Testimonial by Natasha Parnian

Graduate Student, Ancient History, Macquarie University, Australia

3 weeks 2023 Middle Persian (Pahlavi) Online School

The Middle Persian (Pahlavi) online course gave me a working grasp of Middle Persian, especially the ability to translate key texts of the Sasanian period and understand them in context. Ruben is highly knowledgeable in both Middle and Classical Persian and positioned each text in its appropriate linguistic and cultural context, making it more enjoyable and easier to comprehend. He was generous with his time and led us toward a relevant scholarship to answer our questions. The linguistic links to Modern Persian, Parthian, and Armenian were very enjoyable. The course highlighted the continuity and the impact of Middle Persian in the trajectory of the evolution of ancient and modern languages.  

The course is well resourced and flexible for student needs. We had many opportunities to suggest texts alongside the texts we were studying. I highly recommend it to anyone studying Iranian history, Middle Persian literature, or Zoroastrian history, as Middle Persian is not commonly offered in University programs elsewhere.  

Interested? Check Upcoming Persian Language Courses!


Our Persian language courses are open to anyone with upper elementary or intermediate knowledge of the Persian language. The lectures are organized with the academic interests of our participants in mind. Students as well as researchers working in Iranian Studies and relevant fields will benefit the most from our courses.

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Other Testimonials.

Christina Kouna

Master in Orthodox Christian Studies, Hellenic Open University, Greece

“I enjoyed the Middle Persian class. I learned so many things through this class. One of the best teachers that I ever had. I hope that I will enjoy in the future more lessons.”

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Marc Tipold

PhD Student, University of Potsdam, Germany

“I highly recommend Middle Persian courses to anyone interested in late antique Persian history and culture and Persia in general.”

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Svitlana Oliynyk

National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Ukraine

“This course has definitely exceeded all of my expectations. It is very well structured, taught, and supervised; the materials we've been given were perfectly tailored for students to learn as much as possible during the given period of time. I would absolutely recommend this course to anyone interested in the history of Iran or the ancient Near East!”

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