Google/Facebook Go Persian in Response to Iran Discussion

Google announced that Google Translate now offers translation between the English and Persian (Farsi) languages. With all of the news discussion from within and all over the world surrounding Iran, the company presumably felt that having this available would be beneficial for those trying to stay informed.

"We feel that launching Persian is particularly important now, given ongoing events in Iran,"
Google has optimized the service for translation between Persian and English, but the company says it is working on getting an additional 40 languages involved with Persian translation, to be available via Google Translate.

Like most machine translation, the Persian/English translation offered by Google is not perfect, and Google acknowldges this. Google's Matt Cutts Facebook Goes Persian

For pretty much the same reasons that Google is now offering Persian translation, Facebook has also launched a Persian-language version of the social network. "Since the Iranian election last week, people around the world have increasingly been sharing news and information on Facebook about the results and its aftermath. Much of the content created and shared has been in Persian—the native language of Iran—but people have had to navigate the site in English or other languages,"