Internet Resources for Farsi

Discussion in 'Language Resources' started by Mr A Callidryas, Jan 14, 2015.

  1. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

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    Native Language:
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    Intermediate Languages:
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    Basic Languages:
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    There are several pay sites on the internet but most of the sites listed below are free or have a very minimal charge.

    Getting Started

    These sites are very basic and will not get you out of A1 territory, but if you want a nice and easy introduction, you may like them. They are not everybody's cup of tea as they have a lot more English than Farsi, but they could be a useful starting point.

    http://www.persianpod101.com/
    If you don't mind lots of English, these lessons are very well done. However, this course only has complete beginner and intermediate materials, so it is probably not worth paying for unless you have money to burn. You can sign up for a trial run and get all the complete beginner materials for free. If enough people do this, perhaps the site will finally start producing some beginner materials.

    https://www.youtube.com/user/FarsiWizard
    These go pretty slowly, but the presenter is pleasant and makes some useful comments.

    Basic Courses
    These move a bit faster and let you start really learning.

    http://www.persiandee.com/
    I haven't used this, but it looks like a good free overview to basic grammar and concepts. It's more learning about the language than actually learning skills.

    http://persianlanguageonline.com/
    A very good site. No grammar explanations but very well-designed, as well as fun and easy to use. At the moment, they only have Absolute Beginner and Basic levels, but the developers are planning Intermediate and Advanced levels. At present, there are about 50 dialogues (some very short) and 20 monologues with transcripts and related activities.

    http://french.irib.ir/programmes/art-et-litterature/persan-sans-peine
    Another very good site, but the support language is French. No grammar explanations, just 164 dialogues with transcripts and vocabulary lists. This should get you well into A2.

    http://www.goethe-verlag.com/book2/EN/ENFA/ENFA002.HTM
    One hundred lessons with 18 sentences each. The audio is free at this site along with some of the transcript. If you want a full transcript you can buy Book2 at various online bookstores. There are a number of support languages in addition to English.

    http://www.realdevelop.com/lessons.php?list=Arabic_English
    Twenty-two videos about 7-8 minutes long. In Farsi with 12 different support languages. Fifteen videos are like a phrase book, and 7 are vocabulary with more difficult sentences. These videos are also available on youtube.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbCvjr0v_-8LmZh9431N84w
    This set of video lessons is called FarsiorPersian. It is still growing. In my opinion its best feature is 32 short conversations taken from Irani films. The conversations are simple, but they are good listening practice as the speed is challenging.

    http://www.easypersian.com/farsi/lesson-145/
    This site has been around for a long time. You can decide for yourself how useful it is. A unique feature is the presentation of a fair amount of poetry. However, the best feature is an audio book presented in the last 17 lessons.

    http://livemocha.com/
    I haven't used this. I just signed up today to see what it is like. It looks like a pretty good place to start - and it looks like you may be able to hook up with Farsi speakers on this site.


    More to come in a day or two.
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2015
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  2. hrhenry

    hrhenry Member VIP member

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    chaiandconversation.com isn't a bad resource...

    R.
    ==
  3. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

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    A Revised Opinion

    http://www.persiandee.com/view/showLesson/currentLesson/0
    I took a better look at this site. In fact it is an excellent source for learning grammar. Too bad I didn't find it sooner!

    Moving Into Intermediate

    http://persian.nmelrc.org/menu09.html
    This site is from the University of Texas at Austin. You should be able to find something you like here - it is full of good stuff.

    http://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/mideast/virtualpersian/
    Virtual Persian is a useful site, but with an unfortunate shortcoming. There are four levels: Elementary 1, Elementary 2,
    Intermediate 1, and Intermediate 2. Only Elementary 2 has English translations of the texts. The rest of the material has no support language. To make matters worse, the site is set up so that you cannot paste and copy text into an online translator. If I am wrong about this, please post a reply, letting users know how to use this site more efficiently.

    https://gloss.dliflc.edu/
    GLOSS is one of the best things that has happened to language learners. For Farsi learners it is like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow (and by the way, it is even better for learners of Arabic). There are 372 Farsi lessons ranging from A2 to a low C1.
    GLOSS has very little grammar, but is great for reading, listening and vocabulary. The audio is sometimes not very good quality, but it is always manageable. Each lesson has several pre-reading/pre-writing exercises. There are also 272 Dari lessons for those interested.

    http://langmedia.fivecolleges.edu/culturetalk/iran/index.html
    Another really great site. This has about 170 short monologues/conversations recorded by native speakers at five colleges in New York. Each audio clip is accompanied by a transcript in Farsi and English.

    http://foreigncy.us/
    Because this site is still too difficult for me, I hadn't been to it for awhile. Woah has it changed! It is a pay site now ($10/month or $90/year). It is for newspaper reading and vocabulary development and it looks really good. (It also supports Arabic, Hebrew, Urdu, Russian and Mandarin).

    https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cafe denj
    Some very good quality video shorts, now on youtube but originally from the University of Texas at Austin. High intermediate to advanced.

    http://www.persian.rfi.fr/emission/اینجا-و-جایی-دیگر
    From RFI, this is a weekly program in French and Farsi with audio and with a bilingual transcript.

    The Fun Stuff
    Youtube has all kinds of Farsi videos with English subtitles. A word of warning - Middle Eastern series tend to have interminably long introductions by western standards, so you might want to fast forward past the first couple of minutes in some of these.


    Celestial Tales - ten short animations for kids with religious topics. Very clear, not many silly voices. These should be fine at A2 level.


    TV series about Irani Jews during World War II.


    A suspense drama from the pre-revolution era.


    Family series based on moral living.


    Based on the life of an Irani Air Force pilot.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qItWhZbBqT4
    Based on the life of an Irani scientist.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m46yssM2rMc
    Drama called 'The Duel'.


    You can find more by going to the links above and clicking on the suggested videos on the right side of the screen. Using the links you can also find lots of TV series without subtitles. However, here is a link to a few videos that are a bit different:

    https://www.youtube.com/user/ClassicsComedy/videos
    Laurel and Hardy anyone?

    And here is a pay site with some subtitled content that is free. I haven't used it yet.
    http://www.imvbox.com/watch-iranian-tv-serial/all/

    I bought the Assimil course, which is pretty good. but it seems possible to learn Farsi to a good level without ever leaving the internet and without spending more that 20 to 50 dollars. I'll post a few more sites in a day or two.
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2015
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  4. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

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    Native Language:
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    Basic Languages:
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    Just a few more sites.

    Beginner
    http://www.transparent.com/learn-farsi/
    This is from the people at Transparent Language. It is a fairly good introductory course that is useful and easy to use. It was a bit too pricey for me, but you can register for a free 7-day trial period.

    Late Beginner/Intermediate
    https://www.youtube.com/user/TheFarsiChannel?feature=watch
    This has a number of short videos based on stories from the Bible and Quran. There are no subtitles, but the videos have excellent sound quality and are spoken somewhat slowly and very clearly.

    Advanced
    http://www.persianhub.tv/
    Lots of Farsi language TV series and films. A few with Farsi subtitles. This is still beyond my level, but as far as I can tell, quite a bit of the content is free.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/institutional/2011/04/000001_dawn_podcast.shtml
    Podcasts from the BBC.

    http://ir.voanews.com/programindex.html
    Podcasts from the Voice of America.

    http://www.radiocp.com/?p=326&lang=en
    Podcasts from the University of Maryland.

    http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/persian/top/podcasting.html
    Podcasts and radio from the Japanese broadcaster, NHK.

    http://www2.live.irib.ir/
    And of course IRIB, the Irani National Broadcasting service.
    I just finished watching Alien 2 on this. Okay, so I didn't understand much of the dialogue, but you don't really need much dialogue to follow this kind of film.
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2015
  5. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

    Joined:
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    Native Language:
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    Basic Languages:
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    Just a few more sites that might interest you.

    Listening
    https://www.youtube.com/user/PersianPod101/videos?shelf_id=0&view=0&sort=dd
    Free stuff on youtube from PersianPod101. Some nice listening practice here, and they seem to be adding to the list of videos periodically.

    Documentaries
    These are some videos, some a bit quirky and offbeat, that provide listening practice to real Farsi with subtitles.


    Women and men a bus in Tehran. English subtitles. Mostly unscripted.


    Eight videos of a woman taxi driver who has recorded conversations with her passengers. English subtitles.


    Trials and tribulations of Irani women trying to get divorced. English narration, lots of Farsi dialogue with English subtitles. A bit abrasive, but interesting.


    Seven Irani women tell their stories. Farsi with English subtitles.


    Four wives and one husband - polygamy in rural Iran. Farsi with English subtitles.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjkswNolscw&list=PL3ED5712C426AEC9A
    Female students in Iran. Farsi with English subtitles.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftMQAE4F7Lk
    Shoe collectors at a mosque. Farsi with English subtitles. Dialogue begins at about 3.5 minutes into the video.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftMQAE4F7Lk
    Irani Israelis. Mix of English and Farsi with English subtitles. (and some Hebrew?)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNSsaE0u9_E
    Prison life in Iran. Three videos. Mix of English and Farsi with English subtitles. This was done by PressTV. Most of their videos are dubbed in English, but if you explore, there are a few in Farsi with English subtitles. This particular video is very clear.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8Lzbn8ZuqY
    Teahouses in Iran. Short video with English and some Farsi with English subtitles.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iVfOzZRjUc
    Lost Truth. Farsi with English subtitles. Very clear.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha7kJxmw4pM
    In remembrance of an Ayatollah. Farsi with English subtitles. Lots of short snippets spoken very clearly.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftMQAE4F7Lk
    Politics of Iran and the US. A mix of English with Farsi subtitles and Farsi with English subtitles.
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  6. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

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    Native Language:
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  7. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

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    DLI Persian basic course - I am not sure how I forgot to include this. Like all DLI courses, there is a bit of overkill, but it is an excellent course for beginners.
    There are nine volumes of text, plus a text for learning the script. There is audio for volumes II to IX.

    You can download the audio for volumes II to IX here:
    https://jlu.wbtrain.com/sumtotal/language/DLI basic courses/Persian/Audio Only/

    If the script is new to you, you can learn it with this:
    http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED192535.pdf

    You can download the text for Volume I here:
    http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED185847

    To download volumes II through IX, cut and paste "Persian Basic Course: Volume" into the search bar and type in the appropriate Roman Numeral.


    The Persian Online Academy on Youtube also has some useful stuff:
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTYq1aK2fr_0n4FrgYYZ4Hg/videos
  8. Mr A Callidryas

    Mr A Callidryas Member VIP member

    Joined:
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    Native Language:
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    French
    Basic Languages:
    Persian

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