Editing Arabic alphabet

{{Short description|Writing system of the Arabic language}}
{{For|the Arabic script as it is used by all languages|Arabic script}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox writing system
| name        = Arabic alphabet
| type        = [[Abjad]]
| languages   = [[Arabic]]
| time        = 3rd century CE – present<ref>{{cite book |title=The World's Writing Systems |year=1996 |editor1-first=Peter T. |editor1-last=Daniels |editor1-link=Peter T. Daniels |editor2-last=Bright |editor2-first=William |editor2-link=William Bright |publisher=Oxford University Press, Inc |isbn=978-0195079937 |page=559}}</ref>
| fam1        = [[Egyptian hieroglyphics]]
| fam2        = [[Proto-Sinaitic script|Proto-Sinaitic]]
| fam3        = [[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]]
| fam4        = [[Aramaic alphabet|Aramaic]] 
| fam5        = [[Nabataean alphabet|Nabataean]] 
| unicode     = {{ublist
 |class=nowrap
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0600.pdf U+0600–U+06FF]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0750.pdf U+0750–U+077F]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic Supplement}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0870.pdf U+0870-U+089F]<br />{{smaller|Arabic Extended-B}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U08A0.pdf U+08A0–U+08FF]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic Extended-A}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/UFB50.pdf U+FB50–U+FDFF]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic Presentation Forms-A}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/UFE70.pdf U+FE70–U+FEFF]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic Presentation Forms-B}},
 |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U10EC0.pdf U+10EC0-U+10EFF]<br />{{smaller|Arabic Extended-C}},
  |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U1EE00.pdf U+1EE00–U+1EEFF]<br /> {{smaller|Arabic Mathematical Alphabetic Symbols}}
}}
| iso15924    = Arab
| sample      = Arabic Language.svg
| imagesize   = 200px
}}
{{Arabic alphabet}}
{{alphabet}}
[[File:Arabic alphabet world distribution.png|thumb|270x270px|Countries and regions that use the Arabic script: {{Legend|#00884B|as the sole official script}}{{Legend|#83bd19|a co-official script}}]]

The '''Arabic alphabet''',{{efn|{{langx|ar|الْأَبْجَدِيَّة الْعَرَبِيَّة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|al-ʾabjadiyyah l-ʿarabiyyah}} {{IPA|ar|alʔabd͡ʒaˈdijːa‿lʕaraˈbijːa|}}}} or the '''Arabic abjad''', is the [[Arabic script]] as specifically codified for writing the [[Arabic]] language. It is a [[unicase|unicameral script]] written from right-to-left in a [[cursive]] style, and includes 28 letters,{{efn|The Hamza <ء> can be considered a letter but it is not part of the alphabet.}} of which most have contextual letterforms. Unlike the modern [[Latin alphabet]], the script has no concept of [[letter case]]. The Arabic alphabet is an [[abjad]], with only [[consonant]]s required to be written (though the long vowels – ''ā ī ū'' – are also written, with letters used for consonants); due to its optional use of diacritics to notate vowels, it is considered an [[impure abjad]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Natural Language Processing of Semitic Languages|last=Zitouni|first=Imed|publisher=Springer Science & Business|year=2014|isbn=978-3642453588|pages=15}}</ref>

==Letters==
{{needs more citations section|date=July 2024}}
The basic Arabic alphabet contains 28 [[letter (alphabet)|letters]]. Forms using the Arabic script to write other languages added and removed letters: for example ⟨پ⟩ is often used to represent {{IPA|/p/}} in adaptations of the Arabic script. Unlike [[Archaic Greek alphabets|Greek]]-derived alphabets, Arabic has no distinct [[letter case|upper and lower case]] letterforms.

Many letters look similar but are distinguished from one another by dots ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Arabic diacritics#I'jam (phonetic distinctions of consonants)|ʾiʿjām]]}}) above or below their central part ({{transliteration|ar|[[rasm]]}}). These dots are an integral part of a letter, since they distinguish between letters that represent different sounds. For example, the Arabic letters {{lang|ar|ب|}} {{transliteration|ar|b}}, {{lang|ar|ت}} {{transliteration|ar|t}}, and {{lang|ar|ث}} {{transliteration|ar|th}} have the same basic shape, but with one dot added below, two dots added above, and three dots added above respectively. The letter {{lang|ar|ن}} {{transliteration|ar|n}} also has the same form in initial and medial forms, with one dot added above, though it is somewhat different in its isolated and final forms. Historically, they were often omitted, in a writing style called [[rasm]].

Both printed and written Arabic are [[cursive]], with most letters within a word directly joined to adjacent letters.

===Alphabetical order===
There are two main [[collation|collating sequences]] ('alphabetical orderings') for the Arabic alphabet: {{transliteration|ar|Hija'i}}, and {{transliteration|ar|Abjadi}}.

The Hija'i order ({{lang|ar|هِجَائِيّ}} {{transliteration|ar|Hijāʾiyy}} {{IPA|/hid͡ʒaːʔijj/}}) is the more common order and it is used when sorting lists of words and names, such as in phonebooks, classroom lists, and dictionaries.

The original {{transliteration|ar|Abjadi}} order ({{lang|ar|أَبْجَدِيّ}} {{transliteration|ar|ʾabjadiyy}} {{IPA|/ʔabd͡ʒadijj/}}) derives from that used by the [[Phoenician alphabet]] and therefore resembles the sequence of letters in [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]] and [[Greek alphabet|Greek]]. Letters are also assigned numerical values ([[abjad numerals]]) for purposes of [[numerology]], as is done in Hebrew [[gematria]] and Greek [[isopsephy]]. Letters in the Hija'i order are not considered to have numerical values.

==== Hijaʼi ====
Modern dictionaries and reference books use the {{transliteration|ar|hijāʾī}} alphabetical order instead of the Abjadi alphabetical order, in which letters are arranged mainly by similarity of shape. The ''hijaʼi'' order is never used for numerals.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Common {{transliteration|ar|hijaʼi}} order
|-
| {{lang|ar|ا}} || {{lang|ar|ب}} || {{lang|ar|ت}} || {{lang|ar|ث}} || {{lang|ar|ج}} || {{lang|ar|ح}} || {{lang|ar|خ}} || {{lang|ar|د}} || {{lang|ar|ذ}} || {{lang|ar|ر}} || {{lang|ar|ز}} || {{lang|ar|س}} || {{lang|ar|ش}} || {{lang|ar|ص}} || {{lang|ar|ض}} || {{lang|ar|ط}} || {{lang|ar|ظ}} || {{lang|ar|ع}} || {{lang|ar|غ}} || {{lang|ar|ف}} || {{lang|ar|ق}} || {{lang|ar|ك}} || {{lang|ar|ل}} || {{lang|ar|م}} || {{lang|ar|ن}} || {{lang|ar|ه}} || {{lang|ar|و}} || {{lang|ar|ي}}
|-
| <big>ʾ</big> || {{transliteration|ar|b}} || {{transliteration|ar|t}} || {{transliteration|ar|th}} || {{transliteration|ar|j}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḥ}} || {{transliteration|ar|kh}} || {{transliteration|ar|d}} || {{transliteration|ar|dh}} || {{transliteration|ar|r}} || {{transliteration|ar|z}} || {{transliteration|ar|s}} || {{transliteration|ar|sh}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṣ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḍ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṭ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ẓ}} || <big>{{ayn}}</big> || {{transliteration|ar|gh}} || {{transliteration|ar|f}} || {{transliteration|ar|q}} || {{transliteration|ar|k}} || {{transliteration|ar|l}} || {{transliteration|ar|m}} || {{transliteration|ar|n}} || {{transliteration|ar|h}} || {{transliteration|ar|w}} || {{transliteration|ar|y}}
|-
| colspan="9" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="3" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
|}

A different ''hijaʼi'' order was used in the [[Maghreb]] but is now considered obsolete. The sequence is:{{sfn|Macdonald|1986|p= 117, 130, 149}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Maghrebian {{transliteration|ar|hijaʼi}} order (obsolete)
|-
| {{lang|ar|ا}} || {{lang|ar|ب}} || {{lang|ar|ت}} || {{lang|ar|ث}} || {{lang|ar|ج}} || {{lang|ar|ح}} || {{lang|ar|خ}} || {{lang|ar|د}} || {{lang|ar|ذ}} || {{lang|ar|ر}} || {{lang|ar|ز}} || {{lang|ar|ط}} || {{lang|ar|ظ}} || {{lang|ar|ك}} || {{lang|ar|ل}} || {{lang|ar|م}} || {{lang|ar|ن}} || {{lang|ar|ص}} || {{lang|ar|ض}} || {{lang|ar|ع}} || {{lang|ar|غ}} || {{lang|ar|ف}} || {{lang|ar|ق}} || {{lang|ar|س}} || {{lang|ar|ش}} || {{lang|ar|ه}} || {{lang|ar|و}} || {{lang|ar|ي}}
|-
| <big>ʾ</big> || {{transliteration|ar|b}} || {{transliteration|ar|t}} || {{transliteration|ar|th}} || {{transliteration|ar|j}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḥ}} || {{transliteration|ar|kh}} || {{transliteration|ar|d}} || {{transliteration|ar|dh}} || {{transliteration|ar|r}} || {{transliteration|ar|z}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṭ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ẓ}} || {{transliteration|ar|k}} || {{transliteration|ar|l}} || {{transliteration|ar|m}} || {{transliteration|ar|n}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṣ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḍ}} || <big>{{ayn}}</big> || {{transliteration|ar|gh}} || {{transliteration|ar|f}} || {{transliteration|ar|q}} || {{transliteration|ar|s}} || {{transliteration|ar|sh}} || {{transliteration|ar|h}} || {{transliteration|ar|w}} || {{transliteration|ar|y}}
|-
| colspan="9" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="3" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
|-
| colspan="28" bgcolor="lightgrey" style="font-size: 70%; font-style: italic;" | The colors indicate which letters have different positions from the previous table
|}

The ''al-iklīl'' order, now obsolete, also arranged letters mainly by shape. It was first used in the 10th-century work [[Al-Iklil|''Kitāb al-Iklīl'']]. The sequence is:{{sfn|Macdonald|1986|p= 130}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ ''Al-iklīl'' order (obsolete)
|-
| {{lang|ar|ا}} || {{lang|ar|ب}} || {{lang|ar|ت}} || {{lang|ar|ث}} || {{lang|ar|ج}} || {{lang|ar|ح}} || {{lang|ar|خ}} || {{lang|ar|د}} || {{lang|ar|ذ}} || {{lang|ar|ك}} || {{lang|ar|ل}} || {{lang|ar|م}} || {{lang|ar|و}} || {{lang|ar|ن}} || {{lang|ar|ص}} || {{lang|ar|ض}} || {{lang|ar|ع}} || {{lang|ar|غ}} || {{lang|ar|ط}} || {{lang|ar|ظ}} || {{lang|ar|ف}} || {{lang|ar|ق}} || {{lang|ar|ر}} || {{lang|ar|ز}} || {{lang|ar|ه}} || {{lang|ar|س}} || {{lang|ar|ش}} || {{lang|ar|ي}}
|-
| <big>ʾ</big> || {{transliteration|ar|b}} || {{transliteration|ar|t}} || {{transliteration|ar|th}} || {{transliteration|ar|j}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḥ}} || {{transliteration|ar|kh}} || {{transliteration|ar|d}} || {{transliteration|ar|dh}} || {{transliteration|ar|k}} || {{transliteration|ar|l}} || {{transliteration|ar|m}} || {{transliteration|ar|w}} || {{transliteration|ar|n}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṣ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ḍ}} || <big>{{ayn}}</big> || {{transliteration|ar|gh}} || {{transliteration|ar|ṭ}} || {{transliteration|ar|ẓ}} || {{transliteration|ar|f}} || {{transliteration|ar|q}} || {{transliteration|ar|r}} || {{transliteration|ar|z}} || {{transliteration|ar|h}} || {{transliteration|ar|s}} || {{transliteration|ar|sh}} || {{transliteration|ar|y}}
|-
| colspan="9" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="3" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgreen" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightblue" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
|}
[[File:Arabic vs Hebrew Syriac Greek mul.svg|thumb|320px|hijāʾī collation compared to Hebrew, Syriac, and Greek]]

==== Abjadi ====
The Abjadi order is not a simple correspondence with the earlier north Semitic alphabetic order, as it has a position corresponding to the Aramaic letter ''[[samek]]'' {{lang|arc|𐡎‎}}, which has no cognate letter in the Arabic alphabet historically. The abjadi order is the usual Arabic order in  dictionaries and reference books of the late 1st millennium to the early 2nd millennium.

The loss of {{transliteration|he|sameḵ}} was compensated for by:

* In the [[Mashriq]]i abjad sequence, the letter {{lang|ar|ﺱ}} {{transliteration|ar|sīn}} took the place of {{transliteration|he|sameḵ}}, and the letter {{lang|ar|ش}} {{transliteration|ar|shīn}} took place of ''[[Shin (letter)|šīn]]'' {{lang|arc|𐡔}}.
* In the [[Maghreb]]i abjad sequence, the letter [[Tsade (letter)|''ṣāḏē'']] {{lang|arc|𐡑}} was split into two independent Arabic letters, {{lang|ar|ض}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḍad}} and {{lang|ar|ص}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ṣad}}, with the latter taking the place of {{transliteration|he|ALA|sameḵ}}.

The six other letters that do not correspond to any north Semitic letter are placed at the end.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Common {{transliteration|ar|ALA|Abjadi}} sequence{{sfn|Macdonald|1986|p=117, 130, 149}}
|{{lang|ar|ا}}
|{{lang|ar|ب}}
|{{lang|ar|ج}}
|{{lang|ar|د}}
|{{lang|ar|ه}}
|{{lang|ar|و}}
|{{lang|ar|ز}}
|{{lang|ar|ح}}
|{{lang|ar|ط}}
|{{lang|ar|ي}}
|{{lang|ar|ك}}
|{{lang|ar|ل}}
|{{lang|ar|م}}
|{{lang|ar|ن}}
|{{lang|ar|س}}
|{{lang|ar|ع}}
|{{lang|ar|ف}}
|{{lang|ar|ص}}
|{{lang|ar|ق}}
|{{lang|ar|ر}}
|{{lang|ar|ش}}
|{{lang|ar|ت}}
|{{lang|ar|ث}}
|{{lang|ar|خ}}
|{{lang|ar|ذ}}
|{{lang|ar|ض}}
|{{lang|ar|ظ}}
|{{lang|ar|غ}}
|-
|<big>ʾ</big>
|{{transliteration|ar|b}}
|{{transliteration|ar|j}}
|{{transliteration|ar|d}}
|{{transliteration|ar|h}}
|{{transliteration|ar|w}}
|{{transliteration|ar|z}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ḥ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ṭ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|y}}
|{{transliteration|ar|k}}
|{{transliteration|ar|l}}
|{{transliteration|ar|m}}
|{{transliteration|ar|n}}
|{{transliteration|ar|s}}
|<big>{{ayn}}</big>
|{{transliteration|ar|f}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ṣ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|q}}
|{{transliteration|ar|r}}
|{{transliteration|ar|sh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|t}}
|{{transliteration|ar|th}}
|{{transliteration|ar|kh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|dh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ḍ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ẓ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|gh}}
|- style="color:gray"
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|- style="color:gray"
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|-
| colspan="14" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="yellow" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="4" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="yellow" |
|}
This is commonly vocalized as follows:

: {{transliteration|ar|ʾabjad hawwaz ḥuṭṭī kalaman saʿfaṣ qarashat thakhadh ḍaẓagh}}.

Another vocalization is:

: {{transliteration|ar|ʾabujadin hawazin ḥuṭiya kalman saʿfaṣ qurishat thakhudh ḍaẓugh}}{{citation needed|date=February 2018}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+[[Maghreb]]ian {{transliteration|ar|Abjadi}} sequence (quoted in apparently earliest authorities & considered older){{sfn|Macdonald|1986|p=117, 130, 149}}<ref name="magb3">{{in lang|ar}} [http://alyaseer.net/vb/showthread.php?t=8807 Alyaseer.net {{lang|ar|ترتيب المداخل والبطاقات في القوائم والفهارس الموضوعية}} Ordering entries and cards in subject indexes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071223135008/http://alyaseer.net/vb/showthread.php?t=8807|date=23 December 2007}} Discussion thread ''(Accessed 2009-October–06)''</ref>
|{{lang|ar|ا}}
|{{lang|ar|ب}}
|{{lang|ar|ج}}
|{{lang|ar|د}}
|{{lang|ar|ه}}
|{{lang|ar|و}}
|{{lang|ar|ز}}
|{{lang|ar|ح}}
|{{lang|ar|ط}}
|{{lang|ar|ي}}
|{{lang|ar|ك}}
|{{lang|ar|ل}}
|{{lang|ar|م}}
|{{lang|ar|ن}}
|{{lang|ar|ص}}
|{{lang|ar|ع}}
|{{lang|ar|ف}}
|{{lang|ar|ض}}
|{{lang|ar|ق}}
|{{lang|ar|ر}}
|{{lang|ar|س}}
|{{lang|ar|ت}}
|{{lang|ar|ث}}
|{{lang|ar|خ}}
|{{lang|ar|ذ}}
|{{lang|ar|ظ}}
|{{lang|ar|غ}}
|{{lang|ar|ش}}
|-
|<big>ʾ</big>
|{{transliteration|ar|b}}
|{{transliteration|ar|j}}
|{{transliteration|ar|d}}
|{{transliteration|ar|h}}
|{{transliteration|ar|w}}
|{{transliteration|ar|z}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ḥ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ṭ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|y}}
|{{transliteration|ar|k}}
|{{transliteration|ar|l}}
|{{transliteration|ar|m}}
|{{transliteration|ar|n}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ṣ}}
|<big>{{ayn}}</big>
|{{transliteration|ar|f}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ḍ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|q}}
|{{transliteration|ar|r}}
|{{transliteration|ar|s}}
|{{transliteration|ar|t}}
|{{transliteration|ar|th}}
|{{transliteration|ar|kh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|dh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ẓ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|gh}}
|{{transliteration|ar|sh}}
|- style="color:gray"
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|-
| colspan="14" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="yellow" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="yellow" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="pink" |
| colspan="4" bgcolor="lightgrey" |
| colspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" |
| colspan="1" bgcolor="pink" |
|-
| colspan="28" bgcolor="lightgrey" style="font-size: 70%; font-style: italic;" |The colors indicate which letters have different positions from the previous table
|}
This can be vocalized as:

: {{transliteration|ar|ʾabujadin hawazin ḥuṭiya kalman ṣaʿfaḍ qurisat thakhudh ẓaghush}}

===Letter forms===
{{Calligraphy}}
The Arabic alphabet is always cursive and letters vary in shape depending on their position within a word. Letters can exhibit up to four distinct forms corresponding to an initial, medial (middle), final, or isolated position ([[IMFI]]). While some letters show considerable variations, others remain almost identical across all four positions. Generally, letters in the same word are linked together on both sides by short horizontal lines, but six letters ({{lang|ar|و ,ز ,ر ,ذ ,د ,ا}}) can only be linked to their preceding letter. In addition, some letter combinations are written as [[ligature (typography)|ligatures]] (special shapes), notably {{transliteration|ar|[[lām-alif]]}} {{lang|ar|لا}},<ref>{{cite book |title=Writing Systems: A Linguistic Approach |author=Rogers, Henry |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |year=2005 |page=135}}</ref> which is the only mandatory ligature (the unligated combination {{lang|ar|ل&#x200D;ا}} is considered difficult to read).

====Table of basic letters====
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Arabic letters usage in Literary Arabic
|-
!colspan="2"|Abjadi Order
! rowspan="2" |[[Romanization of Arabic|Romanization]]{{efn|name=romanization|The romanization depends on each system or country; for example {{lang|ar|ج}} is romanized to {{lang|en|G}} in Egypt and {{lang|en|J}} in most other Arabic countries.}}
! rowspan="2" |Letter <br/> name in [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]
!rowspan="2"|Letter <br/> name in Arabic script{{efn|name=names|The Arabic letter names below are the standard and most universally used names, other names (e.g. letter names in Egypt) might be used instead.}}
!rowspan="2"|Value in Literary Arabic ([[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]])
!colspan="3"|Contextual forms
!rowspan="2"|Isolated <br/> form
! rowspan="2" |Hija'i
Order
|-
!Maghreb 
!Common 
!Final
!Medial
!Initial
|-
! 
! 
! !! !! !! !! !! !! !! &nbsp;<!-- separate row for sort icons -->!!
|-
| data-sort-value="01." |1
| data-sort-value="01." |1
|{{transliteration|ar|ISO|ʾ}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʔ}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}}{{efn|name=alif|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Alif}} can represent different phonemes; initially: a/i/u /a, i, u/ or sometimes silent in the definite article ال (a)l-. Medially and finally it represents a long vowel ā /aː/. It is also used in some hamzah /ʔ/ forms, check [[#Hamzah forms]]}}
| {{IPA|ar|ʔalif|}}
|{{lang|ar|أَلِف}}
|{{IPAslink|ʔ}}, {{IPAslink|aː}}{{efn|name=alif|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Alif}} can represent different phonemes; initially: a/i/u /a, i, u/ or sometimes silent in the definite article ال (a)l-. Medially and finally it represents a long vowel ā /aː/. It is also used in some hamzah /ʔ/ forms, check [[#Hamzah forms]]}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـا}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ا]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="01." |1
|-
| data-sort-value="02." |2
| data-sort-value="02." |2
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|b}}
|{{IPA|ar|baːʔ|}} 
|{{lang|ar|بَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|b}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـب}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـبـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|بـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ب]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="02." |2
|-
|22
|22
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|t}}
|{{IPA|ar|taːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|تَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|t}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـت}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـتـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|تـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ت]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="03." |3
|-
|23
|23
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ṯ}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|th}}
|{{IPA|ar|θaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|ثَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|θ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـث}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـثـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ثـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ث]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="04." |4
|-
| data-sort-value="03." |3
| data-sort-value="03." |3
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|j}}
|{{IPA|ar|d͡ʒiːm|}}
|{{lang|ar|جِيم}}
|{{IPAslink|d͡ʒ}}{{efn|When speaking Modern Standard Arabic (الفصحى al-Fuṣḥā) the {{lang|ar|ج}} pronunciation varies regionally, most prominently [d͡ʒ] in most of the Arabian Peninsula, parts of the Levant, parts of Egypt (especially the countryside and upper Egypt), Iraq, and northern-central Algeria, it is also considered as the predominant pronunciation of Literary Arabic when reciting the Quran and in Arabic studies outside the Arab world, [ʒ] in most of Northwest Africa and parts of the Levant (especially urban centers) and parts of the Arabian Peninsula, while [ɡ] is the standard pronunciation only in Egypt, ([ɡ] appears as a dialectal pronunciation in coastal Yemen, and coastal Oman), as well as [ɟ] in Sudan.}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـج}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـجـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|جـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ج]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="05." |5
|-
| data-sort-value="08." |8
| data-sort-value="08." |8
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḥ}}
|{{IPA|ar|ħaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|حَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|ħ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـح}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـحـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|حـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ح]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="06." |6
|-
|24
|24
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḵ}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|kh}}
|{{IPA|ar|xaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|خَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|x}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـخ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـخـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|خـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[خ]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="07." |7
|-
| data-sort-value="04." |4
| data-sort-value="04." |4
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|d}}
|{{IPA|ar|daːl|}}
|{{lang|ar|دَال}}
|{{IPAslink|d}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـد}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[د]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="08." |8
|-
|25
|25
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḏ}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|dh}}
|{{IPA|ar|ðaːl|}}
|{{lang|ar|ذَال}}
|{{IPAslink|ð}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـذ}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ذ]]}}}}
| data-sort-value="09." |9
|-
|20
|20
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|r}}
|{{IPA|ar|raːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|رَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|r}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـر}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ر]]}}}}
|10
|-
| data-sort-value="07." |7
| data-sort-value="07." |7
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|z}}
|{{IPA|ar|zaːj|}}
|{{lang|ar|زَاي}} {{efn|name=zāy names|{{lang|ar|ز}} the standard name of the letter is zāy {{lang|ar|زاي}} but it is sometimes miscalled "zayn"  {{lang|ar|زين}}.}}
|{{IPAslink|z}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـز}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ز]]}}}}
|11
|-
|21
|15
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|s}}
|{{IPA|ar|siːn|}}
|{{lang|ar|سِين}}
|{{IPAslink|s}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـس}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـسـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|سـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[س]]}}}}
|12
|-
|28
|21
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|š}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|sh}}
|{{IPA|ar|ʃiːn|}}
|{{lang|ar|شِين}}
|{{IPAslink|ʃ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـش}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـشـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|شـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ش]]}}}}
|13
|-
|15
|18
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ṣ}}
|{{IPA|ar|sˤaːd|}}
|{{lang|ar|صَاد}}
|{{IPAslink|sˤ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـص}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـصـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|صـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ص]]}}}}
|14
|-
|18
|26
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḍ}}
|{{IPA|ar|dˤaːd|}}
|{{lang|ar|ضَاد}}
|{{IPAslink|dˤ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـض}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـضـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ضـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ض]]}}}}
|15
|-
| data-sort-value="09." |9
| data-sort-value="09." |9
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ṭ}}
|{{IPA|ar|tˤaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|طَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|tˤ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـط}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـطـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|طـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ط]]}}}}
|16
|-
|26
|27
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ẓ}} 
|{{IPA|ar|ðˤaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|ظَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|ðˤ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـظ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـظـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ظـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ظ]]}}}}
|17
|-
|16
|16
|{{Ayn}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʕ}}
|{{IPA|ar|ʕajn|}}
|{{lang|ar|عَيْن}}
|{{IPAslink|ʕ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـع}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـعـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|عـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ع]]}}}}
|18
|-
|27
|28
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḡ}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|gh}}
|{{IPA|ar|ɣajn|}}
|{{lang|ar|غَيْن}}
| {{IPAslink|ɣ}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـغ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـغـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|غـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[غ]]}}}}
|19
|-
|17
|17
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|f}}
|{{IPA|ar|faːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|فَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|f}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـف}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـفـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|فـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ف]]}}}}
|20
|-
|19
|19
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|q}}
|{{IPA|ar|qaːf|}}
|{{lang|ar|قَاف}}
|{{IPAslink|q}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـق}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـقـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|قـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ق]]}}}}
|21
|-
|11
|11
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|k}}
|{{IPA|ar|kaːf|}}
|{{lang|ar|كَاف}}
|{{IPAslink|k}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـك}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـكـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|كـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ك]]}}}}
|22
|-
|12
|12
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|l}}
|{{IPA|ar|laːm|}}
|{{lang|ar|لاَم}}
|{{IPAslink|l}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـل}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـلـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|لـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ل]]}}}}
|23
|-
|13
|13
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|m}}
|{{IPA|ar|miːm|}}
|{{lang|ar|مِيم}}
|{{IPAslink|m}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـم}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـمـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|مـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[م]]}}}}
|24
|-
|14
|14
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|n}}
|{{IPA|ar|nuːn|}}
|{{lang|ar|نُون}}
|{{IPAslink|n}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـن}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـنـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|نـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ن]]}}}}
|25
|-
| data-sort-value="05." |5
| data-sort-value="05." |5
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|h}} 
|{{IPA|ar|haːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|هَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|h}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـه{{lrm}}}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـهـ{{lrm}}{{lrm}}}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|هـ{{lrm}}}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ﻩ]]}}}}{{efn|In certain contexts such as serial numbers and license plates the initial form is used to prevent confusion with the western number zero or Eastern Arabic Numeral for 5(٥). It's also worth mentioning that the initial form هـ is usually used when writing the letter separately, rather than using the isolated form ه.}}
|26
|-
| data-sort-value="06." |6
| data-sort-value="06." |6
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|w}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}}
|{{IPA|ar|waːw|}}
|{{lang|ar|وَاو}}
|{{IPAslink|w}}, {{IPAslink|uː}}{{efn|name=vowels|The letters ⟨[[و]]⟩ and ⟨[[ي]]⟩ are used to transcribe the vowels {{IPAslink|oː}} and {{IPAslink|eː}} respectively in loanwords and dialects. ⟨[[و]]⟩ also appears as a silent letter in the name عمرو Amr /ʕamr/ which is sometimes romanized wrongly as Amro or Amru.}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـو}}}}
| colspan="2" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[و]]}}}}
|27
|-
|10
|10
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|y}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ī}}
|{{IPA|ar|jaːʔ|}}
|{{lang|ar|يَاء}}
|{{IPAslink|j}}, {{IPAslink|iː}}{{efn|name=vowels|The letters ⟨[[و]]⟩ and ⟨[[ي]]⟩ are used to transcribe the vowels {{IPAslink|oː}} and {{IPAslink|eː}} respectively in loanwords and dialects. ⟨[[و]]⟩ also appears as a silent letter in the name عمرو Amr /ʕamr/ which is sometimes romanized wrongly as Amro or Amru.}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـي}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـيـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|يـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ي]]}}}}{{efn|name=regional-variation|in Egypt and Sudan, the yā’ ي is dotless in the isolated and final position, merging with the ʾalif maqṣūrah ى.}}
|28
|-
! colspan="11" |
|-
| -
| -
|ʾ / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʔ}}
|{{IPA|ar|hamza(h)|}}
|{{lang|ar|هَمْزة}}
|{{IPAslink|ʔ}}
| colspan="4" |<sub>{{huge|{{lang|ar|[[ء]]}}}}</sub>
(used in medial and final positions as an unlinked letter)
| -{{efn|can be considered a letter and plays an important role in Arabic spelling but not considered part of the alphabet.}}
|}

'''Notes'''

{{notelist}}
* See the article ''[[Romanization of Arabic]]'' for details on various transliteration schemes. Arabic language speakers may usually not follow a standardized scheme when transcribing words or names. Some Arabic letters which do not have an equivalent in English (such as ط) are often spelled as numbers when Romanized. Also names are regularly transcribed as pronounced locally, not as pronounced in [[Modern Standard Arabic|Literary Arabic]] (if they were of Arabic origin).
* Regarding pronunciation, the phonemic values given are those of Modern Standard Arabic, which is taught in schools and universities. In practice, pronunciation may vary considerably from region to region. For more details concerning the pronunciation of Arabic, consult the articles ''[[Arabic phonology]]'' and ''[[varieties of Arabic]]''.
* The names of the Arabic letters can be thought of as abstractions of an older version where they were meaningful words in the [[Proto-Semitic]] language. 
* Six letters ({{lang|ar|و ز ر ذ د ا}}) do not have a distinct medial form and have to be written with their final form without being connected to the next letter. Their initial form matches the isolated form. The following letter is written in its initial form, or isolated form if it is the final letter in the word.
* The letter {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}} originated in the Phoenician alphabet as a consonant-sign indicating a glottal stop. Today it has lost its function as a consonant, and, together with {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ya’}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}, is a ''[[mater lectionis]]'', a consonant sign standing in for a long vowel (see below), or as support for certain diacritics ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|maddah}} and ''{{transliteration|ar|ALA|hamzah}}'').
* Arabic currently uses a [[Punctuation|punctuation mark]] called the {{transliteration|ar|ALA|hamzah}} ({{lang|ar|ء}}) to denote the [[glottal stop]] {{IPA|[ʔ]}}, written alone or with a carrier:
** alone: {{lang|ar|ء}}
** with a carrier: {{lang|ar|إ أ}} (above or under an {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}), {{lang|ar|ؤ}} (above a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}), {{lang|ar|ئ}} (above a dotless {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yā’}} or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yā’ hamzah}}).

:In academic work, the hamza is transliterated with the [[modifier letter right half ring]] (ʾ) or ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʔ}}) on [[Wiktionary]], while the [[modifier letter left half ring]] (ʿ) or ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʕ}}) on Wiktionary, transliterates the letter ''[[Ayin|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|‘ayn}}]]'' ({{lang|ar|ع}}), which represents a different sound, not found in English.
:The hamza has a single form, since it is never linked to a preceding or following letter. However, it is sometimes combined with a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yā’}}, or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}, and in that case the carrier behaves like an ordinary {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yā’}}, or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}, check the table below:

==== Hamza forms ====
{{further|Hamza#Arabic "seat" rules}}
The Hamza {{IPAslink|ʔ}} (glottal stop) can be written either alone, as if it were a letter, or with a carrier, when it becomes a [[Arabic diacritics|diacritic]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Habash |first=Nizar Y. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sYhyEAAAQBAJ |title=Introduction to Arabic Natural Language Processing |date=2022-06-01 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-031-02139-8 |pages=60 |language=en}}</ref> {{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzat al-madd}}  ({{lang|ar|آ}}) indicates a long {{IPAslink|ʔ}} + {{IPA|/aː/}} sound as in {{lang|ar|آسف}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾāsif}}  {{IPA|/ʔaː.sif/}} "sorry", while the other Hamzas indicate the glottal stop {{IPAslink|ʔ}} in different positions of the word as in {{lang|ar|مسؤول}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|masʾūl}} {{IPA|/mas.'''ʔ'''uːl/}} and {{lang|ar|سائل}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|sāʾil}} {{IPA|/saː.'''ʔ'''il/}}, the writing of the Hamza is based on a set of rules, For the writing rule of each form, see {{slink|Hamza#Arabic "seat" rules}}.
{|class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |Name
! colspan="4" |Contextual forms
! rowspan="2" |Isolated
! rowspan="2" |Position occurrence
|-
! Final 
! colspan="2" |Medial
!Initial
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah ʿalā al-[[Aleph#Arabic variants|ʾalif]]}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة عَلَى الأَلِفْ</big>}})
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـأ}}}}
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center" |<span style="font-size:190%;"><small>{{lang|ar|أ}}</small></span>
|Initial / Medial / Final positions
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah taḥt al-ʾalif}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة تَحْت الأَلِفْ</big>}})
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center" | -
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center" | <span style="font-size:190%;"><small>{{lang|ar|إ}}</small></span>
|Initial position only
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah ʿalā as-saṭr}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة عَلَى السَّطْر</big>}})
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center" | {{huge|{{lang|ar|ء}}}}
| style="text-align:center" | -
| style="text-align:center" | <span style="font-size:190%;"><small>{{lang|ar|ء}}</small></span>
|Medial / Final only
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah ʿalā al-wāw}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة عَلَى الوَاو</big>}})
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـؤ}}}}
| style="text-align:center" | -
| style="text-align:center" | <span style="font-size:190%;"><small>{{lang|ar|ؤ}}</small></span>
|Medial / Final only
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah ʿalā nabra}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة عَلَى نَبْرَة</big>}}) (medial)<br/>{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzah ʿalā al-yāʾ}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَة عَلَى اليَاء</big>}}) (final)
| style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـئ}}}}
|style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـئـ}}}}
|{{huge|{{lang|ar|ئـ}}}}
| style="text-align:center" | -
|style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ئ}}}}
|Medial / Final only
|-
! colspan="7" |
|-
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|Hamzat al-madd}} ({{lang|ar|<big>هَمْزَةْ المد</big>}}) 
|style="text-align:center" | -
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center" |{{huge|{{lang|ar|ـآ}}}}
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center" |<span style="font-size:190%;"><small>{{lang|ar|آ}}</small></span>
|Initial / Medial only
|}

====Modified letters====
The following are not individual letters, but rather different contextual variants of some of the Arabic letters.

{|class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan="2" |Name
! colspan="3" |Contextual forms
! rowspan="2" |Isolated
! rowspan="2" |Translit.
! rowspan="2" |Notes and Phonemic Value (IPA)
|-
!Final
!Medial
!Initial
|- 
|[[Tāʾ marbūṭah|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|tāʾ marbūṭah}}]]
({{lang|ar|<big>تَاءْ مَرْبُوطَة</big>}})
|style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" |<span style="font-size:190%;">{{lang|ar|ـة}}</span>
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center"  |(only final)
| style="text-align:center" |<span style="font-size:190%;">{{lang|ar|ة}}</span>
| style="text-align:center" | {{transliteration|ar|ALA|h}} or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|t}}
|(aka "''correlated tā{{'}}''")
used in final position, often for denoting singular feminine ''noun/word'' or to make the ''noun/word'' feminine, it has two pronunciations rules; often unpronounced or pronounced {{IPA|/h/}} as in {{lang|ar|مدرسة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|madrasa}} {{IPA|ar|madrasa|}} / {{transliteration|ar|ALA|madrasah}} {{IPA|ar|madrasah|}} "school" and pronounced {{IPA|/t/}} in [[construct state]] as in {{lang|ar|مدرسة سارة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|madrasatu sāra}} "Sara's school".

In rare ''irregular noun/word'' cases, it appears to denote masculine singular nouns as in {{lang|ar|أسامة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾusāma}}, or some masculine plural noun forms as in {{lang|ar|بَقَّالَة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|baqqāla}} plural of {{lang|ar|بَقَّال}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|baqqāl}}.

plural nouns: {{transliteration|ar|ALA|āt}} (a preceding letter followed by a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|fatḥah alif}} + {{transliteration|ar|ALA|tāʾ}} = {{script/Arabic|1=ـَات}})
|- 
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Aleph#Arabic variants|ʾalif maqṣūrah]]}} ({{lang|ar|<big>أَلِفْ مَقْصُورَة</big>}})
| style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" |<span style="font-size:190%;">{{lang|ar|ـى}}</span>
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center" |(only final)
| style="text-align:center" |<span style="font-size:190%;">{{lang|ar|ى}}</span>
| style="text-align:center" |{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}} 
| Two uses:<br />1. The letter called {{lang|ar|أَلِفْ مَقْصُورَة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif maqṣūrah}} or {{lang|ar|ْأَلِف لَيِّنَة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif layyinah}} (as opposed to {{lang|ar|أَلِف مَمْدُودَة}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif mamdūda}} {{lang|ar|ا}}), pronounced {{IPA|/aː/}} in Modern Standard Arabic. It is used only at the end of words in some special cases to denote the neuter/non-feminine aspect of the word (mainly verbs), where [[Tāʾ marbūṭah|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|tā’ marbūṭah}}]] cannot be used.<br />
{{citation needed|date=February 2023}}<br />2. A way of writing the letter {{lang|ar|ي}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ}} without its dots at the end of words, either traditionally or in contemporary use in Egypt and Sudan.
|}

===Long vowels===
In the fully vocalized Arabic text found in texts such as the Quran, a long {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}} following a consonant other than a ''[[hamza|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|hamzah}}]]'' is written with a short {{transliteration|ar|ALA|a}} sign ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|fatḥah}}) on the consonant plus an {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}} after it; long {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ī}} is written as a sign for short {{transliteration|ar|ALA|i}} ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|kasrah}}) plus a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|''yāʾ''}}; and long {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}} as a sign for short {{transliteration|ar|ALA|u}} ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḍammah}}) plus a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}. Briefly, {{transliteration|ar|ᵃa}} = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}}; {{transliteration|ar|ⁱy}} = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ī}}; and {{transliteration|ar|ᵘw}} = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}}. Long {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}} following a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|hamzah}} may be represented by an {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif maddah}} or by a free {{transliteration|ar|ALA|hamzah}} followed by an {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}} (two consecutive {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}}s are never allowed in Arabic).

The table below shows vowels placed above or below a dotted circle replacing a primary consonant letter or a ''[[Shadda|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|shaddah}}]]'' sign. For clarity in the table, the primary letters on the left used to mark these long vowels are shown only in their isolated form. Most consonants do connect to the left with {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ}} written then with their medial or final form. Additionally, the letter {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ}} in the last row may connect to the letter on its left, and then will use a medial or initial form. Use the table of primary letters to look at their actual glyph and joining types.

{|class="wikitable"
|+Long vowels (with fully vocalized text)
|-
! Unicode
! Letter with diacritic
! Name
! Trans.
! Variants
! Value
|- style="text-align:center;"
|style="padding:10px;"|<small>064E 0627</small>
|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـَـا}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif mamdūdah}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}}
|''aa''
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|/aː/}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="padding:10px;" |<small>064E 0649</small>
|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـَـى}}
|''{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif maqṣūrah}}''
|{{transliteration|ar|ā}}
|''aa''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="padding:10px;" |<small>064F 0648</small>
|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـُـو}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw mamdūdah}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}}
| ''uw/ ou''
|{{IPA|/uː/}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="padding:10px;" |<small>0650 064A</small>
|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـِـي}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ mamdūdah}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ī}}
|''iy''
|{{IPA|/iː/}}
|-
! colspan="6" |Regional Variation (Egypt and Sudan)
|- style="text-align:center;"
|<small>0650 0649</small>
|{{script/Arabic|ـِـى|size=200%}}{{efn|name=regional-variation|See the section on [[#Regional variations|regional variations]] in letter form.}}
|''{{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ mamdūdah}}''
|''ī''
|''iy''
|{{IPA|/iː/}}
|}

In unvocalized text (one in which the short vowels are not marked), the long vowels are represented by the vowel in question: {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif mamdūdah/maqṣūrah}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}, or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ}}. Long vowels written in the middle of a word of unvocalized text are treated like consonants with a {{transliteration|ar|ALA|sukūn}} (see below) in a text that has full diacritics. Here also, the table shows long vowel letters only in isolated form for clarity.

Combinations {{lang|ar|وا}} and {{lang|ar|يا}} are always pronounced {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wā}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yā}} respectively. The exception is the suffix {{lang|ar|ـوا۟}} in verb endings where {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}} is silent, resulting in {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}} or {{transliteration|ar|ALA|aw}}. In addition, when transliterating names and loanwords, Arabic language speakers write out most or all the vowels as long ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|ā}} with {{lang|ar|[[ا]]}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ʾalif}}, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ē}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ī}} with {{lang|ar|[[ي]]}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yaʾ}}, and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ō}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ū}} with {{lang|ar|[[و]]}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|wāw}}), meaning it approaches a true alphabet.

===Diphthongs===
The [[diphthongs]] {{lang|ar|حروف اللين}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḥurūfu l-līn}} {{IPA|/aj/}} and {{IPA|/aw/}} are represented in vocalized text as follows:

{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Diphthongs<br />(fully [[Arabic diacritics|vocalized]] text)
!Trans.
!Value
|- style="text-align:center;"
|style="padding:10px;"|<small>064A 064E</small><br />{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـَـي}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|ay}}
|{{IPA|/aj/}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="padding:10px;" |<small>0648 064E</small><br />{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـَـو}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|aw}}
|{{IPA|/aw/}}
|-
! colspan="3" |Other Diphthongs
|- style="text-align:center;"
|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـِـيّ}}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|iyy}}
|{{IPA|/ijj/}}
|}
A final {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yaʾ}} ''is usually'' written at the end of words for ''[[Arabic nouns and adjectives#Nisba|nisba]]'' ({{lang|ar|اَلنِّسْبَة}} ''{{transliteration|ar|DIN|nisbah}}'') which is a common suffix to form adjectives of relation or pertinence. The suffix is {{lang|ar|ـِيّ}} ''{{transliteration|ar|DIN|-iyy}}'' for masculine ({{lang|ar|ـِيَّة}} ''{{transliteration|ar|DIN|-iyya(t)-}}'' for feminine); for example {{lang|ar|اِشْتِرَاكِيّ}} ''{{transliteration|ar|ištirākiyy}}'' "socialist", it is also used for a singulative ending that applies to human or other [[sentient]] beings as in {{lang|ar|جندي}} ''jundiyy'' "a soldier". However nowadays this final {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yaʾ}}  is mostly pronounced with a long {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yaʾ}} ({{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ mamdūdah}}) ''{{transliteration|ar|DIN|-ī}}'' as in {{lang|ar|اِشْتِرَاكِي}} ''{{transliteration|ar|ištirākī}}'' {{IPA|/iʃtiraːkiː/}} instead of {{lang|ar|اِشْتِرَاكِيّ}} ''{{transliteration|ar|ištirākiyy}}'' {{IPA|/iʃtiraːkijj/}}. A similar mistake happens at the end of some third person plural verbs as in {{lang|ar|جَرَوْا}} ''{{transliteration|ar|jaraw}}'' "they ran" which is pronounced nowadays as {{lang|ar|جَرُوا}} ''{{transliteration|ar|jarū}}'' {{IPA|/d͡ʒaruː/}}.

=== Ligatures ===
[[File:Component_letters_in_Allah.svg|thumb|243x243px|Components of a ligature for "Allah": <br />1. [[Aleph#Arabic|alif]]<br />2. [[Hamza#Hamzat al-waṣl ( ٱ )|hamzat waṣl]] ({{Script/Arabic|ْهَمْزَة وَصْل}})<br />3. [[lām]]<br />4. lām<br />5. [[shadda]] ({{Script/Arabic|شَدَّة}}) <br />6. [[dagger alif]] ({{Script/Arabic|أَلِفْ خَنْجَریَّة}}) <br />7. [[hāʾ]]]]
The use of [[Ligature (writing)#Non-Latin alphabets|ligature in Arabic]] is common. There is one compulsory ligature, that for {{transliteration|ar|ALA|lām}} ل + {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}} ا, which exists in two forms. All other ligatures, of which there are many,<ref>{{cite web| url = https://graphemica.com/search?q=arabic+ligature| title = A list of Arabic ligature forms in Unicode.}}</ref> are optional.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! colspan="4" | Contextual forms
! rowspan="2" | Name
! rowspan="2" |Trans.
! rowspan="2" |Value
|-
! Final
! Medial
! Initial
! Isolated
|-
| colspan="2" style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" | <span style="font-size:190%;">{{Script/Arabic|ﻼ}}</span>
| colspan="2" style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" | <span style="font-size:190%;">{{Script/Arabic|ﻻ}}</span>
| lām + alif
|''lā''
|/laː/
|}

A more complex ligature that combines as many as seven distinct components is commonly used to represent the word {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Allāh]]}} {{lang|ar|الله}}. The only ligature within the primary range of [[Arabic script in Unicode]] (U+06xx) is {{transliteration|ar|ALA|lām}} + {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}. This is the only one compulsory for fonts and word-processing. Other ranges are for compatibility to older standards and contain other ligatures, which are optional.

Note: [[Unicode]] also has in its Presentation Form B FExx range a code for this ligature. If your browser and font are configured correctly for Arabic, the ligature displayed above should be identical to this one, <code>U+FEFB</code>

== Diacritics ==
{{Main|Arabic diacritics}}
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2024}}

Users of Arabic usually write [[vowel length|long vowels]] but omit short ones, so readers must utilize their knowledge of the language in order to supply the missing vowels. However, in the education system and particularly in classes on Arabic grammar these vowels are used since they are crucial to the grammar. An Arabic sentence can have a completely different meaning by a subtle change of the vowels. This is why in an important text such as the {{transliteration|ar|ALA|Qur’ān}} the three basic vowel signs are mandated, like the Arabic diacritics and other types of marks, like the [[Cantillation|cantillation signs]].

===Short vowels===
In the Arabic handwriting of everyday use, in general publications, and on street signs, short vowels are typically not written. On the other hand, copies of the {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Quran|Qur’ān]]}} cannot be endorsed by the religious institutes that review them unless the diacritics are included. Children's books, elementary school texts, and Arabic-language grammars in general will include diacritics to some degree. These are known as "[[Arabic diacritics|vocalized]]" texts.

Short vowels may be written with diacritics placed above or below the consonant that precedes them in the syllable, called {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḥarakāt}}. All Arabic vowels, long and short, follow a consonant; in Arabic, words like "Ali" or "alif", for example, start with a consonant: {{transliteration|ar|‘Aliyy}}<!--not DIN 31635 transliteration-->, {{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Short vowels<br />(fully [[Arabic diacritics|vocalized]] text)
! Code
! Name
! Name in Arabic script
! Trans.
! Phonemic Value
! scope="col" style="width: 50%;" | Remarks
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{script/Arabic|size=220%| ــَـ }}
| <small>064E</small>
| fat·ḥah
| {{script/Arabic|size=150%|attribute=lang="ar"| فَتْحَة }}
| {{transliteration|ar|ALA|a}}
| {{IPA|/a/}}
| Ranges from {{IPAblink|æ}}, {{IPAblink|a}}, {{IPAblink|ä}}, {{IPAblink|ɑ}}, {{IPAblink|ɐ}}, to {{IPAblink|e}}, depending on the native dialect, position, and stress.

|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{script/Arabic|size=220%| ــُـ }}
| <small>064F</small>
| {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ḍammah}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=150%|attribute=lang="ar"| ضَمَّة }}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|u}}
|{{IPA|/u/}}
|Ranges from {{IPAblink|ʊ}}, {{IPAblink|o}}, to {{IPAblink|u}}, depending on the native dialect, position, and stress. Approximated to English "U" (as in "p'''<u>''u''</u>'''t")
|- style="text-align:center;"
|
{{script/Arabic|size=200%|attribute=lang="ar"| ــِـ }}
|<small>0650</small>
| {{transliteration|ar|ALA|kasrah}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=150%|attribute=lang="ar"| كَسْرَة }}
|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|i}}
|{{IPA|/i/}}
| Ranges from {{IPAblink|ɪ}}, {{IPAblink|e}}, to {{IPAblink|i}}, depending on the native dialect, position, and stress. Approximated to English "I" (as in "p'''<u>''i''</u>'''ck")
|}

=== Nunation ===
{{Main|Nunation}}

[[Nunation]] ({{langx|ar|تنوين}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|tanwīn}}) is the addition of a final {{transliteration|ar|ALA|-n}}&nbsp; to a [[noun]] or [[adjective]]. The vowel before it indicates [[grammatical case]]. In written Arabic, nunation is indicated by doubling the vowel diacritic at the end of the word, e.g. {{lang|ar|شُكْرًا}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|šukr'''an'''}} {{IPA|ar|ʃukran|}} {{gloss|thank you}}. 
{| class="wikitable" style="align:left;"
! colspan="4" |Nunation - ''tanwīn'' forms
|-
!Symbol
| style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" |<span style="font-size:250%;">{{script/Arabic|ـٌ}}</span>
| style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" |<span style="font-size:250%;">{{script/Arabic|ـٍ}}</span>
| style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" |<span style="font-size:250%;">{{script/Arabic|ـً}}</span>
|- style="text-align:center;"
!Transliteration
| colspan="1" |{{Transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|-un}}
| rowspan="1" |{{Transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|-in}}
| rowspan="1" |{{Transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|-an}}
|}

=== Gemination ===
{{main|Shadda}}

[[Gemination]] is the doubling of a consonant. Instead of writing the letter twice, Arabic places a ''W''-shaped sign called {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[shaddah]]}} above it.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="2" | General Unicode 
! Name
! Name in Arabic script
! Transliteration
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="line-height:180%;padding:10px;" | 0651 
|
{{script/Arabic|size=200%|attribute=lang="ar"| ــّـ }}
| {{transliteration|ar|ALA|shaddah}}
| {{lang|ar|{{script|Arabic| شَدَّة }}}}
| (consonant doubled/geminated)
|}

===Vowel omission===
An Arabic [[syllable]] can be open (ending with a vowel) or closed (ending with a consonant):
* open: CV [consonant-vowel] (long or short vowel)
* closed: CVC (short vowel only)

A normal text is composed only of a series of consonants plus vowel-lengthening letters; thus, the word ''qalb'', "heart", is written ''qlb'', and the word ''qalaba'' "he turned around", is also written ''qlb''. To write ''qalaba'' without this ambiguity, we could indicate that the ''l'' is followed by a short ''a'' by writing a ''fatḥah'' above it.

To write ''qalb'', we would instead indicate that the ''l'' is followed by no vowel by marking it with a [[diacritic]] called ''sukūn'' ({{script/Arabic|&nbsp;ْ}}), like this: {{lang|ar|قلْب}}. This is one step down from full vocalization, where the vowel after the ''q'' would also be indicated by a ''fatḥah'': {{lang|ar|قَلْب}}.

The ''[[Qurʾān]]'' is traditionally written in full vocalization.

The long ''i'' sound in some editions of the ''Qur’ān'' is written with a ''kasrah'' followed by a diacritic-less ''y'', and long ''u'' by a ''ḍammah'' followed by a bare ''w''. In others, these ''y'' and ''w'' carry a ''sukūn''. Outside of the ''Qur’ān'', the latter convention is extremely rare, to the point that ''y'' with ''sukūn'' will be unambiguously read as the [[diphthong]] {{IPA|/aj/}}, and ''w'' with ''sukūn'' will be read {{IPA|/aw/}}.

For example, the letters {{transliteration|ar|m-y-l}} can be read like English ''meel'' or ''mail'', or (theoretically) also like ''mayyal'' or ''mayil''. But if a ''sukūn'' is added on the ''y'' then the ''m'' cannot have a ''sukūn'' (because two letters in a row cannot be ''sukūn''ated), cannot have a ''ḍammah'' (because there is never an ''uy'' sound in Arabic unless there is another vowel after the ''y''), and cannot have a ''kasrah'' (because ''kasrah'' before ''sukūn''ated ''y'' is never found outside the ''Qur’ān''), so it ''must'' have a ''fatḥah'' and the only possible pronunciation is {{IPA|/majl/}} (meaning mile, or even e-mail). By the same token, m-y-t with a ''sukūn'' over the ''y'' can be ''mayt'' but not ''mayyit'' or ''meet'', and m-w-t with a ''sukūn'' on the ''w'' can only be ''mawt'', not ''moot'' (''iw'' is impossible when the ''w'' closes the syllable).

Vowel marks are always written as if the ''[[’I‘rab|i‘rāb]]'' vowels were in fact pronounced, even when they must be skipped in actual pronunciation. So, when writing the name ''Aḥmad'', it is optional to place a ''sukūn'' on the ''ḥ'', but a ''sukūn'' is forbidden on the ''d'', because it would carry a ''ḍammah'' if any other word followed, as in ''Aḥmadu zawjī'' "Ahmad is my husband".

Another example: the sentence that in correct literary Arabic must be pronounced ''Aḥmadu zawjun shirrīr'' "Ahmad is a wicked husband", is usually pronounced (due to influence from vernacular Arabic varieties) as ''Aḥmad zawj shirrīr''. Yet, for the purposes of Arabic grammar and orthography, is treated as if it were not mispronounced and as if yet another word followed it, i.e., if adding any vowel marks, they must be added as if the pronunciation were ''Aḥmadu zawjun sharrīrun'' with a ''tanwīn'' 'un' at the end. So, it is correct to add an ''un'' ''tanwīn'' sign on the final ''r'', but actually pronouncing it would be a hypercorrection. Also, it is never correct to write a ''sukūn'' on that ''r'', even though in actual pronunciation it is (and in correct Arabic MUST be) ''sukūn''ed.

Of course, if the correct ''i‘rāb'' is a ''sukūn'', it may be optionally written.

{|class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan=2| General Unicode
!Name
!Name in Arabic script
!Translit.
!Phonemic Value (IPA)
|- style="text-align:center;"
|style="padding:10px;"| 0652
|style="padding:10px;"| {{script/Arabic|size=200%| ــْـ }}
|sukūn
|{{lang|ar|سُكُون}}
|(no vowel with this consonant letter or<br />diphthong with this long vowel letter)
|∅
|}
The ''sukūn'' is also used for transliterating words into the Arabic script. The English name "Mark" is written {{lang|ar|مارك}}, for example, might be written with a ''sukūn'' above the {{lang|ar|ر}} to signify that there is no vowel sound between that letter and the {{lang|ar|ك}}.

=== Additional diacritics ===
These diacritics are uncommon in modern publications but are often used in Quran and some manuscripts.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="2" | General Unicode
!Name
!Name in Arabic script
!Translit.
!Phonemic Value (IPA)
|- style="text-align:center;"
| style="padding:10px;" | 0670 
| style="padding:10px;" | {{script/Arabic|size=200%| ــٰـ }}
| alif khanjariyyah
| {{lang|ar|أَلِف خَنْجَرِيَّة}}
| it indicates that the consonant is followed by a long ''ā,'' where the ''[[Aleph#Arabic|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}]]'' is normally not written.
| {{IPA|/aː/}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
!
|[[File:Wasala_on_screen_20200507.png|center|30x30px]]
|{{Transliteration|ar|hamzat al-waṣl}}
|{{lang|ar|هَمْزَةُ الْوَصْل‎}}
|It indicates that the [[Aleph|{{Transliteration|ar|ʾalif}}]] is not pronounced as a glottal stop (written as the ''hamza'')
|∅
|}
ٰThe alif khanjariyyah ({{lang|ar|أَلِف خَنْجَرِيَّة}}, 'dagger ’alif')  is written as short vertical stroke on top of a letter. It indicates a long {{IPA|/aː/}} sound for which ''[[Aleph#Arabic|{{transliteration|ar|ALA|alif}}]]'' is normally not written. For example: {{angle bracket|{{lang|ar|هَٰذَا}}}} (''{{transliteration|ar|ALA|hādhā}}'') or {{angle bracket|{{lang|ar|رَحْمَٰن}}}} (''{{transliteration|ar|ALA|raḥmān}}'').

The [[Wasla]] or {{Transliteration|ar|hamzat al-waṣl}} ({{lang|ar|هَمْزَةُ ٱلْوَصْلِ}}, '[[hamza]] of connection') is a variant of the letter ''[[hamza]]'' ({{lang|ar|ء}}) resembling part of the letter [[Tsade|{{Transliteration|ar|ṣād}}]] ({{lang|ar|ص}}) that is rarely placed over the letter [[Aleph|{{Transliteration|ar|ʾalif}}]]  ({{lang|ar|<big>أَلِف الْوَصْلِ</big>}} ''ʾalif al-waṣl'' (<big>{{lang|ar|ا}}</big>)) to form (<big>{{lang|ar|ٱ}}</big>) at the beginning of the word ({{lang|ar|<big>[[wikt:ٱ|ٱ]]</big>}}). It indicates that the [[Aleph|{{Transliteration|ar|ʾalif}}]] is not pronounced as a glottal stop (written as the ''hamza''), but that the word is connected to the previous word (like [[Liaison (French)|liaison]] in [[French language|French]]). Outside of [[Vocalised Arabic|vocalised]] liturgical texts, the {{Transliteration|ar|waṣla}} is usually not written.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |last=Alhonen |first=Miikka-Markus |title=Proposal for encoding the combining diacritic Arabic wasla |url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03166-wasla.pdf |accessdate=25 March 2014 |publisher=unicode.org}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite web |last=Price |first=James M |date=7 June 2012 |title=Helping Vowels and the Elidable Hamza |url=http://allthearabicyouneverlearnedthefirsttimearound.com/p1/p1-ch1/helping-vowels-and-the-elidable-hamza/ |accessdate=25 March 2014 |publisher=Arabic Language Lessons: All The Arabic You Never Learned The First Time Around}}</ref> e.g. Abdullah <big>{{lang|ar|عَبْدُ ٱلله}}</big> can be written with hamzat al-wasl on the first letter of the word <big>{{lang|ar|ٱلله}}</big> but it is mostly written without it <big>{{lang|ar|عَبْدُ الله}}</big>.

==Additional letters==<!--If any are missing, please add them.-->
<!-- This would look nicer in tables. -->

===Regional variations===
Some letters take a traditionally different form in specific regions:

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="4" | Letter !! rowspan="2" | Explanation
|-
! Isolated !! Final !! Medial !! Initial
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ی}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـی}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـیـ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|یـ}}
| style="text-align:left;" | The traditional style to write or print the letter, and remains so in the [[Nile Valley]] region (Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan... etc.) and sometimes Maghreb; {{Transliteration|ar|ALA|yā’}} {{lang|ar|[[ي]]}} is dotless in the isolated and final position. Merging with the {{Transliteration|ar|ʾalif maqṣūrah}} {{lang|ar|[[ى]]}}; e.g. {{lang|ar|على}} {{IPA|/ʕalaː/}} "on" and {{lang|ar|علي}} {{IPA|/ʕaliː/}} "[[Ali (name)|Ali]]" are both written {{lang|ar|على}} in Egypt and Sudan.
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ک}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـک}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـکـ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|کـ}}
| style="text-align:left;" | An alternative version of final {{Transliteration|ar|ALA|kāf}}  {{lang|ar|ـک‎}} is used (instead of {{lang|ar|ـك}}) in some script variants, for example in the [[Hijazi script|Madani script]] which is used on road signs in [[Medina]] and on the logo of the chemical company [[SABIC]] written {{lang|ar|سابک‎‎}}.
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ڢ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـڢ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـڢـ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ڢـ}}
| style="text-align:left;" | An obsolete traditional [[Pe (Semitic letter)#Maghrebi variant|Maghrebi variant]] of {{Transliteration|ar|ALA|fā’}} {{lang|ar|ف}}.
|- style="text-align:center;"
| {{nowrap|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ڧ/ٯ}}}}
| {{nowrap|{{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـڧ/ـٯ}}}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ـڧـ/ـٯـ}}
| {{script/Arabic|size=200%|ڧـ/ٯـ}}
| style="text-align:left;" | An obsolete traditional [[Qoph#Maghrebi variant|Maghrebi variant]] of {{Transliteration|ar|ALA|qāf}} {{lang|ar|ق}}. Generally dotless in isolated and final positions and dotted in the initial and medial forms.
|}

===Non-standard letters===
Some modified letters are used to represent non-native sounds to Modern Standard Arabic. These letters are used as an optional alternative in transliterated names, loanwords and dialectal words. The usage of these letters depends on the writer and their country of origin and their usage is not mandatory.

The phoneme {{IPAslink|ɡ}} (considered a standard pronunciation of {{lang|ar|ج}} in Egypt, Oman, and coastal Yemen) has the highest number of variations when writing loanwords or foreign proper nouns in Literary Arabic, and it can be written with either the standard letters {{lang|ar|ج}}, {{lang|ar|غ}}, {{lang|ar|ق}}, and {{lang|ar|ك}} or with the non-standard letters {{lang|ar|ڨ‎‎‎}} (used only in Tunisia and Algeria), {{lang|ar|ڭ}} (used only in Morocco), and {{lang|ar|گ}} (used mainly in Iraq) for example "[[Golf]]" pronounced {{IPA|/ɡoːlf/}} can be written {{lang|ar|جولف}}, {{lang|ar|غولف}}, {{lang|ar|قولف}}, {{lang|ar|كولف}}, {{lang|ar|ڨولف‎‎‎}}, {{lang|ar|ڭولف}} or {{lang|ar|گولف}} depending on the writer and their country of origin. On the other hand, {{IPAslink|ɡ}} is considered a native phoneme in most Arabic dialects, either as a reflex of {{lang|ar|ج}} as in lower Egypt, parts of Oman and parts of Yemen (e.g. {{lang|ar|جمل}} {{IPA|ar|gamal|}}) or as a reflex of {{lang|ar|ق}} as in most of the Arabian peninsula, Iraq, Sudan, and parts of Egypt, Levant and North Africa (e.g. {{lang|ar|قال}} {{IPA|ar|gaːl|}}).

{| class="wikitable"
! Letter !! Phoneme !! Note
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[Pe (Persian letter)|پ]]}}
| style="text-align:center;" | {{IPAslink|p}}
|Sometimes used when transliterating foreign names and loanwords instead of {{transliteration|ar|bā’}} {{lang|ar|ب}}. only used in foreign words.
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[Ve (Arabic letter)|ڤ]]}}
| rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;" | {{IPAslink|v}}
|Sometimes used when transliterating foreign names and loanwords instead of {{transliteration|ar|fā’}} {{lang|ar|ف}}.<ref name="dialecttutorial">{{Cite web |url=http://www1.ccls.columbia.edu/~cadim/ArabicDialectTutorialAMTA2006.pdf |title=Arabic Dialect Tutorial |access-date=2 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217151017/http://www1.ccls.columbia.edu/~cadim/ArabicDialectTutorialAMTA2006.pdf |archive-date=17 December 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> only used in foreign words.
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[Ve (Arabic letter)|ڥ]]}}
|Only used in Algeria and Tunisia when transliterating foreign names and loanwords instead of {{transliteration|ar|fā’}} {{lang|ar|ف}}, this form is used to distinguish it from {{lang|ar|ڨ}}. only used in foreign words.
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[ڨ]]}}
| rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;" |{{IPAslink|g}}
|Only in Algeria and Tunisia {{IPAslink|g}} is officially written using {{lang|ar|ڨ}} or {{lang|ar|ق}} including in city names e.g. the city of [[Guelma]] is written {{lang|ar|ڨالمة}} or {{lang|ar|قالمة}} {{IPA|ar|ɡelmæ|}}, [[Gafsa]] is written {{lang|ar|ڨفصة}} or {{lang|ar|قفصة}} {{IPA|ar|gafsˤa|}}, and [[Gabès]] is written {{lang|ar|ڨابس}} or {{lang|ar|قابس}} {{IPA|ar|gaːbis|}}.
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[ڭ]]}}
|Only in Morocco {{IPAslink|g}} is officially written using {{lang|ar|ڭ}} or {{lang|ar|ك}} including in city names; e.g. the city of [[Agadir]] is written {{lang|ar|أڭادير}} or {{lang|ar|أكادير}} {{IPA|ar|ʔaɡaːdiːr|}}.
|-
| style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" | {{Script/Arabic|[[گ]]}}
|Used in [[Gulf Arabic|Gulf]] and [[Iraqi Arabic|Mesopotamian]] Arabic but only when writing dialectal words (e.g. {{lang|ar|گمر}} {{IPA|ar|ɡʊmər|}} "moon" instead of Standard Arabic {{lang|ar|قمر}} {{IPA|ar|qamar|}}).
|-
| rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;font-size:120%;" |{{Script/Arabic|[[Che (Persian letter)|چ]]}}
| style="text-align:center;" | {{IPAslink|t͡ʃ}}
|Used in colloquial [[Gulf Arabic|Gulf]] and [[Iraqi Arabic|Mesopotamian]] Arabic but only when writing dialectal words where {{IPAslink|t͡ʃ}} is considered a native phoneme/allophone (e.g. {{lang|ar|چلب}} {{IPA|ar|t͡ʃəlb|}} "dog" instead of the standard {{lang|ar|كلب}} {{IPA|ar|kalb|}}). While in Standard Arabic throughout the Arab world, the sequence {{lang|ar|ت}} {{IPAslink|t}} + {{lang|ar|ش}} {{IPAslink|ʃ}} ({{IPAslink|tʃ}}) is usually preferred (e.g. {{lang|ar|تشاد}} {{IPA|ar|tʃaːd|}} "[[Chad]]", {{lang|ar|التشيك}} {{IPA|ar|at.tʃiːk|}} "Czechia" and {{lang|ar|تشيلي}} {{IPA|ar|tʃiː.liː|}} "Chile").
|-
| style="text-align:center;" | {{IPAslink|ʒ}}
|Used in Egypt when transliterating foreign names and loanwords where standard {{lang|ar|ج}} is mostly pronounced {{IPAslink|ɡ}} as in the city of [[Giza]] is written {{lang|ar|الجيزة}} {{IPA|ar|elˈgiːzæ|}}., (e.g. {{lang|ar|چيبة}} or {{lang|ar|جيبة}} {{IPA|ar|ʒiː.ba|}} "skirt"). only used in foreign words. 
|}
Note: The sounds {{IPAslink|p}} and {{IPAslink|v}} are non-native to most Arabic dialects (excl. [[Anatolian Arabic]] where {{lang|ar|ذِئْب}} "Wolf" is pronounced vīp {{IPA|ar|viːp|}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Akkuş |first=Faruk |title=Anatolian Arabic |url=https://langsci-press.org/catalog/view/235/1808/1834-1}}</ref> instead of Standard Arabic {{IPA|ar|ðɪʔb|}}), while {{IPAslink|g}}, {{IPAslink|t͡ʃ}} and {{IPAslink|ʒ}} appear as a native phoneme or allophone in many dialects.

===Used in languages other than Arabic===
{{further|Arabic script#Additional letters used in other languages}}

== Numerals ==
{{Main|Western Arabic numerals|Eastern Arabic numerals}}
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2024}}
{| class="wikitable floatright" style="text-align:center"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Western<br />([[Maghreb]]) || rowspan="2" | Eastern<br />([[Mashriq]]) || colspan="2" | Eastern
|-
!Persian
!Urdu
|-
| 0
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٠}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۰}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۰}}</span>
|-
| 1
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|١}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۱}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۱}}</span>
|-
| 2
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٢}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۲}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۲}}</span>
|-
| 3
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٣}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۳}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۳}}</span>
|-
| 4
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٤}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۴}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۴}}</span>
|-
| 5
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٥}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۵}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۵}}</span>
|-
| 6
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٦}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۶}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۶}}</span>
|-
| 7
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٧}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۷}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۷}}</span>
|-
| 8
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٨}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۸}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۸}}</span>
|-
| 9
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|٩}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۹}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۹}}</span>
|-
| 10
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ar|١٠}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|fa|۱۰}}</span>
| <span style="font-size:large">{{lang|ur|۱۰}}</span>
|}

There are two main kinds of numerals used along with Arabic text; [[Western Arabic numerals]] and [[Eastern Arabic numerals]]. In most of present-day North Africa, the usual Western Arabic numerals are used. Like Western Arabic numerals, in Eastern Arabic numerals, the units are always right-most, and the highest value left-most. Eastern Arabic numbers are written from left to right.

===Letters as numerals===
{{main|Abjad numerals}}

In addition, the Arabic alphabet can be used to represent numbers ([[Abjad numerals]]). This usage is based on the {{transliteration|ar|ʾabjadī}} order of the alphabet. {{lang|ar|أ}} {{transliteration|ar|ʾalif}} is 1, {{lang|ar|ب}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|bāʾ}} is 2, {{lang|ar|ج}} {{transliteration|ar|jīm}} is 3, and so on until {{lang|ar|ي}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|yāʾ}} = 10, {{lang|ar|ك}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|kāf}} = 20, {{lang|ar|ل}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|lām}} = 30, ..., {{lang|ar|ر}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|rāʾ}} = 200, ..., {{lang|ar|غ}} {{transliteration|ar|ALA|ghayn}} = 1000. This is sometimes used to produce [[chronogram]]s.

== History ==
{{Main|History of the Arabic alphabet}}
[[File:Arabic script evolution.svg|thumb|250px|Evolution of early [[Islamic calligraphy|Arabic calligraphy]] (9th–11th century). The {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Basmala]]}} is taken as an example, from [[Kufic]] {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Qur’ān]]}} manuscripts. (1) Early 9th century script used no dots or [[diacritic]] marks;<ref>[[commons:File:Basmala kufi.svg|File:Basmala kufi.svg – Wikimedia Commons]]</ref> (2) and (3) in the 9th–10th century during the Abbasid dynasty, [[Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali|Abu al-Aswad]]'s system used red dots with each arrangement or position indicating a different short vowel. Later, a second system of black dots was used to differentiate between letters like {{transliteration|ar|ALA|fā’}} and {{transliteration|ar|ALA|qāf}};<ref name="wikimedia1">[[commons:File:Kufi.jpg|File:Kufi.jpg – Wikimedia Commons]]</ref> (4) in the 11th century ([[Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi|al-Farāhīdī]]'s system) dots were changed into shapes resembling the letters to transcribe the corresponding long vowels. This system is the one used today.<ref>[[commons:File:Qur'an folio 11th century kufic.jpg|File:Qur'an folio 11th century kufic.jpg – Wikimedia Commons]]</ref>]]
The Arabic alphabet can be traced back to the [[Nabataean script]] used to write [[Nabataean Aramaic]]. A transitional phase, between the Nabataean Aramaic script and a subsequent, recognizably Arabic script, is known as [[Nabataean Arabic]]. The pre-Islamic phase of the script as it existed in the fifth and sixth centuries, once it had become recognizably similar to the script as it came to be known in the Islamic era, is known as [[Paleo-Arabic]].{{Sfn|Nehmé|2020}}

The first known text in the Arabic alphabet is a late fourth-century inscription from {{transliteration|ar|[[Jabal Ram]]}} 50&nbsp;km east of {{transliteration|ar|ALA|[[Aqaba|‘Aqabah]]}} in [[Jordan]], but the [[Zabad inscription|Zabad trilingual inscription]] is the earliest dated Arabic text from 512, and was discovered in [[Syria]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blair |first1=Sheila |title=Islamic inscriptions |date=1998 |publisher=Edinburgh university press |location=Edinburgh |isbn=0748609032 |page=21 }}</ref> Nevertheless, the [[epigraphy|epigraphic]] record is extremely sparse. Later, dots were added above and below the letters to differentiate them. (The Aramaic language had fewer phonemes than the Arabic, and some originally distinct Aramaic letters had become indistinguishable in shape, so that in the early writings 14 distinct letter-shapes had to do duty for 28 sounds; cf. the similarly ambiguous [[Book Pahlavi]].)

The first surviving document that definitely uses these dots is also the first surviving Arabic [[papyrus]] ([[PERF 558]]), dated April 643, although they did not become obligatory until much later. Important texts were and still are frequently memorized, especially in [[hafiz (Quran)|Qurʾan memorization]].

Later still, vowel marks and the hamza were introduced, beginning some time in the latter half of the 7th century, preceding the first invention of [[Syriac alphabet|Syriac]] and [[Tiberian vocalization]]s. Initially, this was done by a system of red dots, said to have been commissioned in the [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad]] era by [[Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali]], a dot above = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|a}}, a dot below = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|i}}, a dot on the line = {{transliteration|ar|ALA|u}}, and doubled dots indicated [[nunation]]. However, this was cumbersome and easily confusable with the letter-distinguishing dots, so about 100 years later, the modern system was adopted. The system was finalized around 786 by [[al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi]].

=== Other tributes and alphabets written in Arabic dialects ===
Arabic dialects were written in different alphabets before the spread of the Arabic alphabet currently in use. The most important of these alphabets and inscriptions are the [[Safaitic]] inscriptions, amounting to 30,000 inscriptions discovered in the [[Syrian Desert|Levant desert]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-12-15 |title=علم اللغة العربية • الموقع الرسمي للمكتبة الشاملة |url=http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-11299/page-275 |access-date=2024-03-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215022117/http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-11299/page-275 |archive-date=15 December 2018 }}</ref>

There are about 3,700 inscriptions in [[Hismaic]] in central Jordan and northwest of the Arabian Peninsula, and Nabataean inscriptions, the most important of which are the Umm al-Jimal I inscription and the [[Namara inscription|Numara inscription]].<ref>{{citation | last=Al-Jallad | first=Ahmad | title=A Manual of the Historical Grammar of Arabic | via=Academia.edu | date=2019-01-06 | url=https://www.academia.edu/38100372 }}</ref> [[File:Panel Almaqah Louvre DAO18.jpg|thumb|[[Ancient South Arabian script|Musnad]] script as is clear from one of the [[Sheba|Sabaean]] inscriptions.]]

=== Arabic printing ===
[[tarsh|Medieval Arabic blockprinting]] flourished from the 10th century until the 14th. It was devoted to tiny texts, which were usually used in [[amulet]]s.

In 1514, following [[Johannes Gutenberg]]'s invention of the printing press in 1450, Gregorio de Gregorii, a Venetian, published an entire [[book of hours]] in Arabic script; it was entitled ''[[Kitab salat al-sawai|Kitab Salat al-Sawa'i]]'' and was intended for eastern Christian communities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.viverefano.com/2014/11/19/294-anniversario-della-biblioteca-federiciana-ricerche-e-curiosit-sul-kitab-salat-al-sawai/504874/|title=294° anniversario della Biblioteca Federiciana: ricerche e curiosità sul Kitab Salat al-Sawai|access-date=2017-01-31}}</ref> Between 1580 and 1586, type designer [[Robert Granjon]] designed Arabic typefaces for Cardinal [[Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany|Ferdinando de' Medici]], and the [[Medici Oriental Press]] published many Christian prayer and scholarly Arabic texts in the late 16th century.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xu2y8w_o2sQC&q=Robert+Granjon+designed+Arabic+typefaces&pg=PA11|title=Design and Structure of Arabic Script|last=Naghashian|first=Naghi|date=2013-01-21|publisher=epubli|isbn=9783844245059}}</ref>
[[File:الكامل في صنعة الأسطرلاب الشمالي والجنوبي وعللهما بالهندسة والحساب.png|thumb|A page from the manuscript of Al-Kamil's book on the making of the northern and southern [[astrolabe]] and their reasons for geometry and arithmetic by [[Al-Farghani|Ahmed bin Katheer Al-Farghani]], where the letters appear in red in an arranged order expressing numbers.]]
[[Maronite]] monks at [[Monastery of Qozhaya]] on [[Mount Lebanon]] published the first Arabic books to use movable type in the Middle East. The monks employed [[Garshuni]], the practice of writing Arabic using the [[Syriac script]], usually by Christians.

Although [[Napoleon]] generally receives credit for introducing the [[printing press]] to Egypt during his invasion of the country in 1798, and though he did indeed bring printing presses and Arabic presses to print the French occupation's official newspaper ''Al-Tanbiyyah'' "The Courier," printing in the Arabic language had started several centuries earlier. A goldsmith (like Gutenberg) designed and implemented an Arabic script [[movable type]] [[printing press]] in the Middle East. The [[Lebanese Melkite Christians|Lebanese Melkite]] monk [[Abdallah Zakher]] set up an Arabic printing press using movable type at the monastery of Saint John at the town of [[Dhour El Shuwayr]] in Mount Lebanon, the first homemade press in Lebanon using Arabic script. He cut the type molds and founded the typeface. The first book came off his press in 1734; this press continued in use until 1899.<ref>
[http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/198102/arabic.and.the.art.of.printing-a.special.section.htm Arabic and the Art of Printing – A Special Section] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061229133008/http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/198102/arabic.and.the.art.of.printing-a.special.section.htm |date=29 December 2006 }}, by Paul Lunde
</ref>

== Computers ==
The Arabic alphabet can be encoded using several [[character set]]s, including [[ISO-8859-6]], [[Windows-1256]] and [[Unicode]], the latter of which contains the "Arabic segment", entries U+0600 to U+06FF. However, none of the sets indicates the form that each character should take in context. It is left to the [[rendering (computer graphics)|rendering engine]] to select the proper [[glyph]] to display for each character.

Each letter has a position-independent encoding in Unicode, and the rendering software can infer the correct glyph form (initial, medial, final or isolated) from its joining context. That is the current recommendation. However, for compatibility with previous standards, the initial, medial, final and isolated forms can also be encoded separately.

===Unicode===
{{Main|Arabic script in Unicode}}
As of Unicode {{Unicode version|version=16.0}}, the Arabic script is contained in the following [[Unicode block|blocks]]:<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.unicode.org/Public/UNIDATA/Scripts.txt | work=Unicode Character Database | title=UAX #24: Script data file | publisher=The Unicode Consortium}}</ref>
* [[Arabic (Unicode block)|Arabic]] (0600–06FF, 256 characters)
* [[Arabic Supplement]] (0750–077F, 48 characters)
* [[Arabic Extended-A]] (08A0–08FF, 96 characters)
* [[Arabic Extended-B]] (0870–089F, 42 characters)
* [[Arabic Extended-C]] (10EC0–10EFF, 7 characters)
* [[Arabic Presentation Forms-A]] (FB50–FDFF, 631 characters)
* [[Arabic Presentation Forms-B]] (FE70–FEFF, 141 characters)
* [[Rumi Numeral Symbols]] (10E60–10E7F, 31 characters)
* [[Indic Siyaq Numbers]] (1EC70–1ECBF, 68 characters)
* [[Ottoman Siyaq Numbers]] (1ED00–1ED4F, 61 characters)
* [[Arabic Mathematical Alphabetic Symbols]] (1EE00—1EEFF, 143 characters)

The basic Arabic range encodes the standard letters and diacritics but does not encode contextual forms (U+0621-U+0652 being directly based on [[ISO 8859-6]]). It also includes the most common diacritics and [[Arabic-Indic digits]]. U+06D6 to U+06ED encode Qur'anic annotation signs such as "end of ''[[ayah]]''" ۝ۖ and "start of ''[[Rub El Hizb|rub el hizb]]''" ۞. The Arabic supplement range encodes letter variants mostly used for writing African (non-Arabic) languages. The Arabic Extended-A range encodes additional Qur'anic annotations and letter variants used for various non-Arabic languages.

The Arabic Presentation Forms-A range encodes contextual forms and ligatures of letter variants needed for Persian, [[Urdu]], Sindhi and Central Asian languages. The Arabic Presentation Forms-B range encodes spacing forms of Arabic diacritics, and more contextual letter forms. The Arabic Mathematical Alphabetical Symbols block encodes characters used in Arabic mathematical expressions.

See also the notes of the section on [[#Modified letters|modified letters]].

===Keyboards===
{{see also|Keyboard layout|Arabic keyboard}}
[[File:KB Arabic MAC.svg|thumb|450px|Arabic Mac keyboard layout]]
[[File:KB Arabic.svg|thumb|450px|Arabic PC keyboard layout]]
[[File:Intellark4qwerty.png|thumb|450px|[[Intellark]] imposed on a QWERTY keyboard layout]]

Keyboards designed for different nations have different layouts, so proficiency in one style of keyboard, such as Iraq's, does not transfer to proficiency in another, such as Saudi Arabia's. Differences can include the location of non-alphabetic characters.

All Arabic keyboards allow typing Roman characters, e.g., for the URL in a [[web browser]]. Thus, each Arabic keyboard has both Arabic and Roman characters marked on the keys. Usually, the Roman characters of an Arabic keyboard conform to the [[QWERTY]] layout, but in [[North Africa]], where [[French language|French]] is the most common language typed using the Roman characters, the Arabic keyboards are [[AZERTY]].

To encode a particular written form of a character, there are extra code points provided in Unicode which can be used to express the exact written form desired. The range ''Arabic presentation forms A'' (U+FB50 to U+FDFF) contain ligatures while the range ''Arabic presentation forms B'' (U+FE70 to U+FEFF) contains the positional variants. These effects are better achieved in Unicode by using the ''[[zero-width joiner]]'' and ''[[zero-width non-joiner]]'', as these presentation forms are deprecated in Unicode and should generally only be used within the internals of text-rendering software; when using Unicode as an intermediate form for conversion between character encodings; or for backwards compatibility with implementations that rely on the hard-coding of glyph forms.

Finally, the Unicode encoding of Arabic is in ''logical order'', that is, the characters are entered, and stored in computer memory, in the order that they are written and pronounced without worrying about the direction in which they will be displayed on paper or on the screen. Again, it is left to the rendering engine to present the characters in the correct direction, using Unicode's [[bi-directional text]] features. In this regard, if the Arabic words on this page are written left to right, it is an indication that the Unicode rendering engine used to display them is out of date.<ref>For more information about encoding Arabic, consult the Unicode manual available at [https://www.unicode.org/ The Unicode website]</ref><ref>See also [https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/su/mideast/Multilingual_Computing_with_Arabic_and_Arabic_Transliteration.pdf Multilingual Computing with Arabic and Arabic Transliteration: Arabicizing Windows Applications to Read and Write Arabic & Solutions for the Transliteration Quagmire Faced by Arabic-Script Languages] and [https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/su/mideast/multilingual_computing_arabic.ppt A PowerPoint Tutorial (with screen shots and an English voice-over) on how to add Arabic to the Windows Operating System]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911024303/https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/su/mideast/Multilingual_Computing_with_Arabic_and_Arabic_Transliteration.pdf |date=11 September 2011 }}</ref>

There are competing online tools, e.g. Yamli editor, which allow entry of Arabic letters without having Arabic support installed on a PC, and without knowledge of the layout of the Arabic keyboard.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.yamli.com/press/| title = Yamli in the News}}</ref>

===Handwriting recognition===
The first software program of its kind in the world that identifies Arabic handwriting in real time was developed by researchers at [[Ben-Gurion University]] (BGU).

The prototype enables the user to write Arabic words by hand on an electronic screen, which then analyzes the text and translates it into printed Arabic letters in a thousandth of a second. The error rate is less than three percent, according to Dr. Jihad El-Sana, from BGU's department of computer sciences, who developed the system along with master's degree student Fadi Biadsy.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.israel21c.org/technology/arabic-handwriting-gets-computerized-thanks-to-israeli-innovation/| title = Israel 21c| date = 14 May 2007}}</ref>

==== Variations ====

{| class="wikitable" 
|+ '''The modern Hijā’ī sequence (excluding {{transliteration|ar|DIN|hamzah}}) in 15 fonts:'''
|- class="nowrap"
| style="text-align:center;font-size:180%" | {{lang|ar|[[ي]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[و]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ه]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ن]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[م]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ل]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ك]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ق]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ف]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[غ]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ع]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ظ]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ط]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ض]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ص]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ش]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[س]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ز]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ر]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ذ]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[د]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[خ]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ح]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ج]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ث]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ت]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ب]]}}{{lang|ar|&nbsp;}}{{lang|ar|[[ا]]}}
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;font-size:100%;" | Hijā’ī sequence 
|-
| rowspan="15" | [[File:Arabic in 15 fonts 2020-03-25 1554.png|830px|center]]
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#00007f;background-color:#00007f" | • 
| class="nowrap" style="font-size:95%" | [[noto fonts|Noto]] [[Nastaliq]] 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#003399;background-color:#003399" | • 
| class="nowrap" style="font-size:95%" | [[Scheherazade New]]
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#00549a;background-color:#00549a" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Lateef 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#007670;background-color:#007670" | • 
| class="nowrap" style="font-size:95%" | Noto [[Naskh (script)|Naskh]] Arabic 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#00b050;background-color:#00b050" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Markazi Text 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#49da00;background-color:#49da00" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Noto [[sans serif|Sans]] Arabic 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#ffc900;background-color:#ffc900" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | El Messiri 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#ff9800;background-color:#ff9800" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Lemonada&nbsp;
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#ff00aa;background-color:#ff00aa" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Changa&nbsp;
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#c900ff;background-color:#c900ff" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Mada 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#9933ff;background-color:#9933ff" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Noto [[kufic|Kufi]] Arabic 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#6600ff;background-color:#6600ff" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Reem Kufi 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#1f00bf;background-color:#1f00bf" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Lalezar 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#00007f;background-color:#00007f" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Jomhuria 
|- 
| style="font-size:80%;text-align:center;color:#00003f;background-color:#00003f" | • 
| style="font-size:95%" | Rakkas 
|}

== See also ==
{{Commons category|Arabic alphabet}}
{{div col}}
* [[Ancient South Arabian script]]
* [[Algerian braille]]
* [[Arabic braille]]
* [[Arabic calligraphy]]
* [[Arabic chat alphabet]]
* [[Arabic letter frequency]]
* [[Arabic numerals]]
* [[ArabTeX]] – provides Arabic support for [[TeX]] and [[LaTeX]]
* [[History of the Arabic alphabet]]
* [[Modern Arabic mathematical notation]]
* [[Romanization of Arabic]]
{{div col end}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite journal|first1= Michael C. A.|last1=Macdonald|author-link1= Michael C. A. Macdonald|year= 1986|title= ABCs and letter order in Ancient North Arabian|journal= Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies|issue= 16|pages= 101–168}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Nehmé |first=Laila |date=2020 |title=The religious landscape of Northwest Arabia as reflected in the Nabataean, Nabataeo-Arabic, and pre-Islamic Arabic inscriptions |url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-03064796/file/Nehme_SC_13_2020_text_appendix_biblio.pdf |journal=Semitica et Classica |volume=13 |pages=127–154 |doi=10.1484/J.SEC.5.122984}}

==External links==
* {{cite journal|last1=Shaalan|first1=Khaled|last2=Raza|first2=Hafsa|title=NERA: Named entity recognition for Arabic|journal=Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology|date=August 2009|volume=60|issue=8|pages=1652–1663|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264209725|doi=10.1002/asi.21090}}

<!--This article contains major sections of text from the very detailed article [[:fr:Alphabet arabe|Arabic alphabet]] from the French Wikipedia, which has been partially translated into English. Further translation of that page, and its incorporation into the text here, are welcomed.-->
{{Arabic alphabets}}
{{Arabic language|state=collapsed}}
{{list of writing systems}}
{{Northwest Semitic abjad}}
{{Language orthographies}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arabic Alphabet}}
[[Category:Arabic script| ]]
[[Category:Arabic orthography]]