What it means
مبارک (mobârak) means “blessed” or “auspicious,” and functions as the standard congratulations word in Persian. Borrowed from Arabic (root b-r-k, “blessing”). You attach it to whatever good thing just happened: a birthday, a holiday, a new car, a wedding.
How to use it
- تولدت مبارک (tavalod-et mobârak) “happy birthday”
- نوروز مبارک (nowruz mobârak) “happy Nowruz”
- خونه نو مبارک (khune-ye now mobârak) “congrats on the new house”
Position in sentence
Mobârak comes AFTER the thing being celebrated, with no verb in between. The pattern is [event] + (possessive ending if personal) + مبارک. So “happy birthday” is literally “birthday-your blessed.” In formal writing you’ll see مبارک باد (mobârak bâd) “may it be blessed,” with the optative verb attached, but in speech the bare adjective carries the whole greeting.
Cultural note
Mobârak is the all-purpose congratulations sticker. Iranian shops put up banners reading نوروز مبارک in the two weeks before the new year. Family group chats fill with عید مبارک during religious holidays. When a friend buys a new phone, you say گوشی نو مبارک (gushi-ye now mobârak), “new phone, blessed,” and they reply ممنون (mamnun, “thanks”).
References
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