Hamza (ء) is represented as ʼ in the middle and at the end of a word. At the beginning of a word, it is not represented.
The tāʼ marbūṭa (ة) is normally not represented, and words ending in it simply have a final -a. It is, however, represented with a t when it is the ending of the first noun of an iḍāfa and with an h when it appears after a long ā.
Native Arabic long vowels: ā ī ū
Long vowels in borrowed words: ē ō
Short vowels: fatḥa is represented as a, kasra as i and ḍamma as u. (see short vowel marks)
Wāw and yāʼ are represented as u and i after fatḥa: ʻain "eye", yaum "day".
Non-standard Arabic consonants: p (پ), ž (ژ), g (گ)
Madda (آ): ā at the beginning of a word, ʼā in the middle or at the end
A final yāʼ (ي), the nisba adjective ending, is represented as ī normally, but as īy when the ending contains the third consonant of the root. This difference is not written in the Arabic.
Capitalization: The transliteration uses no capitals, even for proper names.
Definite article: The Arabic definite article الـ is represented as al- except where assimilation occurs: al- + šams is transliterated aš-šams (see sun and moon letters). The a in al- is omitted after a final a (as in lamma šamla l-qatīʻ "to round up the herd") or changed to i after a feminine third person singular perfect verb form (as in kašafat il-ḥarbu ʻan sāqin "war flared up").
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