romanization

The Romanization System

Persian

Letters of the Alphabet

Initial Medial Final Alone Romanization

 (omit (see Note 1  ا  ﺎ  ﺎ  ا

 b  ﺏ  ﺐ  ﺒ  ﺑ

 p  ﭖ  ﭗ  ﭙ  ﭘ

 t  ﺕ  ﺖ  ﺘ  ﺗ

s  ﺙ  ﺚ  ﺜ  ﺛ

 j  ﺝ  ﺞ  ﺠ  ﺟ

 ch  ﭺ  ﭻ  ﭽ  ﭼ

 ḥ  ﺡ  ﺢ  ﺤ  ﺣ

 kh  ﺥ  ﺦ  ﺨ  ﺧ

 d  ﺩ  ﺪ  ﺪ  ﺩ

z  ﺫ  ﺬ  ﺬ  ﺫ

 r  ﺭ  ﺮ  ﺮ  ﺭ

 z  ﺯ  ﺰ  ﺰ  ﺯ

 zh  ﮊ  ﮋ  ﮋ  ﮊ

 s  ﺱ  ﺲ  ﺴ  ﺳ

 sh  ﺵ  ﺶ  ﺸ  ﺷ

 ṣ  ﺹ  ﺺ  ﺼ  ﺻ

 ̤z  ﺽ  ﺾ  ﻀ  ﺿ

 ṭ  ﻁ  ﻂ  ﻄ  ﻃ

 ẓ  ﻅ  ﻆ  ﻈ  ﻇ

 (ayn) ’  ﻉ  ﻊ  ﻌ  ﻋ

 gh  ﻍ  ﻎ  ﻐ  ﻏ

 f  ﻑ  ﻒ  ﻔ  ﻓ

 q  ﻕ  ﻖ  ﻘ  ﻗ

 (k (see Note 2  ﻙ  ﻚ  ﻜ  ﻛ

 (g (see Note 3  ﮒ  ﮓ  ﮕ  ﮔ

 l  ﻝ  ﻞ  ﻠ  ﻟ

 m  ﻡ  ﻢ  ﻤ  ﻣ

 n  ﻥ  ﻦ  ﻨ  ﻧ

 (v (see Note 3  ﻭ  ﻮ  ﻮ  ﻭ

 (h (see Note 4  ه ، ه ـﺔ ،  ﻪ  ﻬ  ﻫ

 (y (see Note 3  ﻯ  ﻰ  ﻴ  ﻳ

Vowels and Diphthongs (see Note 5)

◌   A  آ ،   ◌ا ā (see Note 6)  ﻯ   ◌ ī

◌   U  ﻯ ◌   á (see Note 7)  ﻭ   ◌ْ  aw

◌   I  ﻭ   ◌ ū  ﻯ  ْ ◌   ay

Notes

1. For the use of ا (alif) to support ء (hamzah) and  (maddah), see rule 1(a).  For the

romanization of ء and  , see rules 4 and 5 respectively.  For the use of ا (alif) to

represent the long vowel romanized ā, see the table of vowels and diphthongs, and rule

1(b).

2. Final  and  (often written   ک and گ) may have the form ﻚ, without the distinguishing

upper stroke or strokes.  The two letters are always distinguished in romanization.

3. For other values of و and ی, see the table of vowels and diphthongs, and rules 2, 3, and

7.

4.  ه (dotted ه) when used as an alternative to ت is romanized t.

5. Vowel points are not printed on Library of Congress cards.

6. See rules 1(b) and 5.

7. See rule 3(d).

RULES OF APPLICATION

Letters Which May Be Romanized in Different Ways Depending on Their Context

1.  ا (alif) is used:

(a) As a support for ء (hamzah) and  (maddah).  In these cases it is not

represented in romanization.  See rules 4 and 5.

(b) To indicate the long vowel romanized ā.  For the use of ا in tanvīn, see rule 6.

 داﻧﺎ     dānā 

2.  ﻭ is used to represent:

 (a) The consonant romanized v.

 ورزش        varzish     

 دوا        davā     

 ﺳﺮو        sarv      

    Silent و following  is retained in romanization.  ﺨ ﺧﻮاﺳﺘﻦ      khvāstan     

 ﺧﻮد        khvud     

 (b) The long ū-vowel (and short u-vowel in some monosyllables) is romanized ū.

 دور        dūr     

 ﭼﻮن        chūn     

 ﺗﻮ        tū     

 (c) The diphthong romanized aw.

 ﻓﺮدوﺳﯽ      Firdawsī     

When the diphthong precedes a consonantal و, the combination is romanized

avv.  See rule 7.  

و may be used as a support for ء (hamzah); in this case it is not represented in

romanization.  See rule 4.

3.  ی is used to represent:

 (a) The consonant romanized y.

 ﯾﺎر        yār     

 ﺳﯿﺎه        siyāh     

 ﭘﺎی        pāy     

 (b) The long vowel romanized ī.

 اﯾﺮان        Īrān     

 ﻗﺎﻟﯽ        qālī     

 (c) The diphthong romanized ay.

 اﯾﻮان        ayvān     

 ری        ray     

 (d) The final long vowel romanized á.

  ﻣﺼﻄﻔﯽ       Muṣṭafá     

  For the use of ی (y) as a mark of izāfah ̤ , see rule 8(c).

ی in the medial forms ﯨ, ﯩ, without dots, may be used as a support for ء (hamzah);

in this case  ی  is not represented in romanization.  See rule 4 below. 

Orthographic Symbols Other than Letters and Vowel Signs

The signs listed below are frequently omitted in Persian writing and printing; their presence must

then be inferred. They are represented in romanization according to the following rules:

4.  ء (hamzah)

 (a) When initial, ء is not represented in romanization.

 (b) When medial or final, ء is romanized ʼ (alif) except as noted in (c) and (d) below.  ﻣﺆﺛﺮ    muʼassir     

 ﺧﻠﻔﺎء       khulafāʼ     

 ﭘﺎﺋﯿﻦ        pāʼīn     

 (c) When used as a mark of izāfah ̤ , ء is romanized -ʼi.

      astānah-ʼi dar      در اﺳﺘﺎﻧﮥ

 (d) When used to mark the indefinite article, ء is romanized ʼi.

 ﺧﺎﻧﮥ    khānahʼi     

5.  (maddah)

 (a) Initial آ is romanized ā.

 آب        āb     

      Kullīyat al-Ādāb    اﻵداب ﮐﻠﯿﺔ

 (b) Medial آ, when it represents the phonetic combination ʼā, is so romanized.

 ﻣﺂﺛﺮ        maʼāsir     

 درﯾﺎآﺑﺎدی      Daryāʼābādī     

  (c)  is otherwise not represented in romanization.

 ﮔﺮدآورﻧﺪه      girdāvarandah     

6.  Tanvīn, (written  ٌ◌, ◌ٍ , ً◌,  ◌اً ), which occurs chiefly in Arabic words, is romanized un, in,

an, and an, respectively.

7.  ◌ (shaddah or tashdīd) is represented by doubling the letter or digraph concerned.

 ﺧﺮم      khurram     

 اول        avval     

 ﺑﭽﻪ    bachchah  

  ﺧﯿﺎم      Khayyām     

 Note the exceptional case where ◌ is written over و and ی to represent the combination

of long vowel plus consonant.

  ﻧﺸﺮﯾﺎت    nashrīyāt  

 ﻗﻮه        qūvah     

Grammatical Structure as It Affects Romanization

8.  Izāfah ̤ .  When two words are associated in the relation known as izāfah ̤ , the first (the

muz̤āf) is followed by an additional letter or syllable in romanization.  This is added

according to the following rules:

(a) When the muzāf ̤ bears no special mark of izāfah ̤ , it is followed by -i.

   dar-i bāgh    ﺑﺎغ در       qālī-i Īrān      اﯾﺮان ﻗﺎﻟﯽ

      khānah-i buzurg     ﺑﺰرگ ﺧﺎﻧﻪ

 (b) When the muzāf ̤ is marked by the addition of ء, it is followed by -ʼi.

   qālī-ʼi Īrān    اﯾﺮان ﻗﺎﻟﺊ

      khānah-ʼi buzurg    ﺑﺰرگ ﺧﺎﻧﮥ

 (c) When the muzāf ̤ is marked by the addition of ی, it is followed by -yi.

      rū-yi zamīn      زﻣﯿﻦ روی

درﯾ  ﺎی ﺧﺰر     Daryā-yi Khazar     

ﺧﺎﻧﻪ  ی ﺑﺰرگ    khānah-yi buzurg     

(d) Izāfah ̤ is represented in romanization of personal names only when expressly

identified in the Persian script.

Affixes and Compounds

9. Affixes.

(a) When the affix and the word with which it is connected grammatically are written

separately in Persian, the two are separated in romanization by a single prime

( ʹ ).  See also 12(b) below.

ﺧﺎﻧﻪ  ﻫﺎ    khānahʹhā     

ﺧﺎﻧﻪ  ام    khānahʹam     

ﺧﺎﻧﻪ  ای    khānahʹī     

ﻣﯽ  روم      mīʹravam     

    but  mīravam      ﻣﯿﺮوم

ﺑﻪ  ﮔﻮ     bihʹgū     

ﺑﺮ  رﺳﯿﻬﺎ      barʹrasīhā     

ﮐﺎﻇﻢ  زاده      Kāẓimʹzādah     

    but Kāẓimzādah    ﮐﺎﻇﻤﺰاده

(b) The Arabic article al is separated by a hyphen, in romanization, from the word to

which it is prefixed.

   dār al-muʻallimīn   اﻟﻤﻌﻠﻤﯿﻦ دار

      ʻAbd al-Ḥusayn      اﻟﺤﺴﯿﻦ ﻋﺒﺪ

10. Compounds.  When the elements of a compound (except a compound personal name)

are written separately in Persian, they are separated in romanization by a single prime

( ʹ ).  See also 12(b) below.

ﻣﺮﯾﺾ  ﺧﺎﻧﻪ ̤    marīzʹkhānah     

    but  marīzkhānah    ̤ ﻣﺮﯾﻀﺨﺎﻧﻪ ﺷﺎه  ﻧﺎﻣﻪ    Shāhʹnāmah     

    but Shāhnāmah    ﺷﺎﻫﻨﺎﻣﻪ

Note the treatment of compound personal names:

ﻏﻼم  ﻋﻠﯽ or ﻏﻼﻣﻌﻠﯽ        Ghulām ʻAlī     

  ﺷﺎه ﺟﻬﺎن or ﺷﺎﻫﺠﻬﺎن    Shāh Jahān     

ﺑﻲ   ﻃﺎﻟﺐ  اﺑﻦ ا  or اﺑﻦ اﺑﯿﻄﺎﻟﺐ      Ibn Abī Ṭālib     

Orthography of Persian in Romanization

11. Capitalization.

(a) Rules for the capitalization of English are followed, except that the Arabic article

al is lowercased in all positions.

 (b) Diacritics are used with both capital and lowercase letters.

12. The single prime ( ʹ ) is used:

(a) To separate two letters representing two distinct consonantal sounds, when the

combination might otherwise be read as a digraph.

      marzʹhā       ﻣﺮزﻫﺎ

(b) To mark the use of a letter in its final form when it occurs in the middle of a word. 

See also rules 9(a) and 10 above.

راه  ﻫﺎ        rāhʹhā     

ﻗﺎ  ﻢﯾ ﻣﻘﺎ  ﻣﯽ      Qāyimʹmaqāmī     

ﺑﻪ  آذﯾﻦ       Bihʹāzīn     

13. Foreign words in a Persian context, including Arabic words, are romanized according to

the rules for Persian.  For short vowels not indicated in the script, the Persian vowels

nearest the original pronunciation of the word are supplied in romanization.

14. Dictionaries.

 In romanizing Persian, the Library of Congress has found it necessary to consult

dictionaries as an appendage to the romanization tables, primarily for the purpose of

supplying vowels.  For Persian, the principal dictionary consulted is:

      M. Muʼīn.  Farhang-i Fārsī-i mutavassit.

Arabic

Letters of the Alphabet

Initial Medial Final Alone Romanization

 (omit (see Note 1  ا  ﺎ  ﺎ  ا

 b  ﺏ  ﺐ  ﺒ  ﺑ

 t  ﺕ  ﺖ  ﺘ  ﺗ

 th  ﺙ  ﺚ  ﺜ  ﺛ

 j  ﺝ  ﺞ  ﺠ  ﺟ

 ḥ  ﺡ  ﺢ  ﺤ  ﺣ

 kh  ﺥ  ﺦ  ﺨ  ﺧ

 d  ﺩ  ﺪ  ﺪ  ﺩ

 dh  ﺫ  ﺬ  ﺬ  ﺫ

 r  ﺭ  ﺮ  ﺮ  ﺭ

 z  ﺯ  ﺰ  ﺰ  ﺯ

 s  ﺱ  ﺲ  ﺴ  ﺳ

 sh  ﺵ  ﺶ  ﺸ  ﺷ

 ṣ  ﺹ  ﺺ  ﺼ  ﺻ

 ḍ  ﺽ  ﺾ  ﻀ  ﺿ

 ṭ  ﻁ  ﻂ  ﻄ  ﻃ

 ẓ  ﻅ  ﻆ  ﻈ  ﻇ

 (ayn) ’  ﻉ  ﻊ  ﻌ  ﻋ

 gh  ﻍ  ﻎ  ﻐ  ﻏ

 (f (see Note 2  ﻑ  ﻒ  ﻔ  ﻓ

 (q (see Note 2  ﻕ  ﻖ  ﻘ  ﻗ

 k  ﻙ  ﻚ  ﻜ  ﻛ

 l  ﻝ  ﻞ  ﻠ  ﻟ

 m  ﻡ  ﻢ  ﻤ  ﻣ

 n  ﻥ  ﻦ  ﻨ  ﻧ

 (h (see Note 3  ه ، ه ـﺔ ،  ﻪ  ﻬ  ﻫ

 w  ﻭ  ﻮ  ﻮ  ﻭ

 y  ﻯ  ﻰ  ﻴ  ﻳ

Vowels and Diphthongs

◌   a  ا◌  ā (see Rule 5)  ﻯ   ◌ ī

◌   u  ﻯ ◌   á (see Rule 6(a))  ﻭ   ◌ْ aw

◌   i  ﻭ   ◌ ū  ﻯ  ْ ◌   ay

 Letters Representing Non-Arabic Consonants

This list is not exhaustive.  It should be noted that a letter in this group may have more than one

phonetic value, depending on the country or area where it is used, and that the romanization will

vary accordingly.

 v  ڤ  ch  چ  g  گ

 v  ۋ  zh  چ  G  ڴ

 v  ڥ  zh  ژ  P  پ

Notes

1. For the use of alif to support hamzah, see rule 2.  For the romanization of hamzah by the

consonantal sign ’ (alif), see rule 8(a).  For other orthographic uses of alif see rules 3-5.

2. The Maghribī variations ڢ and ڧ are romanized f and q respectively.

3.  ه in a word in the construct state is romanized t.  See rule 7(b).

RULES OF APPLICATION

Arabic Letters Romanized in Different Ways Depending on Their Context

1. As indicated in the table, ﻭ and  may represent:  ی

(a) The consonants romanized w and y, respectively.

وﺿﻊ        ’waḍ     

     ﻋﻮض     iwaḍ’     

 دﻟﻮ        dalw     

 ﻳﺪ        yad     

 ﺣﻴﻞ        ḥiyal     

ﻃﻬﻲ        ṭahy     

(b) The long vowels romanized ū, ī, and ā respectively.

 اوﻟﻰ        ūlá     

 ﺻﻮره        ṣūrah     

 ذو        dhū     

 اﻳﻤﺎن        īmān     

 ﺟﻴﻞ     jīl  

 ﻓﻲ        fī     

 ﻛﺘﺎب        kitāb     

 ﺳﺤﺎب        saḥāb     

 ﺟﻤﺎن        jumān     

See also rules 11(a) and 11(b)(1-2). (c) The diphthongs romanized aw and ay, respectively.

 اوج        awj     

 ﻧﻮم        nawm     

 ﻟﻮ        law     

اﻳﺴﺮ        aysar     

ﺷﻴﺦ        shaykh     

ﻋﻴﻨﻰ        aynay’     

See also rules 11(a)(2) and 11(b)(3).

2.  ا (alif), و and ی when used to support ء (hamzah) are not represented in romanization. 

See rule 8(a).

3.  ا (alif) when used to support waṣlah ( ٱ ) and maddah ( آ ) is not represented in

romanization.  See rules 9 and 10.

4.  ا (alif) and و when used as orthographic signs without phonetic significance are not

represented in romanization.

      fa‘alū        ﻓﻌﻠﻮا

      ulā’ika        اوﻻﺋﻚ

   ‘ilman wa-‘amalan   وﻋﻤﻼ ﻋﻠﻤﺎ

 See also rule 12 and examples cited in rules 23-26. 

5.  ا (alif) is used to represent the long vowel romanized ā, as indicated in the table.

      fā‘il     ﻓﺎﻋﻞ

 رﺿﺎ        riḍā     

  This alif, when medial, is sometimes omitted in Arabic; it is always indicated in

romanization.  See rule 19.

6. Final ی appears in the following special cases:

(a) As ﻯ ◌ (alif maqṣūrah) used in place of ا   ◌ to represent the long vowel romanized ā.

ﺣﺘﻰ        ḥattá     

 ﻣﻀﻰ        maḍá     

ﻛﺒﺮی        kubrá     

 ﻳﺤﻴﻰ        Yaḥyá     

ﻣﺴﻤﻰ      musammá      

ﻣﺼﻄﻔ   ﻰ       Muṣṭafá     

(b) As  ◌ ﻯ  in nouns and adjectives of the form fā‘īl which are derived from defective

roots.  This ending is romanized ī, not īy, without regard to the presence of  ◌  

(shaddah).  See rule 11(b)(2).       Raḍī al-Dīn      اﻟﺪﻳﻦ رﺿﻰ  

 Compare the fa‘īl form of the same root   اﻟﺮﺿﻰ [without shaddah] al-Raḍī.

(c) As  ◌ ﻯ  in the relative adjective (nisbah).  The ending, like (b) above, is romanized ī,

not īy.

 اﻟﻤﺼﺮ ی        al-Miṣrī     

  Compare    ﺔﻳاﻟﻤﺼﺮ al-Miṣrīyah and see rule 11(b)(1).

7.  ه (tā’ marbūṭah)

(a) When the noun or adjective ending in ه is indefinite, or is preceded by the definite

article, ه is romanized h.  The ه in such positions is often replaced by ه.

ﺻﻼه     ṣalāh     

      al-Risālah al-bahīyah   اﻟﺒﻬﻴﺔ اﻟﺮﺳﺎﻟﺔ

      mir’āh        ﻣﺮآه

      Urjūzah fī al-ṭibb    اﻟﻄﺐ ﻓﻰ ارﺟﻮزه

(b) When the word ending in ه is in the construct state, ه is romanized t.

      Wizārat al-Tarbiyah    اﻟﺘﺮﺑﻴﺔ وزاره

      Mir’āt al-zamān      اﻟﺰﻣﺎن ﻣﺮآه

(c) When the word ending in ه is used adverbially, ه (vocalized هً ) is romanized tan. 

See rule 12(b).

Romanization of Arabic Orthographic Symbols Other than Letters and Vowel Signs

The signs listed below are frequently omitted from unvocalized Arabic writing and printing; their

presence or absence must then be inferred.  They are represented in romanization according to

the following rules:

8.  ء (hamzah)

(a) In initial position, whether at the beginning of a word, following a prefixed preposition

or conjunction, or following the definite article, ء is not represented in romanization. 

When medial or final, ء is romanized as ’ (alif). 

أﺳﺪ        asad     

أﻧﺲ        uns     

إذا        idha     

      mas’alah      ﻣﺴﺄﻟﺔ

      mu’tamar      ﻣﺆﺗﻤﺮ

      dā’im        داﺋﻢ

      mala’a        ﻣﻸ

      khaṭi’a        ﺧﻄﺊ(b) ء, when replaced by the sign  (waṣlah) and then known as hamzat al-waṣl, is not

represented in romanization.  See rule 9 below.

9.   (waṣlah), like initial ء, is not represented in romanization.  See also rule 8(b) above. 

When the alif which supports waṣlah belongs to the article ال, the initial vowel of the

article is romanized a.  See rule 17(b).  In other words, beginning with hamzat al-waṣl,

the initial vowel is romanized i.

رﺣﻠﺔ ٱ  ﺑﻦ ﺟﺒﻴﺮ   Riḥlat Ibn Jubayr     

      al-istidrāk      اﻷﺳﺘﺪراک

ﻛﺘﺐ ٱ  ﻗﺘﻨﺘﻬﺎ     kutub iqtanatʹhā     

ﭑﺑ ﻫﺘﻤﺎم ﻋﺒﺪ ٱ  ﻟﻤﺠﻴﺪ   bi-ihtimām ‘Abd al-Majīd     

10.  ˜ (maddah)

(a) Initial آ is romanized ā.

 آﻟﺔ        ālah     

      Kullīyat al-Ādāb    اﻵداب ﻛﻠﻴﺔ

(b) Medial آ, when it represents the phonetic combination ’ā, is so romanized.

      ta’ālīf        ﺗﺂﻟﻴﻒ

      ma’āthir       ﻣﺂﺛﺮ

(c) ˜ is otherwise not represented in romanization.

 ﺧﻠﻔﺂء       ‘khulafā     

11.  ◌ (  shaddah or tashdīd)

(a) Over و:

(1) و◌ , representing the combination of long vowel plus consonant, is romanized

ūw.

 ﻋﺪ و     adūw’     

 ﻗﻮه        qūwah     

 See also rule 1(b).

(2) و◌ , representing the combination of diphthong plus consonant, is romanized

aww.

 ﺷﻮال      Shawwāl     

 ﺻﻮر      ṣawwara     

  ﺟﻮ        jaww     

 See also rule 1(c). (b) Over ی:

(1) Medial ی◌, representing the combination of long vowel plus consonant, is

romanized īy.

اﻟﻤﺼﺮﻳﺔ      al-Miṣrīyah     

See also rule 1(b).

(2) Final ی◌ is romanized ī.  See rules 6(b) and 6(c).

(3) Medial and final ی◌, representing the combination of diphthong plus

consonant, is romanized ayy.

      ayyām      

أ   ﻳﺎم

 ﺳﻴﺪ        sayyid     

 ﻗﺼ ﻰ       Quṣayy     

See also rule 1(c).

(c) Over other letters, ◌ is represented in romanization   by doubling the letter or digraph

concerned.

 اﻟﻐﺰی      al-Ghazzī     

      al-Kashshāf      اﻟﻜﺸﺎف

12.  Tanwīn may take the written form ٌ◌, ً◌ (ا◌) ً , or ٍ◌, romanized un, an, and in, respectively. 

Tanwīn is normally disregarded in romanization, however.  It is indicated in the following

cases:

(a) When it occurs in indefinite nouns derived from defective roots.

ٍ ﻗﺎض     qāḍin  

      ma‘nan       ﻣﻌﻨﻰ ً

(b) When it indicates the adverbial use of a noun or adjective.

 ﻃﺒﻌًﺎ        ṭab‘an     

      faj’atan        ﻓﺠﺄه  ً

      al-Mushtarik waḍ‘an    وﺿﻌﴼ اﻟﻤﺸﺘﺮک

      wa-al-muftariq ṣuq‘an   ﺻﻘﻌﴼ واﻟﻤﻔﺘﺮق

Grammatical Structure as It Affects Romanization

13. Final inflections of verbs are retained in romanization, except in pause.

 ﻣﻦ وﻟﻰ ﻣﺼﺮ     man waliya Miṣr     

      ma‘rifat mā yajibu la-hum  ﻟﻬﻢ ﻳﺠﺐ ﻣﺎ ﻣﻌﺮﻓﺔ

      ṣallá Allāh ‘alayhi wa-sallam  وﺳﻠﻢ ﻋﻠﻴﻪ   ﷲ ﺻﻠﻰ

      al-Lu’lu’ al-maknūn fī ḥukm  ﺣﻜﻢ ﻓﻰ اﻟﻤﻜﻨﻮن اﻟﻠﺆﻟﺆ

      al-akhbār ‘ammā sayakūn  ﺳﻴﻜﻮن ﻋﻤﺎ اﻻﺧﺒﺎر 14. Final inflections of nouns and adjectives:

(a) Vocalic endings are not represented in romanization, except preceding pronominal

suffixes, and except when the text being romanized is in verse.

      Ma‘had Mawlāya al-Ḥasan  اﻟﺤﺴﻦ ﻣﻮﻻی ﻣﻌﻬﺪ

      uṣūluhā al-nafsīyah wa-ṭuruq   ﺗﺪرﻳﺴﻬﺎ وﻃﺮق اﻟﻨﻔﺴﻴﺔ اﺻﻮﻟﻬﺎ

      tadrīsihā  

 اﻟﻰ ﻳﻮﻣﻨﺎ ﻫﺬا   ilá yawminā hādhā  

(b) Tanwīn is not represented in romanization, except as specified in rule 12.

(c) ه (tā’ marbūṭah) is romanized h or t as specified in rule 7.

(d) For the romanization of the relative adjective (nisbah) see rule 6(c).

15. Pronouns, pronominal suffixes, and demonstratives:

(a) Vocalic endings are retained in romanization.

   anā wa-anta    واﻧﺖ اﻧﺎ

   hādhihi al-ḥāl    اﻟﺤﺎل ﻫﺬه

      mu’allafātuhu wa-shurūḥuhā  وﺷﺮوﺣﻬﺎ ﻣﺆﻟﻔﺎﺗﻪ

(b) At the close of a phrase or sentence, the ending is romanized in its pausal form.

ḥayātuhu wa-‘aṣruh   وﻋﺼﺮه ﺣﻴﺎﺗﻪ

 ﺗﻮﻓﻴﻖ اﻟﺤﻜﻴﻢ، أﻓﻜﺎره، آﺛﺎره   ,Tawfīq al-Ḥakīm, afkāruh

   āthāruh 

16. Prepositions and conjunctions:

(a) Final vowels of separable prepositions and conjunctions are retained in romanization.

 ان     anna  

 اﻧﻪ     annahu  

 ﺑﻴﻦ ﻳﺪﻳﻪ    bayna yadayhu  

  Note the special cases: ﻣﻤﺎ mimmā, ﻣﻤﻦ mimman.

(b) Inseparable prepositions, conjunctions, and other prefixes are connected with what

follows by a hyphen.

      bi-hi        ﺑﻪ

      wa-ma‘ahu      وﻣﻌﻪ

      lā-silkī        ﻻﺳﻠﻜﻰ

17. The definite article:

(a) The romanized form al is connected with the following word by a hyphen.

      al-kitāb al-thānī      اﻟﺜﺎﻧﻰ اﻟﻜﺘﺎب      

      al-ittiḥād      اﻻﺗﺤﺎد

      al-aṣl        اﻻﺻﻞ

      al-āthār       اﻵﺛﺎر (b) When ال is initial in the word, and when it follows an inseparable preposition or

conjunction, it is always romanized al regardless of whether the preceding word, as

romanized, ends in a vowel or a consonant.

      ilá al-ān       اﻵن اﻟﻰ

      Abū al-Wafā’      اﻟﻮﻓﺎء اﺑﻮ

      Maktabat al-Nahḍah al-Miṣrīyah  اﻟﻤﺼﺮﻳﺔ اﻟﻨﻬﻀﺔ ﻣﻜﺘﺒﺔ

      bi-al-tamām wa-al-kamāl  واﻟﻜﻤﺎل ﺑﺎﻟﺘﻤﺎم

Note the exceptional treatment of the preposition ل followed by the article:

   lil-Shirbīnī    ﻟﻠﺸﺮﺑﻴﻨﻰ

See also rule 23.

(c) The ل of the article is always romanized l, whether it is followed by a “sun letter” or

not, i.e., regardless of whether or not it is assimilated in pronunciation to the initial

consonant of the word to which it is attached.

      al-ḥurūf al-abjadīyah    اﻻﺑﺠﺪﻳﺔ اﻟﺤﺮوف

      Abū al-Layth al-Samarqandī  اﻟﺴﻤﺮﻗﻨﺪی اﻟﻠﻴﺚ اﺑﻮ

Orthography of Arabic in Romanization

18. Capitalization:

(a) Rules for the capitalization of English are followed, except that the definite article al is

given in lower case in all positions.

(b) Diacritics are used with both upper and lower case letters.

      al-Ījī        اﻻﻳﺠﻰ

      al-Ālūsī        اﻵﻟﻮﺳﻰ

19. The macron or the acute accent, as appropriate, is used to indicate all long vowels,

including those which in Arabic script are written defectively.  The macron or the acute

accent, as the case may be, is retained over final long vowels which are shortened in

pronunciation before hamzat al-waṣl.

 اﺑﺮاﻫﻴﻢ ، اﺑﺮﻫﻴﻢ       Ibrāhīm     

 داوود ، داود        Dā’ūd     

      Abū al-Ḥasan      اﻟﺤﺴﻦ اﺑﻮ

      ru’ūs        روس

 ذﻟﻚ     dhālika  

      ‘alá al-‘ayn      اﻟﻌﻴﻦ ﻋﻠﻰ

20. The hyphen is used:

(a) To connect the definite article al with the word to which it is attached.  See rule 17(a).

(b) Between an inseparable prefix and what follows.  See rules 16(b) and 17(b) above. (c) Between bin and the following element in personal names when they are written in

Arabic as a single word.  See rule 25.

21. The prime ( ʹ ) is used:

(a) To separate two letters representing two distinct consonantal sounds, when the

combination might otherwise be read as a digraph.

      Adʹham       ادﻫﻢ

      akramatʹhā      اﻛﺮﻣﺘﻬﺎ

(b) To mark the use of a letter in its final form when it occurs in the middle of a word.

      Qal‘ahʹjī       ﻗﻠﻌﺔﺟﻰ

ﺷﻴﺦ  زاده      Shaykhʹzādah     

22. As in the case of romanization from other languages, foreign words which occur in an

Arabic context and are written in Arabic letters are romanized according to the rules for

romanizing Arabic.

    Jārmānūs (not Germanos nor Germanus)  ﺟﺎرﻣﺎﻧﻮس

  Lūrd Ghrānfīl (not Lord Granville)   ﻏﺮاﻧﻔﻴﻞ ﻟﻮرد

  Īsāghūjī (not Isagoge)     اﻳﺴﺎﻏﻮﺟﻰ

 For short vowels not indicated in the Arabic, the Arabic vowel nearest to the original

pronunciation is supplied.

  Gharsiyā Khayin (not García Jaén)   ﺧﻴﻦ ﻏﺮﺳﻴﺎ

Examples of Irregular Arabic Orthography

23. Note the romanization of ﷲ, alone and in combination. 

 ﷲ        Allāh     

      billāh   

   lillāh   

ﺑﺴﻢ ﷲ       bismillāh     

      al-Mustanṣir billāh 

24. Note the romanization of the following personal names:

 ﻃﻪ        Ṭāhā     

 ﻳﺲ ، ﻳﺴﻦ        Yāsīn     

 ﻋﻤﺮو        Amr’     

 ﺑﻬﺠﺖ ، ﺑﻬﺠﺔ        Bahjat     

25.  اﺑﻦ and ﺑﻦ are both romanized ibn in all positions.

  Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Abī al-Rabī‘  اﻟﺮﺑﻴﻊ اﺑﻰ ﺑﻦ ﻣﺤﻤﺪ ﺑﻦ اﺣﻤﺪ

 ﺷﺮح اﺑﻦ ﻋﻘﻴﻞ ﻋﻠﻰ اﻟﻔﻴﺔ اﺑﻦ ﻣﺎﻟﻚ  Sharḥ Ibn ‘Aqīl ‘alá Alfīyat Ibn Mālik  Exception is made in the case of modern names, typically North African, in which the

element ﺑﻦ is pronounced bin.

 ﺑﻦ ﺧﺪه    Bin Khiddah     

      Bin-‘Abd Allāh      ﷲ   ﺑﻨﻌﺒﺪ