The Silent نون in Surah Yaseen
The silent نون refers to the نون which is devoid of movement; it is an integral part of the word’s structure. The silent نون can be found in nouns, verbs, and letters, appearing both medially and finally. It remains consistent in both writing and pronunciation, whether in connection or pause. From this definition, we can derive the following criteria that characterize the silent نون:
- Free from movement: The نون must lack one of the three movements: الفتحة, الضمة, or الكسرة. This excludes the following:
- The moving نون that is softened, as in: (فَأَغْشَيْنَاهُمْ).
- The doubled نون, as in: (لَنَرْجُمَنَّكُمْ).
- The silent نون which is pronounced upon connecting with another silent letter, as in: (وَالْقُرْآنِ الْحَكِيمِ).
- The terminal نون that is silent when paused, as in: (الْمُرْسَلِينَ).
- Original from the structure of the word:
This means it is an essential letter in the word’s spelling, thereby excluding التنوين, since this refers to a silent نون that is phonetic and an addition to the word structure.
- Appears in nouns, verbs, and letters:
For instance, it can be found in nouns like: (جُندٍ), in verbs like: (لِتُنذِرَ), and in letters like: (مِن شَيْءٍ). This also excludes التنوين, which only occurs at the end of nouns.
- Medial and final:
This indicates that it can appear in the middle of a word, as well as at the end. Consequently, it excludes التنوين, which appears solely at the end of a word.
- Consistent in writing and pronunciation, whether connected or paused:
By this criterion, التنوين is also excluded, as it is pronounced without being written and is connected when not paused.
Detailed Rules of the Silent نون in Surah Yaseen
The silent نون has four rules when it encounters the letters of the Arabic alphabet: إظهار, إدغام, إقلاب, and إخفاء. Ibn Al-Jazari indicated these in his preface, stating:
وَحُكْمُ تَنْوِينٍ وَنُونٍ يُلْفَى
ظْهَارٌ، إدْغَامٌ، وَقَلْبٌ، إِخْفَا
Below is a detailed exploration of these rules:
إظهار حلقي (Clear Enunciation)
Here, we will clarify the meaning of إظهار حلقي and outline its rules in Surah Yaseen:
- Definition:
It involves articulating each letter from its proper point of articulation without a noticeable nasal sound in the enunciated نون. The phrase “without a noticeable nasal sound” means that while the nasal sound is inherent to نون, it cannot be completely detached from it. The term “enunciated letter” refers to the silent نون or التنوين.
- Its letters:
There are six letters of إظهار: (الهمزة, الهاء, العين, الحاء, الغين, الخاء), which are referred to as the throat letters because their points of articulation come from the throat. Al-Jamzouy summarized these letters with the following:
هَمْـزٌ فَهَـاءٌ ثُـمَّ عَـيْـنٌ حَــاءُ
مُهْمَلَـتَـانِ ثُــمَّ غَـيْـنٌ خَــاءُ
- Rule of إظهار:
If a letter from the إظهار letters follows the silent نون, the نون must be clearly articulated, whether it appears in one word or two.
- Notation:
The إظهار rule is represented in the Madinah Mushaf with a small خاء mark placed without a dot above the نون.
Applications of إظهار in Surah Yaseen
Below are examples of إظهار in Surah Yaseen:
- Allah says: (يس* وَالْقُرْآنِ الْحَكِيمِ). Hafs clearly pronounced the نون in (السين) following the narration, contrary to the standard rule because it follows one of the إدغام letters.
- Letter Alif:
(مِنْ أَقْصَى), (وَمِنْ أَنفُسِهِمْ), (مِّنْ آيَةٍ مِّنْ آيَاتِ), (إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلَّا).
- Letter هاء:
(مِنْهَا), (فَمِنْهُ), (مِنْهُ), (عَنْهَا), (إِنْ هُوَ), (فَمِنْهَا رَكُوبُهُمْ وَمِنْهَا).
- Letter خاء:
(وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ).
إدغام (Merging)
This section will clarify the meaning of إدغام and outline its rules in Surah Yaseen:
- Definition:
It refers to the contact of a silent letter with a moving letter such that the two letters merge into one doubled letter.
- Its letters:
There are six letters of إدغام, summed up in the term: (يرملون).
- Types of إدغام:
Edgham is divided into two categories:
- إدغام بغنة: Pertains to four letters from (يرملون), specifically: الياء, النون, الميم, والواو.
- إدغام بغير غنة: Consists of the letters اللام والراء, which are the remaining letters from (يرملون).
- Rule of إدغام:
If a letter of إدغام follows the silent نون or التنوين, the نون will merge into the إدغام letter, with a nasal sound lasting the duration of two movements. Furthermore, إدغام only occurs between two words; if it happens within a single word, it is considered إظهار مطلق, and none of these occurrences are found in Surah Yaseen.
- Notation:
The إدغام is represented by stripping the نون of its movement and doubling the second letter.
Applications of إدغام in Surah Yaseen
Below are instances of إدغام with a nasal sound from Surah Yaseen:
- Letter ياء:
(إِن يُرِدْنِ), (مَن يُحْيِي), (أَن يَخْلُقَ), (أَن يَقُولَ).
- Letter نون:
(مِّن نَّخِيلٍ), (وَإِن نَّشَأْ), (وَمَن نُّعَمِّرْهُ), (مِن نُّطْفَةٍ).
- Letter ميم:
(مِّن مِّثْلِهِ), (مِن مَّرْقَدِنَا).
Furthermore, here are examples of إدغام without a nasal sound from Surah Yaseen:
- Letter لام:
(لَئِن لَّمْ), (مَن لَّا يَسْأَلُكُمْ), (مَن لَّوْ يَشَاءُ), (أَن لَّا).
- Letter راء:
(مِّن رَّبٍّ), (مِّن رَّسُولٍ).
إقلاب (Reversion)
This section will examine the definition of إقلاب and outline its rules in Surah Yaseen:
- Definition:
It involves replacing one letter with another, while maintaining the nasal sound during the reversal.
- Its letter:
There is only one letter for إقلاب, which is الباء.
- Rule of إقلاب:
If the letter الباء follows the silent نون, then نون is pronounced as ميم softly with a nasal sound lasting for two movements, regardless of whether they appear in one word or two.
- Notation:
A small ميم mark is placed above the silent نون.
Applications of إقلاب in Surah Yaseen
Following are examples of إقلاب with a nasal sound in Surah Yaseen:
- In a single word:
(تُنبِتُ), (يَنبَغِي).
- In two words:
(مِن بَيْنِ), (مِن بَعْدِهِ), (مَن بَعَثَنَا).
إخفاء (Concealment)
This section will clarify the definition of إخفاء and delineate its rules in Surah Yaseen:
- Definition:
It refers to pronouncing a silent letter without emphasis while subtlety bridging between إظهار and إدغام, while retaining the nasal sound in the first letter.
- Its letters:
These are the residual letters after excluding those mentioned in the preceding three rules.
- Rule of إخفاء:
If a letter belonging to the إخفاء category follows the silent نون, then the نون should be concealed, maintaining the nasal sound for the duration of two movements.
- Notation:
The silent نون is stripped of its movement without doubling the second letter.
Applications of إخفاء in Surah Yaseen
Below are instances of إخفاء in Surah Yaseen:
- Letter صاد:
(يُنصَرُونَ).
- Letter ذال:
(لِتُنذِرَ), (أُنذِرَ), (أَأَنذَرْتَهُمْ), (تُنذِرْهُمْ), (تُنذِرُ), (أَئِن ذُكِّرْتُم), (لِّيُنذِرَ).
- Letter ثاء:
(مِن ثَمَرِهِ).
- Letter كاف:
(إِن كَانَتْ), (وَإِن كُلٌّ), (إِن كُنتُمْ), (مِنكُمْ), (مَن كَانَ), (فَلَا يَحْزُنكَ).
- Letter جيم:
(مِن جُندٍ).
- Letter شين:
(مِن شَيْءٍ), (أَنشَأَهَا).
- Letter قاف:
(يُنقِذُونِ).
- Letter سين:
(يَنسِلُونَ), (الْإِنسَانُ).
- Letter دال:
(مِن دُونِهِ), (جُندٍ), (مِن دُونِ).
- Letter زاي:
(تَنزِيلَ), (أَنزَلَ), (أَنزَلْنَا), (مُنزِلِينَ).
- Letter فاء:
(أَنفُسِهِمْ), (أَنفِقُوا), (كُن فَيَكُونُ).
- Letter تاء:
(أَنتُمْ), (تَنتَهُوا), (آمَنتُ), (أَن تُدْرِكَ), (كُنتُمْ).
- Letter ظاء:
(يَنظُرُونَ).