This is a list of Arabic letter components used in Arabic script.

Table of Letter Components

A = The letter is used for most languages and dialects with writing systems based on Arabic.

MSA = Letters used in Modern Standard Arabic.

CA = Letters used in Classical Arabic.

AD = Letters used in some regional Arabic Dialects.

"Arabic" = Letters used in Classical Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic, and most regional dialects.

"Farsi" = Letters used in modern Persian.

FW = Foreign words: the letter is sometimes used to spell foreign words.

SV = Stylistic variant: the letter is used interchangeably with at least one other letter depending on the calligraphic style.

AW = Arabic words: the letter is used in additional languages to spell Arabic words.

Table

No additions

Letter Line Shapes positional forms isolated start middle end image of forms isolated start middle end Unicode for above U+0621 U+0627 U+06D2 U+0649 U+06BA U+066E U+062D U+0633 U+0635 U+0637 U+0639 U+06A1 U+066F U+06AA U+0643 U+06A9 U+06AF U+0644 U+0645 U+062F U+0631 U+0648 U+06BE U+06C1 U+0647 Languages that use the letter shape with or without i'jam Arabic Arabic Urdu Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Sindhi, Arabic SV Arabic Farsi, Urdu, Arabic SV Farsi, Urdu Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Urdu, Arabic SV Urdu, Arabic SV Arabic, Farsi Arabic diacritics isolated none start mid end     Languages using the bare shape with no additions Arabic Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Urdu MSA Urdu, Arabic SV Arabic SV Rasm Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic SV in Rasm Arabic SV in Rasm Sindhi, Arabic SV Arabic Farsi, Urdu, Arabic SV Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Arabic, Farsi, Urdu Urdu, Arabic SV Urdu, Arabic SV Arabic, Farsi MSA Unicode for above U+0621 U+0627 U+06D2 U+0649 U+06BA U+066E U+062D U+0633 U+0635 U+0637 U+0639 U+06A1 U+066F U+06AA U+0643 U+06A9 U+06AF U+0644 U+0645 U+062F U+0631 U+0648 U+06BE U+06C1 U+0647 ل + ا Bare line in isolated and end forms only isolated start mid end image Languages Unicode U+08BD U+08BB U+08BC

dots

1 dot

Diacritics Letter Shapes: 1 dot below isolated connected image Languages U+FBB3 U+065C Unicode U+0628 U+062C 1 dot above + 1 dot below    isolated connected image Languages Unicode 1 dot above    isolated connected image Languages Malay Malay U+FBB2 Unicode U+0646 U+062E U+0636 U+0638 U+063A U+0641 U+06A7 U+0762 U+0765 U+0630 U+0632 U+06CF

2 dots diacritics Letter Shapes 2 dots below start and mid isolated form image Languages Farsi, Urdu, AD U+FBB5 U+FBB5 Unicode U+06CC 2 dots below all positions isolated form image Languages Arabic U+FBB5 U+FBB5 Unicode U+064A 2 vertical dots below       isolated form image Languages U+FBBE Unicode 2 vertical dots above       isolated form image Languages U+FBBD Unicode 2 horizontal dots above isolated form image Languages FBB4 Unicode U+062A U+0642 U+06C3 U+0629 diacritics Letter Shapes

above: 2 dots below: 2 dots above: 2 dots (vertically) below: 2 dots (vertically)

U+08EB (2283) TWO DOTS ABOVE U+08EE (2286) TWO DOTS BELOW

3 dots

Arabic & Persian other pointing out inverted

3 dots below (horizontal)    isolated form image Languages Fula Unicode U+0750 3 dots below (inverted)    isolated form image Languages U+FBB7 Unicode 3 dots below    isolated form image Languages U+FBB9 Unicode U+06D1 U+067E U+0686 U+069B U+06A5 U+06AE U+063C U+06B8 3 dots above + 3 dots below    isolated form image Languages U+FBB6 + U+FBB9 Unicode 3 dots above    isolated form image Languages Malay Pashto Malay Malay Brahui Wolof U+FBB6 Unicode U+06BD U+062B U+0685 U+0634 U+069E U+069F U+06A0 U+06A4 U+06A8 U+06AD U+0763 U+06B4 U+06B7 U+068E U+0698 U+06CB 3 dots above (inverted)    isolated form image U+FBB8 Languages Sindhi Unicode U+068F

4 dots 4 dots below      isolated form image Languages U+FBBB Unicode 4 dots above      isolated form image Languages Shina, Torwali Sindhi, Shina, Torwali U+FBBA Unicode U+067F U+075C U+0690 U+0699

different dots above and below

mixed dots above + below isolated form image Languages HausaWolof Unicode U+0753U+0751 diacritics Letter Shapes

tōē small tōē below isolated form connected form(s) image Unicode U+076E Languages Khowar small tōē above     isolated form   connected form(s) image Urdu Punjabi Torwali Languages Punjabi Urdu Torwali Punjabi Urdu Urdu U+0615 U+FBC0 Unicode U+06BB U+0679 U+0772 U+0688 U+0691 small tōē + dot(s) isolated form connected form(s) image Languages Punjabi, Seraiki, Shina Torwali Torwali Unicode diacritics Letter Shapes

ring ring       isolated form image Languages FBBF Unicode ring and dots isolated form image Languages Unicode diacritics Letter Shapes

line horizontal line — isolated form image Languages Punjabi, Marwari, Kalami, Albanian Kirghiz Unicode U+075B multiple lines        isolated form image Languages U+FBBC Unicode U+08A6 vertical line isolated form image Languages Unicode

numeral

Burushaski Burushaski Burushaski Burushaski Burushaski Burushaski Burushaski diacritics Letter Shapes Persian numeral 2 above isolated form image Burushaski Languages Burushaski Burushaski Unicode U+077A Persian numeral 3 above isolated form image Burushaski Languages Burushaski Unicode U+077B Persian numeral 4 above isolated form image Burushaski Languages Burushaski Unicode U+077D Persian numeral 4 below isolated form image Burushaski Languages Burushaski Unicode U+077C diacritics Letter Shapes

arrows V below           isolated form image Languages Serer U+065B U+065A Unicode small V above isolated form image Languages Wolof U+065A Unicode U+0756 inverted V above isolated form image U+065B Unicode Languages arrow and dots isolated form image Unicode Languages

Hamza

diacritics Letter Shapes Hamza below isolated form image sometimes omitted in contexts where short vowel diacritics are omitted Languages U+0655 Unicode U+0625 U+0644 + U+0625 Hamza above isolated form image sometimes omitted in contexts where short vowel diacritics are omitted Languages Pashto U+0674 U+0654 Unicode U+0623 U+06D3 U+0626 U+0681 U+0624 U+06C2 U+06C0 U+0644 + U+0623 Hamza and dots isolated form image Unicode Languages

other semi-optional vowels maddah above isolated form image doesn't strictly count as i'jam, but included in a lot of situations where other diacritics are left out. Languages Arabic, Urdu U+06E4 U+0653 Unicode U+0622 Wasala above isolated form image Languages CA none Unicode U+0671 diacritics Letter Shapes

blank line for new entries

header

diacritics Letter Shapes

Footnotes

The i'jam diacritic characters are illustrative only, in most typesetting the combined characters in the middle of the table are used. The characters used to illustrate the consonant diacritics are from Unicode set "Arabic pedagogical symbols". The "Arabic Tatweel Modifier Letter" U+0640 character used to show the positional forms doesn't work in some Nastaliq fonts.

For most letters the isolated form is shown, for select letters all forms (isolated, start, middle, and end) are shown.

Urdu Choti Yē has 2 dots below in the initial and middle positions only. The standard Arabic version always has 2 dots below.

These characters are used by most languages that use writing systems based on Arabic, though sometimes only in foreign words.

A Wasala diacritic Unicode character has been proposed but not yet released.

References

External links Unicode collation charts—including Arabic letters, sorted by shape Why the right side of your brain doesn't like Arabic Arabic fonts by SIL's Non-Roman Script Initiative Alexis Neme and Sébastien Paumier (2019), "Restoring Arabic vowels through omission-tolerant dictionary lookup", Lang Resources & Evaluation, Vol. 53, pp. 1–65. ;