How to Start Learning the Persian Alphabet

Learning the Persian alphabet can be challenging, especially if you are new to the Arabic script. But learning a new alphabet can be a very rewarding experience. It helps you connect with family, loved ones and discover a whole new world. To help you build a small daily habit of learning the Persian alphabet I have provided some simple steps to guide you in your learning journey.

Understand the basics of Persian writing

Persian, also called Farsi, uses an alphabet with 32 letters. You read words from right to left.

It shares much of its script with Arabic, but the languages are different. Persian also uses four additional letters: پ‎, چ‎, ژ‎ and گ‎.

Most letters connect to their neighbours. Their shapes can change depending on where they appear in a word. This can make Persian writing particularly challenging for new readers.

Short vowel sounds are usually left unwritten. This means recognizing letters is only part of reading. Knowing how a word sounds matters too.

You do not need to master all these details today. Keep them in mind as you start practicing.

Learn similar letters together

Instead of treating every letter as a new shape, look for families.

These four letters share a similar basic shape:

1. ب, the b sound, has one dot below.
2. پ, the p sound, has three dots below.
3. ت, the t sound, has two dots above.
4. ث, an s sound in Persian, has three dots above.

Look at the shape first, then count the dots. Cover the sounds and try to recall them.

Practice recognizing the letters in a different order. That helps you recognize each one without relying on its place in a list.

Letters that share a shape

shape first, then the dots

Family

بbeb

پpep

تtet

ثses

Hide the sounds Shuffle

Several Persian sounds have more than one letter: ث‎, س‎ and ص‎ all sound like s, and ذ‎, ز‎, ض‎ and ظ‎ all sound like z. Which one a word uses is a matter of spelling, so you learn it with the word.

Keep an alphabet reference nearby so you can check unfamiliar letters as you meet them.

On the Learn Farsi alphabet course, we make learning the Persian alphabet easy by grouping similar letters together in simple bite sized lessons. You can also find a cheatsheet there to quickly look up each letter, different symbols & marks, and see examples of different words, their letter components and how they are pronounced.

Meet the letters inside real words

It helps to first learn a letter’s sound, then look at how it appears in a word.

For example, ب can appear as بـ at the beginning, ـبـ in the middle, or ـب at the end. These are forms of the same letter, not separate letters to learn.

Not every letter connects in both directions. A gap inside a word does not always mean a new word has started.

Start with a small set of useful words:

1. آب, âb, water.
2. نان, nân, bread.
3. سلام, salâm, hello.
4. کتاب, ketâb, book.

Here, â represents a long vowel, roughly like the vowel in “father.” Listen to a recording rather than relying on that comparison alone.

Choose one word. Hear it, say it, and trace its letters from right to left. Then copy it once, keeping the dots in place.

You are learning how the letters work together, not just collecting isolated shapes.

Use Latin letters as a bridge

Writing Persian sounds in Latin letters is called transliteration. It can help you connect an unfamiliar word with its pronunciation.

Try this sequence:

1. Look at سلام alongside salâm and its meaning, hello.
2. Listen and repeat.
3. Cover salâm and try reading سلام again.
4. Check the pronunciation when you need help.

Transliteration is a useful support, but gradually give the Persian writing more attention.

You do not need to stop using Latin letters overnight. Try reading the Persian first, then use the transliteration to check yourself.

Connect reading with simple listening

You can start listening before you know the whole alphabet. On Learn Farsi you can explore a Persian word library and lookup and practice the pronunciation and reading of different words. A greeting or someone naming everyday objects is a useful starting point. Here is سلام at the start of an Iranian cooking video:

YouTubeFrom 0:00 to 0:06

Smart subtitlesword by word in English

سلامدوستایمهربونمامیدوارمکهحالتونخوب خوبباشه.

0:00 / 5:48

Persian from IranStrong beginner

Learn with this on Reelang

Choose a couple of basic Persian words and try to break them down into their letters, as in the example below. This can help you to first identify individual letters but also recognize their written form.

Take a word apart

read right to left

Word

مادر

mâdar mother

a short vowel you hear but do not see the joining breaks here

Hide the Latin letters Tap a letter to find it in the word.

Each tile shows a letter in the shape it takes inside this word, with the letter on its own underneath. The letters ا‎, آ‎, د‎, ذ‎, ر‎, ز‎, ژ‎ and و‎ never join the letter after them, so a word like مادر has gaps and is still one word.

Try a ten minute daily routine

Keep your practice small enough to repeat:

1. Four minutes: learn or review a few related Persian letters (try out the Learn Farsi alphabet course for this!)
2. Four minutes: read and listen to a few familiar words from a Persian word library
3. Two minutes: cover the transliteration and try reading your words again.

If the words still feel difficult, repeat them tomorrow. You do not need new material every day.

A useful first goal is recognizing a few familiar words without checking the Latin letters.

A place to practice

I founded Learn Farsi to help people learn Persian through clear, manageable practice. Our Persian alphabet lessons cover letters, connected forms, and reading. You can use Learn Farsi on the web or find us on the App Store and Play Store.

Start with one small goal: learn a couple of new letters per day, learn 1 new word, recognize a word, understand it, and practice reading it in its deconstructed and connected form.

Enjoy your learning journey!