The second edition of An Introduction to the Persian Language, written by Dr. Mohsen Rathi, professor at the Faculty of Literature and Humanities of Shahid Beheshti University, has been published. The first edition of this book was released in 2025 (1404 SH) by Shahid Beheshti University Press in 228 octavo pages and is currently available at the price of 2,050,000 Rials.
Persian is undoubtedly one of the most significant languages of the Islamic world, enriched with intellectual and literary treasures as well as remarkable artistic and scholarly heritage.
The historical relationship between the Persian and Arabic languages dates back to ancient times, prior to the advent of Islam. This relationship flourished during the Islamic era and evolved alongside the development of Islamic civilization. While Arabic served as the language of instruction for Islamic sciences in the western regions of the Islamic world, Persian played a central role in transmitting Islamic culture to many Middle Eastern societies.
Numerous Arabic works titled Qawā‘id al-Lughah al-Fārisiyyah have been compiled by reputable Egyptian and Iraqi scholars, each offering valuable insights. However, the detailed grammatical discussions in these works, along with occasional differences in the classification and definitions of Persian words, have sometimes caused confusion and discouragement among Arabic-speaking learners of Persian. In response to this need, the author has drawn upon reliable and authoritative sources—including the grammars of Professors Khosrow Farshidvard and Khayampour—to compile the present book. The work concludes with explanations of selected Persian vocabulary accompanied by poetic examples, making the book concise, practical, and engaging for readers.
This work outlines the fundamental rules of Persian grammar in a clear and simple manner, free from artificiality and complexity, and includes numerous illustrative examples. Samples of Persian prose and poetry have been translated into Arabic to serve as models for translation and practical application of the grammatical rules. The book also contains a bibliography of key Persian sources as well as a glossary of Persian vocabulary with their Arabic equivalents.
This publication is highly useful for students of Persian and Arabic literature, as well as for all Arabic-speaking students studying in Iranian universities.
It should be noted that the first version of this work was originally published in 2000 (1379 SH) by the Secretariat for the Promotion of the Persian Language and Literature. The second edition has now been issued by Shahid Beheshti University Press at the author’s request.
Students and interested readers may purchase the book from the Sales Office of the Center for the Publication of Scientific Works at Shahid Beheshti University, located on the ground floor of the Information Technology (IT) Building. It may also be ordered online through the Center’s website. An electronic version of the book is available on “Fidibo” and “Taghche”.