Sun and moon letters

The Arabic Sun consonants in White and Moon consonants in Black

The Arabic Sun consonants in black on white and Moon consonants in white on black

The Maltese moon consonants highlighted in black, the sun consonants in white, and the vowels in gray

The Maltese moon consonants highlighted in black, the sun consonants in white, and the vowels in gray

In Arabic and Maltese, all consonants are classified into two distinct groups known as sun letters (Template:Langx Template:Transliteration, Template:Langx) and moon letters (Arabic: Template:Transliteration, Template:Langx)

This distinction affects the way the definite article (equivalent to "the" in English) is assimilated or pronounced before consonants: when a word begins with a sun letter, the definite article assimilates with the initial consonant of the word.

The names stem from how the definite article interacts with the nouns "Sun" and "Moon" in Arabic (and Maltese). In Arabic, al-shams (“the Sun”) becomes ash-shams (assimilating the lām), while al-qamar (“the Moon”) remains unchanged. Similarly, in Maltese, "the Sun" is ix-xemx (with assimilation), while "the Moon" is il-qamar (without assimilation).

Rule

When followed by a sun letter, the Template:IPAslink of the Arabic definite article Template:Transliteration assimilates to the initial consonant of the following noun, resulting in a doubled consonant. For example, "the Nile" is pronounced Template:Transliteration, not Template:Transliteration.

When the Arabic definite article () is followed by a moon letter, no assimilation takes place.

The sun letters represent the coronal consonants according to the phonology of Classical Arabic, and the moon letters represent all others. Note that the mnemonic groups all moon letters.

The sun and moon letters are as follows:

Sun letters
	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration
	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink
Moon letters
	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration	Template:Transliteration
	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink*	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink

Jīm

The letter Template:Transliteration is pronounced differently depending on the region of the speaker. In many regions it represents a coronal consonant such as Template:IPAblink or Template:IPAblink. However, in Classical Arabic, it represented a palatalized voiced velar plosive Template:IPAslink or a voiced palatal plosive Template:IPAslink. A contemporary pronunciation as Template:IPAblink is retained in Egypt, Oman, and coastal Yemen or Template:IPAblink in eastern hinterland Yemen, and as a variant in Sudan. As a result, it was classified as a moon letter, and it does not assimilate the article in Classical Arabic. Maltese ġ is also considered a moon consonant, whereas its voiceless counterpart ċ Template:IPAslink is a sun consonant.

However, in some varieties of Moroccan, Mesopotamian, and Palestinian Arabic, Template:Transliteration (often //) assimilates, like a sun letter, e.g., Template:Transliteration 'camel'.

Emphatic consonants

In Arabic dialects, like Palestinian, al before an emphatic consonant only assimilates in place of articulation but not in pharyngealization, hence Template:Transliteration instead of Template:Transliteration (Template:Wikt-lang 'table').

Maltese

The sun (konsonanti xemxin) and moon (konsonanti qamrin) letters are as follows:

Sun letters
	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink, Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink, Template:IPAslink
Moon letters
	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	/Template:IPA linkTemplate:IPA link/	silent	Template:IPAslink,Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink	Template:IPAslink

If a word starts with any of the moon letters, the definite article il- stays the same and does not assimilate, while with the sun letters it assimilates accordingly to: iċ-, id-, in-, ir-, is-, it-, ix-, iż-, iz-. It is also worth mentioning that words starting with vowels, and the letters għ, and h get the definite article l- (minus the initial i). When the definite article comes exactly after a word ending in a vowel, the initial <i> of the article always drops, as in "dak ir-raġel ra r-raġel" (that man saw the man). When a word starts with two consonants, the definite article used is l-, but an i is attached at the beginning of the word: skola > l-iskola and Żvezja > l-Iżvezja.

The sound Template:IPAslink (represented by the letters and ) function in the same way no matter it is sun or moon letter, e.g. (the meat) is il-laħam in Maltese and al-laḥm in Arabic or (the game) is il-logħba in Maltese and al-luʿba in Arabic.

Orthography

In the written language, the ⟨Template:Script/Arabic⟩ Template:Transliteration is retained regardless of how it is pronounced. When full diacritics are used, assimilation may be expressed by putting a [[Shadda|Template:Transliteration]] ⟨ ّ⟩ on the consonant after the Template:Transliteration ⟨Template:Script/Arabic⟩. Non-assimilation may be expressed by placing a [[Sukun|Template:Transliteration]] over the Template:Transliteration ⟨Template:Script/Arabic⟩.

Most modern-written Arabic names (including personal names and geographical Arabic names) do not follow the consonant assimilation rule or the shaddah when Latinized in Latin-spelled languages. Sometimes the sun and moon rules are not followed in casual speech. They are also mostly spaced rather than hyphenated.

E.g. personal name:

• Template:Script/Arabic - Al Rahman or El Rahman instead of Ar-Raḥmān

transliterated geographical name:

• Template:Script/Arabic - Al Jumhuriyah Al Tunisiyah instead of al-Jumhūrīyatu t-Tūnisīyah

Examples

Sun letters			Moon letters
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:Transliteration	'the sun'	Template:Script/Arabic	Template:Transliteration	'the moon'
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:Transliteration	'the confidence'	Template:Script/Arabic	Template:Transliteration	'the coral'

Moon/Lunar Letters Template:Transliteration
Letter	IPA	Template:IPAslink in the definite article "al" remains	Examples
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-’a.../ al-’u...; al-’i...	Template:Script/Arabic al-ʼakh(u) = the brother Template:Script/Arabic al-’udhun(u) = the ear Template:Script/Arabic al-’ibrīq(u) = the jug
Template:Script/Arabic b	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-b...	Template:Script/Arabic al-bayt(u) = the house
Template:Script/Arabic j	Template:IPAslink, Template:IPAslink, Template:IPAslink, Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-j...	Template:Script/Arabic al-jawz(u) = the walnut
Template:Script/Arabic ḥ	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-ḥ...	Template:Script/Arabic al-Ḥajj(u) = the pilgrimage
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-kh...	Template:Script/Arabic al-khawkh(u) = the peach
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-ʻ...	Template:Script/Arabic al-‘aql(u) = the mind Template:Script/Arabic al-‘ush·b(u) = the grass Template:Script/Arabic al-‘id(u) = the holiday, festival
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-gh...	Template:Script/Arabic al-gharām(u) = the love, romance, passion
Template:Script/Arabic f	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-f...	Template:Script/Arabic al-fik·r(u) = the thought
Template:Script/Arabic q	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-q...	Template:Script/Arabic al-qird(u) = the monkey
Template:Script/Arabic k	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-k...	Template:Script/Arabic al-kawkab(u) = the planet
Template:Script/Arabic m	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-m...	Template:Script/Arabic al-mat·ḥaf(u) = the museum
Template:Script/Arabic w	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-w...	Template:Script/Arabic al-wafiy(u) = the faithful = the color
Template:Script/Arabic y	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-y...	Template:Script/Arabic al-yānsūn(u) = the anise
Template:Script/Arabic h	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-h...	Template:Script/Arabic al-hawāʼ(u) = the air

Sun/Solar Letters Template:Transliteration
Letter	IPA	Template:IPAslink in the definite article "al" assimilates, the following consonant geminates (Template:Script/Arabic)	Examples
Template:Script/Arabic t	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic at-t...	Template:Script/Arabic at-tīn(u) = the fig
Template:Script/Arabic th	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic ath-th...	Template:Script/Arabic ath-tha‘lab(u) = the fox
Template:Script/Arabic d	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic ad-d...	Template:Script/Arabic ad-dubb(u) = the bear
Template:Script/Arabic dh	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic adh-dh...	Template:Script/Arabic adh-dhakar(u) = the male
Template:Script/Arabic r	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic ar-r...	Template:Script/Arabic ar-Rabb(u) = the Lord
Template:Script/Arabic z	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic az-z...	Template:Script/Arabic az-zanbaq(u) = the lily
Template:Script/Arabic s	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic as-s...	Template:Script/Arabic as-samāwāt(u) = the Heavens, firmament, skies
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic ash-sh...	Template:Script/Arabic ash-shar·q(u) = the east
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic aṣ-ṣ...	Template:Script/Arabic aṣ-ṣaḥ·rāʼ(u) = the desert
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic aḍ-ḍ...	Template:Script/Arabic aḍ-ḍabāb(u) = the fog
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic aṭ-ṭ...	Template:Script/Arabic aṭ-ṭāhir(u) = the pure
Template:Script/Arabic	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic aẓ-ẓ...	Template:Script/Arabic aẓ-ẓuh·r(u) = the noon
Template:Script/Arabic n	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic an-n...	Template:Script/Arabic an-nisā(u) = the women
Template:Script/Arabic l	Template:IPAslink	Template:Script/Arabic al-l...	Template:Script/Arabic al-lawn(u) = the color

See also

• Arabic phonology
• Arabic grammar