Bahá'í orthography
Encyclopedia
Bahá'í orthography refers to the standardized system of orthography
when rendering Persian
or Arabic
words into English in the literature of the Bahá'í Faith
. The set of guidelines uses certain accents
and dots when transliterating
the Arabic script that allows for a near-accurate representation of the original Arabic.
Bahá'ís use a particular and fairly precise system standardized by Shoghi Effendi
, which he initiated in a general letter on March 20, 1925. The Bahá'í transliteration scheme was based on a standard adopted by the Tenth International Congress of Orientalists which took place in Geneva
in September 1894. Shoghi Effendi changed some details of the Congress's system, most notably in the use of digraphs
in certain cases (e.g. sh instead of š
), and in incorporating the solar letters when writing the definite article al- according to pronunciation (e.g. ar-Raḥím, as-Ṣaddíq, instead of al-Raḥím, al-Ṣaddíq).
Real phonetic values of Arabic
vary regionally and the table mostly demonstrates the abstract Arabic phonemes. and appear differently in Maghrebi
style. In Arabic, the final form of the letter can be written undotted.
Since the Bahá'ís adopted their system in 1927, Middle Eastern scholars have modified the standard academic system adopted in 1894 in various ways, and have created a separate, related system for writing Persian (a principal change being use of e and o to write certain vowels, which have a different sound in Persian than in Arabic). The Bahá'í system, however, has now been used to print thousands of books and thousands of pamphlets and booklets in dozens of languages, hence modifying it would create confusion and force authors to use two different spelling systems (one in passages being quoted exactly, the other in the rest of the text). For this reason, many academics have come to accept and use the Bahá'í system.
The correct forms used in the writings of the Bahá'í Faith
referring to its name and central figures are "Bahá'í," "Bahá'ís," "Báb
," "Bahá'u'lláh
," and "`Abdu'l-Bahá
'." Because of typographic limitations, the forms "Bahai," "Bahais," "Bab," and "Bahaullah" are often used as a common spelling and are satisfactory for certain electronic uses.
Orthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
when rendering Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
or Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
words into English in the literature of the Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
. The set of guidelines uses certain accents
Diacritic
A diacritic is a glyph added to a letter, or basic glyph. The term derives from the Greek διακριτικός . Diacritic is both an adjective and a noun, whereas diacritical is only an adjective. Some diacritical marks, such as the acute and grave are often called accents...
and dots when transliterating
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
the Arabic script that allows for a near-accurate representation of the original Arabic.
Bahá'ís use a particular and fairly precise system standardized by Shoghi Effendi
Shoghi Effendi
Shoghí Effendí Rabbání , better known as Shoghi Effendi, was the Guardian and appointed head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957...
, which he initiated in a general letter on March 20, 1925. The Bahá'í transliteration scheme was based on a standard adopted by the Tenth International Congress of Orientalists which took place in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
in September 1894. Shoghi Effendi changed some details of the Congress's system, most notably in the use of digraphs
Digraph (orthography)
A digraph or digram is a pair of characters used to write one phoneme or a sequence of phonemes that does not correspond to the normal values of the two characters combined...
in certain cases (e.g. sh instead of š
Š
The grapheme Š, š is used in various contexts, usually denoting the voiceless postalveolar fricative. In the International Phonetic Alphabet this sound is denoted with , but the lowercase š is used in the Americanist phonetic notation, as well as in the Uralic Phonetic Alphabet.For use in computer...
), and in incorporating the solar letters when writing the definite article al- according to pronunciation (e.g. ar-Raḥím, as-Ṣaddíq, instead of al-Raḥím, al-Ṣaddíq).
| Arabic letter | Arabic Name | Transliteration | IPA International Phonetic Alphabet The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic... ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| alif | á, a | /aː/; and others (Arabic) | |
| bá' | b | b | |
| tá' | t | /t/ | |
| thá' | th | θ (Arabic); s (Persian) | |
| jím | j | /d͡ʒ/ | |
| /ħ/ (Arabic); h (Persian) | |||
| khá' | kh | /x/ | |
| dál | d | /d/ | |
| dhál | dh | ð (Arabic); z (Persian) | |
| rá' | r | r | |
| záy | z | z | |
| sín | s | s | |
| shín | sh | ʃ | |
| /sˤ/ (Arabic); s (Persian) | |||
| /dˤ/ (Arabic); z (Persian) | |||
| /tˤ/ (Arabic); t (Persian) | |||
| /ðˤ/ (Arabic); z (Persian) | |||
| `ayn | ` | /ʕ/ (Arabic); ʔ (Persian) | |
| ghayn | gh | /ɣ/ (Arabic); ɣ~ɢ (Persian) | |
| fá' | f | f | |
| qáf | q | q (Arabic); ɢ~ɣ (Persian) | |
| (Persian) |
káf | k | k |
| lám | l | l | |
| mím | m | m | |
| nún | n | n | |
| há' | h | h | |
| wáw | ú, w, v | /uː/; w (Arabic); v (Persian) | |
| (Persian) |
yá' | í, y | /iː/, j |
Real phonetic values of Arabic
Arabic phonology
While many languages have numerous dialects that differ in pronunciation, the Arabic language is more properly described as a continuum of varieties. This article deals primarily with Modern Standard Arabic, which is the standard variety shared by educated speakers throughout Arabic-speaking regions...
vary regionally and the table mostly demonstrates the abstract Arabic phonemes. and appear differently in Maghrebi
Maghrebi script
Maghrebi script is a cursive form of the Arabic alphabet influenced by Kufic letters that developed in the Maghreb and later in Spain, particularly Andalusia.The Maghribi script can be divided in five other sub/scripts:...
style. In Arabic, the final form of the letter can be written undotted.
Modified letters
The following are not actually full letters, but rather phonemic diacritics or different orthographical shapes for letters. (Used in Arabic language only)| Arabic letter | Arabic Name | Transliteration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| hamzah | ' | ʔ | |
| alif maddah | 'á | /ʔaː/ | |
| h / t | /a/, /at/ | ||
| á | /aː/ |
Since the Bahá'ís adopted their system in 1927, Middle Eastern scholars have modified the standard academic system adopted in 1894 in various ways, and have created a separate, related system for writing Persian (a principal change being use of e and o to write certain vowels, which have a different sound in Persian than in Arabic). The Bahá'í system, however, has now been used to print thousands of books and thousands of pamphlets and booklets in dozens of languages, hence modifying it would create confusion and force authors to use two different spelling systems (one in passages being quoted exactly, the other in the rest of the text). For this reason, many academics have come to accept and use the Bahá'í system.
The correct forms used in the writings of the Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
referring to its name and central figures are "Bahá'í," "Bahá'ís," "Báb
Báb
Siyyid `Alí Muḥammad Shírází was the founder of Bábism, and one of three central figures of the Bahá'í Faith. He was a merchant from Shíráz, Persia, who at the age of twenty-four claimed to be the promised Qá'im . After his declaration he took the title of Báb meaning "Gate"...
," "Bahá'u'lláh
Bahá'u'lláh
Bahá'u'lláh , born ' , was the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. He claimed to be the prophetic fulfilment of Bábism, a 19th-century outgrowth of Shí‘ism, but in a broader sense claimed to be a messenger from God referring to the fulfilment of the eschatological expectations of Islam, Christianity, and...
," and "`Abdu'l-Bahá
`Abdu'l-Bahá
‘Abdu’l-Bahá , born ‘Abbás Effendí, was the eldest son of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. In 1892, `Abdu'l-Bahá was appointed in his father's will to be his successor and head of the Bahá'í Faith. `Abdu'l-Bahá was born in Tehran to an aristocratic family of the realm...
'." Because of typographic limitations, the forms "Bahai," "Bahais," "Bab," and "Bahaullah" are often used as a common spelling and are satisfactory for certain electronic uses.
External links
- Transliteration, an essay by Bahá'í scholar Moojan Momen on the history and practical application of the Bahá'í transcription standard.
- Dying for God: Preface, introductory summary of Bahá'í terminology and transliteration used in academic literature.
- Bahá'í Style Guide, guidelines for published references to the Bahá'í Faith in the United States. (This link is not active as of 4-Feb-2010. There is a Bahá'í Style Guide for media.)
- Proper pronunciation of Arabic, by Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.
- Bahá'í Glossary