Hamza

The hamza ( ) ( ) is an Arabic script character that, in the Arabic alphabet, denotes a glottal stop and, in non-Arabic languages, indicates a diphthong, vowel, or other features, depending on the language. Derived from the letter ʿayn ( ), the hamza is written in initial, medial, and final positions as an unlinked letter or placed above or under a carrier character. Despite its common usage as a letter in Modern Standard Arabic, it is generally not considered to be one of its letters, although some argue that it should be considered so. The hamza is often romanized as a typewriter apostrophe ('), a modifier letter apostrophe (ʼ), a modifier letter right half ring (ʾ), or as the International Phonetic Alphabet symbol . In Arabizi, it is either written as "2" or not written at all. In the Phoenician, Hebrew and Aramaic alphabets, from which the Arabic alphabet is descended, the glottal stop was expressed by aleph ( ), continued by alif ( ) in the Arabic alphabet. However, alif was used to express both a glottal stop and a long vowel . In order to indicate that a glottal stop is used and not a vowel, the hamza was added to alif diacritically. Just as Greek vowels were used as diacritical marks to indicate vowel sounds in Western Syriac, the hamza (in effect a lower-case Greek alpha) was used as a diacritical mark in Arabic to indicate the original Alif glottal stop.…

The hamza ( ) ( ) is an Arabic script character that, in the Arabic alphabet, denotes a glottal stop and, in non-Arabic languages, indicates a diphthong, vowel, or other features, depending on the language. Derived from the letter ʿayn ( ), the hamza is written in initial, medial, and final positions as an unlinked letter or placed above or under a carrier character. Despite its common usage as a letter in Modern Standard Arabic, it is generally not considered to be one of its letters, although some argue that it should be considered so. The hamza is often romanized as a typewriter apostrophe ('), a modifier letter apostrophe (ʼ), a modifier letter right half ring (ʾ), or as the International Phonetic Alphabet symbol . In Arabizi, it is either written as "2" or not written at all. In the Phoenician, Hebrew and Aramaic alphabets, from which the Arabic alphabet is descended, the glottal stop was expressed by aleph ( ), continued by alif ( ) in the Arabic alphabet. However, alif was used to express both a glottal stop and a long vowel . In order to indicate that a glottal stop is used and not a vowel, the hamza was added to alif diacritically. Just as Greek vowels were used as diacritical marks to indicate vowel sounds in Western Syriac, the hamza (in effect a lower-case Greek alpha) was used as a diacritical mark in Arabic to indicate the original Alif glottal stop. In modern Arabic orthography, hamza may also appear on the line under certain circumstances as though it were a full letter, independent of an alif. == Hamzat al-waṣl == The hamza on its own is ( , "the hamzah which breaks, ceases or halts", i.e. the broken, cessation, halting"), otherwise referred to as ( ), that is, a phonemic glottal stop unlike the ( , "the hamzah which attaches, connects or joins", i.e. the attachment, connection, joining"), a non-phonemic glottal stop produced automatically only if at the beginning of an utterance, otherwise assimilated. Although the can be written as an alif carrying a sign (only in the Quran), it is normally indicated by a plain alif without a hamza . occurs in: the definite article some short words with two of their three-consonant roots apparent: , , , the imperative verbs of forms I and VII to X the perfective aspect of verb forms VII to X and their verbal nouns some borrowed words that start with consonant clusters such as It is not pronounced following a vowel ( , ). This event occurs in the definite article, or at the beginning of a noun following a preposition, or a verb following a relative pronoun. If the definite article al- is followed by a sun letter, -l- also gives way for the next letter for lām is assimilated. Position in word: Isolated Final Medial Initial Glyph form: (Help) ء ء ء (none) By itself: High Hamza (used in Kazakh; only one form, though used in medial and final positions where it is non-joining), after any Arabic letter (if that letter has an initial or medial form, these forms will be changed to isolated or final forms respectively): Position in word: Isolated Final Medial Initial Glyph form: (Help) ٴ ٴ ٴ (none) Three-Quarter High Hamza (used in Malay; only one form, though used in medial and final positions where it is non-joining): Position in word: Isolated Final Medial Initial Glyph form: (Help) ء ء ء (none) This form has been proposed for the inclusion to the Unicode Standard, but the Unicode Script Ad Hoc Group stated that it can be unified with the existing . The form above currently being displayed using a standard Arabic Hamza with an altered vertical position. Combined with a letter: Above or below an : Above a : Above a dotless , also called ( ). Joined medially and finally in Arabic, other languages written in Arabic-based script may have it initially as well (or it may take its isolated or initial shape, even in Arabic, after a non-joining letter in the same word): Above . In the Persian and Pashto alphabets, not used in Arabic: Above . In the Pashto alphabet, not used in Arabic: Above . In the Khowar alphabet, not used in Arabic: Above a . In the Urdu alphabet, not used in Arabic: Above a . In the Urdu alphabet, not used in Arabic ==Wavy hamza in Kashmiri== The Kashmiri language written in Arabic script includes the diacritic or "wavy hamza". In Kashmiri the diacritic is called amālü mad when used above alif: ٲ to create the vowel . Kashmiri calls the "wavy hamza" as sāyi mad when below the alif: اٟ to create the sound . Some standard transliterations such as DIN 31635 transliterate it with a modifier letter right half ring ʾ . Others such as ALA-LC use the modifier letter apostrophe ʼ or sometimes substitute the similar-looking Right Single Quotation Mark ’ . Different unstandardized symbols exist such as 2 in Arabic chat alphabet.

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