Writing & Pronouncing of Arabic names
This is not an expert analysis of this subject but it is one way of achieving the results for the writing and pronouncing of Arabic names. The Arabic language is a phonetic one with an alphabet that contains few letters that are not found in other languages nor can be pronounced by a foreigner except with training and practice. As such, the names here are written in English in a way that when read in English they may sound as near as possible to the Arabic pronounciation. See Notes & Rules.
In Arabic, there are certain signs or marks that are added to the top or bottom of letters to give them certain sounds. They are:
1-fat-ha: َ for the ah sound and is presented as "a" e.g
Hamad حَمَد
2-damma: ُ for the oh sound and is presented as "o" or "u" e.g.
Dunia دُنيا or Sobhi صُبحي
3-kassra: ِ for the eh or ih sound and is presented as "e" or "i"
e.g. Adel عادِل or Jihad جِهاد
4-shaddah: ّ which is presented as "double constant letter"
e.g. Waddah' وضّاح
5-sukoon: ْ which is presented as "two consecutive constants"
e.g. Bahjat بهْجت or Yusra يسْرى
Letters Arabic to English
Recommended reading:
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Ahlan Wa Sahlan Functional Modern Standard Arabic for Beginners (Yale Language Series)
By Mahdi Alosh
Accompanied by an instructor's manual and an audio program, it will teach students to read, speak, and write Arabic
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Alif Baa Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds - Book & Audio CD Edition
By Kristen Brustad, Mahmoud Al-Batal, Abbas Al-Tonsi
Provides a variety of exercises aimed at developing the crucial nascent skills of reading, listening, writing, speaking, and cultural understanding
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Al-Kitaab fii Ta'allum al-'Arabiyya A Textbook for Beginning Arabic, Part One
By Kristen Brustad, Mahmoud Al-Batal, Abbas Al-Tonsi
A program that uses integrated audio-visual media to teach modern Arabic
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The Arabic Alphabet How to Read and Write It
By Nicholas Awde, Putros Samano
This book is very easy to read and understand. Definitely a must for anyone wanting to learn the arabic alphabet!
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Arabic-English Dictionary The Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic
By Hans Wehr
Its scholarship, accuracy and reliability make it one of the most significant contributions to Arabic lexicography
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Arabic Verbs and Essentials of Grammar A Practical Guide to the Mastery of Arabic
By Jane Wightwick, Mahmoud Gaafar
It is packed full of information about Arabic verb conjugations and other grammatical information
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A Basic Course in Moroccan Arabic (Georgetown Classics in Arabic Language and Linguistics)
By Richard S. Harrell, Mohammed Abu-Talib, William S. Carroll
The only complete Moroccan Arabic book (in English)
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Fun with Arabic Learn Arabic the Fun and Easy Way
By Naglaa Ghali
This interactive CD-Rom will guide you through the Arabic alphabet. You will study each Arabic letter in full detail, showing you the different forms of the letter and its pronunciation.
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Gulf Arabic (Teach Yourself Books)
By Jack Smart, Frances Altorfer
The focus is on the dialects of arabic spoken near the Persian Gulf.
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An Introduction to Koranic and Classical Arabic An Elementary Grammar of the Language
By Wheeler M. Thackston
It is perhaps the friendliest Western grammar of Arabic
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Mastering Arabic
By Jane Wightwick
This is a wonderful book for anyone who wishes to learn Arabic on their own
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Moroccan Arabic Phrasebook Lonely Planet Moroccan Arabic Phrasebook with complimentary dictionary
By Dan Bacon, Bichr Andjar
Extensive vocabulary list, full of useful cultural tips, extensive food and shopping sections
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A New Arabic Grammar of the Written Language
By John A. Haywood, H. M. Nahmad
Well written and presents the grammar clearly and thoroughly
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Read and Speak Arabic for Beginners
By Jane Wightwick, Mahmoud Gaafar
Extraordinarily accessible and highly effective
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Standard Arabic An Elementary-Intermediate Course
By Eckehard Schulz
An essential grounding for successful communication with speakers of the many colloquial varieties
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A Student Grammar of Modern Standard Arabic
By Eckehard Schulz
Provides a concise and user-friendly guide to the structure of Modern Standard Arabic
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Teach Yourself Beginner's Arabic Script
By John Mace
Learners are practically taken by the hand and instructed on the Arabic script. Opening the door to the fundamentals of reading and writing
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Your First 100 Words in Arabic Beginner's Quick & Easy Guide to Demystifying Non-Roman Scripts
By Jane Wightwick
A great supplement for those learning on their own, those taking a class, or parents introducing a new language to their children
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Teach Yourself Arabic Complete Course
By J. R. Smart
Ideal for complete language study from comprehension, to speaking and writing skills, to understanding the culture
Recommended listening:
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Arabic Cassette Pack
By Berlitz Publishing Company
If your looking for something to help you speak Arabic this is for you
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Arabic Cassette Pack Start Speaking Today
By Language 30
Using the proven method based on the famous U.S. Military accelerated language learning program
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Just Listen 'N Learn Arabic The Fastest Way to Real Arabic
By Rachael Harris
Audio Cassette & book edition
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Pimsleur Instant Conversation Arabic Speak Arabic Instantly!
By Pimsleur
Provides the most effective language -- learning program ever developed
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Teach Yourself Arabic Complete Course Audiopackage
By Jack Smart, Frances Altorfer
It is not trivial tourist phrases, but actually goes into grammar, provides good reading comprehension exercises and a fairly well-developed vocabulary
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Travel Talk Moroccan Arabic Audio CD
By Penton Overseas
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Recommended software:
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Instant Immersion Arabic
Guaranteed to be the best method for learning to speak Arabic quickly |
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Rosetta Stone Arabic Explorer
Develops all key language skills: Listening Comprehension, Reading, Speaking and Writing
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For more books, music, videos, DVDs, CDs and others visit:
For links to the Middle East, North Africa, Arab and regional information
or a specific country resources, choose the country from the list below.
The Countries & People of Arabia
Notes:
The following will be used as standard through out my pages:
Note 1: "A", "E" and "O" when used for "ain" they are considered as vowels at the beging of a word e.g. Omar (O-mar), and
a double letter in the middle; the first is considerd a constant and the second a vowel depending on the mark e.g.
Sae'd (Sa-eed), Sua'd (Su-aad). Exception is if the mark is "skoon" or at the end where it may be marked by " ' " e.g.
Sad (Sa'd), Taye' (Ta-ye'), Juma' (Jum-a').
Note 2: At the begining of a word, "alef" with kassra is written as English "I" and is pronounced as in "inn" to differentiate it
from "ain" with kassra which is written as English "E" or "E' " and is pronounced as in "ego" e.g. :
Iman (E-man), Esam or E'sam (E-sam).
Note 3: At the begining of a word, "alef" with damma is written as English "U" and is pronounced as in "Uno" to differentiate it
from "ain" with damma which is written as English "O" or "O' " and is pronounced as in "own" e.g. :
Usama (U-sa-ma), Omar or O'mar (O-mar).
Note 4: All the vowels with a hamza are considered as constants and the rules below apply e.g Fua~d or Fuad (Fu-ad),
Rae~d or Raed (Ra-ed)..
Note 5: When placed at the begining, "ai" and "ay" are interchangable; they almost sound like "eye" e.g. (Ai-man or Ay-man).
Any where else the rules below apply.
Note 6: "ia" and "ya" are interchangable and are considered as a syllable e.g. (Fad-ia or Fad-ya), (Mun-ia-ti or Mun-ya-ti).
Note 7: "H" is always considered as a constant and is silent when placed at the end of a name.
Note 8: sh, kh, th and gh are considered as one constant e.g. Morshed (Mor-shed), Khaled (Kha-led) otherwise if they are to
be pronounced separetly, rule 4 below applies.
Note 9: A name of foreign origin used here may be written in that language rather than how it sounds in Arabic e.g. :
Sue not Soo, Joseph not Josef, Isabelle not Izabel, Mariam not Maryam ....
Rules:
When reading a name it should be divided into syllables according to the following rules in conjuction with the notes above:
Rule 1: A vowel at the begining of a word is a syllable if followed by one constant only e.g. Omar (O-mar) or Iman (I-man).
Rule 2: Two vowels at the begining of the word are a syllable e.g. Aida (Ai-da) or Eid (Ei-d).
Rule 3: Where a name contains two consecutive vowels such as ee/oo/ou/ai/ia it is considered as a single long sounding letter
and part of a syllable begining with the preceeding constant e.g. (Ya-seen, Mah-mood, You-sef or Hu-sain)
Rule 4: Two consecutive constants can not be in the same syllable e.g. A'mr (A'm-r), Abdallah (Ab-dal-lah), Fathi (Fat-hi).
i.e. the first constant will be the end of the first syllable and the second will be the begining of the next syllable
See note 7 above for exceptions.
Rule 5: Taking the above notes & rules into consideration, all other syllables must begin with a constant followed by a vowel
and may or may not end with a constant e.g. (Ra-mi), (Ja-meel), (You-sef), (Zah-ra), (Bad-r), (Bad-ri), (Ab-dal-lah).
Rule6: There are always other exceptions but you will figure them out.
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Created 22 July 1998. Last updated 2 May 2008
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(C)Copyright 1998-2008 Mazen Hejleh, Perth, Western Australia. All rights reserved.
