Rules of the Silent Noon and Tanween
The silent noon refers to the letter “noon” that carries no vowel markings, and it is similar to tanween, which consists of two diacritics such as the damma, kasra, or fatha at the end of a word. When the silent noon or tanween encounters one of the letters of the Arabic alphabet, it follows one of the following rules:
- Al-Izhar: This rule involves pronouncing the letter without any nasalization or stress when it meets the silent noon or tanween. The letters involved in this rule are: ‘ain, ha, ghain, kha, hamza, and ha.
- Al-Ikhfa: This rule denotes the pronunciation of the letter in a manner that is intermediate between izhar and idgham when it encounters the silent noon or tanween. The letters that fall under this rule are: saad, dhal, thaa, kaf, jeem, sheen, qaf, seen, dhal, taa, zaay, fa, taa, dheed, and dhha.
- Al-Idgham: This rule involves merging the silent noon or tanween into one of the idgham letters, thereby dropping the noon while retaining the idgham letter. Idgham occurs only between two words. The letters that facilitate this are: ya, noon, meem, and waw, with a ghunnah being pronounced with the first three. The letters lam and ra, however, do not carry the ghunnah during idgham.
- Al-Iqlaab: This rule represents the conversion of the single letter (the letter ba) into meem that is pronounced softly when it meets the silent noon or tanween, while still maintaining some nasalization.
Characteristics of Arabic Letters
The characteristics of letters refer to the manner in which each letter is pronounced, distinguishing it from others. Understanding these characteristics allows one to differentiate between strong and weak letters, thereby enhancing the quality of recitation and proper articulation from their respective points of origin. The characteristics of letters can be categorized into those that have opposites (ten in total, with five pairs) and those that lack opposites (seven in total). Below is a detailed breakdown:
- Characteristics with opposites include:
- Al-Istifal, which is opposed to Al-Ist’ala.
- Al-Ithlaq, which is opposed to Al-Isma’at.
- Al-Hams, which is opposed to Al-Jahr.
- Al-Infitah, which is opposed to Al-Itbaaq.
- Al-Shidda, which is opposed to Al-Rikhawah.
- Characteristics with no opposites include:
- Al-Sareer.
- Al-Lin.
- Al-Takrir.
- Al-Qalqalah.
- Al-Istitaalah.
- Al-Tafashsha.
- Al-Inhiraf.
Rules of the Silent Meem
The silent meem refers to the letter “meem” that remains stationary whether at pause or in connection, and it can occur in the middle of a word or at its end with a pause. It is governed by three rules as follows:
- Shafwi Ikhfa: This occurs when the silent meem meets the letter ba, leading to the soft pronunciation of the meem within the ba, while retaining nasalization.
- Shafwi Idgham: This involves the meeting of the silent meem with another meem that follows, where both merge and are pronounced as one heavy meem, while still maintaining nasalization.
- Shafwi Izhar: This occurs when the silent meem meets the remaining letters of the Arabic alphabet, which are pronounced clearly without idgham or ikhfa.