What it means
هفت (haft) is the cardinal number 7 in Persian. Indo-European cognate with Latin “septem,” Sanskrit “sapta,” English “seven.” The “h” is fully pronounced; do not drop it.
How to use it
- هفت روز هفته (haft ruz-e hafte) “the seven days of the week”
- ساعت هفت صبح (sâ’at-e haft-e sobh) “seven in the morning”
- هفت تا بچه دارن (haft tâ bachche dâran) “they have seven children”
How counters work
Same pattern: number + classifier + singular noun. Haft tâ sib (“seven apples”), haft نفر (“seven people”). Note the Persian word for “week” itself, hafte, comes from haft, marking the seven-day cycle. So saying haft ruz (“seven days”) and yek hafte (“one week”) are interchangeable.
Cultural note
Haft is heavily symbolic. The Nowruz table is called هفتسین (haft-sin), “seven S’s,” with seven items beginning with the letter sin. In the Shahnameh, Rostam’s هفت خوان (haft khân) is his trial of seven labors. Persian mystics speak of the haft vâdi (“seven valleys”) of the spiritual path, made famous by Attar’s Conference of the Birds. The number signals completeness, journey, ritual.
References
ZabanYar is a Persian app built for heritage learners, the people who can speak a little but want to read, write, and really get it. Free early access at launch.
Join the waitlist →