Persian language (Farsi) is the mother tongue of more than 150 million people in the Middle East and Central Asia, spoken today primarily in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan, with speakers in a number of other countries in the region. Persian was widely understood from the Mediterranean to India, and has a rich historical and cultural legacy, and includes the work of Ferdousi, Khayyam, Saadi, Rumi and Hafiz.  Persian literature influenced the works of European writers such as Victor Hugo, Voltaire, Lamartine, Maeterlinck, Goethe and F. Scott Fitzgerald, as well as many Arabic, Turkish and Urdu writings, and many Persian words are retained in those language.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Due to structural changes in the undergraduate program rules in 2012, the courses that make up the new 2012 majors may be different to the pre-2012 majors, and therefore some courses cannot be counted between majors.  Students are advised to contact the CASS Student Office if they are unsure about their Majors.

Learning outcomes

Students will have the skills and knowledge to:

• write texts in Farsi in the appropriate genre, with correct grammatical structures and thematic vocabulary relevant to the level of the student.
• read, comprehend and infer authors’ meanings in newspapers, magazines, literary and critical texts written in Farsi.
• engage with authentic media such as Persian news, movies or music by analysing and evaluating their content.
• communicate verbally in a variety of settings with proficient Farsi speakers.
• identify and differentiate aspects and issues of the cultures and societies associated with the Farsi language.