabulary in Persian will improve significantly. Happy learning!