Grandfather’s memories in Persian
A grandson and his grandfather look through a box of old photographs of the village in Persian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «بابا, این عکس کی است؟» — Grandfather, who is this in the photograph?; «اون خودمه, جوان که بودم.» — It is me, when I was young.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a grandson and his grandfather look through a box of old photographs of the village. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- بابا, این عکس کی است؟bâbâ, in aks ki ast؟Grandfather, who is this in the photograph?
- اون خودمه, جوان که بودم.un khâdâme, dzhâvân ke budam.It is me, when I was young.
- اون سال‌ها روستا چطور بود؟un sâlhâ rustâ châtâr bud؟What was the village like in those years?
- زندگی سختی بود. برق نبود, آب را از چاه می‌آوردیم.zendegi sakhti bud. barg nebud, âb râ az châh mi-âvardim.Life was hard. There was no light; water was carried from the well.
- برق کی آمد؟barg ki âmed؟When did they bring electricity?
- در دهه چهل. آن سال برای روستا نقطه عطف بود.dar dâhe chel. ân sâl barâe rustâ nâgte-ye atf bud.In the sixties. That year was a turning point for the village.
- از اون روزها چی به یادت مونده؟az un ruzhâ chi be yodet munde؟What of those days has stayed in your memory?
- همه دور هم چای می‌خوردیم و افسانه می‌گفتیم.hame dâr ham chay mi-khârdim â afsâne mi-gâftim.Everyone sat together, drank tea and told legends.
Lines one by one
| Persian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| بابا, این عکس کی است؟ | bâbâ, in aks ki ast؟ | Grandfather, who is this in the photograph? |
| اون خودمه, جوان که بودم. | un khâdâme, dzhâvân ke budam. | It is me, when I was young. |
| اون سال‌ها روستا چطور بود؟ | un sâlhâ rustâ châtâr bud؟ | What was the village like in those years? |
| زندگی سختی بود. برق نبود, آب را از چاه می‌آوردیم. | zendegi sakhti bud. barg nebud, âb râ az châh mi-âvardim. | Life was hard. There was no light; water was carried from the well. |
| برق کی آمد؟ | barg ki âmed؟ | When did they bring electricity? |
| در دهه چهل. آن سال برای روستا نقطه عطف بود. | dar dâhe chel. ân sâl barâe rustâ nâgte-ye atf bud. | In the sixties. That year was a turning point for the village. |
| از اون روزها چی به یادت مونده؟ | az un ruzhâ chi be yodet munde؟ | What of those days has stayed in your memory? |
| همه دور هم چای می‌خوردیم و افسانه می‌گفتیم. | hame dâr ham chay mi-khârdim â afsâne mi-gâftim. | Everyone sat together, drank tea and told legends. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Persian in this situation?
“بابا, این عکس کی است؟” (bâbâ, in aks ki ast؟) — Grandfather, who is this in the photograph? The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.