أ

• IPA^(key): /ʔ/, /ʔa/, /ʔu/

Combined with fatha: أَ :

Combined with damma: أُ :

أ / ‍أ • (ʔ) (no case)

1. The first letter of the Arabic alphabet, called أَلِف (ʔalif) and written in the Arabic script; followed by ب (b).

• Traditionally the first letter of the Arabic alphabet is alif ⟨ا⟩. This originally represented a glottal stop, but it has shifted to represent a long /aː/ and the functionality of representing a glottal stop has been taken over by the diacritic hamza (ء) that sits on top of أ.

• Arabic script letters: حُرُوف (ḥurūf) (alphabet appendix, script appendix): ا, ب, ت, ث, ج, ح, خ, د, ذ, ر, ز, س, ش, ص, ض, ط, ظ, ع, غ, ف, ق, ك, ل, م, ن, ه, و, ي ^[edit]
• ا, إ (ʔ)
• Wikipedia article on the Arabic alphabet
• Search for entries beginning with أ

From former هَـ (ha-), from Proto-Semitic *ha. Cognate to Hebrew הֲ־ (hă-).

أَ • (ʔa-)

1. introduces a positive yes-no question

   Synonym: هَل (hal)

   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 96:9-12:

     أَرَأَيْتَ الَّذِي يَنْهَىٰ (9) عَبْدًا إِذَا صَلَّىٰ (10) أَرَأَيْتَ إِن كَانَ عَلَى الْهُدَىٰ (11) أَوْ أَمَرَ بِالتَّقْوَىٰ (12)

     ʔaraʔayta llaḏī yanhā (9) ʕabdan ʔiḏā ṣallā (10) ʔaraʔayta ʔin kāna ʕalā l-hudā (11) ʔaw ʔamara bi-t-taqwā (12)

     9 Hast thou seen the one who scoldeth 10 this worshipper when he prayeth? 11 Hast thou looked at whether he is rightly guided, 12 or whether he preacheth righteousness?

2. introduces a negative yes-no question
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 89:6-8:

     أَلَمْ تَرَ كَيْفَ فَعَلَ رَبُّكَ بِعَادٍ (6) إِرَمَ ذَاتِ الْعِمَادِ (7) الَّتِي لَمْ يُخْلَقْ مِثْلُهَا فِي الْبِلَادِ (8)

     ʔalam tara kayfa faʕala rabbuka biʕādin (6) ʔirama ḏāti l-ʕimādi (7) allatī lam yuḵlaq miṯluhā fī l-bilādi (8)

     6 Hast thou not seen what thy Lord did to ʿĀd? 7 ʾIram, with its pillars, 8 the like of which had never been created before!

3. indicates an exclusive disjunction with أَمْ (ʔam, “or”), as in alternative questions

   Synonym: (sometimes proscribed) هَل (hal)

   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 21:109:

     وَإِنْ أَدْرِي أَقَرِيبٌ أَم بَعِيدٌ مَّا تُوعَدُونَ

     wa-ʔin ʔadrī ʔa-qarībun ʔam baʕīdun mā tūʕadūna

     I know not whether nigh or far is that which ye are promised.

4. indicates an inclusive disjunction with أَمْ (ʔam, “or”) that denotes sameness, indistinguishability, unimportance, insignificance, or indifference
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 63:6:

     سَوَاءٌ عَلَيْهِمْ أَسْتَغْفَرْتَ لَهُمْ أَمْ لَمْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ لَن يَغْفِرَ ٱللّٰهُ لَهُمْ

     sawāʔun ʕalayhim ʔa-staḡfarta lahum ʔam lam tastaḡfir lahum lan yaḡfira llāhu lahum

     It is the same whether thou prayest for their forgiveness or not: Allah will not forgive them.

5. vocative particle

• Unlike هَلْ (hal), أَ (ʔa) precedes وَ (wa), فَـ (fa-), and ثُمَّ (ṯumma):

  609–632 CE, Qur'an, 23:115:

  أَفَحَسِبْتُمْ أَنَّمَا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ عَبَثًا وَأَنَّكُمْ إِلَيْنَا لَا تُرْجَعُونَ

  ʔa-fa-ḥasibtum ʔannamā ḵalaqnākum ʕabaṯan wa-ʔannakum ʔilaynā lā turjaʕūna

  Then did ye think that We created you uselessly and that to Us ye would not be returned?

• آ (ʔā) — used before اَلْ (al-)

• Tropper, Josef (2003), “Sekundäres wortanlautendes Alif im Arabischen”, in Kogan, Leonid, editor, Studia Semitica (Orientalia: Papers of the Oriental Institute; III), Moscow, →ISBN, page 200

• (letter name): IPA^(key): /amaːlɨ/
• (phoneme): IPA^(key): /ə/

أ • (ạ) (no case, Devanagari equivalent ॳ or ॲ)

1. A letter of the Kashmiri alphabet, written in the Arabic script; preceded by آ (ā) and followed by ٲ, a vowel.

The vowel أ in its initial form is أ, middle form ٔ and final form ٔ.

• Vowel sign: ٔ (ạ)

• (letter name): IPA^(key): /həmza alif/
• (phoneme): IPA^(key): /a/

أ (hamzā ālif) (no case)

1. A letter of the Khowar alphabet, written in the Arabic script; preceded by ﺁ and followed by ب, the second variant letter of alif.

أ (no case)

1. The first letter of the Kyrgyz alphabet, written in the Arabic script.

• Arabic script letters: тамгалар (tamgalar) (script appendix): ا, ب, پ, ﻥ, ﺕ, ﺝ, ﭺ, ﺡ, ﻑ, ﻕ, ﻉ, ك, گ, ڭ, ﻝ, ﻡ, و, ۅ, ۉ, ﯗ, ﯞ, ﺱ, ﺵ, ﺩ, ﺭ, ﺯ, ﻩ, ﻯ, ﺀ, ﺋ, ﻲ, ﻯ, ء, ۋ, ﻻ ^[edit]

أ (no case)

1. The first letter of the Malay alphabet, written in the Arabic script.

• Arabic script letters (alphabet appendix, script appendix): ا, ب, ت, ة, ث, ج, چ, ح, خ, د, ذ, ر, ز, س, ش, ص, ض, ط, ظ, ع, غ, ڠ, ف, ڤ, ق, ک, ݢ, ل, م, ن, و, ۏ, ه, ء, ي, ى, ڽ ^[edit]

أ • (alef) (no case)

1. The first letter of the Persian alphabet, written in the Arabic script.

• Arabic script letters: حروف (hurūf / horuf) (script appendix): ا, ب, پ, ت, ث, ج, چ, ح, خ, د, ذ, ر, ز, ژ, س, ش, ص, ض, ط, ظ, ع, غ, ف, ق, ک, گ, ل, م, ن, و, ه, ی ^[edit]

• (letter name): IPA^(key): /həmza alif/
• (phoneme): IPA^(key): /á/

أ (hamza alif) (no case)

1. The second letter of the Ushojo alphabet, written in the Arabic script; preceded by آ and followed by ا.