IDCDCiranians.globalIDCDCLanguage

Writing

Persian (Farsi): writing

How Persian (Farsi) is written: scripts, the alphabet, romanisation, numerals, keyboards and fonts.

فارسی

01Scripts

  • ISO 15924 Arab · Right to left

    ا ب پ تPersian alphabet

    32 letters. Short vowels are not written in ordinary text.

02Alphabet chart: Persian alphabet

Letters: Unicode CLDR exemplar characters for fa.

  1. اā / not written
  2. بb
  3. پp
  4. تt
  5. ثs
  6. جj
  7. چch
  8. حḥ
  9. خkh
  10. دd
  11. ذz
  12. رr
  13. زz
  14. ژzh
  15. سs
  16. شsh
  17. صṣ
  18. ضz̤
  19. طṭ
  20. ظẓ
  21. ع‘
  22. غgh
  23. فf
  24. قq
  25. کk
  26. گg
  27. لl
  28. مm
  29. نn
  30. وv / ū / aw
  31. هh
  32. یy / ī / ay
Show as a table
LetterCode pointUnicode nameRomanisationSound (IPA)
اU+0627arabic letter alefā / not writtenɒː, ʔ
بU+0628arabic letter behbb
پU+067Earabic letter pehpp
تU+062Aarabic letter tehtt
ثU+062Barabic letter thehss
جU+062Carabic letter jeemjd͡ʒ
چU+0686arabic letter tchehcht͡ʃ
حU+062Darabic letter hahḥh
خU+062Earabic letter khahkhx
دU+062Farabic letter daldd
ذU+0630arabic letter thalzz
رU+0631arabic letter rehrɾ
زU+0632arabic letter zainzz
ژU+0698arabic letter jehzhʒ
سU+0633arabic letter seenss
شU+0634arabic letter sheenshʃ
صU+0635arabic letter sadṣs
ضU+0636arabic letter dadz̤z
طU+0637arabic letter tahṭt
ظU+0638arabic letter zahẓz
عU+0639arabic letter ain‘ʔ
غU+063Aarabic letter ghainghɣ, ɢ
فU+0641arabic letter fehff
قU+0642arabic letter qafqɢ, ɣ
کU+06A9arabic letter kehehkk
گU+06AFarabic letter gafgɡ
لU+0644arabic letter lamll
مU+0645arabic letter meemmm
نU+0646arabic letter noonnn
وU+0648arabic letter wawv / ū / awv, uː, ow
هU+0647arabic letter hehhh
یU+06CCarabic letter farsi yehy / ī / ayj, iː, ej
آU+0622arabic letter alef with madda aboveāɒː
ءU+0621arabic letter hamzaʼʔ
ZWNJU+200Czero width non-joiner
  • 32 letters. Short vowels are not written in ordinary text.
  • Persian uses its own digit shapes (CLDR numbering system arabext), different from Arabic digits for 4, 5 and 6.
  • Nasta’liq is the traditional calligraphic style; Naskh is the usual print style.

Sources Unicode Common Locale Data Repository (CLDR), version 49 data. (2026) Verified; The Unicode Standard, version 18.0.0: Unicode Character Database. (2026) Verified

03Romanisation and transliteration

Writing the language in other letters, by open published standards. Libraries use the ALA-LC tables for names and titles.

Persian to Latin, ALA-LC (2012)

زبان فارسی

zbān fārsī

Letter by letter. Short vowels are not written in Persian, so a full romanisation needs them supplied from a dictionary. و and ی are read as consonants at the start of a word or beside a vowel letter, otherwise as long vowels.

Nothing you type leaves your browser. A teaching aid: check any text against the standard before you use it.

Persian to Latin, ALA-LC (2012)
LetterBecomes
بb
پp
تt
ثs
جj
چch
حḥ
خkh
دd
ذz
رr
زz
ژzh
سs
شsh
صṣ
ضz̤
طṭ
ظẓ
ع‘
غgh
فf
قq
کk
كk
گg
لl
مm
نn
هh
ةt
آā
ءʼ
أnot written
ؤnot written
ئʼ

Sources Library of Congress. ALA-LC Romanization Tables: Persian, 2012 version. (2012) Verified

04Numerals

Western digits latn
2026
Extended Arabic-Indic (Persian) digits arabext
۲۰۲۶

Digits from Unicode CLDR numbering systems. Persian digits differ from Arabic digits in the shapes of 4, 5 and 6.

Show as a table
Digits0123456789
Western digits0123456789
Extended Arabic-Indic (Persian) digits۰۱۲۳۴۵۶۷۸۹

05Orthography and standards

StandardFor this language
ISO 639-3pes (macrolanguage fas)
ISO 15924Arab
Unicode CLDR localefa
Digitslatn, arabext

Sources ISO 639-3 code tables. SIL International, registration authority. (2025) To verify; ISO 15924 codes for the representation of names of scripts. Unicode Consortium, registration authority. (2025) Verified; Unicode Common Locale Data Repository (CLDR), version 49 data. (2026) Verified

06Keyboards and typing

Windows
Settings, Time and language, Language and region: add the language, then its keyboard. Switch with Windows key and Space.
macOS
System Settings, Keyboard, Text Input: edit Input Sources and add the keyboard. Switch from the menu bar.
Android
In the keyboard app’s settings (Gboard: Languages), add the language and choose its layout.
iPhone and iPad
Settings, General, Keyboard, Keyboards: add the keyboard. Switch with the globe key.
Linux
In the desktop settings (GNOME: Keyboard, Input Sources), add the layout.

Which layouts each system ships for each language changes with every release. Check the list on your device; layouts we have confirmed are named on the language’s page.

07Fonts

On this platform the language is shown with Vazirmatn. Every face is self-hosted under an open licence.

FontScriptsLicence
VazirmatnPersian, Arabic, Dari, South AzerbaijaniSIL Open Font License 1.1
EstedadKurdish in the Arabic-based script, Arabic-script headingsSIL Open Font License 1.1
Noto Sans ArmenianArmenianSIL Open Font License 1.1
Noto Sans Syriac EasternAssyrian Neo-AramaicSIL Open Font License 1.1
Noto Sans MandaicMandaicSIL Open Font License 1.1
Noto Sans HebrewHebrew, Judeo-PersianSIL Open Font License 1.1
Noto Sans GeorgianGeorgianSIL Open Font License 1.1
IBM Plex Sans and Noto SansLatin and Cyrillic, Kurdish Cyrillic lettersSIL Open Font License 1.1

08Sources

  1. Unicode Common Locale Data Repository (CLDR), version 49 data. 2026

    Verified Unicode License v3 Exemplar characters and default numbering systems, read 2026-10-23.

  2. Library of Congress. ALA-LC Romanization Tables: Persian, 2012 version. 2012

    Verified

  3. The Unicode Standard, version 18.0.0: Unicode Character Database. 2026

    Verified Unicode License v3 Character names, code points and block ranges.

  4. ISO 15924 codes for the representation of names of scripts. Unicode Consortium, registration authority. 2025

    Verified

  5. ISO 639-3 code tables. SIL International, registration authority. 2025

    To verify Codes cross-checked through Glottolog records; the code tables themselves were not read.

Cite this page
APA

Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council. (2026). Persian (Farsi): Writing. iranians.global. https://iranians.global/language/languages/fa/writing/

Chicago

Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council. 2026. “Persian (Farsi): Writing.” iranians.global. https://iranians.global/language/languages/fa/writing/.

BibTeX
@misc{idcdc2026_language_languages_fa_writing,
	author = {{Iranian Diaspora Cooperation \& Development Council}},
	year = {2026},
	note = {Licence: CC BY 4.0},
	title = {Persian ({Farsi}): Writing},
	url = {https://iranians.global/language/languages/fa/writing/},
	howpublished = {https://iranians.global/language/languages/fa/writing/},
}

Download .bib

RIS
TY  - ELEC
AU  - Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council
DA  - 2026///
PY  - 2026
ID  - idcdc2026_language_l
N1  - Licence: CC BY 4.0
TI  - Persian (Farsi): Writing
UR  - https://iranians.global/language/languages/fa/writing/
ER  - 

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09Research and sources

Recent and relevant work on this page’s subject, from approved open scholarly sources. Metadata and links only. Titles stay as published. Not yet reviewed.

  1. PsychoPy in Persian linguistics

    Elmira Esmaeelpour, Negar Sayadi · 2025 · Zenodo

    ArticleDataCiteZenodoOpen accessCC-BY-4.0

  2. Virtual Persian Language Teaching to Non-Persian Speakers: An Alternative or an Option?

    Reza Morad Sahraee, Shohrehalsadat Sajjadi, Shiva Majidi et al. · 2022 · ̒Ilm-i Zabān

    ArticleDOAJOpen access

  3. The Oxford Handbook of Persian Linguistics

    2018 · Oxford University Press eBooks

    BookOpenAlexCrossref

  4. Language Studies: Persian Linguistics and Lexicography

    Dr. Nusrat Rashid · 2025 · International Journal of Humanities & Social Science Insights & Transformations

    ArticleOpenAlexOpen access

  5. English-Persian cross-language plagiarism detection: Multilingual deep learning approach.

    Ansar S, Zarinbal M, Mohebi A · 2026 · PLoS One

    ArticleEurope PMCOpen access

  6. Preserving the Scientific Dignity of the Persian Language as the Language of People With Rich Culture and History

    Mohammad Bagher Saberizafarghandi · 2023 · Iranian Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology

    ArticleOpenAIREOpen access

  7. PsychoPy in Persian linguistics (Session three)

    Elmira Esmaeelpour, Negar Sayadi · 2025 · Zenodo

    ArticleDataCiteZenodoOpen accessCC-BY-4.0

  8. Roshan Institute Fellowships in Persian Language, Linguistics, and Culture

    Camille Rhoné · 2014 · Diwan

    ArticleDataCite

  9. Evaluation of large Language model performance on Persian rheumatology board exams: accuracy and clinical reasoning of GPT-4o vs. GPT-5.1

    Farzad Rafiei, Saina Sadeghipour, Shahab Sheikhalishahi et al. · 2026 · Scientific Reports

    ArticleDOAJOpen access

  10. PsychoPy in Persian linguistics (Session Two)

    Elmira Esmaeelpour, Negar Sayadi · 2025 · Zenodo

    OtherZenodoOpen accessCC-BY-4.0

  11. A Hybrid Persian Sentiment Analysis Framework: Integrating Dependency Grammar Based Rules and Deep Neural Networks

    Kia Dashtipour, Mandar Gogate, Jingpeng Li et al. · 2019 · arXiv

    PreprintarXivOpen access

  12. Benchmarking Large Language Models for Persian: A Preliminary Study Focusing on ChatGPT

    Amirhossein Abaskohi, Sara Baruni, Mostafa Masoudi et al. · 2024 · arXiv

    PreprintarXivOpen access

Sources, licences and fetch dates: arXiv (Metadata CC0 1.0; papers under their own licences), 2026-10-23; Crossref (Metadata facts, any use; abstracts may be publisher-owned and are never shown), 2026-10-23; DataCite (CC0 1.0 (DataCite metadata)), 2026-10-23; DOAJ (Metadata CC0 1.0 (DOAJ); articles under their own open licences), 2026-10-23; Europe PMC (Metadata reusable; full text under each article’s licence), 2026-10-23; OpenAIRE (CC BY 4.0 (OpenAIRE Graph)), 2026-10-23; OpenAlex (CC0-1.0 data; metered API (free key)), 2026-10-23; Zenodo (Metadata CC0 1.0; each record under its own licence), 2026-10-23.