Welcome to the first episode of My Levantine Arabic Diary! In this journey, I’ll be sharing my experiences, challenges, and progress as I learn Levantine Arabic.

My Levantine Arabic Diary 

My Journey to Levantine Arabic | Episode 1

Seeb (apple), representing beauty
Seer (garlic), representing good health
Serkeh (vinegar), representing patience
Sonbol (hyacinth), representing spring
Samanu (sweet pudding), representing fertility
Sabzeh (sprouts), representing rebirth
Sekeh (coins), representing prosperity

Farsi (Persian) pods

Persian New Year 1402 (haft seen table)

Persian New Year 1402 (Haft-Seen)

کتابِ من           کتابم         my book
کتاب ِ  تو          کتابت        your book (singular)
کتاب ِ او          کتابش         his/her book
کتاب ِ ما        کتابمون        our book
کتاب ِ شما         کتابتون     your book (Plural)
کتاب ِ آنها       کتابشون      their book

possessive in Farsi (Persian) = صفات ملکی

Grammar Point: The verb (to be) boodan
While reading the Conversation, you might have wondered why the counterpart of the English verb “is” in Farsi (ast )
had different forms in different places. For instance, when Nasrin introduced her husband to her mom, she said, In
Dānieleh (This is Daniel). In another place, Nasrin asked her mom, Farzād kojāst? (Where is
Farzad?).
Like English, Farsi also uses both full and contracted forms of the verb to be. In English, we can say, “I am happy,” “Jane is
beautiful,” and “You are smart,” or we can contract the verb and say, “I’m happy,” “Jane’s beautiful,” and “You’re smart.” In
the same way, Nasrin used contracted forms of the be-verb.
Like most Indo-European languages, Farsi verbs are conjugated. Conjugation means that speakers attach endings to verbs
that provide information about the person, number, and tense of a verb. In Farsi, very often pronouns are omitted from
sentences because the verb endings imply the pronoun.

more examples:

مُعَلِّمَم=معلمم   moallemam = moallem hastam = I'm a teacher.
دُکتُری= دکتری؟  Doctori?        = Doctor hasti?        = are you a doctor?
تاجِره= تاجره       Tajere            = Tajer hast              = he's/she's a business(wo)man.
خُوشحالیم = خوشحالیم   khosh'halim =khosh'hal hastim= we're happy.
ناراحَتین؟= ناراحتین          narahatin? = narahat hastin? = are you unhappy?
تو راهَن؟= تو راهن؟         tu rahan? = tu rah hastan? = are they on the way?


The verb (to be) boodan = بودن

آیا تا به حال پلی ساخته‌ایم؟
در زمان‌های دور دو برادر در کنار هم بر سر زمینی که از پدرشان به ارث برده بودند کار می‌کردند و در نزدیک هم خانه‌هایی برای خودشان ساخته بودند و به خوبی روزگار می‌گذراندند. برحسب اتفاق روزی بر سر مسئله‌ای با هم به اختلاف رسیدند. برادر کوچکتر بین زمین‌ها و خانه‌هایشان کانال بزرگی حفر کرد و داخل آن آب انداخت تا هیچ گونه ارتباطی با هم نداشته باشند.
برادر بزرگتر هم ناراحت شد و از نجاری خواست تا با نصب پرچین‌های بلند کاری کند تا برادرش را نبیند و خودش عازم شهر شد. هنگام عصر که برگشت با تعجب دید که نجار بجای ساخت دیوار چوبی یک پل بزرگ ساخته است.
برادر کوچکتر که از صبح شاهد این صحنه بود پیش خود اندیشید حتماً برادرش برای آشتی دستور ساخت پل را داده است و بی‌صبرانه منتظر بازگشت او بود.
رفت و برادر بزرگ را در آغوش گرفت و از او معذرت‌خواهی کرد. دو برادر از نجار خواستند چند روزی مهمان آنها باشد. اما او گفت: پل‌های زیادی هستند که او باید بسازد و رفت.

Have we ever built a bridge?
In the distant times, two brothers worked side by side on the land they inherited from their father and built houses for themselves nearby and had a good time. As it happened, one day they had a disagreement over an issue. The younger brother dug a big canal between their lands and houses and poured water into it so that they would have no connection with each other.
The older brother was also upset and asked a carpenter to install tall hedges so that he could not see his brother and left to the city himself. When he returned in the evening, he was surprised to see that the carpenter had built a big bridge instead of a wooden wall. The younger brother, who witnessed this scene from the morning, thought to himself that his brother must have ordered the construction of the bridge for reconciliation and was impatiently waiting for his return.
He went and hugged his big brother and apologized to him. Two brothers asked the carpenter to be their guest for a few days. But he said: There are many bridges that he has to build and left.

Short story: Two brothers داستان کوتاه : دو برادر   

الف  as in  آدم  /aadam/ = human
ب    as in  برادر /baraadar/ = brother
پ    as in  پدر   /pedar/   = father
ت    as in  ترس  /tars/   =fear
ث    as in   ثانیه  /sanie/  = second
ج     as in   جان  /jaan/  = life
چ     as in    چشم  /cheshm/  = eye
ح     as in   حس   /hes/   =feeling/sense
خ     as in    خشم /khashm/ =anger
د     as in    درس   /dars/ =lesson
ذ     as in    ذهن    /zehn/ = mind
ر      as in    راز     /raaz/ = secret
ز      as in   زن     /zan/  =woman
ژ      as in    ژرف  /zharf/  =  deep
س   as in    سفید  /sefid/ = white
ش   as in     شعر  /she'r/  =poem 
ص   as in     صبر  /sabr/ = patience
ض   as in     ضعف  /za'f/ = weakness
ط     as in     طلا     /talaa/ = gold
ظ     as in      ظریف  /zarif/ = fragile
ع       as in     عشق  /eshgh/= love
غ       as in     غم    /gham/ = sadness
ف     as in     فکر    /fekr/ = thought
ق      as in     قصه   /ghesse/ = story
ک      as in     کوه   /kooh/ = mountain
گ      as in     گرم   /garm/=  warm
ل      as in      لب    /lab/  = lip
م      as in      مادر  /maadar/ = mother
ن      as in      نفس  /nafas/ = breath
و      as in       وقت  /vaght/ = time
ه      as in       هوا   /havaa/ = air
ی      as in      یار     /yaar/ = friend


ث/ص/س = /S/ as in sense
ز/ذ/ظ/ض = /Z/ as in zebra
ط/ت         = /T/  as in tear
ح/ه            = /H/ as in hello
ق/غ           =  /GH/ as in [r] in French

Persian [Farsi] Alphabet

common key phrases in Farsi for Greetings

hello:     سلام /salaam/

how are you?:  حالتون چطوره؟ /haaletun chetore?/

I'm fine, thank you.:   خوبم مرسی /khubam, merci/

What's your name?:    اسمتون چیه؟ /esmetun chie?/

where are you from?:   اهل کجایی؟  /ahle kojaei?/

Happy to see you:   خوشبختم.  /khoshbakhtam/

bye:   خدافظ  /khodafez/



Greetings in Farsi

 Amir-Hushang Ebtehaj AKA  A.H.Saye. A Contemporary Iranian poet who recently passed away at the age of 94, Aug 10, 2022. 
امیر هوشنگ ابتهاج ملقب به سایه. شاعر معاصر فارسی که در سن 94 سالگی در 10 آگوست 2022 چشم از جهان فرو بست. 

متن اصلی شعر هرگز:
 
خانه دلتنگِ غروبی خفه بود
مثلِ امروز که تنگ است دلم
پدرم گفت چراغ
و شب از شب پُر شد
من به خود گفتم یک روز گذشت
مادرم آه کشید؛
«زود بر خواهد گشت.»
ابری آهسته به چشمم لغزید
و سپس خوابم برد
که گمان داشت که هست این همه درد
در کمینِ دلِ آن کودکِ خُرد
آری، آن روز چو می رفت کسی
داشتم آمدنش را باور
من نمی دانستم
معنیِ «هرگز» را
تو چرا بازنگشتی دیگر؟
آه ای واژه ی شوم
خو نکرده ست دلم با تو هنوز
من پس از این همه سال
چشم دارم در راه
که بیایند عزیزانم، آه

the poem's English translation 

The home was like a suffocated sunset,
like today that I miss you,
my father said light and then suddenly the night became full of night (darkness),
I said to myself one day passed,
my mother sighed "she'll come come back soon",
a cloud slowly slipped into my eyes and then I fell sleep,
who would've thought there were such pains in the ambush of the heart of that poor child?
in those days if anyone left me, I believed they'd come back,
I did not know the meaning of "never"... why didn't you come back, though?,
oh ominous word (never),
my heart isn't used to you yet,
after all these years,
my eyes are still on the way to see my loved ones.