Persian is one of the world's ancient languages, once the lingua franca of an empire that spread across an enormous swathe of the Old World. Persian was the language of ancient cultures across Western and Central Asia, and many of the Islamic intellectuals, such as Avicenna, that later inspired the Renaissance in Europe did all of their writing in Persian. Today, Persian continues to be spoken widely throughout the same region in the form of three main dialects: Farsi in Iran, Dari in Afghanistan (where it is the language of cross-cultural communication), and Tajiki in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Studying Persian is the gateway to this fascinating part of the world. Through the CLS Program, you'll have the unique opportunity to learn both the Farsi and Tajiki dialects and set yourself apart with a rare immersive experience.
Here's Why Proud Americans Should Learn Mandarin, Other Languages
Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo's op-ed in Newsweek makes the case for Americans to learn critical languages and announces the launch of languages.state.gov.
Posted October 28, 2020
The 2021 Summer Application is Now Available!
We are pleased to announce that the application for the 2021 Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program is now open! We welcome your students to apply now to learn a critical foreign language next summer on a fully-funded study abroad program.
The application is now live and available...
Read morePosted August 27, 2020
Rhys Leahy’s journey with Russian and Persian languages started when she participated in the NSLI for Youth Russian Program in high school for a year. While engaging fully in the culture, she became proficient in the language. The program site, Kazan, Russia is a historically Turkic and Muslim...
Read morePosted June 08, 2020
A Program of the 
