What it means
صوم (sawm) is the formal Arabic term for the Islamic act of fasting, defined as abstaining from food, drink, sexual activity, and other specified acts from dawn (sobh-e sâdeq) until sunset (maghreb). The word is borrowed from Arabic, from the root sawama, meaning to abstain or refrain. In everyday Persian speech the far more common word is روزه (ruze), which is of Persian origin, while صوم is reserved for formal religious discourse, jurisprudence (feqh), and scholarly writing. The two words are near-perfect synonyms in meaning; the register is what separates them.
How to use it
- صوم ماه رمضان بر هر مسلمان بالغی واجب است. (sawm-e mâh-e ramazân bar har mosalmân-e bâleghi vâjeb ast.) “The fast of the month of Ramadan is obligatory for every adult Muslim.”
- در کتب فقهی از صوم به عنوان یکی از فروع دین یاد میشود. (dar kotob-e feqhi az sawm be onvân-e yeki az foru’-e din yâd mishavad.) “In jurisprudence books, fasting is cited as one of the branches of religion.”
- صوم قضا یعنی جبران روزههایی که نگرفتی. (sawm-e qazâ ya’ni jobrân-e ruze-hâyi ke nagerefti.) “Make-up fasting means compensating for fasts you missed.”
- حکم صوم در ماه رمضان در قرآن آمده است. (hokm-e sawm dar mâh-e ramazân dar qor’ân âmade ast.) “The ruling on fasting in the month of Ramadan is found in the Quran.”
Cultural note
Although صوم and روزه refer to the same act, a Persian speaker would say “من روزه گرفتم” (man ruze gereftam, “I fasted”) in casual conversation and would only encounter صوم in a mosque lecture, a religious textbook, or a legal fatwa. Ramadan fasting is widely observed in Iran and carries deep social as well as religious dimensions, with iftar meals (eftâri, the meal breaking the fast) serving as important family and community gatherings. The jurisprudential concept of صوم also covers voluntary fasts on specific recommended days outside Ramadan, such as the fasts of Sha’ban or specific days in Muharram.