Here is a brief introduction to the pronunciation of the Arabic letters with Tajweed with English examples. Learn all letters of the Arabic Alphabet as they are explained.
Here we will learn the following:
What is Tajweed?
“Tajweed” or “Tajwid” It is the science of reciting the Quran, by which it gives each letter its right, its way out, and a description.
It comes from the Arabic word (تَجْوِيدْ) which linguistically means enhancement or making it perfect.
Tajweed is a set of linguistic and pronunciation rules used in reciting the Quran In the right way, As same as the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was reciting.
Read: Is Learning Tajweed Fard “Obligatory”?
What Are Tajweed Letters?
Tajweed letters are the letters of the Arabic alphabet that are pronounced with a specific pronunciation or have certain characteristics when pronounced in Quranic recitation. There are 29 Tajweed letters in the Arabic language, and they are classified into two categories:
- The Heavy Letters (al-huruf al-thaqilah): These are the letters that are pronounced with more emphasis and weight. There are 14 heavy letters, which are: ق, ط, ب, ج, د, ذ, ر, ز, ص, ض, ث, خ, ح, and غ.
- The Light Letters (al-huruf al-lafifah): These are the letters that are pronounced with less emphasis and weight. There are 15 light letters, which are: أ, و, ه, ي, ن, م, ل, ك, ق, ف, س, ش, ء, ع, and ت.
- In addition to the Tajweed letters, there are also the Madd letters, which are elongated vowels in the Arabic language that are pronounced for a longer duration than the regular short vowels.
What are the Heavy letters and Light letters?
Heavy and light letters are Arabic letters pronounced in two different ways in terms of the Thickening of the letter or the velarization and non-velarization of the letters.
The scholars of Tajweed explained that the term Heavy letters refers to the thickness of seven Arabic letters in terms of the velarization of these letters.
A. Arabic Heavy letters
Scholars agreed these letters are called arrogance letters or in Arabic “حروف الاستعلاء”. These seven letters could rank differently in their heaviness, meaning that some letters are too heavy and others are less.
The heavy letters are: Khaa (خ), Saad (ص), Daad (ض), Ghain (غ). Taa (ط), Qaaf (ق), Zaa (ظ).
B. Arabic Light letters
Arabic Light letters are the non-velarization letters with ease when pronouncing the letters. The non-velarization letters: the hamza (ء), baa (ب), taa (ت), tha (ث), jim (ج), haa (ح), dal (د), Zal (ذ), zay (ز), seen (س), shein (ش), ain (ع), Faa (ف), kaf (ك), lam (ل), mem (م), non (ن), ha (هـ), waw (و), yaa (ي).
Note: There is an exception for some letters that have cases where they could be heavy and others where they could be light. These are three letters that would be referred to below.
Learn Arabic And Tajweed with Us: Master Tajweed And Prove Yourself As A Skillful Qaari
Pronunciation of Tajweed Letters
When you learn the Arabic letters in the correct way, it would be so much easier to pronounce these letters when you read the Quran with Tajweed. This would make the makharij of these letters accurate. Here we will explain how to properly pronounce each Arabic letter with Tajweed.
Learn More about Ikhfaa Letters and rules.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Alif with Tajweed?
Alif is one of three letters in the Quran which are pronounced heavy in some cases and light in other cases.
When the letter alif occurs after a light letter, the alif will be pronounced as a light letter. When the letter Alif occurs after a heavy letter, the alif will be pronounced as a heavy letter.
Here are the best Quran courses:
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ba with Tajweed?
The letter Ba (ب) is a light letter that is pronounced when the lips are closed by pushing the air from your mouth lightly. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “B” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ta with Tajweed?
The letter Ta (ت) is a light letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue touching the roots of the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “T” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Tha with Tajweed?
The letter Tha (ث) is a light letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue touching the edges of the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of “th of think” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Jim with Tajweed?
The letter Jim (ج) is a light letter that is pronounced in the middle of the tongue by pushing the air while slightly opening the mouth. It is like the letter “j” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Haa with Tajweed?
The letter Haa (ح) is a light letter that comes out of the middle of the throat with strong pushing of the air. There is no closer letter in the English language.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Khaa with Tajweed?
The letter Khaa (خ) is a Heavy letter that comes out of the bottom of the throat. It is close, but not similar to the “Kh” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Dal with Tajweed?
The letter Dal (د) is a light letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue touching the lowest part of the roots of the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “d” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Zal with Tajweed?
The letter Zal (ذ) is a light letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue and the edges of the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to “th of ‘this’” in English.
If you found it tough you can join our course to Online Quran Classes For Kids, and we will teach you all the things about Tajweed and Arabic letter pronunciation.
Let’s complete the rest of the letters.
Quran Learning Guides:
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ra with Tajweed?
The letter Ra (ر) is one of the letters that would be either light or heavy based on its harakat and the letters that come before or after it. It is pronounced from the tip of the tongue with something from its back and the gums adjacent to it from the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “R” in English with repetition of the tongue.
Here are the best Tajweed Courses:
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Zay with Tajweed?
The letter Zay (ز) is a light letter that is pronounced from the side of the tongue with slight touching between the lower and upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “Z” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Sein with Tajweed?
The letter Seen (س) is a light letter that is pronounced from the side of the tongue touching above the lower teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “S” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Shein with Tajweed?
The letter Sheen (ش) is a light letter that is pronounced in the middle of the tongue. It is close, but not similar to the sound “sh in she” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Saad with Tajweed?
The letter Saad (ص) is a Heavy letter that is pronounced from the side of the tongue and above the lower teeth. It is closer to the (س) letter but with moving the lips forward to make it so heavy.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Daad with Tajweed?
The letter Daad (ض) is a Heavy letter that is pronounced from the edge of the tongue with the upper molars adjacent to it. It is closer to the letter (د) by moving the lips forward.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Taa with Tajweed?
The letter Taa (ط) is a heavy letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue touching the roots of the upper teeth while moving the lips forward. It is closer to the letter (ت) by moving the lips forward while pronouncing.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Zaa with Tajweed?
The letter Zaa (ظ) is a Heavy letter that is pronounced from the tip of the tongue and the edges of the upper teeth. It is closer to the letter (ذ) above, with moving the lips forward while pronouncing the letter and making the letter heavier.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ain with Tajweed?
The letter Ain (ع) is a light letter that comes out of the middle of the throat. It comes from a position closer, but not similar to the sound of the letter “A” in English with a different sound addition.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ghain with Tajweed?
The letter Ghain (غ) is a Heavy letter that comes out of the bottom of the throat. It is closer, but not similar to the sound of the letter (خ) in Arabic; only a light movement of the mouth.
Here are the best Arabic Courses
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Faa with Tajweed?
The letter Faa (ف) is a light letter that is pronounced when sticking the lower lip to the heads of the upper teeth while pushing the air slightly. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “F” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Qaf with Tajweed?
The letter Qaf (ق) is a Heavy letter that is pronounced when the farthest part of the tongue, and as close to the throat as possible. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “Q” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Kaf with Tajweed?
The letter Kaf (ك) is a light letter that is pronounced when the farthest part of the tongue, and a little before the exit of the qaf sound. It is the light letter of the other heavy letter (ق). It is also close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “K” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Lam with Tajweed?
The letter Lam (ل) is a light letter that is pronounced from the front edge of the tongue while sticking to the adjacent teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound “L” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Meem with Tajweed?
The letter Meem (م) is a light letter that is pronounced when the lips are tightly closed and then opened suddenly by pushing the air. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “M” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Noon with Tajweed?
The letter Noon (ن) is a light letter that is pronounced on the tip of the tongue with the corresponding gums of the upper teeth. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “N” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Ha with Tajweed?
The letter Ha (هـ) is a light letter coming out of the throat. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letter “H” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Wow with Tajweed?
The letter Wow (و) is a light letter that is pronounced when the lips are near to being closed while pushing the air. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letters “O – W” in English.
How to pronounce the Arabic letter Yaa with Tajweed?
The letter Yaa (ي) is a light letter that is pronounced in the middle of the tongue. It is close, but not similar to the sound of the letters “y – i” in English.
Study the Arabic Letters with Tajweed in English With Tutors From al-Azhar
After presenting all Arabic letters’ pronunciation, we want to highlight that tajweed learning makes it easy for you to pronounce every letter and word in the Quran verses accurately, giving every letter its right in reciting The Quran.
Register now for our course “Mastering tajweed course” or “Arabic, Quran, and Tajweed Course For Beginners” which will prepare you to recite the Quran smoothly and in the right way as our Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) taught Us.
Register Now: Best Course To Learn Quran And Arabic For Beginners, Kids And Adults
Tajweed Articles That You could Like:
