What it means
گذرنامه (gozarnâme) means passport in formal Persian. The word is a native Persian compound: گذر (gozar) means passage or crossing, from the verb گذشتن (gozashtan, to pass), and نامه (nâme) means letter or official document. Together they form a word that literally describes a document of passage. In everyday conversation, Iranians often shorten the idea to just پاسپورت (pâsport), the international loanword, but in official settings, on government forms, and at border control windows you will always see گذرنامه. A useful contrast: شناسنامه (shenâsnâme) is the national identity booklet issued at birth, while گذرنامه is specifically the travel document issued for crossing international borders.
How to use it
- گذرنامهام رو گم کردم. (gozarnâme-am ro gom kardam.) “I lost my passport.”
- گذرنامهات چند سالته؟ (gozarnâme-at chand sâlte?) “How old is your passport?”
- لطفاً گذرنامهتون رو تحویل بدین. (lotfan gozarnâme-tun ro tahvil bedin.) “Please hand over your passport.”
- باید برم گذرنامه تمدید کنم. (bâyad baram gozarnâme tamdid konam.) “I have to go renew my passport.”
Cultural note
Renewing an Iranian passport is a bureaucratic process that can take weeks, and the passport’s validity for international travel depends heavily on visa restrictions that Iranian citizens face. Many Iranians who hold dual nationality carry two passports and navigate which to use depending on the destination. The word گذرنامه carries a certain weight in Iranian life: having a valid one ready has long been linked to the possibility of leaving, visiting family abroad, or finding opportunities overseas. For diaspora Iranians, it often triggers complicated feelings about belonging and access.