Bahá’í World/Volume 8/Transliteration of Oriental Words
III
TRANSLITERATION OF ORIENTAL WORDS FREQUENTLY USED IN BAHÁ’Í LITERATURE
‘Abá
‘Abádih
‘Abbás
‘Abdu’l-Bahá
‘Abdu’l-Ḥamíd
‘Abdu’l-Ḥusayn
‘Abdu’lláh
Abhá
Abu’l-Faḍl
‘Adasíyyih
Adhán
Ádhirbáyján
Afnán
Aghṣán
‘Ahd
Aḥmad
Aḥsá’í
Ahváz
Akbar
‘Akká
‘Alá’
‘Alí
‘Alí-Muḥammad
Alláh-u-Abhá
Alváḥ
Alváḥ-i-Saláṭín
Amín
Amír
Amír-Niẓám
Amru’lláh
Ámul
Anzalí
Áqá
Aqdas
‘Arabistán
Asmá’
‘Aváshiq
Ayádí
Azal
‘Aẓamat
‘Azíz
Báb
Bábí
Bábu’l-Báb
Baghdád
Bahá
Bahá’í
Bahá’u’lláh
Bahíyyih
Bahjí
Balúchistán
Bandar-‘Abbás
Báqir
Baqíyyatu’lláh
Bárfurúsh
Baṣrih
Báṭúm
Bayán
Bayt
Big
Bírjand
Bishárát
Bismi’lláh
Bukhárá
Burújird
Búshihr
Bushrú’í
Bushrúyih
Chihríq
Dalá’il-i-Sab‘ih
Dárúghih
Dawlat-Ábád
Dhabíḥ
Duzdáb
Fará’id
Fárán
Farmán
Farrásh-Báshí
Fárs
Farsakh
Fatḥ-‘Alí
Firdaws
Firdawsí
Ganjih
Gílán
Gul
Gulastán
Gurgín
Ḥabíb
Ḥadíth
Ḥaḍrat
Ḥájí
Hájí Mírzá Áqásí
Hájj
Hamadán
Ḥasan
Ḥaydar-‘Alí
Haykal
Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds
Ḥijáz
Himmat-Ábád
Ḥujjat
Ḥusayn
Huvaydar
Ibráhím
Íl
‘Ilm
Imám
Imám-Jum‘ih
Imám-Zádih
Íqán
Írán
‘Iráq
‘Iráqí
‘Iráq-i-‘Ajam
Iṣfáhán
‘Ishqábád
Ishráqát
Ishtihárd
Islám
Islamic
Ismá‘ílíyyih
Istarábád
‘Izzat
Jalál
Jamádíyu’l-Avval
Jamál
Jamál-i-Mubárak
Jamál-i-Qidam
Jásb
Jubbíh
Kaaba
Ka‘bih
Kad-Khudá
Kalantar
Kalím
Kalimát
Kamál
Karand
Karbilá
Káshán
Kashkúl
Kawmu’ṣ-Ṣa‘áyidih
Kawthar
Káẓim
Káẓimayn
Khalkhál
Khán
Khániqayn
Khaylí khúb
Khurásán
Khuy
Kirmán
Kirmánsháh
Kitáb-i-‘Ahd
Kitáb-i-Aqdas
Kitáb-i-Asmá’
Kitáb-i-Badí‘
Kitáb-i-Íqán
Kuláh
Kurdistán
Láhíján
Lár
Lawḥ
Luristán
Madrisih
Maḥbúbu’sh-Shuhadá’
Mahd-i-‘Ulyá
Máh—Kú
Maḥmúd
Maláyir
Man-Yuẓhiruhu’lláh
Maqám
Marághih
Marḥabá
Marv
Masá’il
Mashhad
Mashíyyat
Mashriqu’l-Adhkár
Masjid
Maydán
Mázindarán
Mihdí
Miḥráb
Mílán
Mi‘ráj
Mírzá
Mishkín-Qalam
Mu’adhdhin
Muftí
Muḥammad
Muḥammad-‘Alí
Muḥammarih
Muḥarram
Mujtahid
Mulk
Mullá
Munírih
Muṣṭafá
Mustagháth
Muẓaffari’d-Dín
Nabíl
Nabíl-i-A‘ẓam
Najaf
Najaf-Ábád
Náqiḍín
Naṣír
Náṣiri’Dín
Navváb
Naw-Rúz
Nayríz
Níshábúr
Nuqṭih
Núr
Pahlaví
Párán
Qáḍí
Qádíyán
Qahqahih
Qá’im
Qájár
Qalyán
Qamṣar
Qaṣr-i-Shírín
Qawl
Qayyúm
Qayyúmu’l-Asmá’
Qazvín
Qiblih
Qúchán
Quddús
Qudrat
Qum
Qur’án
Qurbán
Qurratu’l-‘Ayn
Rafsinján
Raḥím
Raḥmán
Raḥmat
Ra’ís
Ramaḍán
Rasht
Rawḥání
Riḍván
Rúḥu’lláh
Sabzivár
Sadratu’l-Muntahá
Ṣáḥibu’z-Zamán
Ṣaḥífatu’l-Ḥaramayn
Sa‘íd
Salsibil
Samarqand
Sangsar
Sárí
Sha‘bán
Sháh
Shahíd
Shahmírzád
Sháhrúd
Sharaf
Sharí‘aḥ
Shaykh
Shaykh-Ṭabarsí
Shaykhu’l-Islám
Shí‘ih
Shíites
Shíráz
Shushtar
Simnán
Sísán
Sístán
Síyáh-Chál
Siyyid
Ṣúfí
Sulaymán
Sulṭán
Sulṭán-Ábád
Sultanate
Sulṭánu’shShuhadá’
Sunní
Sunnites
Súratu’l-Haykal
Súrih
Súriy-i-Damm
Súriy-i-Ghuṣn
Súriy-i-Ra’ís
Súriy-i-Ṣabr
Tabríz
Ṭáhirih
Tajallíyát
Tákur
Taqí
Ṭarázát
Tarbíyat
Ṭáshkand
Tawḥíd
Thurayyá
Ṭihrán
Túmán
Turkistán
'Ulamá
Urúmíyyih
‘Uthmán
Vaḥíd
Valí
Valí-‘Ahd
Varqá
Vazír
Yá-Bahá’u’l-Abhá
Yaḥyá
Yazd
Zanján
Zarand
Zaynu’l-Muqarrabín
GUIDE TO TRANSLITERATION AND PRONUNCIATION OF THE ÍRÁNIAN ALPHABET
The "i” added to the name of a town signifies (“belonging to.” Thus, Shírází means native of Shíráz.
NOTES ON THE PRONUNCIATION OF ÍRÁNIAN WORDS
The emphasis in Íránian words is more or less evenly distributed, each syllable being equally stressed as in French. For example, do not say Tabríz or Ṭabarsí; stay as long on one syllable as on the next: Tabríz; Ṭabar-sí. (While there are many exceptions to this rule, it is the most generally correct method of treating the question of stress.)
A frequent mistake is the failure to distinguish between broad and flat "a’s.” This differentiation makes the language especially musical and should be observed: in the word Afnán, for example, pronounce the first "a” as in mat, and the second syllable to rhyme with on. Americans are apt to pronounce short “a” plus “r” like the verb form are; this is a mistake; “ar” should be pronounced as in the name of Harry—cf. Tarbíyat.
The same differentiation should be observed in
the case of long and short “i” and
long and short “u.” As the guide to the
transliteration indicates, short “i” is like “e”
in best, and long “i” like “ee” in meet;
for example, Ibráhím is pronounced Eb-rá-heem;
[Page 763]
Islám is Ess-lahm. Short “u” being like “o” in short, and long “u” being like “oo” in moon, the following would be pronounced—Quddús—Qod-dooss; Bárfurú{{u|sh}—Bár-fo-roosh.
Pronounce “aw” to rhyme with oh, or mown; Naw-Rúz is No-Rooz.
The following consonants may be pronounced like z: dh, z, ẓ, ḍ.
The following consonants may be pronounced like ss: th, s, ṣ.
Zh is pronounced like the “s” in pleasure. Kh is pronounced like “ch” in Scotch loch or German nacht. Do not pronounce it as "k.” Westerners are as a rule incapable of pronouncing gh and “q”; a guttural French "r” will serve here; otherwise use hard “g” as in good.
Ḥ and ḥ, approximately like the English aspirate “h,” should never be dropped.
Ṭihrán is Teh-ron; madrisih is mad-res-seh; Miḥráb is Meh-rob.
In the case of double letters pronounce each separately: ‘Ab—bás.
The character transliterated (’) represents a pause; it is not unlike the initial sound made in pronouncing such a word as every. The word Bahá’í is phonetically as follows: “a” as in account; “á” as in father; (’), pause; "í” as ee in meet.
The character transliterated (‘) may also be treated as a pause.
N.B. As Íránian often indicates no vowel sounds and as its pronunciation differs in different localities throughout Írán and the Near East as well as among individuals in any given locality, a uniform system of transliteration such as the above, which is in use by Bahá’í communities all over the world, is indispensable to the student.