Iranian Courses

For information about specific section times and locations please view the UCLA Schedule of Classes.
For a complete list of courses offered by the Program of Iranian Studies, please visit the Registrar’s page for Iranian Studies.

Winter 2024

IRANIAN 1B – Elementary Persian

Lecture, six hours. Enforced requisite: course 1A. Not open to students with prior knowledge of Persian. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN ??? – Elementary Spoken Persian

Instructor: Banafsheh Pourzangi

Please check back for information on this course.

IRANIAN 20B – Accelerated Elementary Persian

Instructor: Sahba Shayani

Lecture, four hours; discussion two hours; laboratory, 30 minutes per day. Preparation: some knowledge of spoken Persian. Enforced requisite: course 20A. Intensive and thorough study of fundamental structure of Persian grammar; reading from a wide range of classical and modern poetry and prose compositions. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN M60W – Achaemenid Civilization and the Empire of Alexander

Instructor: M. Rahim Shayegan

(Same as Ancient Near East M60W and History M60W.) Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Requisite: English Composition 3. Not open for credit to students with credit for course M60. Survey of period from circa 600 to 300 BCE, rise and fall of Achaemenid Persia, first world empire of antiquity, which was ended by Alexander the Great, whose campaigns were as transformative as they were violent. Alexander connected ancient Mediterranean and Near East as never before, ushering in new era and forever changing cultural landscape of ancient world. Focus on themes of ancient kingship and political ideology; comparative study of empires; administration and institutions; and religious and ethnic diversity in large, heterogeneous states. Emphasis on diversity critical to understanding political nuances of ancient world. Students gain broad knowledge of Achaemenid and Macedonian empires, facility with ancient primary sources, and development of analytical skills central to discipline of history that allow conceptualizing issues of diversity and othering in ancient world. Satisfies Writing II requirement. P/NP or letter grading.

General Education (GE)

Check with your counselor or adviser to see which GE courses fulfill your requirements. See General Education Requirements for more information.

GE Foundation Categories

Foundations of Society and Culture—Historical Analysis

GE Lab/Demo

This class does not carry the laboratory/demonstration credit for GE.

Writing II

This class satisfies the undergraduate Writing II requirement.

Diversity

This class satisfies the following College/School diversity requirement:

College of Letters and Science, Education and Information Science, Music, Public Affairs, and Public Health Diversity Requirement

IRANIAN 102B – Intermediate Persian

Instructor: Sahba Shayani

Lecture, six hours. Requisite: course 102A. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN 103B – Advanced Persian: Introduction to Classical Persian Prose

Instructor: Latifeh Hagigi

Lecture, three hours. Requisite: course 102C. Students who do exceptionally well in course 20C may be permitted to enroll with consent of instructor. May be taken independently for credit. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN 140 – Persian Belles Lettres (Adabiyyat)

Instructor: Domenico Ingenito

Lecture, three hours. Requisite: course 102C. Study of major Persian poets and prose writers: prose–Sohravardi, Hamadâni, Nasafi, Irâqi, and others; poetry–Hâfez, Sa’di, Rûmi, Bahâr, Dehkhoda, and others. May be repeated for credit with consent of instructor. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN M178 – Introduction to History and Culture of Iranian Jews

Instructor: Nahid Pirnazar

(Same as History M178 and Jewish Studies M178.) Lecture, three hours. Introduction to political, intellectual, cultural, and socioeconomic status of Iranian Jews. Exploration of history of Iranian Jews from ancient period throughout history, with focus on post-Middle Ages to present time. Topics, studied from perspective of Iranian cultural and intellectual history, include identity and status, religious tolerance versus forced conversion, Iranian Jewish emancipation, and dynamic symbiosis between Iranian Jews and other Iranians. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN M210 – Topics in Ancient Iranian History: Seminar 1

Instructor: Lara Fabian

(Same as Ancient Near East M208 and History M210.) Seminar, three hours. Varying topics on Elamite, Achaemenid, Arsacid, and Sasanian history. May be repeated for credit. S/U or letter grading.

IRANIAN M222B – Vedic

Instructor: Stephanie Jamison

(Same as Indo-European Studies M222B and South Asian M222B.) Lecture, three hours. Preparation: knowledge of Sanskrit equivalent to South Asian 110C. Characteristics of Vedic dialect and readings in Rig-Vedic hymns. May be repeated for credit. S/U or letter grading.

IRANIAN 231A – Advanced Middle Iranian

Instructor: M. Rahim Shayegan

Lecture, three hours. Requisite: course 161C. Course 231A is requisite to 231B, which is requisite to 231C. Further studies in grammars and texts of Middle Iranian languages (e.g., Middle Persian, Parthian, Sogdian, Khotanese, Bactrian). May be repeated for credit with consent of instructor. S/U or letter grading.

IRANIAN 250 – Seminar: Classical Persian Literature

Instructor: Domenico Ingenito

Seminar, three hours. Requisites: courses 103A, 103B, 103C, 199. May be repeated twice for credit.

Spring 2024

IRANIAN 1C – Elementary Persian

Instructor: Banafsheh Pourzangi

Lecture, six hours. Enforced requisite: course 1B. Not open to students with prior knowledge of Persian. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN 20C – Accelerated Elementary Persian

Instructor: Sahba Shayani

Lecture, four hours; discussion two hours; laboratory, 30 minutes per day. Preparation: some knowledge of spoken Persian. Enforced requisite: course 20B. Intensive and thorough study of fundamental structure of Persian grammar; reading from a wide range of classical and modern poetry and prose compositions. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN 102C – Intermediate Persian

Instructor: Sahba Shayani

Lecture, six hours. Requisite: course 102C. P/NP or letter grading.

IRANIAN 103C – Advanced Persian: Introduction to Classical Persian Prose

Instructor: Latifeh Hagigi

IRANIAN 140 – Persian Belles Lettres (Adabiyyat)

Instructor: Domenico Ingenito

IRANIAN 187 – Variable Topics in Iranian Studies: Art and Archaeology of the Parthian World

Instructor: Lara Fabian

Lecture, three hours. Variable topics; consult Schedule of Classes for topics to be offered in specific term. May be repeated for credit. P/NP or letter grading.

Class Description

Parthian period (circa 250 BCE to 225 CE), when long-lasting Arsacid dynasty ruled across wider Iran, was time of rich interaction across southwest Asia that led to significant artistic innovation. Study takes closer look at material culture traditions (i.e., architecture, burial practices, ceramics, coins, metalwork, rock reliefs, statuary, etc.) of Parthian world. Consideration of both Iranian heartland and diverse lands over which Iran ruled, from Central Asia to Levant.

IRANIAN 187 – Variable Topics in Iranian Studies: Cultural Heritage in Iran

Instructor: Ali Mousavi

Lecture, three hours. Variable topics; consult Schedule of Classes for topics to be offered in specific term. May be repeated for credit. P/NP or letter grading.

Class Description

Cultural heritage encompasses both tangible and intangible legacies, and represents essence of its society. Preserving and transmitting these elements is an ancient practice. Iran’s cultural heritage, like others globally, holds symbolic importance and reflects identities shaped by history. Exploration of evolution and challenges of Iran’s cultural heritage, emphasizing perspective that views role and value of Iranian material culture as manifested in monuments and archaeological sites over time. Topics include history of awareness; legislation; and key archaeological remains, urban monuments, and World Heritage sites in Iran. Familiarity with Iranian archaeology and history highly advised.

IRANIAN 187 – Variable Topics in Iranian Studies: Persian Conversation through Iranian Media

Instructor: Banafsheh Pourzangi

Lecture, three hours. Variable topics; consult Schedule of Classes for topics to be offered in specific term. May be repeated for credit. P/NP or letter grading.

Class Description

Introduction to Persian language and conversation practice, including its cultural implications of interactivity through Iranian media. Pursuing spectrum of interactive avenues–cinematic, literal, artistic, virtual, and communicative–examination of how Iranian media works to mobilize creativity and extend individual knowledge. Exploration involves critical analysis of news; cultural aspects of Persian language in cinema, social media, and plays; and style in which embedded information is disseminated. Discussion of how interactive media work in Iran. Study designed to increase understanding and extend limits of speaking Persian, to adjust communication in response to different situations.

IRANIAN M210 – Topics in Ancient Iranian History: Seminar 1

Instructor: M. Rahim Shayegan

(Same as Ancient Near East M208 and History M210.) Seminar, three hours. Varying topics on Elamite, Achaemenid, Arsacid, and Sasanian history. May be repeated for credit. S/U or letter grading.

IRANIAN 221 – Rumi, Mystic Poet of Islam

Instructor: Domenico Ingenito

Seminar, three hours. Requisite: course 220A or 220B. Study of life and works of Rumi in context of interaction of Sufism and poetic creativity. May be repeated twice for credit.

IRANIAN M222B – Vedic

Instructor: Stephanie Jamison

IRANIAN M231B – Advanced Middle Iranian

Instructor: M. Rahim Shayegan

Lecture, three hours. Requisite: course 231A. Further studies in grammars and texts of Middle Iranian languages (e.g., Middle Persian, Parthian, Sogdian, Khotanese, Bactrian). May be repeated for credit with consent of instructor. S/U or letter grading.