Learning to count in Persian, also known as Farsi, starts with recognizing the numerals. If you're familiar with Arabic numerals, you have a head start. The Persian script uses its own set of numerals, which are very similar to Eastern Arabic numerals. Let's look at the basics from zero to ten.

Notice how some numbers are nearly identical to the ones you use every day, like 1 and 9. Others are a bit different. Pay close attention to the shapes for 4 (۴), 5 (۵), and 6 (۶), as they are distinct from their Arabic counterparts.

To form numbers from 11 to 19, you generally add the single digit's name to the word for ten (dah). For example, 14 is chahar-dah. The tens are formed similarly. Twenty is bist, and thirty is si. So, to say 21, you would say twenty and one.

This pattern continues for all numbers. You state the tens place, add the word "and" (o), and then state the ones place. For example, 54 becomes panjah-o-chahar (پنجاه و چهار).

Doing math in Persian uses the same logic as in English, just with different symbols for the numbers and different words for the operations. The symbols for plus (+), minus (-), and equals (=) are the same.

Let's try a simple addition problem. How would you say "seven plus two equals nine" in Persian? You'd say haft be-alāve-ye do mosāvi-e noh.

Now for subtraction. How about "ten minus six equals four"? That would be dah menhā-ye shesh mosāvi-e chahar.

Practicing with these new symbols is the best way to get comfortable with them. Try writing out some simple equations on your own.

Ready to test what you've learned? Give these questions a try.

With these basics, you're on your way to understanding and using numbers in Persian.