Branz is a collaborative project of the Iranian Baluch community, aiming to protect and promote the use of Balochi language through publishing monthly articles covering a range of social, literary, and cultural topics.
In Baluchi Braanz means “the rays of the sun.” The ethos of this website and the community effort behind it is based on this idea.
Today, there is a great misunderstanding about the Baluch community, both in Iran and abroad. To counter this and shine light on the reality of what it means to be Baluch in Iran today, we will publish monthly editions with articles from members of the Baluch community that explain the Iranian Baluchi people to the people of Iran, the international community and even the Baluchi people in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
These articles will cover a range of topics from social and cultural issues, to literature and humor.
Our History
In Iran, the Balochi language confronts a multitude of challenges, each posing a barrier to its survival and flourishing. Among these challenges is the limited recognition and official status, as Balochi remains marginalized within the linguistic landscape in different countries, as Baluch people are divided in three main countries: Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
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Our mission
In collaboration with the University of Uppsala Balochi Language Project, this website and the community collaboration behind it, is also designed to support the Iranian Baluchi community to use their own language. As the website develops, more and more resources will be added to allow people to learn and use Baluchi in their everyday lives.
Oyster Shells
Author: Ghaws Bahar Translation: Carina Jahani I had not picked up more than ten shells when four uniformed soldiers surrounded me. One tore the bag
Uncle
Written by Nasim DashtiEnglish Translation: Fazal Baloch “Meet your aunt.” My uncle pointed towards a beautiful girl. “Her
Resources for the Baloch Language
You may want some resources to help you read, write, speak and understand the Baloch language.
Balochi Folktales is an app on the Google Play Store that allows you to read folk tales in Standard Balochi language and thus teach your children or even yourself some vocabulary.
In the tales, you meet kings and queens, prophets and shaikhs, thieves and robbers, dragons and lions, cows and sheep and a lot of other characters. All of the stories are part of the Balochi cultural heritage that should be passed on to your children and grandchildren.
This app is a gift to all Balochi language lovers and will be updated on a regular basis with more tales and stories. Enjoy!
This app contains 10 Balochi folktales and stories (text and audio) in Latin and Arabic script. The stories are traditional folktales rendered into the standard Balochi language by Aziz Dadiar and Carina Jahani. Mahsa Mir is the illustrator of the book. To download the app, visit this link:
Webonary’s Balochi Dictionary is a simple dictionary tool allowing you to look up Balochi words:
For grammar, Uppsala University have published a handy textbook courtesy of Carina Jahani that will help you discover Balochi script, the intricacies of its grammar and master the Balochi language. To download the textbook follow this link:
Uppsala University have also released the Balochi Language Project as a whole as part of this project. The Balochi Language Project not only tries to delve into the history of the language and culture but also provides a series of resources for Baloch learners: