These days most of the people around the world have one common point. We are all stuck at home because of the COVID-19 virus pandemic. In the speeding world that we live in, where the borders and distances mean nothing more than a few hours of flight, time can pass with loads of plans and works to do, meeting people was never easier. Now we are forced to stay in our houses, and practice social distancing for an unknown period of time. Traveling seems like a far memory and gathering with friends and family comes with the risk of getting ourselves or others sick.
But on the other hand, it is an opportunity to complete those tasks that we plan to begin or complete and left undone. To finish the half-read books, watch the list of the movies we never had time to watch, or even learn a new language or practice the language we have already started learning.
Persian Podcast is becoming a very popular media for sharing ideas among Iranians
Perhaps, some of the people who read this text are interested in learning Persian or already know a little. Due to the lack of learning materials compare to other languages, it is hard to find high quality learning content in Persian.
Here I am listing eight Persian podcasts that can be used as the listening materials for Persian language, idioms and expressions.
The podcast is a young but very popular media in Iran, especially because of the absence of free and high quality public media like TV, Radio and Journals, we tend to rely more on the personal productions like podcasts which are relatively interesting and informative.
Here is my list of Persian Podcast:
The word Joloon (جولون), means to walk around or to travel around. As it can be comprehended by its name this Radio is about traveling, not only the travel destinations but it also includes many techniques to travel on a budget, or find accommodations.
One the interesting episodes for non-Persian speakers are the those that introduce the Iranian travel destinations, like northern Iran countryside, the southeastern province of Khuzestan, the western province of Kermanshah and many other destinations around Iran, with details like where to visit, what to eat, the less touristic and authentic places to visit.
Other interesting subjects are the episodes talking about the concerns and problems of Iranian travelers, females traveling alone in Iranian society, hitchhiking, etc.
This radio can be the most credible window toward the life of the Iranian Traveler community for those who can understand Persian and love to know more about contemporary Iran.
This Podcast is not necessarily about Iran, but I have already introduced it to some Persian learners and had positive feedbacks. Channel B is a Persian speaking podcast which talks about interesting events, usually criminal or strange ones. The narrator of the Podcast, Ali Bandari, is speaking a very standard, slow and clear Persian. Moreover, the choice of the subjects is making you follow the episodes one by one.
For further following up, they have a website that you can follow their stories for more details, photos and videos.
This podcast is about the Persian Music, not only traditional music, but also Iranian pop, modern and contemporary music genres. The episodes are about 20 minutes and in each episode, Bardia Doosti chooses a piece of music and talks about its different aspects.
This podcast is a very well organized and high quality radio about the contemporary history of Iran, based on archive documents, interviews and the oral memory of the Iranian history.
If you are interested in Iran or Persian language, then you must know Ferdowsi. The well-known epic Iranian Poet who lived in the 11th century. According to history, it was he who saved the Persian language, as the administrative language of the country had changed to Arabic since the 7th century.
He managed to collect the oral memory of Iranians and also rare written resources, centuries after the collapse of the last Persian empire and the outcome was an epic master piece that lasts until now, Shahname (lit. The book of kings).
In this podcast, we listen to the stories of Shahname in a simple yet attractive narration.
This podcast takes us to the course of history, where the origins and the civilization as we define them have been shaped. If you want to hear a Persian podcast with an informative and yet simple rhythm to follow, you need to put Paragraph in your bookmark list.
The point of this podcast is to teach French to Persian speakers but it can be used vice versa, as Mostafa, the narrator of the podcast, is reading a French text with its Persian translation.
The texts are short stories and the narration is smooth and easy to follow.
in this Radio, Marzie Rasuli talks about issues that are the matter of conflict among people, such as sexual harassment in Iran, Afghan immigrates, divorce, religion, etc.
She is trying to stay neutral and not to judge any party, I recommend this podcast for a deep dive into the current Iranian culture and issues.