We are excited to announce that we have recently added a new Dari story collection to the Storytime Commons.
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We currently have seven titles available, with more on the way!
The Bear and the Bees / خرس کله خراب
The Beautiful Doll / گودیگک زیبا
The Kind Elephant / فیل مهربان
The Queen of the Flowers / ملکه گل ها
The Rabbits' House / خانه خرگوش ها
Born and raised in Afghanistan, writer and narrator Arezo Mayaar currently resides in Northern California. She is pleased to share Afghan children's stories from her childhood with families across North America.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Dari language, it is a variety of Persian spoken in Afghanistan and is closely related to Farsi, which is spoken in Iran. As many of you may know, the United States has a large population of immigrants from Afghanistan, especially in California, Virginia, and New York. Other states with significant Afghan populations include Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Colorado, Washington, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Idaho, Missouri, North Carolina, and Illinois.
Our hope is that with these new stories, we can help libraries connect with more Dari-speaking families and provide them with an opportunity to engage with their native language and culture-- an important step in fostering a sense of belonging and community for immigrants and their families. Farsi speakers can also listen to and enjoy Dari stories, as Dari and Farsi are mutually intelligible and share many cultural similarities.
Look for additional Dari titles, as well as Pashto titles, and English and Spanish translations of many of these stories in the coming months. Check out our first translated story from Afghanistan-- The Bear and the Bees / El oso y las abejas.