Although there can be no question or doubt as to the
sweetness of the Persian tongue, yet it hath not the scope of the Arabic. There
are many things which have not been expressed in Persian, that is to say, words
referring to such things have not been devised, whilst in Arabic there are
several words describing the same thing. Indeed there existeth no language in
the world as vast and comprehensive as Arabic. This statement is prompted by
truth and fairness; otherwise it is clear that in this day the world is being
illumined by the splendours of that Sun which hath dawned above the horizon of
Persia, and that the merits of this sweet language can scarcely be
overestimated.
(Baha’u’llah, ‘The Tabernacle of
Unity, Bahá’u’lláh’s Responses to Mánikchí Sáhib and Other Writings’)
