Articulation points of Arabic letters

Articulation points of Arabic letters
Cavum
It includes
throat cavity
oral cavity
The three Madd letters (prolongation) are
produced from the Cavum
explained above PP (89-91)
Madd Alef
( represents long/a:/)
Madd Waaw
( represents long/u:/)
Madd Yaa’
( represents long /i:/)
Advice
Madd Letters are attributed to the Cavum (Hollow) because
they are produced with less compression of sound:
Tongue shall be at rest in (while pronouncing) Madd Alef.
The middle of the tongue is lifted (while pronouncing) Madd Yaa’
(ي)
The deepest part of the tongue is lifted and lips are rounded (while
pronouncing) Madd Waaw.
The Non-Madd Waaw and Yaa’ letters are attributed to their
articulation points because of the compression of sound ( while
pronouncing them) is more than that of Madd Letters; Allah knows
best.
Throat
it has three articulation points of six
letters:
1. The closest part of the throat: the
articulation point of Hamza(الهمزة) and
Haa’ /h/ (الهاء)
2. The middle of the throat: the articulation
point ofو (الحاء) (الغين)
3. The deepest part of the throat: the
articulation point of (العين) و (الخاء)
Throat
1-the Deepest Part Of Throat:
1-Vocal cords area
the articulation point of Hamza(الهمزة) and /h/ (الهاء)
Sakin Hamza is
produced as a
result of the
Complete
closure of the
vocal cords
Mutahark
Hamza is
produced as a
result of the
separation of
the vocal
cords
Haa’ is
produced as a
result of the
partial opening
of the vocal
cords
2- The Middle Of The Throat:
Epiglottis area.
Articulation point of(الحاء) (العين)
(الحاء) )ح)
(العين) (ع)
3- The Closest Part Of The Throat:
The root of the tongue with soft palate
Articulation point of (الغين) و (الخاء).
(الخاء)
(الغين)
The Articulation Point Of Qaaf (ق)
The deepest part of the
tongue touches the very
back of the soft palate.
The Articulation Point Of Kaaf (ك)
The deepest of the tongue
touches both the soft and
hard palate ( but it is slightly
in front of the Qaaf. Kaaf is a
light/soft letter.)
The Articulation Point Of Jeem(ج)
It is articulated from the
middle of the tongue with
the middle of the roof of the
mouth (opposite to it).
The Articulation Point Of Sheen (ش)
It is articulated from the
middle of the tongue with
the middle roof of the
mouth on the hard
palate( but it is little more
forward than Jeem).
The Articulation Point Of Non Madd Yaa’(ي)
It is articulated from the
middle of the tongue with
the middle of the roof of
the mouth on the hard
palate.
We previously mentioned
the difference between this
Yaa’ and the Madd Yaa’
(prolonged Yaa’) page 96.
Non–Madd Yaa’
Comparison Between The Articulation Points Of
Jeem, Sheen And Non-madd Yaa’
articulation point of
Jeem
articulation point of
Sheen
articulation point of
Non-Madd Yaa’
The Articulation Point Of Daad (ض)
It is articulated from the edge of
the tongue with its opposite
upper molars. ( i.e. Left side of the
tongue presses against the left
upper molars or right side of the
tongue presses against the right
upper molars ; or it can be
articulated from both sides).
Touching area without pressing
Pressing and lean area
The Space Of The Edge Of The Tongue Used To
Pronounce Daad
Touched area
Pressing and lean area
The front of the
edge of the
tongue.
The back of the
edge of the
tongue.
The Articulation Point Of Laam (ل)
It is articulated from The
nearest part of the tongue
edge to the front edge of the
tongue (with the opposite
gum).
Laam
The Space Of The Edge Of The Tongue Used To
Pronounce Laam
The front of the
edge of the
tongue.
The nearest part of
the edge of the
tongue.
The space of Laam: the
front edges of the tongue to
the end of its opposite gums.
Comparison Between The Articulation Points of Laam
With Tafkheem And Laam With Tarqeeq
(articulation of) Laam with tafkheem is accompanied by
concavity of the middle of the tongue and narrowing of the
throat unlike Laam with tarqeeq .
Laam with tarqeeq
Laam with tafkheem
The Articulation Point Of Noon (ن)
It is articulated from the tip of the tongue
with what lies opposite of the gums. It is
slightly beneath the articulation point of
Laam ; and it is accompanied by
Ghunnah (sound) from the nasal
passages .The scholars named lingual
part the complemented part ,while nasal
part of Noon is called complementing
part.
The Articulation Point Of Raa’ (ر)
The tip of the tongue touches
what lies opposite to the gums.
This point is near to the
articulation point of Noon,
The Articulation Point Of Raa’ (ر)
( the function of the ) Gap is to pass
the sound during the pronunciation of
Raa’ . Otherwise , articulation point
would be blocked completely leading
to the forbidden repetition (of Raa’
sound).
Comparison Between The Articulation Of Raa’
With Tafkheem And Raa’ With Tarqeeq
( articulation of ) Raa’ with tafkheem is accompanied by
concavity of the middle of the tongue and narrowing of the
throat unlike Raa’ with tarqeeq .
Raa’ with
tarqeeq

Raa’ with
tafkheem
The Articulation Points Of Taa’(ط), Daal(د) And
Ta’(ت)
They are articulated from the tip of the tongue and the gum
line of the upper two incisors (i.e.The tip of the tongue
touches the gums between the hard palate and the upper
front teeth. Taa’ and Daal have the same position of the
tongue, but with Ta’, there is more pressure on front of the
tongue and the back of the tongue raises a little.)
Daal(د) and
Ta’(ت)
Taa’(ط)
The Articulation Points Of Seen(س), Saad(ص) and
Zaai(ز)
It is articulated by placing the tip of the tongue on the plates
of the lower two incisors so that the sound is emitted from
between the upper and lower incisors.
Seen(س) and
Zaai(ز)
Saad(ص)
The Articulation Points Of Dhaa’(ظ), Dhaal(د)
And Thaa’(ث)
They are articulated from the tip of the tongue and the bottom
edges of the upper two incisors.
Dhaa’(ظ) and
Dhaal(د)
Thaa’(ث)
The Articulation Point Of Faa’(ف)
It is articulated from the inside of the lower lip touching the
tips of the two top incisors
Faa’(ف)
The Articulation Point Of Non-Madd Waaw(و
The two lips form a circle with the rising of the deepest part
of the tongue.
We previously mentioned the difference between this Waaw
and the Madd Waaw on page 96.
The Articulation Point of Baa’ (ب)
It is articulated by closing the two lips together.
Baa’(ب)
The Articulation Point Of Meem(م)
It is articulated by closing the two lips together accompanied
by Ghunnah sound from nasal passage.

The scholars called the lingual part of Meem complemented
part while the nasal part of Meem is called the complementing
part.
Meem (م)
Ghunnah(nasalization)in Terms Of Being A Letter
It is a sound produced from the nasal cavity, It is a
characteristic of Noon and Meem and always accompany
their (articulation) in all of their cases, but its length varies
according to their positions. This is covered in the Ghunnah
chapter, page307.
Meem: there is no meem
without Ghunnah.
Noon: there is no noon without
Ghunnah.

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