Doctor of Persian language and Literature and native Persian teacher at the Dodet Center of Istanbul University.10 years of teaching experience to more than 600 students.teaching spoken,formal,Literat

Find out more about Asya

• 1) Do you speak this language fluently because of your origins or because a teacher inspired you to learn?

  I can say both! Because the Persian language is both my mother tongue and my field of study in the university, which I continued until the doctoral level; beside them my university professors encouraged us to promote this language and were sad that this language was neglected in the world. These things, as well as my interest in teaching, made me go to the 90-hours course of “how to teach Persian to non-Persian speakers” which held in "Saadi Foundation". My great interest in teaching has made me teach Persian as a volunteer teacher of Istanbul University without receiving salary for the third consecutive year.

• 2) Can you name a living, historical or fictional character that you think is the emblematic representative of the language's culture?

  Persian language poets such as Saadi Shirazi and Ferdowsi are among the historical figures who, with their beautiful Persian works, played an important role in saving the Persian language after the invasion of foreigners on Iran in the centuries ago.

• 3) Is there a typical word, phrase, tradition or behaviour in the language that you particularly like?

  In the Persian language, expressions related to love and affection are very diverse and interesting. Since I am very familiar with English, Arabic, and Turkish languages, I saw such a variety of expression of love more in Persian language; Phrases like "doret begardam" "halaaketam" and etc which have no equivalents that can be translated into English.

• 4) Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  Because it is one of the oldest languages in the world that has been preserved so far, anyone who knows today Persian can easily read and understand the texts of 1400 years ago. Also, the literature of this language is very rich and many Important world poets have expressed their influence from Persian poets and its literature, such as influence of Goethe's from Hafez; Also, Iranian cinema and music has many audiences and enthusiasts; besides these, it is the first language of about 200 million people and 3 countries, and has had a direct impact on Turkish, Arabic, Indian, etc. (Persian language for nearly 600 years was one of the official languages of the Ottoman Empire and India).

• 5) What is the main difficulty in learning this language and what can help the process of learning?

  The different of its alphabet from Latin and the lack of observance of short vowels in the writing of this language have made it a little difficult. In addition to them, the lack of good educational resources (books, videos, teachers and classes outside of Iran) increase that difficulty. What can help the further development of this language at first is to introduce its importance and beauty to the people (creating demand) and then teaching the Persian language in various universities around the world, which will and increases teachers and its educational diversity.

• 6) Provide a valuable anecdote related to your language learning or your days at school.

  When my students see the different alphabet of Persian language in the first class, they get a little discouraged to learn it and think that they will never be able to read or speak it, I tell them: "Just trust your brain, you Whether you are afraid or not, the brain goes its own way and learns everything easily. Learning a language is like driving, in the first days, you are constantly afraid, just like the beginning days of driving, you focus just on how to drive, you set the seat, mirrors, etc. even if someone talks to you, it will lead to your mistake, but gradually you become so skilled that while driving you think about everything but driving! It is your amazing brain that has handled everything. Learning a language is like this, at first you focus on words and grammar while speaking, but after a while, you see that you are speaking this language as easily as drinking water (Persian term). So, don't be afraid and just practice.

• 7) How has travel or a specific trip helped you to increase your skill and knowledge of the language?

  I am currently living in Turkey. This migration and seeing the great demand for learning Persian language and the tremendous influence of Persian on Turkish became one of the most important reasons to encourage me to improve myself in teaching this language. Teaching formal and spoken form of Persian and its literature to Turkish people and other nationalities gave me a lot of experience that I could not find that in any course or book. Also, with the encouragement of language learners, I opened an educational page on Instagram where I teach Persian in that with Turkish and English translation, and now it has several thousand followers.

• 8) What makes you a Superprof in language?

  I am perhaps one of the few online Persian teachers who have the highest education in the field of Persian language and literature, I have also completed international and specialized courses on how to teach Persian to non-Persian speakers. My experience and interest in teaching has provided everything that a language learner wants; Up to now I have had more than 500 Persian learners who have learned anything related to the Persian, including literature, official and spoken, reading manuscript and so on. They have learned and now some of them have become teachers of this language themselves. Besides these, knowing important languages such as English, Arabic and Turkish has played a very effective role in establishing a relationship with the learner, finding signs and similar words and making learning easier for them.