Languages · Asia
What Language Do They Speak in Iran?
The official language of Iran is Persian. In total about 69 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Persian (75%), South Azerbaijani (27%) and Azerbaijani (24%).
1
Official language
69
Living languages · #34
0
Regional official languages
18
Endangered languages
Official languages of Iran
Most spoken languages in Iran
Persian Official
75%24%
5%
3%
2%
2%
Share of the population who speak the language (first or second language).
Languages commonly listed for Iran
Languages of neighbouring countries
All languages of Iran (69)
| Language | Speakers here | Family | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Persian | 66,290,175 · 75% | Indo-European | Official |
| South Azerbaijani | 24,000,000 · 27% | Turkic | Safe |
| Azerbaijani | 21,212,856 · 24% | Turkic | — |
| Mazanderani | 4,419,345 · 5% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Gilaki | 4,065,797 · 5% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Southern Kurdish | 3,977,410 · 5% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Turkmen | 2,474,833 · 3% | Turkic | Safe |
| Iranian Persian | 2,000,000 · 2% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Shahmirzadi | 2,000,000 · 2% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Northern Luri | 1,856,124 · 2% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Arabic | 1,767,738 · 2% | Afro-Asiatic | — |
| Baluchi | 1,767,738 · 2% | — | — |
| Domari | 1,679,351 · 2% | Indo-European | Moribund |
| Qashqa'i | 1,500,000 · 2% | Turkic | Safe |
| Bakhtiari | 1,237,416 · 1% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Gurani | 1,200,000 · 1% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Southern Luri | 1,060,642 · 1% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Laki | 671,740 · 0.76% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Kara-Kalpak | 592,192 · 0.67% | Turkic | Safe |
| Central Kurdish | 556,837 · 0.63% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Kurdish | 494,966 · 0.56% | Indo-European | — |
| Western Balochi | 494,966 · 0.56% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Parsi-Dari | 441,934 · 0.5% | Bookkeeping | Safe |
| Khorasani Turkish | 400,000 · 0.45% | Turkic | Threatened |
| Rudbari | 400,000 · 0.45% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Upper Taromi | 400,000 · 0.45% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Kabatei | 400,000 · 0.45% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Takestani | 220,000 · 0.25% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Armenian | 212,128 · 0.24% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Lari | 210,000 · 0.24% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Pushto | 141,419 · 0.16% | Indo-European | — |
| Southern Pashto | 120,000 · 0.14% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Southwestern Fars | 100,000 · 0.11% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Northwestern Fars | 100,000 · 0.11% | Bookkeeping | Vulnerable |
| Georgian | 62,754 · 0.07% | Kartvelian | Safe |
| Semnani | 60,000 · 0.07% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Sangisari | 39,000 · 0.04% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Harzani | 28,000 · 0.03% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Jadgali | 25,000 · 0.03% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Karingani | 22,000 · 0.02% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Vafsi | 22,000 · 0.02% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Khunsari | 21,000 · 0.02% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Zoroastrian Dari | 8,043 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Bashkardi | 7,000 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Nayini | 7,000 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Soi | 7,000 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Mandaic | 5,500 · 0.01% | Afro-Asiatic | Moribund |
| Kazakh | 3,005 · 0% | Turkic | Safe |
| Talysh | 3,000 · 0% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Koroshi | 1,000 · 0% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Lasgerdi | 1,000 · 0% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Khalaj | — | Turkic | Threatened |
| Hulaulá | — | Afro-Asiatic | Vulnerable |
| Gazi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Ashtiani | — | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Alviri-Vidari | — | Indo-European | Moribund |
| Dezfuli | — | Indo-European | Nearly extinct |
| Eshtehardi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Gozarkhani | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Natanzi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Koresh-e Rostam | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Razajerdi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Shahrudi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Sivandi | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Sorkhei | — | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Senaya | — | — | — |
| Maraghei | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Kho'ini | — | Indo-European | Moribund |
| Kajali | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
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Frequently asked questions
What language do they speak in Iran?
The official language of Iran is Persian. In total about 69 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Persian (75%), South Azerbaijani (27%) and Azerbaijani (24%).
What is the official language of Iran?
Persian.
Is English spoken in Iran?
English is not widely spoken in Iran — learn a few words of Persian before you go.
How many languages are spoken in Iran?
About 69 living languages — #34 in the world for linguistic diversity. 18 of them are endangered.
Data: Languages of the World dataset (MIT) — ISO 639-3, Glottolog (CC BY 4.0), Unicode CLDR, Google LinguaMeta (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata; country lists: samayo/country-json (MIT).