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Prints of Persia (why are things written in English?)
Slate ^ | June 17, 2009

Posted on 06/17/2009 8:40:31 PM PDT by nuconvert

Why are Iranian police markings written in English?

June 17, 2009

Post-election protests continued in Tehran for the fifth day on Wednesday. In many photos, riot police wear uniforms with the English word police on them. Ambulances, too, bear the word ambulance in English. Why not use Persian words instead of their English equivalents?

Because everyone knows English. Like many capital cities, Tehran has its emergency personnel wear markings that are internationally recognizable. Street signs, too, are translated into English, and police cars are generally inscribed in both English and Persian. That makes the city more tourist-friendly without sacrificing clarity for locals. After all, the Persian word for police is the same: polise. (Persian, or Farsi, is an Indo-European language that uses an Arabic script, but people will often use Latin lettering, also known as Penglish or Fingilish, especially when typing or texting.) It's also the same word in French (police), German (polizei), Italian (polizia), Czech (policie), and many other languages. Iranian students are required to take English classes in high school. So using the English word for police actually maximizes the number of people who will understand it.

(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: english; iran; language

1 posted on 06/17/2009 8:40:31 PM PDT by nuconvert
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To: nuconvert
Because it is all being filmed on a set — just like the fake the “moon landings”


/s

2 posted on 06/17/2009 8:43:30 PM PDT by BenLurkin
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To: nuconvert

***Because everyone knows English. Like many capital cities,***

“Whereas in America they haven’t used English for years!”...Henry Higgins


3 posted on 06/17/2009 8:44:09 PM PDT by Ruy Dias de Bivar (A modern liberal is someone who doesn't care what you do so long as it is compulsory.)
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To: nuconvert

What about the uniforms of their baby milk factory workers?


4 posted on 06/17/2009 8:45:01 PM PDT by Vince Ferrer
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To: nuconvert

It is 100% targeted at the US media.

They are saying “USA, please help us!”

How we can, I don’t know, but the message is clear.


5 posted on 06/17/2009 9:07:24 PM PDT by freedumb2003 (Communism comes to America: 1/20/2009. Keep your powder dry, folks. Sic semper tyrannis)
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To: nuconvert

Back in the day it was one of the best games out there.


6 posted on 06/17/2009 9:10:18 PM PDT by libh8er
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To: BenLurkin

Janeane Garafalo posts on FR? Wow!!


7 posted on 06/17/2009 9:11:51 PM PDT by Proud_USA_Republican
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To: nuconvert
Why not use Persian words instead of their English equivalents?

I was under the impression that the language spoken in Iran was called Farsi. Why not use the real name instead of the generic term?
8 posted on 06/17/2009 9:16:39 PM PDT by fr_freak
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To: freedumb2003

“How we can, I don’t know,”

Contact your Congresscritter -ask him/her to speak out in support of the Iranian people. Remind them of the Iran Freedom & Support Act of 2005.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Freedom_and_Support_Act


9 posted on 06/17/2009 9:20:08 PM PDT by nuconvert ( Khomeini promised change too // Hail, Chairman O)
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To: berdie

later


10 posted on 06/17/2009 9:20:47 PM PDT by berdie (Philosophies of the school room in one generation will reflect the government philosophy of the next)
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To: fr_freak

Actually, Persian is correct. Farsi is an adaptation of the original Parsi. (when the muslim arabs came in, they couldn’t pronounce the letter “P”, so the word became Farsi.)
Iranians now use all 3 terms Farsi, Parsi and Persian.


11 posted on 06/17/2009 9:24:30 PM PDT by nuconvert ( Khomeini promised change too // Hail, Chairman O)
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To: nuconvert
"That makes the city more tourist-friendly without sacrificing clarity..."

Well I don't know about the rest of you,..... but seeing how I'm ready for a vacation; I'll consider going now!

12 posted on 06/17/2009 10:04:06 PM PDT by Hillarys nightmare (So Proud to be living in "Jesus Land" ! Don't you wish everyone did?)
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To: nuconvert
Iranians now use all 3 terms Farsi, Parsi and Persian

No wonder they use English. They can't even use one word to describe their own language.

13 posted on 06/17/2009 11:06:48 PM PDT by TheThinker (America doesn't have a president. It has a usurper.)
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To: fr_freak; nuconvert

Re.: Farsi

nuconvert is correct. Farsi is arabic. Also many if not most Iranians (especially nationalists) insist on the use of the word “Persian”, because other languages are given an english name too.

You don’t say I speak “espanol” or “deutsch”, you say “Spanish” and “German”. Likewise “Persian” is correct, while “Farsi” while still very common is an arabized term.

Re.: Prints and Police gear

The protestors prints in English are clearly directed at the West.

Anyway English is very common in Iran and English signs and English and French words have been heavily present in Iran since the Shah times. The Iranian Police and Army were before 1979 US-trained and still have US rank systems and several guidelines.

Regarding the Police riot gear one does however also suspect that since it’s bought from China or some European country, they buy stock items with POLICE already printed on it.


14 posted on 06/17/2009 11:29:52 PM PDT by SolidWood (Down with the islamic regime! Freedom for Iran!)
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To: LibreOuMort

“Parsi”? DIdn’t you tell me this, once?


15 posted on 06/18/2009 6:55:38 PM PDT by sionnsar (IranAzadi|5yst3m 0wn3d-it's N0t Y0ur5:SONY|"AlsoSprachTelethustra"-NonValueAdded|Lk21:36|FireTheLiar)
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To: sionnsar

“Parsi”? DIdn’t you tell me this, once?

I sure did.


16 posted on 06/19/2009 9:31:34 PM PDT by LibreOuMort (Give me liberty, or give me death! (Patrick Henry))
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To: fr_freak

you’ve been tricked into believing something is nothing.....especially by SLATE-— they have a lot of crappy writers there


17 posted on 06/19/2009 9:36:43 PM PDT by MissDairyGoodnessVT (Mac Conchradha - "Skeagh mac en chroe"- Skaghvicencrowe)
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