Lesson 2: Long Vowels in Levantine Arabic
While Arabic doesn't have standalone vowel letters like English, it uses ا, و, and ي to represent long vowel sounds.
Pronunciation & Transcription
All three long vowels in Arabic can have different pronunciations depending on the accent and context:
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ا (Alif) – traditionally pronounced as a long /a/ (father) and alternatively pronounced as a long /e/ (leg).
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و (Waw) – traditionally pronounced as a long /u/ or /oo/ (full / fool) and alternatively pronounced as a /ou/ or /o/ (stop / court). It can also be transcribed as a /w/ especially when at the beginning of a word.
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ي (Yaa) – traditionally pronounced as a long /i/ or /ee/ (give / see)and alternatively pronounced as a long /e/ (ten). It can also be transcribed as a /y/ especially when at the beginning of a word.
Introduction to Arabic Letter Connections
Arabic script is inherently cursive, meaning that letters within words are typically connected, forming a flowing line of text. This connected nature of Arabic writing results in letters adopting different shapes based on their position in a word: initial, medial, final, or isolated.
Most Arabic letters are dual-joining, which means they connect to both the preceding and following letters in a word. These connections often cause slight modifications to the letter's shape, facilitating a seamless flow in handwriting and calligraphy.
| Final | Medial | Initial | Isolated | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ـي | ـيـ | يــ | ي | Yaa /ii/ - /ee/ - /y/ |
| ـا | ـا | ا | ا | Alif /aa/ - /ee/ |
| ـو | ـو | و | و | Waw /uu/ - /oo/ -/ou/ - /w/ |
There are six letters in the Arabic alphabet that connect only to the preceding letter and do not connect to the following one. These letters include the Alif ( ا ) and the Waw ( و ). These letters are often referred to as "non-connecting" or "right-joining" letters because they only connect to the letter before them and not to the one after.
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