The dative case is a grammatical case that typically marks the indirect object of a verb. The indirect object can be the recipient or beneficiary of a verb. We can find the indirect object by asking “for whom?” or “to whom?” depending on the context. For example, in the sentence “We sent mom flowers”, the question “for whom?” and in the sentence “We gave mom flowers”, the question “to whom?” indicate that “mom” is the indirect object.
Dative Case in Persian
The dative case is chiefly marked with به (“be”). The preposition برای (“barâ-ye”) is used in certain cases, particularly when it is needed to indicate the beneficiary of a verb rather than simply its recipient.
| به مادر گل دادیم Be mâdar gol dâdim We gave mom flowers |
| برای مادر گل فرستادیم Barâ-ye mâdar gol ferestâdim We sent mom flowers |
| به پدرم گفتم Be pedar-am goftam I told my father |
| به مادرم کمک کردم Be mâdar-am komak kardam I helped my mother |
| به پاریس که رسیدی، به ما زنگ بزن Be Pâris ke residi, be mâ zang bezan Call us when you arrive in Paris |
| به کنسرت می‌رویم Be konsert miravim we're going to a concert |
| پارسال، به ایران سفر کردم Pârsâl, be Irân safar kardam Last year, I traveled to Iran |
| به تو فکر می‌کنم Be to fekr mikonam I think about you |
| به ساعتش نگاه کرد Be sâat-aš negâh kard She looked at her watch |
| به کمکت نیاز دارم Be komak-at niyâz dâram I need your help |
| آن اتفاق به شهرتش آسیب زد Ân ettefâǧ be šohrat-aš âsib zad That incident harmed his reputation |
Compare the following examples. The verb is “to send” in both sentences. The preposition برای marks the target when it is beneficiary and the preposition به marks the target when it is recipient.
| برای مادر گل فرستادند Barâ-ye mâdar gol ferestâdand They sent mom flowers |
| به مرز سرباز فرستادند Be marz sarbâz ferestâdand They sent troops to the border |
The ablative case marks “source” and the dative case marks “target”. This can be easily seen in the following example:
| از انگلیسی به فارسی ترجمه کردن Az Engelisi be Fârsi tarjome kardan To translate from English into Persian |
Dative of Pronouns
The dative marker به can combine with bound personal pronouns and free personal pronouns. Bound pronouns are not normally used in written Persian and are typical of spoken Persian. The following table demonstrates bound dative pronouns as they are written and pronounced in informal speech. The “h” in “be-hem” and other forms is an epenthetic consonant used to resolve vowel hiatus.
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Person | بهم be-hem |
بهمون be-hemun |
| 2nd Person | بهت be-het |
بهتون be-hetun |
| 3rd Person | بهش be-heš |
بهشون be-hešun |
The following table demonstratives free dative pronouns.
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Person | به من be man |
به ما be mâ |
| 2nd Person | به تو be to |
به شما be šomâ |
| 3rd Person | به او be u به آن be ân |
به آنها be ânhâ |