Old Persian had three grammatical genders but Modern Persian is a gender-neutral language. It does not distinguish between masculine, feminine or neuter genders. The fact of being male or female is expressed lexically rather than grammatically. That is, gender is indicated by words rather than inflection.
Different Words for Genders
Some nouns have different words for male and female genders.
| Male | Female |
|---|---|
| مرد ⟨mard⟩ man |
زن ⟨zan⟩ woman |
| برادر ⟨barâdar⟩ brother |
خواهر ⟨xwâhar⟩ sister |
| پسر ⟨pesar⟩ boy; son |
دختر ⟨doxtar⟩ girl; daughter |
| خروس ⟨xorus⟩ rooster |
مرغ ⟨morǧ⟩ hen |
| اسب ⟨asb⟩ horse |
مادیان ⟨mâdiyân⟩ mare |
Indicating Gender in Human Beings
Regarding nouns that do not have different words for male and female human beings, the words “mard” (man), “zan” (woman), “pesar” (boy), “doxtar” (girl) can be used to indicate their gender. These words are nouns but here, they function as adjectives.
| Male or Female | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| پلیس ⟨polis⟩ police |
پلیس مرد ⟨polis-e mard⟩ policeman |
پلیس زن ⟨polis-e zan⟩ policewoman |
| بازیگر ⟨bâzigar⟩ actor, actress |
بازیگر مرد ⟨bâzigar-e mard⟩ actor |
بازیگر زن ⟨bâzigar-e zan⟩ actress |
| پزشک ⟨pezešk⟩ doctor |
پزشک مرد ⟨pezešk-e mard⟩ male doctor |
پزشک زن ⟨pezešk-e zan⟩ female doctor |
| دانشجو ⟨dânešju⟩ student |
دانشجوی پسر ⟨dânešju-ye pesar⟩ boy student |
دانشجوی دختر ⟨dânešju-ye doxtar⟩ girl student |
Arabic Feminine Forms
Some Arabic loanwords have brought their feminine form into Persian as well. This is comparable to English words like “fiancé” vs. “fiancée”.
| Male or Female | Female | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| شهید ⟨šahid⟩ |
شهیده ⟨šahide⟩ |
martyr |
| مدیر ⟨modir⟩ |
مدیره ⟨modire⟩ |
manager |
| شاعر ⟨šâer⟩ |
شاعره ⟨šâere⟩ |
poet |
These feminine forms are only found in written language. Persian does not have grammatical gender and it is not considered natural to feminize nouns. In Persian, شاعر means “poet”, whether male or female. The natural way to specify a female poet is شاعر زن ⟨šâer-e zan⟩.
Indicating Gender in Animals
Regarding animal nouns that do not have different words for male and female, the adjectives “nar” (male) and “mâdde” (female) are used to indicate their gender:
| Male or Female | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| شیر ⟨šir⟩ lion, lioness |
شیر نر ⟨šir-e nar⟩ male lion |
شیر ماده ⟨šir-e mâdde⟩ lioness |
| sag ⟨سگ⟩ dog |
سگ نر ⟨sag-e nar⟩ male dog |
سگ ماده ⟨sag-e mâdde⟩ female dog |
| gorbe ⟨گربه⟩ cat |
گربه‌ی نر ⟨gorbe-ye nar⟩ male cat |
گربه‌ی ماده ⟨gorbe-ye mâdde⟩ female cat |
Practice Examples
- خواننده‌ی زن
- رئیس‌جمهور زن
- آشپز مرد
- آرایشگر مرد
- گرگ ماده
- روباه نر