What it means
نفر (nafar) means “person” when used as a counter. It is an Arabic-origin loanword that took over the people-counting slot in Persian. You use it whenever you count humans: passengers, guests, students, family members.
How to use it
- سه نفر (se nafar) “three people”
- میز برای دو نفر (miz barâye do nafar) “a table for two”
- چند نفر اومدن؟ (chand nafar umadan?) “how many people came?”
How counters work
The pattern is: number + nafar + (optional noun for type of person). Most often nafar stands alone: do nafar (“two people”). When you specify, the noun follows: chahâr nafar mosâfer (“four passengers”), panj nafar dâneshju (“five students”). Never use تا for people; do tâ âdam sounds wrong, almost dehumanizing. Always nafar.
Cultural note
Walk into any Iranian restaurant and the host’s first question is chand nafarid? (“how many of you?”). Taxi drivers ask the same. The word also lives in expressions: nafar-e avval (“the first one,” winner), be nafar (“per person”), as in heshtâd hezâr be nafar (“eighty thousand toman per person”). Useful for splitting a bill.
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 →