Alif with Hamza (أ) — Arabic Letter Guide

Glottal stop ("ʾ") followed by a short "a" — like the catch at the start of "uh-oh".

Last updated: May 2026 · Variant / non-alphabet letter

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Alif with Hamza — alif bi'l-hamza (أَلِف بِالْهَمْزَة)

Transliteration: ʾ + a
IPA: ʔa
Unicode: U+0623
Keyboard: Shift + H (with Shift)
Finger: right index
Connects?: No (non-connecting on the left)

What is the letter Alif with Hamza?

Alif with hamza above (أ) marks the glottal-stop + vowel combination at the start or middle of words. It is one of the most common hamza-bearing letters in Arabic; you write it for words that begin with a glottal "ʾa" sound. It is not a separate letter of the alphabet — it is a positional/orthographic variant of alif.

The four forms of Alif with Hamza

Arabic letters change shape depending on their position in a word. Alif with Hamza has two distinct visual forms (it does not connect on the left):

Position	Shape	Example
Isolated	أ	Standing alone
Initial	أ	Identical to isolated — does not change at word start
Medial	ـأ	Identical to final — connects only to the preceding letter
Final	ـأ	At the end of a word, connecting only on the right

How to type Alif with Hamza on Arabic keyboard

Arabic 101 key: press Shift + H while holding Shift.

Finger: right index finger.

The key for Alif with Hamza is mapped via the standard Arabic 101 keyboard layout, which is the default Arabic input source on Windows, macOS (as “Arabic - PC”), and most Linux distributions.

How to pronounce Alif with Hamza

Close your throat briefly to make a glottal stop, then release into "a". English speakers do this naturally before any word starting with a vowel.

Example words with Alif with Hamza

أَخ

akh

"brother"

أُمّ

umm

"mother"

أَكْبَر

akbar

"bigger / greater"

سَأَلَ

saʾala

"he asked"

Letters often confused with Alif with Hamza

plain alif

Plain ا has no hamza and represents a long ā vowel — no glottal stop.

alif with hamza below

إ has the hamza below and is read as "ʾi" (glottal stop + i sound).

alif madda

آ combines hamza + long alif into a single glyph, read "ʾā".

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Knowing where Alif with Hamza sits on the keyboard is one thing — being able to touch-type it without thinking is another. Our drills work through every letter in the alphabet with structured progression.

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Frequently asked questions

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How do I type أ on the Arabic 101 keyboard?

Press Shift + H. The plain alif (ا) sits on the H key with the right index finger; adding Shift produces alif-with-hamza-above (أ).

What's the difference between أ and ا?

Plain alif (ا) carries a long "ā" sound and has no consonant value of its own. Alif-with-hamza (أ) starts with a glottal stop ("ʾ"), making it a true consonant. "أخ" (brother) starts with a glottal stop; "أب" (father) does too. Plain alif inside a word indicates vowel length, not a glottal stop.

When do I write hamza above the alif vs below?

When the hamza carries a fatha or damma, write it above the alif (أَ, أُ). When it carries a kasra, write it below the alif as إ. So: أَخ "akh" (with fatha) vs إِبْنُهُ "ibnuhu" (with kasra).

Or see the full Arabic 101 keyboard layout.

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