Arabic Letter Thal

Use the voiced “th” in “this,” not the sound in “think.” The phonetic symbol is /ð/: place your tongue near your upper teeth and vibrate your vocal cords.

The spelling can stay the same while the sound changes. Lebanese Arabic examples include تَذْكَرَة with a z sound and ذَهَب with a d sound. Persian and Urdu also use ذ for z. Check the language and dialect before treating a different pronunciation as a mistake.

How did ذ develop?

Arabic writing developed from Nabataean Aramaic, an older writing tradition. Recognizably Arabic inscriptions appear by the late fifth century CE; that dates the script, not this exact dotted form. Early Arabic spellings and letter shapes varied across local traditions.

ذ records a consonant within Arabic words. Early inscriptions served memorial, religious and commercial purposes, including tombstones, offerings and traders’ notes. Manuscripts and administration later extended the script’s use.