Arabic Reading Writing Module 1-Bilal Philips-C -www.islamtreasure.com

© Islamic Online University

Arabic Reading & Writing

Islamic Online University

http://www.islamiconlineuniversity.com



by

Dr. Dr. Abu Ameenah Ameena h Bilal Bi lal Philips


2



Module 1

Lesson One


3



TRANSLITERATION Consonants ’

d

b

t

t

th

th

‘

j

gh

h

f

kh

q

d

k

th

l

r

m

z

n

s

h

sh

w

s

y

Vowels

  

i

  

aw



a u

aa oo ee

Dipthongs



ay


4



FOREWORD

T

his book is based on the third edition of the Arabic for non-Arabs textbook published by published by King Sa„ud University‟s Language Institute; al-‘Arabeeyah: al-‘Arabeeyah: A swaatuhaa wa 1 Huroofuhaa . It was prepared under the supervision of Dr. Mahmoud Seenee, a graduate of Georgetown University, University, U.S.A. The text employs the latest developments in the science of linguistics related to the Arabic language. However, it it is completely in Arabic. Arabic. The book was designed to be taught by Arabs to non-Arabs of varying backgrounds without any intermediary language. Over the past fifteen years, I have taught Arabic reading and writing to adults and highschool students students using a number of different different books and methods. From 1991-3, I successfully taught the King Saud University book to officers of the American and British Airforce at Saudia Arabian Airforce Headquarters in Riyadh using English as the intermediary language. I also introduced the book to Sharif Kabunsuan Islamic University, Cotabato City, Mindanao, Philippines in 1993 and taught Arabic teachers at the college how to to use it. In the course of teaching the King Saud University text using English as the medium of instruction, I compiled notes on the letters from descriptions used in Elementary Modern Standard Arabic 1, edited by Peter F. Abboud. I also also modified many of the drills and vocabulary, as well as the distribution of some of the letters and reading rules. The significance of the King Saud University text is that it does not require the learner to memorize all 28 letters of the alphabet, plus their 112 variations before learning to read and write. It is ideal for adults and older youths, because it develops reading and writing skills gradually gradually and logically. logically. In contrast to the traditional methods based on al-Qaa‘idah al-Qaa‘idah al -Baghdaadeeyah -Baghdaadeeyah used throughout the Muslim world. The Qaa‘idah was developed many centuries ago for Arab primary school children, but was adopted by madrasah’s (religous institutions) throughout the non-Arab Muslim world. Even today, it continues to be the the standard text used, from the Philippines to Guyana, South America. This text is the product of my teaching notes, modifications to the King Saud University book and experience in teaching it through the medium of English. I have added an introduction on the Arabs and Arabic for the interest of the readers, as well as an appendix of Arabic selections for reading practice for those who

:

1

Prepared by Naasif „Abdul„Abdul - „Azeez and Mustafaa Sulayman and first published in 1981. The third edition as in 1990.


5



have completed the course. The selections are from from a grade three Arabic reader used in the U.A.E., some sayings of Prophet Muhammad (), and the last nine chapters of the Qur‟aan. The The letters of the alphabet and reading principles are distributed over eight lessons which are designed to be easily taught over a period of three months, at two hours per week. Before closing, I would like to thank Ahmad Fat-hi for his diligence in typing the basic Arabic text and my wife, Sakeenah, for revising my English explanations, linguistic descriptions and her valuable suggestions regarding the overall presentation of the lessons. Most of all, I thank Allaah for giving giving me this opportunity to help others learn the language of the last revelation; the Qur‟aan and I pray that He record this effort e ffort in my favor. Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips Sharjah, U.A.E. October, 1995


6



INTRODUCTION : Who are the Arabs?

I

n prehistoric and pagan times two races inhabited Arabia: one was largely nomadic and wandered with their flocks over the great deserts which lie between the Euphrates river and the centre of the peninsula. The others were the inhabitants of the rain-fed uplands in the south — the Yemen. According According to Arab tradition, northern Arabians were „Arabicized‟ 2 Arabs descending from „Adnaan, while the southern Arabians were „pure‟ or 3 4 „genuine‟ Arabs descending from Qahtaan. It was the former who were the „Arabs‟ mentioned in in ancient records. The earliest earliest surviving account of the people of Arabia comes in the tenth chapter of Genesis, which names the descendants of Noah. Noah‟s eldest son, Shem, is regarded as the ancestor of the 5 Hebrews, Arabs and Aramaeans, the speakers of „Semitic‟ languages. But the 6 term „Arab‟ is not mentioned in Genesis. So far as is known, the word first appears in an inscription of the Assyrian King Shalmaneser III announcing his victory over a group of rebellious chieftains, one of whom is referred to as „Gindibu the Aribi‟. From then on, Assyrian and Babylonian inscriptions refer frequently to Aribi Aribi or Arabu. Arabu. They were a nomadic people living in the north Arabian desert, and their tribute to their Assyrian overlords was usually in the form of camels, first domesticated in Arabia between about 1500 and 1200 BC. In the Bible the name Arab is the first word used in the second book of Chronicles 7 17:11 to refer to nomads from the east bank of the river Jordan in the time of King Jehosophat (c (c. 900-800 BC). But the term most frequently used for Arabs in the Bible is Ishmaelites. Jewish tradition regarded the Arabs as fellowdescendants of Prophet Abraham. The Jews acknowledge that Ishmael was was the son of Abraham by his second wife Hagar. „Adnaan was believed to be a descendant of Prophet Ishmael. An Arab was therefore a nomadic inhabitant of the central and northern Arabian peninsula. The word itself is probably derived from a Semitic root related 2

al-‘Arab al-‘Arab al - Musta‘ribah. al-‘Arab al-‘Arab al -‘Aaribah. 4 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol.13, p. 813. 5 This term was first used used by the German historian historian A.L. Schlozer in 1781. 6 However it has been suggested that the „mixed multitude‟ (Hebrew erev) erev) mentioned in Exodus xii, 38 as having accompanied the Israelites into the wilderness from Egypt could be a mistake for Arabs (Hebrew arav). arav). Hebrew, like Arabic, has no written vowels. (See N. Barbour, Nisi Dominus, London, 1946, p. 73.) 7 „....and the Arabians brought him flocks, seven thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand and seven hundred she-goats ‟. 3


7



to nomadism. In the Arabic language, the word „araba „araba means „to cross‟. Herodotus and and later Greek and Roman authors began to extend the terms „Arabia‟ and „Arab‟ to cover the whole peninsula and its inhabitants, including the Yemenis of the south-west. The Romans referred referred to the comparatively fertile region in southwestern and southern Arabia (in present day Asir and Yemen) as 8 Arabia Felix in contrast to Arabia to Arabia Deserta in barren central and nothern Arabia 9 10 and Arabia Petraea in northwestern Arabia. Already the term „Arab‟ was broadening. Inevitably, some of the Arabian nomads began settling down around the oases, where a sedentary civilization was possible. One of these settlements was Yathrib in western Arabia, which became Madeenah after the time of the Prophet Muhammad (); another was Petra, the valley hidden among the bare mountains of south Jordan which in the second century BC became the centre of the powerful kingdom of the Nabataeans. Although the Nabataeans were Arabic in speech, Aramaic in writing, writing, Semitic in religion, and Hellenistic in in art and architecture, their culture was synthetic, being superficially Hellenic but basically 11 Arabian, and so it remained. Still another settlement was Palmyra in the central Syrian desert, which achieved high prosperity as a trading centre at a junction of 12 caravan routes and ultimately as a great political power in the third century CE under the astute Queen Zenobia. In the south, the Greek writer Eratosthenes (3rd century BC) described Eudaimon described Eudaimon Arabia (i.e., Yemen) as inhabited by four major peoples; Sabaeans, Minaeans, Qatabanians, and Hadramites. The people who called themselves Saba’ (biblical „Sheba‟) are both the earliest and the most abundantly attested in the surviving written records. Their centre was at Ma‟rib, east of present-day present-day San„aa and on the edge of the sand desert. Sabaean rulers, who are mentioned in Assyrian annals of the late 8th and 7th centuries BC, were responsible for impressive irrigational constructions. The Minaean kingdom lasted from the 4th to the 2nd century BC and was predominantly a trading organization that, for the period, monopolized the trade routes. Their capital was at Qarnaw (now Ma„een). The Hadramite kingdom, the wealthiest of these ancient civili-zations, was based on the sale of frankincense and sea trade from from India. It occupied the modern Dhofar province of the Sultanate of Oman. Himyarites first first appear in recorded history in Pliny‟s Naturalis Historia (latter half of the 1st century CE). Their kindom was in the extreme southwest of the peninsula, and they had their capital at Thafaar, nine miles southwest of present-day Yarim on the road from from Aden to San„aa. San„aa. In the last last decades of the 3rd century CE a 8

Literally „Happy, or Flourishing Arabia‟. Literally, „Stony Arabia‟. 10 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol.1, p. 508. 11 Philip Hitti, Syria: A Short History , London, 1959, p. 61. 12 CE stands for „common era‟ or „Christian era‟ in place of AD. 9


8



Himyarite ruler named Shammar Yur„ish ended the independent existence of both Saba‟ and Hadhramaut, and the whole of the Yemen was united under his rule. He and his successors were called the Tubba„ kings and their rule continued until 13 shortly before the rise of Islaam. Some time after the rise of Islaam in the first quarter of the 7th century CE and the emergence of the Arabian Muslims as the founders of one of the greatest empires of history, history, the name „Arab‟ came to be used by these Muslims themselves and by the nations with whom they came in contact to indicate all people of Arabian origin. Subsequently, when Arabic replaced the local languages in many countries of the Middle-East Middle-East and North Africa, the term „Arab‟ came to refer to anyone who spoke Arabic as their native language.

Arabic alphabet The Arabic alphabet is the second most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world (the Latin alphabet is the most widespread). Arabic language was carried across much of the Eastern Hemisphere by the spread of Islaam. The Arabic script has been adapted to such diverse languages as Persian, Turkish, Hausa, Malay, Urdu, Spanish, and Swahili. Although it probably probably developed in the 4th century CE as a direct descendant of the Nabataean alphabet, its origins and early history are vague. Some scholars believe that the earliest extant example of Arabic script is a royal funerary inscription of the Nabataeans dating from CE 328. Others believe that this epigraph shows characteristics of Arabic but is essentially Aramaic and that the earliest extant example of Arabic is a trilingual inscription in Greek, Syriac, and Arabic dating from CE 5 12. The Arabic alphabet has 28 letters, all representing consonants, and is written from right to left. Twenty-two of the letters are those of the Semitic alphabet from which it descended, modified only in letter form, and the remaining six letters represent sounds not used in the language written in the earlier alphabet. Two major types of Arabic script exist. Koofee, Koofee, a thick, bold monumental style, was developed in Kufah, a city in Mesopotamia, toward the end of the 7th century CE. It was used chiefly for inscriptions inscriptions in stone stone and metal, but was sometimes also employed to write manuscripts of the Qur‟aan. Even though Koofee is a very handsome monumental script, it has passed out of use, except in cases in which more cursive scripts cannot be used. Naskh, used. Naskh, a cursive script well adapted to writing on papyrus or paper, is the direct ancestor of modern Arabic writing. It originated in Makkah and Madeenah Madeenah at an early date and exists in in 14 many complex and decorative variant forms.

13 14

The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol. 8, pp. 815-7. The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol. 1, pp. 509-10.


9



: Connecting Form

Name of the Letter

Sound of the Letter

daal

d

r aa

r

seen

s

noon

n

Pronunciation In the Arabic alphabet there are 28 consonants and they are pronounced according to the first letter of their names. names. For example, the letter called daal ( daal ( ) is pronounced as “d” and the letter called raa (

) as “r”. In English there is also

a distinction between the names of letters letters and their pronunciation, however, they do not follow follow a uniform rule like Arabic. Arabic. The letter called aitch is “h” and the letter em letter em is “m”, while the letter called jay called jay is “j” and zed and zed or or zee zee is “z”.

Writing Arabic is written and read from right to left, the complete opposite of English. Consequently, the formation formation of the letters must match the direction in which the words are written.

daal


10


1. The letter


daal is pronounced like the „d‟ in the English word „deed‟ and is

written with a single single curved stroke from the top to the the bottom. It should rest on the line and not below the line.

..................................................................................................

r aa 2. The letter

r aa is quite different from the English „r‟, which is more a vowel 15

than a consonant.

The Arabic „r‟ is a consonant produced by tapping the tip of

the tongue quickly behind the upper teeth. It is similar similar to the American English pronunciation of „t‟ or „tt‟ between vowels (e.g. „waiter‟, „butter‟, „pretty‟, etc.) as 16

a tongue flap rather than a stop consonant as in „tea‟ or „eat‟.

However, the

Arabic „r‟ is a trill; a rapid succession succession of several flaps. The raa is written as a continual stroke which begins above the line and extends below it.

..........................................................................................................................

15

English „r‟ is the vowel „u‟ in „but‟ pronounced with the tip of the tongue turned back and with rounded lips. 16 The Arabic „r‟ may be practised by saying phrases like „a lotta water‟, „I gotta go‟.


11



seen 3. The Arabic

pitched „s‟ in English words like seen corresponds to the high- pitched

„see‟ except that the tip of the tongue in Arabic is in contact with the upper teeth, while in English the tip of the tongue is slightly behind the teeth, giving the „s‟ a slightly lower-pitched sound. It is written like a cursive „w‟ beginning from the right on the line followed by a large circular „u‟ written below the line.

..........................................................................................................................

noon 4. The letter

noon is pronounced like the „n‟ in the English word „none‟. It is

written below the line as a circular „u‟ with a dot between the upper arms of the „u‟. ..........................................................................................................................

Letter Connection All letters of the Arabic alphabet can be connected to letters preceding them by the addition of an extension (e.g. do not connect to letters letters following them (e.g. daal

). However, six letters and raa

). These letters

are referred to in this book as „non„non-connectors‟. The remaining 22 letters letters are


12



called „connectors‟ because they connect to letters following them (e.g. seen (e.g. seen and noon

).

The letters which do connect all have modified forms for connecting. Thus, seen

becomes

and noon

daal it daal it is written as

becomes

. For example, ex ample, if seen precedes seen precedes

and if noon if noon precedes precedes raa it becomes

, but if daal if daal

precedes seen precedes seen or raa or raa precedes precedes noon, noon, they are written separately as follows: and

.

....................................................................................................................................

alif The vowel alif is equivalent to a long “a” in English, as in the word “father” and will be written in this book as “aa”. The vowel alif is a non-connector. That is, it does not connect to letters following following it. However, letters which precede it may be joined to it, if they are among the connecting letters. It is written as a single horizontal stroke from top to bottom and rests on the line. The pronunciation of vowels in Arabic does not change as much as they do in English. For example, the “a” in English has four different different pronunciations in the following words: father, late, bat and comma.

Reading Reading in Arabic is merely the addition of the letters and their vowels while reading from right to left. E.g.

++

daal + alif + noon = d + aa + n =

daan.


13



1 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

2 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

3 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

4 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

Attempt: 1. Readin Readin g Exerci E xerci se 1 2. Wr i ti ng Exe E xerr cise cise 1 3. D i ctation 1

At this point and submit before proceeding.


14



waaw The vowel

waaw is equivalent to a long “u” in English, as in the word

“brute” and the “oo” in “room”. It should be noted that, like alif, the vowel waaw does not join to letters following it. In this book it will be written as “oo”. It is written in one stroke consisting of a circle beginni ng on the line, from right to left, and ending with a tail extending below the line.

..........................................................................................................................

It is added in the same way as alif was alif was in the previous section. E.g. raa + waaw + seen = r + oo + s =

+ +

roos

1 ...................

...................

..................

...................

...................

..................

2 ...................

...................

..................

..................

...................

...................

..................

..................


15



3 ...................

...................

..................

..................

...................

...................

..................

..................

4 ...................

...................

..................

..................

...................

...................

..................

..................

Attempt: 1. Readin Readin g Exerci E xerci se 2 2. Wr i ti ng Exe E xerr cise cise 2


yaa The long vowel

yaa is equivalent to the “ee” in the English word “meet”

and is written in this book as “ee”. It is written written like an „s‟ whose head is stretched to the right and whose tail is stretched stretched to the left and curved upward. The head of the „s‟ is written above the line and the tail below the line.

..........................................................................................................................


16



Note that this vowel is a connector. That is, it connects to letters which follow it. The connecting form is written on the line, like that of noon of noon except that it has two dots below it. (e.g.

and

)

..........................................................................................................................

Yaa is added to consonants in the same way as the other two vowels. E.g. +

+

seen + yaa + noon = s + ee + n =

seen.

1 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

Note: When

yaa is followed by

raa or

..................

..................

noon and preceded by a connector,

the peak of the yaa the yaa is commonly joined directly to the top of the raa or noon. or noon. e.g. becomes

and

becomes

2 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

3


17



..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

4 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

Attempt: 1. Readin Readin g Exerci E xerci se 3 2. Wr i ti ng Exe E xerr cise cise 3 3. D i ctati ctati on 2


A single word in Arabic may contain two or more long vowels. Pronunciation of such words follows the same principles used in reading words with only one long vowel. For example, d+aa+r+ee =

+ ++

daal+alif+raa+yaa =

daaree

1 .........................

..........................

.........................

..........................

2


18



.........................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

3 .........................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

4 .........................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

5 .........................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

6 .........................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

7 ......................

..........................

.......................


19


.........................


..........................

.......................

8 ......................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

9 ......................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

10 ......................

..........................

.......................

.........................

..........................

.......................

Attempt: 1. Readin Readin g Ex E x er cis ci se 4 2. Wr i ti ng Exe E xerr cise cise 4 3. D i ctati ctati on 3



20



SHORT VOWELS In Arabic, there are only three short vowels (a, u, i). Each one corresponds in pronunciation to one of the t he three long vowels (aa, oo, ee). They are pronounced pronou nced like the „a‟ in “pat”, the „u‟ in “put” and the „i‟ in “pit”. The short vowel„a‟ is called fat-hah called fat-hah and is indicated by a short right-slanting line line ( ) above the letter it follows. The short vowel „u‟ is called dammah and is indicated by a small waaw written above the letter (

). The short vowel „i‟ is called kasrah and is written

as a short right-slanting line below the letter (

).

si

su

sa

di

du da

ni

nu

na

ri

ru

ra

The short vowels are added to consonants in the same way that long vowels were in the previous examples. E.g.

+ +

+ seen + fat-hah = d + a + r + a + s + a =

daal + fat-hah + raa + fat-hah darasa

1 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................


21



2 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

3 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

4 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................




22



SUKOON

  is

us

  as

  in

un

id

ud ad

  an

ir

ur

ar

The sukoon The sukoon ( ) is a special symbol written written over a consonant to indicate that the consonant does not have a short vowel on it, for example

(

) is pronounced

as “d”. Sukoon causes the sound of the letter to be joined to the vowel before it. Therefore, (

) is pronounced as ad.

In the first part of this lesson involving long vowels, the consonants following long vowels were pronounced without vowels, e.g.

daar. If the

sukoon was added, there would have been no difference in pronunciation, e.g. daar. The sukoon only confirms that there is no short vowel on the consonant, because in modern written Arabic, short vowels are often deleted. This might appear strange, since the number of possible short vowel combinations in three letter words are 18. However, only a few are actually actually used and the context in the sentence will determine which ones are intended. For example, in English,


23



the sentence: Th_s _s th_ b_y‟s r_d b_ _ k. Can easily be read as „This is the boy‟s red book‟ by a native speaker of English, or an educated non-native non-native speaker. Even though it could have been many other combinations of the six English vowels, some of which made words while others did not; e.g. „Thus as tha bay‟s rod beak‟. The long vowel aa is actually produced by a fat-hah plus alif dammah plus dammah plus waaw



and ee by ee by kasrah plus kasrah plus yaa yaa

.



, oo by

Since alif is alif is always

preceded by b y fat-hah, waaw w aaw by by dammah 90% of the time and yaa and yaa by by kasrah 90% of the time, the short vowels are not written in modern vowelled Arabic texts. However, in ancient texts, like that of the Qur‟aan and the prophetic traditions, traditions, the preceding short vowels will be written. e.g.

soodaanee.

Consequently, alif, waaw and yaa may be considered equivalent to the long vowels aa, oo and ee for beginning Arabic readers.

1 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

2 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

3 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................


24



4 ..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................

..................



Distinguishing Between Long and Short Vowels The long vowel is held twice as long as the short vowel in classical speech. However, in rapid speech, long vowels are shortened. Conse-quently, only a slight difference in pronunciation of the two types of vowels distinguishes between them. Although such differences do not affect the meaning of words in English, in Arabic they do.

For example, the the word

darasa means „he studied‟,

daarasa means „he studied with someone‟, of them studied‟ and

darasaa means „both

17

daraasah means „studying‟.

1

17

.........................

.........................

........................

.........................

.........................

........................

Actually

daraasah which to non-Arabs sounds exactly the same as daraasa.


25



2 .........................

.........................

........................

.........................

.........................

........................

3 .........................

.........................

........................

.........................

.........................

........................

4 .........................

.........................

......................

.........................

.........................

......................

5 .........................

.........................

......................

.........................

.........................

......................

6 .........................

.........................

......................

.........................

.........................

......................

7 .................

..................

..................


...............

26


..................

..................


..................

...............

8 .................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

9 .................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

10 .................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

11 .................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

12 .................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

13


27



.................

..................

..................

...............

..................

..................

..................

...............

Attempt: 1. Readin Readin g Exerci E xerci se 7 2. Wr i ti ng Ex er cise cise 7 and and 8



28

Arabic Reading Writing Module 1-Bilal Philips-C -www.islamtreasure.com

Recommend Documents