What it means
خفاش (khaffâsh) is the Persian word for bat, the winged nocturnal mammal. The word is a direct borrowing from Arabic خُفَّاش (khuffâsh), which is in turn derived from the Arabic root خ-ف-ش related to dimness and hiding. In colloquial Dari Persian, the poetic alternative شبپره (shabpareh, literally “night moth” or “night wing”) is also used and is considered the native Persian form, while خفاش is the standard word in Iranian Persian.
How to use it
- خفاشها موقع غروب از غار بیرون میآن. (Khaffâshâ mowghe ghorub az ghâr birun mi-ân.) “Bats come out of the cave at sunset.”
- خفاش با صدای بسامد بالا راه خودشو پیدا میکنه. (Khaffâsh bâ sedâ-ye basâmad-e bâlâ râh-e khodesh-o peidâ mi-kone.) “The bat finds its way using high-frequency sound.”
- یه خفاش تو اتاقم پرید. (Ye khaffâsh tu otâgham parid.) “A bat flew into my room.”
- خفاشها برای محیط زیست خیلی مفیدن چون حشره میخورن. (Khaffâshâ barâye mohit-e zist kheili mofidan chon hashareh mi-khorun.) “Bats are very beneficial for the environment because they eat insects.”
Cultural note
In Persian tradition, خفاش is associated with darkness and obscurity, and appears in classical poetry as a symbol of those who avoid the light of knowledge or truth. Rumi uses the bat as a metaphor for the spiritually blind soul in the Masnavi. Scientifically, Iran is home to numerous bat species that play a key role in insect control and pollination across the country’s diverse habitats.