View source for Ottoman Turkish alphabet

{{Short description|Arabic-based script for Ottoman Turkish}}
{{Infobox writing system
| name        = Ottoman Turkish alphabet
| type        = [[Abjad]]
| languages   = [[Ottoman Turkish language|Ottoman Turkish]]
| time        = 1299–1928
| fam1        = [[Egyptian hieroglyphs]]
| fam2        = [[Proto-Sinaitic script|Proto-Sinaitic]]
| fam3        = [[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]]
| fam4        = [[Aramaic alphabet|Aramaic]]
| fam5        = [[Nabataean alphabet|Nabataean]]
| fam6        = [[Arabic script|Arabic]]
| fam7        = [[Persian alphabet|Perso-Arabic]]
| children    = *[[Arebica]]
*[[Albanian Arabic alphabet]]
*[[Enver's alphabet]]
| sample      = <!-- Sample image, WITHOUT "File:" prefix -->
| imagesize   = <!-- Sample image's size -->
| unicode     = {{plainlist}}
* [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0600.pdf U+0600 .. U+06FF]
<!-- * [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0750.pdf U+0750 .. U+077F] Not used for Ottoman Turkish -->
* [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/UFB50.pdf U+FB50 .. U+FDFF]
* [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/UFE70.pdf U+FE70 .. U+FEFF]
<!-- * [https://www.unicode.org/Public/6.1.0/charts/blocks/U08A0.pdf U+08A0 .. U+08FF] Not used for Ottoman Turkish -->
{{endplainlist}}
| iso15924    = Arab
| note        = none
}}
{{Contains special characters|Ottoman Turkish}}
{{IPA notice}}
The '''Ottoman Turkish alphabet''' ({{langx|ota|الفبا|elifbâ}}) is a version of the [[Persian alphabet|Perso-Arabic script]] used to write [[Ottoman Turkish]] for over 600 years until 1928, when it was [[Turkish alphabet reform|replaced]] by the [[Latin-script alphabet|Latin]]-based modern [[Turkish alphabet]].

Though Ottoman Turkish was primarily written in this script, [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|non-Muslim Ottoman subjects]] sometimes wrote it in other scripts, including [[Armeno-Turkish alphabet|Armenian]], [[Greek alphabet|Greek]], Latin and [[Hebrew alphabet]]s.

==History==

===Origins===
The various [[Turkic languages]] have been written in a number of different alphabets, including [[Arabic script|Arabic]], [[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]], [[Greek alphabet|Greek]], [[Latin script|Latin]] and other writing systems.

The earliest known Turkic alphabet is the [[Orkhon script]]. When Turks adopted Islam, they began to use Arabic script for their languages, especially under the [[Kara-Khanid Khanate|Kara-Khanids]]. Though the [[Seljuq Empire|Seljuks]] used Persian as their official language, in the late Seljuk period, Turkish began to be written again in Anatolia in the nascent [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman state]].<ref>Jan Schmidt, "How to Write Turkish? The Vagaries of the Arabo-Persian Script in Ottoman-Turkish Texts" {{doi|10.1515/9783110639063-006}}, ''Creating Standards: Interactions with Arabic Script in 12 Manuscript Cultures'' {{isbn|9783110634983}}, in ''Studies in Manuscript Cultures'' '''16''':131''ff'' (2019)</ref>

The Ottoman Turkish alphabet is a form of the Perso-Arabic script that, despite not being able to differentiate O and U, was otherwise generally better suited to writing Turkic words rather than Perso-Arabic words. Turkic words had all of their vowels written in and had systematic spelling rules and seldom needed to be memorized.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hagopian |first=V. H. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1028995484 |title=Ottoman-Turkish conversation-grammar: a practical method of learning the Ottoman-Turkish language |date=2015 |isbn=978-1-333-90479-1 |location=London |oclc=1028995484}}</ref> Other Oghuz Turkic languages such as Azerbaijani and Turkmen enjoyed a high degree of written mutual intelligibility as the Ottoman Alphabet catered to anachronistic Turkic consonants and spellings that demonstrated Anatolian Turkish' shared history with Azerbaijani and Turkmen. The Ottoman Turkish alphabet however was poorly suited to  Arabic and Persian loanwords which needed to be memorized by students learning Turkish as it would omit vowels making them difficult to read. [[Arabic language|Arabic]]  has several consonants that do not exist in Turkish, making several Arabic letters superfluous.

The introduction of the telegraph and the printing press in the 19th century exposed further weaknesses in the Arabic script.<ref name="Zürcher-188">[[Erik-Jan Zürcher|Zürcher, Erik Jan]]. ''Turkey: a modern history'', p. 188. I. B. Tauris, 2004. {{ISBN|978-1-85043-399-6}}</ref>

[[File:Calendar Thessaloniki 1896.jpg|thumb|left|A calendar page for November 1, 1895 (October 20 [[Old Style and New Style dates|OS]]) in cosmopolitan [[Thessaloniki]]. The first 3 lines in Ottoman Turkish Arabic script give the date in the [[Rumi calendar|Rumi]], 20 Teşrin-i Evvel 1311, and [[Islamic calendar|Islamic]], 14 Jumādā al-Ūlā 1313, calendars; the Julian and Gregorian (in French) dates appear below.]]
[[File:Huruf-e Munfasila.svg|thumb|327x327px|Enver Pasha's ''{{lang|tr|hurûf-ı munfasıla}}'' of 1917]]

Some Turkish reformers promoted the Latin script well before [[Atatürk]]'s reforms. In 1862, during [[Tanzimat|an earlier period of reform]], the statesman [[Mehmed Tahir Münif Pasha|Münif Pasha]] advocated a reform of the alphabet. At the start of the 20th century, similar proposals were made by several writers associated with the [[Young Turk]] movement, including [[Hüseyin Cahit]], [[Abdullah Cevdet]] and [[Celâl Nuri]].<ref name="Zürcher-188" /> In 1917, [[Enver Pasha]] introduced a revised alphabet, the ''[[hurûf-ı munfasıla]]'' representing Turkish sounds more accurately; it was based on Arabic letter forms, but written separately, not joined cursively. It was for a time the official script of the Army.<ref>G. L. Lewis (1999). ''Türk Cumhuriyeti'nde Bir Uygarlık Ögesi Olarak Atatürk'ün Dil Devrimi''. Jacob M. Landau (Yay. Haz.) (1999). Atatürk ve Türkiye'nin Modernleşmesi, İstanbul: Sarmal, {{ISBN|975-8304-18-6}} (s. 251-272) içinde. s.253.</ref>

The romanization issue was raised again in 1923 during the [[İzmir Economic Congress]] of the new [[Turkey|Turkish Republic]], sparking a public debate that was to continue for several years. A move away from the Arabic script was strongly opposed by conservative and religious elements. It was argued that romanization of the script would detach Turkey from the wider Islamic world, substituting a foreign (European) concept of national identity for the [[ummah|confessional community]].

Others opposed romanization on practical grounds, as there was no suitable adaptation of the Latin script that could be used for Turkish phonemes. Some suggested that a better alternative might be to modify the Arabic script to introduce extra characters for better representing Turkish vowels.<ref>Gürçağlar, Şehnaz Tahir. ''The politics and poetics of translation in Turkey, 1923–1960'', pp. 53–54. Rodopi, 2008. {{ISBN|978-90-420-2329-1}}.</ref> [[File:Ataturk-September 20, 1928.jpg|thumb|[[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk|Atatürk]] introducing the new Turkish alphabet to the people of [[Kayseri]], September 20, 1928|291x291px]]In 1926, the Turkic republics of the [[Soviet Union]] adopted the Latin script, giving a major boost to reformers in Turkey.<ref name="Zürcher-188" />

===Replacement===
{{main|Turkish alphabet reform}}
Ottoman Turkish script was replaced by the [[Latin script|Latin]]-based new [[Turkish alphabet]]. Its use became compulsory in all public communications in 1929.<ref>Dil Derneği, ''Yazım Kılavuzu'', 2002 (the writing guide of the Turkish language)</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071112105952/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,786894,00.html Nationalist Notes], ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', July 23, 1928</ref>  The change was formalized by the ''Law on the Adoption and Implementation of the Turkish Alphabet'',<ref name="kanun1353">{{cite web |title=Tūrk Harflerinin Kabul ve Tatbiki Hakkında Kanun |trans-title=Acceptance and Application of Turkish Letters LAW |language=tr |url=http://www.idealhukuk.com/hukuk/hukuk.asp?mct=mevzuatdetay&x=kanun&y=Kanunlar&id=910 |access-date=January 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610225023/http://www.idealhukuk.com/hukuk/hukuk.asp?mct=mevzuatdetay&x=kanun&y=Kanunlar&id=910 |archive-date=June 10, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> passed on November 1, 1928, and effective on January 1, 1929.<ref name="Zürcher">Erik Jan Zürcher (2004), ''Turkey: a Modern History'', pages 188–9. {{ISBN|978-1-85043-399-6}}</ref>

== Alphabet ==
As with [[Arabic]], [[Persian language|Persian]] and [[Urdu]], texts in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet are written right to left. The appearance of a letter changes depending on its position in a word: 
* isolated (in a one-letter word); 
* final (in which case it is joined on the right to the preceding letter); 
* medial (joined on both sides); and 
* initial (joined on the left to the following letter).

Some letters cannot be joined to the left and so do not possess separate medial and initial forms. In medial position, the final form is used. In initial position, the isolated form is used.

{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Isolated
! scope="col" | Final
! scope="col" | Medial
! scope="col" | Initial
! scope="col" | Name
! scope="col" | [[Turkish alphabet|Modern Turkish]]
! scope="col" | [[ALA-LC Romanization|ALA-LC]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/romanization/ottoman.pdf |title=Ottoman script |website=[[Library of Congress]] }}&nbsp;{{small|(166 KB)}}, ''[[Library of Congress]]''. Retrieved January 14, 2012.</ref>
! scope="col" | [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]<ref name="hagopian"/>
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ا}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـا}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| elif || a, e || —, ā, ' || {{IPA link|æ}}, {{IPA link|e}}, —, ({{IPA link|ʔ}})
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%">{{lang|ota|ء}}</span>||colspan="3"|—
| hemze || —, ' || —, ' || —, [{{IPA link|ʔ}}]
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ب}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـب}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـبـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|بـ}}</span>
| be || b (p) || b || {{IPA link|b}} ({{IPA link|p}})
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|پ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـپ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـپـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|پـ}}</span>
| pe || p || p || {{IPA link|p}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ت}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـت}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـتـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|تـ}}</span>
| te || t || t || {{IPA link|t}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ث}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـث}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـثـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ثـ}}</span>
| se || s || s̠  || {{IPA link|s}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ج}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـج}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـجـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|جـ}}</span>
| cim || c || c || {{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|چ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـچ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـچـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|چـ}}</span>
| çim || ç || ç || {{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ح}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـح}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـحـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|حـ}}</span>
| ha || h || ḥ || {{IPA link|h}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|خ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـخ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـخـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|خـ}}</span>
| hı || h || ḫ || {{IPA link|x}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|د}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:110%">{{lang|ota|ـد}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| dal || d || d || {{IPA link|d}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ذ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـذ}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| zel || z || z̠ || {{IPA link|z}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ر}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـر}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| re || r || r || {{IPA link|ɾ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ز}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـز}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| ze || z || z || {{IPA link|z}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ژ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـژ}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| je || j || j || {{IPA link|ʒ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|س}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـس}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـسـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|سـ}}</span>
| sin || s || s || {{IPA link|s}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ش}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـش}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـشـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|شـ}}</span>
| şın || ş || ș || {{IPA link|ʃ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ص}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـص}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـصـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|صـ}}</span>
| sad || s || ṣ || {{IPA link|s}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ض}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـض}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـضـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ضـ}}</span>
| dad || d, z || ż || {{IPA link|z}} ({{IPA link|d}})
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ط}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـط}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـطـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|طـ}}</span>
| tı || t || ṭ || {{IPA link|t}}, {{IPA link|d}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ظ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـظ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـظـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ظـ}}</span>
| zı || z || ẓ || {{IPA link|z}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ع}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـع}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـعـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|عـ}}</span>
| ayn || ', — || ‘ || —, {{IPA link|ʔ}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|غ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـغ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|ـغـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:135%">{{lang|ota|غـ}}</span>
| gayn || g, ğ, (v)<!-- See footnote 5 --> || ġ || [ɣ → {{IPA link|g}}], [[Length (phonetics)|◌ː]], ({{IPA link|v}}),<!--kova = قوغه-->
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ف}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـف}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـفـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|فـ}}</span>
| fe || f || f || {{IPA link|f}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ق}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـق}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـقـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|قـ}}</span>
| qaf || k ||  q ||{{IPA link|k}}, [<nowiki/>[[Voiceless uvular stop|q]]]
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ك}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـك}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـكـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|كـ}}</span>
| kef || k || k || {{IPA link|k}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|گ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـگ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|ـگـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:130%">{{lang|ota|گـ}}</span>
| gef {{smallsup|(1)}}, kāf-ı fārsī<!-- See footnote 1 -->
| g, ğ, (v)<!-- See footnote 5 --> || g || [g → {{IPA link|ɟ}}], [[j]] ([[v]])<!-- dövmek = دوگمك -->
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:125%">{{lang|ota|ڭ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:125%">{{lang|ota|ـڭ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:125%">{{lang|ota|ـڭـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:125%">{{lang|ota|ڭـ}}</span>
| nef, ñef, sağır kef  {{smallsup|(1)}}, kāf-ı nūnī<!-- See footnote 1 -->|| n || ñ ||[[n]], [{{IPA link|ŋ}}]
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ل}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـل}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـلـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|لـ}}</span>
| lam || l || l || {{IPA link|l}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|م}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـم}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـمـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|مـ}}</span>
| mim || m || m || {{IPA link|m}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ن}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـن}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـنـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|نـ}}</span>
| nun || n || n || {{IPA link|n}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|و}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـو}}</span>||colspan="2"|—
| vav || v, o, ö, u, ü || v, ū, aw, avv, ūv || {{IPA link|v}}, {{IPA link|o}}, {{IPA link|œ}}, {{IPA link|u}}, {{IPA link|y}}
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ه}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـه}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـهـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|هـ}}</span>
| he <sup>(3)</sup>|| h, e, a || h {{smallsup|(2)}}<!-- See footnote 2 --> || {{IPA link|h}}, {{IPA link|æ}}, {{IPA link|e}}, ({{IPA link|t}})
|- align="center"
|<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ی}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـی}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|ـیـ}}</span>||<span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{lang|ota|یـ}}</span>
| ye || y, ı, i || y, ī, ay, á, īy || {{IPA link|j}}, {{IPA link|ɯ}}, {{IPA link|i}}
|}
<!-- This is intentionally a 4th-level header; these are notes on the table. -->

=== Notes ===
# In most texts, ''kef'', ''gef'', and ''sağır kef'' are written the same way<ref name="hagopian"/> although one Ottoman variant of ''gef'' has a "mini-''kaf''" of {{lang|ar|ﻙ}} as well as the doubled upper stroke of {{lang|ar|گ}}. In general, /g/ and /ŋ/ sounds are represented by kef ك.<ref name=":0" />{{page needed|date=September 2024}} The letter ڭ (kef with three dots above) also appears to be denoting the sound /g/ in Early Ottoman Turkish manuscripts, also known as ''kef-i Farisi'' ("Persian kef").
# The [[Library of Congress]] recommends for ''{{Transliteration|ota|he}}'' ({{lang|ota|هـ}}) in a word in the [[construct state]] to be romanised ''{{Transliteration|ota|t}}'' and when a word ending in ''{{Transliteration|ota|he}}'' is used adverbially, it should be romanised ''{{Transliteration|ota|tan}}''.
#Persian and Ottoman use the order vāv, he, ye, though in Arabic, they are he, vāv, ye.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The Routledge introduction to literary Ottoman|last=Buğday, Korkut M.|date=2009|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9780415493383|oclc=281098978}}</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2024}}
#One further sign, which is not considered an actual letter, is the so-called te merbūṭa ('connected t'), which can indicate the Arabic feminine singular ending and which is often also written in Ottoman texts. Te merbūṭa is always at the end

==Sound–letter correspondence==
The orthography of Ottoman Turkish, like many other [[abjad]]s, is complex: 
* Many Turkish sounds can be written with several different letters. For example, the phoneme /s/ can be written as {{angbr|ث}}, {{angbr|س}}, or {{angbr|ص}}.
* Conversely, some letters have more than one value: {{angbr|ك}} ''k'' may be /k/, /ɡ/, /n/, /j/, or /ː/ (lengthening the preceding vowel; modern [[Yumuşak ge|ğ]])
* Vowels are written ambiguously or not at all. For example, the text {{angbr|{{wikt-lang|ota|كورك}}}} ''kwrk'' can be read as /ɟevɾec/ 'biscuit', /cyɾc/ 'fur', /cyɾec/ 'shovel', /cøryc/ 'bellows', /ɟørek/ 'view', which in modern orthography are written ''gevrek'', ''kürk'', ''kürek'', ''körük'', ''görek''.<ref name="hagopian">{{Cite book |last=Hagopian |first=V. H. |url=https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=G3MvAQAAMAAJ |title=Ottoman-Turkish Conversation-grammar: A Practical Method of Learning the Ottoman-Turkish Language |date=1907 |publisher=Groos |pages=1–25 |language=fa}}</ref><ref>Diran Kélékian, ''Dictionnaire Turc-Français'', Constantinople/استانبول, 1911</ref>

The Persian consonant (ژ) is not native to Turkish but is still pronounced distinctively with the letter J in the modern Turkish Latin alphabet.

===Vowels===
Turkish has 8 total vowels which are evenly split between front and back vowels. One of the shortcomings of the Ottoman Turkish alphabet is that it could not differentiate between the front and back vowels with the exception of A and E. This situation required readers to infer the frontness or backness of vowels based on consonants and the vowels A and E.

Another shortcoming was that it could not differentiate between O/Ö and U/Ü in the first syllable (O/Ö do not exist in the second syllable in Turkic, Arabic, or Persian words with the exception of one suffix -iyor/ıyor). Although this issue only existed in the first syllable, the O/Ö sounds were generally more common than U/Ü in the first syllable.

===Arabic and Persian Borrowings=== 
They are written in their original orthography: for example, and if using [[Arabic diacritics#harakat|Arabic vowel points (''harakat'')]], ''sabit'' 'firm' is written as {{angbr|{{lang|ota|ثَابِت}}}} ''s̱âbit'', with {{angbr|ث}} ''s̱'' representing /s/ (in Arabic /θ/), {{angbr|ا}} representing the long vowel /aː/ as in Arabic, {{angbr|ب}} representing /b/, {{angbr|ـِ}} representing the short vowel /i/, and {{angbr|ت}} representing /t/. However, as in Arabic and Persian,<ref name="hagopian"/> ''harakat'' are generally found only in dictionaries and didactic works, therefore the same word ''sabit'' will generally be found written thus: {{angbr|{{lang|ota|ثابت}}}} (with no indication of the short /i/). As in Persian, the [[alif hamza]] ({{angbr|أ}} ''’'') is rarely used in initial position and is replaced instead by a plain alif ({{angbr|ا}}); the [[ta marbuta]] ({{angbr|ة}}, appearing in final position of Arabic words) is also rarely used itself and is instead replaced by a plain ha ({{Angbr|ه}}). The letters ث ح ذ ض ظ ع are found only in borrowings from Arabic; ژ is only in borrowings from Persian and French.

===Consonants===
Consonant letters are classified in three series, based on [[Vowel harmony#Front/back harmony|vowel harmony]]: soft, hard, and neutral. The soft consonant letters, ت س ك گ ه, are found in [[front vowel]] (e, i, ö, ü) contexts; the hard, ح خ ص ض ط ظ ع غ ق, in [[back vowel]] (a, ı, o, u) contexts; and the neutral, ب پ ث ج چ د ذ ر ز ژ ش ف ل م ن, in either. In Perso-Arabic borrowings, the vowel used in Turkish depends on the softness of the consonant. Thus, {{angbr|{{wikt-lang|ota|كلب}}}} ''klb'' 'dog' (Arabic /kalb/) is /kelb/, while {{angbr|{{wikt-lang|ota|قلب}}}} ''ḳlb'' 'heart' (Arabic /qalb/) is /kalb/. Conversely, in Turkish words, the choice of consonant reflects the native vowel.<ref name="hagopian"/>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
| '''Phoneme''' || /t/ || /d/ || /s/ || /z/ || /k/ || /ɡ/  || /∅/ || /h/
|-
| '''Soft (front)''' || ت ||   || س || || ك || گ || ء || ه
|-
| '''Neutral''' || || د || ث || ز ذ || || || ||
|-
| '''Hard (back)''' || ط || ط ض || ص || ظ ض || ق || غ || ع || ح خ
|}
(All other sounds are only written with neutral consonant letters.)

===Vowels Letters===
In Turkish words, vowels are sometimes written using the vowel letters as the second letter of a syllable: ''elif'' {{angbr|ا}} for /a/; ''ye'' {{angbr|ی}} for /i/, /ɯ/; ''vav'' {{angbr|و}} for /o/, /œ/, /u/, /y/; ''he'' {{angbr|ه}} for /a/, /e/. The corresponding ''harakat'' are there: ''üstün'' {{angbr|َ○}} (Arabic [[Arabic diacritics#Fat.E1.B8.A5ah|''fatḥah'']]) for /a/, /e/; ''esre'' {{angbr|ِ○}} (Arabic [[Arabic diacritics#Kasrah|''kasrah'']]) for /ɯ/, /i/; ''ötre'' {{angbr|ُ○}} (Arabic [[Arabic diacritics#.E1.B8.8Cammah|''ḍammah'']]) for /o/, /œ/, /u/, /y/. The names of the ''harakat'' are also used for the corresponding vowels.<ref name="hagopian"/>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name !! Arabic name !! Point !! Letter !! Front reading !! Back reading
|-
| ''üstün''  || [[Arabic diacritics#Fat.E1.B8.A5ah|''fatḥah'']] || َ○|| ا ''elif''<br/> ه ''he'' || /e/ || /a/
|-
| ''esre'' || [[Arabic diacritics#Kasrah|''kasrah'']] || ِ○ || ی ''ye'' || /i/ || /ɯ/ 
|-
| ''ötre'' || [[Arabic diacritics#.E1.B8.8Cammah|''ḍammah'']] || ُ○ ||  و ''vav'' || /œ/, /y/ || /o/, /u/ 
|}

===Orthographic conventions===

The rule for vowels in native Turkish words are the following:<ref name="hagopian"/>
# Never introduce a vowel letter into a Turkish or foreign Ottoman word without removing a possible doubt as to pronunciation;
# Never leave out a vowel in such a word, if by omission a doubt is created as to the pronunciation.

The above rules have the two following exceptions:
# In any syllable which is composed of two consonants, if the vowel is soft ''üstün'' (see vowel table above), none of the orthographic (vowel) letters is added; but if it is composed of one letter, ''he'' (ـه ه) is added to indicate the vowel;
#* گلدی (gel-di)
#* بش (beş)
#* ‌ایست'''ه'''مك (is-te-mek) (the letter ''he'' distinguishes it from i-set-mek, and other possible misreadings)

# None of the grammatical affixes take the orthographic or vowel letters. (This contrasts with other historic and modern Arabic-based Turkic orthographies, such as [[Chagatai language|Chagatai]])
#* گل'''دم''' (gel-dim)
#* باش'''لر''' (baş-lar)
#* اوچ'''لك''' (üç-lük)
#* آل'''مق''' (al-mak)

==Dictionary notations==

As mentioned in previous sections, in written Ottoman Turkish conventions, some letters, especially the letter {{angbr|ك}} ''k'' could represent many phonemes: /k/, /ɡ/, /n/, /j/, or /ː/ (lengthening the preceding vowel; modern [[Yumuşak ge|ğ]]). Same applied to vowels, if they were even written using ''elif'' {{angbr|ا}} for /a/; ''ye'' {{angbr|ی}} for /i/, /ɯ/; ''vav'' {{angbr|و}} for /o/, /œ/, /u/, /y/; ''he'' {{angbr|ه}} for /a/, /e/. In many cases they were not.<ref name="hagopian"/><ref name=":0" />{{page needed|date=September 2024}}

Therefore, some Ottoman Turkish dictionaries and language textbooks sought to address this issue by introducing new notations and letters. None of these proposed notations ever gained wider popularity, and none came to be adopted by the society at large. For example, in the Ottoman Turkish-Turkish compiled by Ottoman Albanian lexicographer [[Sami Frashëri|Şemseddin Sâmi]], these notations have been defined and have been used. The necessity arose from the fact that this was a solely Turkish dictionary, and thus [[Sami Frashëri|Şemseddin Sâmi]] avoided using any Latin or other foreign notations.<ref>{{cite book | language=ota | last1= Frashëri |first1 =  Şemseddin Sami|author-link1  = Sami Frashëri | title=قاموس تركی (''Kâmûs-i Türki'') | publisher=درسعادت (Der Saʿadet) | date=1899 | isbn= | url=https://archive.org/details/kamusitrki00emse | id=Sami1899}}</ref>

The other book with such notations is a book called the ''Ottoman Turkish Guide'' (''Osmanlıca. 1: Rehberi''). This book was first published in 1976, and has been continuously published over the years well into the 21st century. This book by ''Ali Kemal Belviranlı'', is an alphabet premier book and guide, and its primary purpose is to help and teach modern [[Turkish language|native Turkish speakers]] who are literate in the modern Latin alphabet, to learn and be able to read and decipher older Turkish language documents that were written in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. This book also employs specific notations and letters in order to distinguish between different phonemes, so as to match with the Modern Turkish alphabet.<ref>Belviranlı, A. K. (1976). ''Osmanlıca. 1: Rehberi''. Konya, Turkey [https://archive.org/details/Osmanlcarehberi/mode/2up https://archive.org/details/Osmanlcarehberi/mode/2up]</ref>

[[Azerbaijani alphabet|Azerbaijani Turkish orthography]], which at the time was similar to Ottoman Turkish orthography, has undergone a similar process in Iran, of letters being assigned diacritics and notations to distinguish them. Those modifications have over the decades gained widespread legitimacy and acceptance. These are also shown for comparison in the table below.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Letter !! [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]] !! Ottoman Turkish Dictionary ([[Sami Frashëri|Ş. Sâmi]]) !! Ottoman Turkish Guide (A. K. Belviranlı) !! [[Azerbaijani alphabet|Modern Azerbaijani (Iran)]]
|-
| U u
| {{IPAblink|u}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|و}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|و}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|وُ}}
|-
| O o
| {{IPAblink|o}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|وۤ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|وۤ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|وْ}}
|-
| Ü ü
| {{IPAblink|y}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ۏ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ۉ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|وٚ}}
|-
| Ö ö
| {{IPAblink|œ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ۊ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ۆ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ؤ}}
|-
| I ı <sup>1</sup>
| {{IPAblink|ɯ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|◌ٖ / یٖـ / یٖ}}
| dir="rtl" | -
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|یٛـ / یٛ}}
|-
| A a <sup>1</sup>
| {{IPAblink|a}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|◌َ / ◌ٰ / ـا / هٰ ـهٰ}}
| dir="rtl" | -
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ـا}}
|-
| K k <sup>2</sup>
| [{{IPA link|k}}~{{IPA link|c}}]
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ك}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ك}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ک}}
|-
| G g <sup>3</sup>
| [{{IPA link|g}}~{{IPA link|ɟ}}]
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|گ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|گ}}<sup>5</sup>
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|گ}}
|- 
| Ğ ğ <sup>4</sup>
|‌ {{IPA|[ː]}}, {{IPA|[.]}}, {{IPA|[j]}} ([{{IPA link|g}} ~ {{IPA link|ɟ}}])
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ࢰ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ࢰ}}<sup>5</sup>
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|گ}}
|-
| N n (ñ)
| {{IPAblink|n}} ({{IPAblink|ŋ}})
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ڭ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ڭ}}
| style="font-size: 150%" dir="rtl" |{{script/Arabic|ن}}
|}

:'''Notes'''
# Due to the conservative nature of Ottoman Turkish orthography, and its inspiration from Arabic conventions, many vowels, including the vowels ''I ı'', ''A a'', and others, were not written out all the time, which made reading of words containing these vowels difficult for non-native speakers.
# When adjacent to the central and back vowels /a, ɯ, o, u/, the letter ''K k'' in modern Turkish Latin script corresponded to the Arabic letter ''qaf'' {{angbr|ق}} whose pronunciation would either be {{IPAblink|k}} or {{IPAblink|q}}. This table excludes this specific context for the letter ''K k'', and only covers them when adjacent to front vowels /e, i, œ, y/.
# When adjacent to the central and back vowels /a, ɯ, o, u/, the letter ''G g'' in modern Turkish Latin script corresponded to the Arabic letter ''ğayn'' {{angbr|غ}} whose pronunciation original pronunciation would either be {{IPAblink|ɣ}} or {{IPAblink|g}}. This table excludes this specific context for the letter ''G g'', and only covers them when adjacent to front vowels /e, i, œ, y/.
# When adjacent to the central and back vowels /a, ɯ, o, u/, the letter ''Ğ ğ'' in modern Turkish Latin script corresponded to the Arabic letter ''ğayn'' {{angbr|غ}} whose pronunciation original pronunciation would either be {{IPAblink|ɣ}} or {{IPAblink|g}}, and modern pronunciation [ː] or [.] (lengthening of the preceding vowel or a syllable break). This table excludes this specific context for the letter ''Ğ ğ'', and only covers them when adjacent to front vowels /e, i, œ, y/.
# In the '' Ottoman Turkish Guide by A. K. Belviranlı'' the distinction between the letters ''G g'' and ''Ğ ğ'' did not exist in the earlier version (1976). In the earlier version, both of these letters were represented by the letter ''gâf'' {{angbr|گ}}.

==Other scripts==
Other scripts were sometimes used by non-Muslims to write Ottoman Turkish since the Arabic alphabet was identified with Islam.

The first [[novel]] to be written in the Ottoman Empire was ''Akabi'' (1851), which was written in the Armenian script by [[Vartan Pasha]]. Similarly, when the [[Armenians|Armenian]] Duzian family managed the Ottoman mint during the reign of [[Sultan]] [[Abdülmecid I]] ({{abbr|r.|reigned}} 1839–61), they kept records in Ottoman Turkish but used the Armenian script.<ref>{{cite book|last=Mansel|first=Philip|title=Constantinople|year=2011|publisher=Hachette UK|isbn=978-1848546479|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LrnvC98bNSoC}}</ref>

The [[Greek alphabet]] and the [[Rashi script]] of [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]] were used by Greeks, Orthodox Turks and Jews for Ottoman. [[Greek Muslims|Greek-speaking Muslims]] would write [[Greek language|Greek]] using the Ottoman Turkish script. [[Karamanlides]] (Orthodox Turks in Central Anatolia around Karaman region) used Greek letters for Ottoman Turkish.

== Numerals ==
Ottoman Turkish used [[Eastern Arabic numerals]]. The following is the list of basic [[cardinal number (linguistics)|cardinal numerals]] with the spelling in the modern Turkish alphabet:
{|  class="wikitable"
! Arabic form || Number || Ottoman Turkish<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/stream/ottomanturkishco00hago#page/34/mode/2up/search/numerals|title=Ottoman-Turkish conversation-grammar; a practical method of learning the Ottoman-Turkish language|year=1907|publisher=Heidelberg, J. Groos; New York, Brentano's [etc., etc.]}}</ref> || Modern Turkish
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٠}}</span>
| 0 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|صفر}}</span> || {{lang|tr|sıfır}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|١}}</span>
| 1 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|بر}}</span> || {{lang|tr|bir}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٢}}</span>
| 2 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|ایكی}}</span> || {{lang|tr|iki}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٣}}</span>
| 3 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|اوچ}}</span> || {{lang|tr|üç}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٤}}</span>
| 4 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|درت}}</span> || {{lang|tr|dört}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٥}}</span>
| 5 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|بش}}</span> || {{lang|tr|beş}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٦}}</span>
| 6 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|آلتی}}</span> || {{lang|tr|altı}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٧}}</span>
| 7 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|یدی}}</span> || {{lang|tr|yedi}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٨}}</span>
| 8 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|سكز}}</span> || {{lang|tr|sekiz}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|٩}}</span>
| 9 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|طقوز}}</span> || {{lang|tr|dokuz}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|١٠}}</span>
| 10 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|اون}}</span> || {{lang|tr|on}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|١٠٠}}</span>
| 100 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|يوز}}</span> || {{lang|tr|yüz}}
|- align="center"
| <span style="font-size:200%;line-height:120%">{{script/Arabic|١٠٠٠}}</span>
| 1000 || <span style="font-size: 195%;line-height:150%">{{lang|ota|بیك}}</span> || {{lang|tr|bin}}
|}

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

== External links ==
* Simon Ager, [http://www.omniglot.com/writing/turkish.htm Turkish alphabet], ''Omniglot''

{{Arabic alphabets}}
{{Turkish language}}

[[Category:Arabic alphabets]]
[[Category:Persian alphabets]]
[[Category:Culture of the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:Turkish language]]
[[Category:Alphabets used by Turkic languages]]

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