Sunday, November 1, 2009

Farsi speakers ... or are they Persian?

I innocently created a You Tube video for Farsi first language speakers, hoping to share insights gleaned from the number of Persian first language speakers I have worked with over the years, and it was very interesting.

The video had been on the net for some time with little scuttlebut, and then, about a week ago, a number of Persian first-language speakers (20 or so, perhaps in Iran) started watching it and commenting. Many of them were upset that was using the term "Farsi" because, in their opinion, it's an Arab bastardization of the real name, which a few of wrote should be "Parsi." They also informed me that as an English first language speaker myself, I should be using the term "Persian language" not Farsi, which to them would be like be saying "I speak francais or espanol." To me, this didn't seem to be a big deal ... I might say "I speak francais" for example, but apparently it was a much bigger issue for them.

They were also very unhappy that I mentioned they needed to work on their /v/ sound, claiming it was only their /w/ sound that is at issue. Interestingly enough, everyone is different, and the /v/ sound in American English is different from the one they are using, even though it is arguably closer to the expected American pronunciation when they attempt to make it than what happens when they try to pronounce a /w/. Of course, this brings us back to the classic linguistic argument about comparative analysis, which suggests on the one hand that if a sound doesn't exist in your first language, it will be hard for you to pronounce, but as we in the linguistics field know, this theory was debunked only a few years later when data from numerous studies suggested that some things (and not just in accent, but in grammar as well) are just easier to do than others (or more intuitive) regardless of one's first language. The /v/ sound may well be one of the ones that's just challenging for everyone. I have Persian first language clients who can make great /w/ sounds, but not native-like /v/'s. Go figure!

I find that Russian speakers with strong /v/'s need to learn to soften them, so no matter what your first lanaguage is, it is highly likely to impact your production of English if you are unaware of its influence.

I responded to the Farsi You Tube clients by apologizing for offending anyone. One person suggested I refer to my video as "Iranian/Perian or Farsi first-language Speakers Video" to cover all fronts and be politically-correct, but the biggest thing I was accused of was trying to change Persian accents or somehow disrespecting them, and nothing could be further from the truth. To set the record straight, I love all accents ... I'm not the one discriminating against people and not promoting them to the next level because of their accents. I'm one of the professionals attempting to help them!

Silicon Valley first language speakers of the "Persian" language, however, are a small subset of all Persian speakers, so I am the first to admit that my suggestions and lessons learned are completely biased by the select group I work with.