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Questions & Answers about آنها آلمانیاند.
Why is there an extra letter Alef (ا) before the -nd ending in آلمانیاند?
The word for German, âlmâni, ends in a vowel. When we attach the short "are" ending -nd to a word that ends in a vowel, we use an Alef (ا) to connect them. It is written as اند and pronounced as -and. This simply makes the word easier to pronounce.
Could I use ishân instead of ânhâ for "they" in this sentence?
Yes! Both ânhâ and ishân mean "they". Ânhâ is the standard, everyday word used for both people and objects. Ishân is strictly for people and is more formal and respectful. Since we are talking about people here, ishân âlmâni-and is a perfectly correct and polite alternative.
Is it okay to drop ânhâ and just say âlmâni-and?
Yes. Farsi often drops the subject pronoun because the verb ending already tells you who is doing the action. The -and ending guarantees the subject is "they", so the word ânhâ is completely optional and mostly used for emphasis or starting a new topic.
Does âlmâni mean the German language or a German person?
It can be both! In Farsi, you add the -i (ی) ending to a country name like Âlmân (Germany) to make the nationality word. This exact same word is used for a person from that country, an object originating from there, and the country's language.