Rule Of Transliteration

Transliteration is the technique that changes Arabic writing into a Latin substitute. Since there are many letters in Arabic which have no Latin equivalent, either the combination of two letters, or special qualities are added to normal Latin letters.

To the newcomer to Arabic, the transliterations can appear confusing, but it is an excellent system of both recapturing Arabic writing, as well as helping with your pronunciation.

Moreover, you should note that the pronunciation of normal letters is not necessarily identical to how you utter things in your own language. Therefore, please read the following list carefully, you will not regret.

The Easy Group Of Arabic Letters

a          a is normally not written in Arabic but appears in the transliterated text. Its pronunciation is quite similar to the 'a' of English bag

u          just like the case is for a, u is not written in Arabic. Its pronunciation is quite similar to 'u' in Bulgaria.

i           i is also not written but it is simple to pronounce similar to 'i' in English sit.

ā          this is an a which is written in Arabic, and it is often referred to as "long a" because it is pronounced as the 'a' in English father

ū          works as a long 'o' like in the English word swoon

ī           like a long 'i'

b          nothing special, uttered similar to English 'b'

t           nothing special, uttered similar to English 't'

th         when t and h are written next to one another in transliterated text, it normally means that it denotes one letter, which is pronounced as 'th' is in the English word think

sh        when s and h are written next to one another in transliterated text, it normally means that it denotes one letter, which is pronounced as 'sh' is in the English word shilling

dh        when d and h are written next to one another in transliterated text, it normally means that it denotes one letter, which is pronounced as 'th' is in the English word that

r          rolled 'r', not too different from road

d          similar to English 'd'

s           similar to English 's'

f           similar to English 'f'

h          similar to English 'h'

k          similar to English 'k'

l           similar to English 'l'

m         similar to English 'm'

n          similar to English 'n'

y          uttered like 'y' in the English word yes

w         nothing special, uttered similar to English 'w'

q          a type of 'k' sound, but pronounced deep in the throat

kh        similar to the 'ch' in the German family name Bach

gh        specific to Arabic, similar to highly expressed rolled 'r'

'

(before  the letter)       no similarity in Western languages, a sound which starts deep in the throat

c          no similarity in Western languages, a sound which starts deep in the throat '            no sound, but at the point where this enters, the uttering of a word stops briefly. It works therefore as a pause in a word

h          stressed 'h', but it is a pure h

d          stressed 'd', and when followed by a, the a is pronounced as the a in car

s           stressed 's', and when followed by a, the a is pronounced as the a in car

t           stressed 't', and when followed by a, the a is pronounced as the a in car

z          stressed 'z', and when followed by a, the a is pronounced as the a in car