Alphabet in Arabic
Arabic is written right-left as opposed to English which is written left-right. It is
somewhat like cursive in that many of the letters attach to one another, and you
write without picking up the pencil. Unfortunately, not all of them do so, and
each letter has specific rules. The best way to think about it is that each letter
has a different rule based on their position in a word.
Below are the four possible instances of the first 7 letters of the Arabic
alphabet.
* Indicates that these are consonants that Arabic has that English does not
Notes on Handwriting
+ While all handwriting is different, there are some aspects of Arabic letters that are specifically changed as a rule when written by hand.
+ The two dots above or below letters such as in ت and , ي , become dashes -
+The three dots above letters such as in ث become carrots ^
+Like going back to cross t's and dot i's when writing in cursive English, all dots, dashes, or carets are added after the rest of the word has been completed.
+ If any letters precede خ ح ج in a word, they will start higher in space so that they appear stacked on top of these letters.
Alone- the letter standing by itself, not in a word with any other letters
End- how it appears when at the end of a word
Middle- how it appears when it has letters immediately on either side
Beginning- how the letter appears when it begins a word
X- indicates that the letter does not attach on this side. For example, according
to the chart, Alif does NOT attach to anything immediately to its left.End- how it appears when at the end of a word
Middle- how it appears when it has letters immediately on either side
Beginning- how the letter appears when it begins a word
| Name | Alone | End | Middle | Beginning | Transcrpt. | Sounds Like |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| alif | ا | تا | Xتا | X ا | aa | "a" as in cat or, "o" as in "pot" |
| baa | ب | ب | ب | ب | b | "b" as in boy |
| taa | ت | ت | ت | ت | t | "t" as in terriffic |
| thaa | ث | ث | ث | ث | th | "th" as in three |
| jiim | ج | ج | ج | ج | j | "jh" like the sound in the middle of measure or pleasure |
| Haa* | ح | ح | ح | ح | H | *the very breathy noise made when breathing out forcibly from throat as if cleaning spectacles |
| khaa* | خ | خ | خ | خ | kh | * like the "ch" in the Scottish word loch, or the proper pronunci ation of the Khartoum |
* Indicates that these are consonants that Arabic has that English does not
Notes on Handwriting
+ While all handwriting is different, there are some aspects of Arabic letters that are specifically changed as a rule when written by hand.
+ The two dots above or below letters such as in ت and , ي , become dashes -
+The three dots above letters such as in ث become carrots ^
+Like going back to cross t's and dot i's when writing in cursive English, all dots, dashes, or carets are added after the rest of the word has been completed.
+ If any letters precede خ ح ج in a word, they will start higher in space so that they appear stacked on top of these letters.
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Related Links: Arabic Salutations(مرحبا) Vowels(حورف ال ع لة) |