Persian Alphabet
The Persian alphabet is an extension of the Arabic alphabet. It is written from right to left, and most letters connect to each other. This leads to different forms of a letter depending on its position in a word, although the different forms generally resemble each other. Most vowels are omitted in normal texts, although they may be written for disambiguation or pedagogical purposes. Urdu is primarily written in a calligraphic style of the script called Nasta'liq.
| Letter | Name of letter | Transcription | IPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| ا | alif | - | - |
| ب | be | b | /b/ |
| پ | pe | p | /p/ |
| ت | te | t | /t̪/ |
| ٹ | ṭe | ṭ | /ʈ/ |
| ث | se | s | /s/ |
| ج | jīm | j | /d͡ʒ/ |
| چ | che | ch | /t͡ʃ/ |
| ح | baṛī he | h | /h/ |
| خ | khe | kh | /x/ |
| د | dāl | d | /d̪/ |
| ڈ | ḍāl | ḍ | /ɖ/ |
| ذ | zāl | dh | /z/ |
| ر | re | r | /r/ |
| ڑ | ṛe | ṛ | /ɽ/ |
| ز | ze | z | /z/ |
| ژ | zhe | zh | /ʒ/ |
| س | sīn | s | /s/ |
| ش | shīn | sh | /ʃ/ |
| ص | su'ād | ṣ | /s/ |
| ض | zu'ād | z̤ | /z/ |
| ط | to'e | t | /t/ |
| ظ | zo'e | ẓ | /z/ |
| ع | ‘ain | ' | - |
| غ | ghain | gh | /ɣ/ |
| ف | fe | f | /f/ |
| ق | qāf | q | /q/ |
| ک | kāf | k | /k/ |
| گ | gāf | g | /ɡ/ |
| ل | lām | l | /l/ |
| م | mīm | m | /m/ |
| ن | nūn | n | /n/ |
| و | vā'o | v, o, or ū | /ʋ/, /oː/, /ɔ/ or /uː/ |
| ہ, ﮩ, ﮨ | choṭī he | h | /h/ |
| ھ | do chashmī he | h | /ʰ/ |
| ء | hamza | ' | /ʔ/ |
| ی | ye | y, i | /j/ or /iː/ |
| ے | bari ye | ai or e | /ɛː/, or /eː/ |
Read more about this topic: Hindustani Orthography
Famous quotes containing the words persian and/or alphabet:
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Sometimes tis grateful for the rich to try
A short vicissitude, and fit of poverty:
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Where all is plain, where all is neat,
Without the stately spacious room,
The Persian carpet, or the Tyrian loom,
Clear up the cloudy foreheads of the great.”
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Professor: FBI, CIA, OIwere all in the same alphabet soup.”
—Ernest Lehman (b.1920)