Persian, A Language for Poetry 2. Why is Persian Such a Poetic Language? Tonality, Stress, and Accents in Persian - Learn Persian Step by Step (2024)

Persian language is considered among the most poetic languages of the world. Persian words enjoy a soft and melodic quality and the phrases have a unique rhythmic nature.

This singing quality gives Persian poets such as Hafez and Rumi, a marvelous chance to create rhythm through the matchlessly euphonic words. Persian can be compared to the ‘Romance languages,’ such as Italian and French, for its melodic and singing quality. This is why Persian has been referred to as the “French” or the “Italian” of the East.

Here are some of the reasons why Persian is such a splendid ground for writingpoetry:

Persian Vowelsare similar to Italian

Similar to Italian, the vowels in Persian are clear, open, and wide. Words don’t start or end with harsh consonants but with softer sounds whichhave a singing tonality. This ‘legato’ (connected)character, is a perfect tool for poets in bringing ‘music’ to their words.

The ‘Legato’ quality in the Italian language is one of the main reasons why most ‘operas’ were written in Italian. Many important poets such as Rumi رومی (Molavai مولوی), used Persian as their language for poetry because of this same musical quality.

Contrarily, in languages like English or German, words tend to be pronounced in ‘staccato.’ This means they are articulated separately or individually.

Please visit part 1 of this articlehere to learn more about the extraordinary importance of poetry in Iranian culture.

Persian consonants are similar to French

Persian consonants have a soft and graceful quality to them as well. They don’t include forceful or sharp sounds. This can be compared to the smooth, velvety, and elegant sounds of the French language.

On the other hand, in languages such as Arabic or Dutch, the thick consonants are pronounced and in an acute manner.

Please check out also the article that explores Persian versus Arabic, differences and similarities.

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Musicality in Persian Vowels

In Persian traditional music, each tone is divided into smaller tones called quarter (¼ ) of tones. The same concept appears within the Persian vowels, when speaking. Each vowel seems to include tiny ‘mini’ vowels within.

These ‘mini’ vowels (which can be defined as ‘intonation’,) donate that exceptional musicality to the Persian language. The small and ‘unseen’ vowels depend on the feeling and attitude of a person; therefore they canonly be heard, and are not written.

Why we use more than one adjective in Persian?

Another reason why the Persian language is great for poetry is the existence of an impressive amount of describing adjectives.Being an ancient language that has been written for a very long time, Persian acquired an extensive vocabulary.

In Iran is common to use two or even three adjectives in a row. In Englishall these words might mean the same thing; however, in Persian every adjective, has a slightly different connotation.

Using several adjectives for the same thing, is a customary habit not only in poetry, but also in everyday conversations or writings. For example, one might describe a view as: “kheili zibaa va ghashang” خیلی زیبا و قشنگ .

Both ‘zibaa’ and ‘ghashang’ mean beautiful in Farsi; however, they are used together to emphasize the beauty of the subject.

Where does the accent (stress) fall in Persian words?

The Persian language is one of the few languages that uses both “stress” and a “pitch” accent syllable. Sometimes the accented syllable can also be pronounced with a raised pitch as well as stress.

Generally speaking in most Persian words the accent (stress) is heard on the last syllable. Of course there are various exceptions such as: suffixes, negative prefix, infinitive ending (-an ن), all plural suffixes (ha ها, an ان), adjective comparative suffixes (-tar تر, /- tarin ترین), and ordinal-number suffixes (om م).

Change of pitch in Persian sentences

What is most interesting is the rise or fall in pitch that occurs at the end of a sentence in Persian.In most cases, the last accent of a sentence is usually accompanied by a low tone, which produces a falling pitch on the last accented syllable.

Once again, the intonation does not change aspects of grammatical structure, but the expression of attitudes and emotions.

Persian intonation, example:

To give an example, take this simple sentence:

“Salaam, chetor.i?” (‘Hi, how are you?’)

If you say the words سلام چطوریwith simply the main vowels written above, you will get a dry, single note, and short sound.

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