Urdu; as mentioned earlier, is a modified Perso-Arabic script known as an ''abjad''. An abjad does not write short vowels, except at the beginning of a word with ''alif''' serving as a place holder. This can make it frustrating for the learner as the words ''I'' and ''in'' are both written ??? in Urdu. Urdu is also written in a stylized form of the Arabic script called '''nast'al?q''' (???????). Developed in Persia it is still used for religious and poetic calligraphy in Iran today, Urdu in contrast uses it as its standard script. Meaning; if you want to read an Urdu newspaper, street sign, etc. you will have to learn to read nastaliq, which can prove difficult for the beginner. As a result, a simpler style called Nas<u>kh</u> (???), as used in other languages using the Arabic abjad will be used for two reasons. 1. to ease the learner into nastaliq, and 2. because unicode does not support nast'aliq, thus making #1 somewhat of a moot point, but nonetheless an important one. Vowel diacritics do exist, mostly used to modify the ''alif'' vowel holder at the beginning of a word. But they are also used for educational purposes, in the Qur'?n, and for clarifying ambiguous spellings.
The Arabic system of writing is much like cursive writing. Most letters have four forms. Others; which do not attach to the following letter, have only two. These forms are quite self-explanatory: initial, medial, final, and isolated. When written alone letters are written in their isolated form. Example:
when these isolated letters are joined together they look like this:
After studying the alphabet this system will hopefully become more clear.
At the beginning of a word ''alif'' serves as a placeholder for the diacritical mark. Due to directional issues with unicode the medial/final occurs before the initial example, when they should appear ''after'', i.e., to the ''left'' of the letter. A final ﻪ is sometimes used do represent an inherent 'a' at the end of a word (c.f. Arabic usage). When ''cho?? ye'' and ''ba?? ye'' occur in the middle, both take the ﻴ form. For further reference, in Urdu transliteration ''ai'' is ''ae'' and ''au'' is ''ao.''
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Initial !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Medial/Final !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Name
'''So why are there 5 z's, etc.?!''' - The letters ?,?,?,?,?,?,?,?,?,?,?,? are exclusively Persian (F?rsi) or Arabic sounds. As such; the Arabic sounds especially, are pronounced with the closest Indic equivalent. Thus, to illustrate: the Arabic ? (''__'') is pronounced as ?, and the Arabic ? (''d'') is pronounced as ?. A rare Urdu letter unique to Persian and Persian loan words is ?, which is pronounced as the Russian ''_w'', or '''s''' in plea'''s'''ure.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Final !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Medial !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Initial !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Isolated !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Devanagari !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
Special diacritical signs will be used with ? as an example when appropriate. Explanations are given below the table.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Sign !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu Name !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Name
'''n?n-e ghunna''' - The nasalization symbol in Urdu. In medial form a normal ''n?n'' is used.
'''hamzah''' - Though part of the alphabet, the hamzah is not really a letter. Nor is it exactly a diacritical sign. It is an entity unto itself. It is a vowel separator similar to the glottal ''_eain''. It is used often, on a consonantal "seat" in words ending with the irregular polite imperative suffix -iye.
'''i??fat''' - Though identical to ''zer'' in appearance, it is an element borrowed from the Persian ''ezafe''. This is very common in Urdu and unlike ''zer'' is pronounced as a "long" ''e''. It is placed under the last consonant of the adjective which is affecting the noun. Roughly translated as ''of''. It is transliterated as the suffix '''-e''', or '''-e-'''. Example:
???? ??? — za<u>kh</u>m-e-qalb — lit. wound of (the) heart, i.e. heartsorrow, or better, German ''Herzeleid''.
When the first word ends in a vowel, the ''i??fat'' is written under a hamzah placeholder: ??.
'''ta?d?d''' - A small "w" which doubles the consonant it is written over. However; in verbs, the consonant is written twice.
'''jazm''' - Placed over a consonant, it indicates there is no short vowel following it. It looks like a circumflex.
'''?lif maq<u>s</u>?ra''' - Used only in Arabic loanwords. Appears over the final ''cho?? ye'' as a superscript ?lif. Indicates an '''-?''' sound.
'''kha?a zabar''' - lit. "standing zabar", also only occurs in Arabic origin words. Written over a consonant like the above, it indicates an '''?''' after that consonant. Also called a "dagger alif".
'''t? marb?<u>t</u>ah''' - Is the Arabic fem. marker. It is often merely replaced by a ''cho?? he'' or ''te''.
There are many special ligatures in nast'aliq. K?f+?lif, k?f+l?m, g?f+?lif, g?f+l?m, and many more which unicode does not support. Learn the nas<u>kh</u> and you will hopefully be able to spot these on your own with some practice; not to mention ''much'' patience.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Medial/Final !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Isolated !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
Except for the final dash, most are as in the Roman alphabet; the comma, semi-colon and question mark being inverted.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Roman !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Punctuation
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
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{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
; 1 : aik (???) ; 2 : dou (??) ; 3 : teen (???) ; 4 : char (???) ; 5 : panch (????) ; 6 : chhe (??) ; 7 : saat (???) ; 8 : aath (???) ; 9 : nau (??) ; 10 : das (??) ; 11 : gayara ?????) ; 12 : baara (????) ; 13 : teera (????) ; 14 : choda (????) ; 15 : pandra (?????) ; 16 : sola (????) ; 17 : satra (????) ; 18 : athara (??????) ; 19 : unees (????) ; 20 : bees (???) ; 21 : ikees (????) ; 22 : baees (?????) ; 23 : taees (?????) 29 ; : unetis 30 ; : tees (???) ; 40 : chalees (?????) ; 50 : pachaas (????) ; 60 : saath (????) ; 70 : sattar (???) ; 80 : assi (???') ; 90 : naway (???) ; 100 : aik sou (??? ??) ; 200 : dou sou (?? ??) ; 300 : teen sou (??? ??) ; 1000 : aik hazaar (??? ????) ; 2000 : dou hazaar (?? ????) ; 100,000 : aik lakh (??? ????) ; 1,000,000 : das lakh (??? ????) ; 1,000,000,000 : das karoor ; 1,000,000,000,000 : lakh karoor ; number _____ (bus, etc.) : bus number _____ (_____?? ????) ; half : aadha (????) ; less : kam (??) ; more : ziyada (?????)
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
; one o'clock AM : subah ke eik bajey (??? ?? ??? ???) ; two o'clock AM : subah ke doo bajey (??? ?? ?? ???) ; noon : do pahar (?????) ; one o'clock PM : raat ke eik bajey (??? ?? ??? ???) ; two o'clock PM : raat ke doo bajey (??? ?? ?? ???) ; midnight : aadhi raat (???? ???)
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
In Pakistan and other Urdu speaking place, two calendars are used: the Gregorian and the Islamic. Months of Gregorian calendar are used as these are in English so the Islamic will be discussed. The Islamic calendar is a lunar Calendar. Months are usually 29-30 days long. The Calendar dates from the hijra, or migration, of the Prophet Mu<u>h</u>ammad ﷺ from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE. The abbreviation for Muslim dates is AH (''anno Hegira''). When writing in Urdu, the word ????, ''hijr?'' should precede/ follow the date.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Arabic Transliteration !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Arabic Name
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Color !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
Note: If you stick to main cities Karachi, Lahore or Islamabad, you should be fine with using English words in Urdu phrases. The native speakers do it all the time. This is why the phrase ''I need a car''' becomes ''Mujhe car chahye''.
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
; How much is a ticket to _____? : _____ tak ticket kitnay ka hai? (?????? ??? ???? ?? ???_____) ; One ticket to _____, please. : ake ticket _____ kay liyee ; Where does this train/bus go? : Yeh train/bus kahan jaati hai? (?? ?????/?? ???? ???? ???) ; Where is the train/bus to _____? : _____ ki train/bus kahan se jaati hai? (?????? ????/?? ???? ?? ???? ???_____) ; Does this train/bus stop in _____? : Kya yeh train / bus _____ rukti hai? (??? ?? ???? / ?? _____ ???? ???) ; When does the train/bus for _____ leave? : _____ ki train/bus kab jaati hai? (?????? ????/?? ?? ???? ???_____) ; When will this train/bus arrive in _____? : Yeh train/bus _____ kab pohnchay gi? (?? ???? / ?? _____ ?? ????? ???)
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1" !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|English !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Urdu !bgcolor=#EEEEEE|Transliteration
; How do I get to _____ ? : _____ kidhar hai? (???? ??_____ ) ; ...the train station? : railway station...? (????? ?????) ; ...the bus station? : ...the bus station? (?? ????) ; ...the airport? : ...the airport? (???? ??? ????????) ; ...downtown? : ...downtown? (????? ???) ; ...the youth hostel? : ...the youth hostel? (???? ?????) ; ...the _____ hotel? : ...the _____ hotel? (????_____) ; ...the American/Canadian/Australian/British consulate? : ...Amreeki/Canadian/Australvi/Bartanvi sifarat khana? (????? ????? ??????,???????, ????????, ??????? ; Where are there a lot of... : Zayada _____ kahan hain? (????? _____ ???? ????) ; ...hotels? : hotel (????) ; ...restaurants? : khanay kay hotel (????? ?? ????) (Word "hotel" is commonly used for restaurants) ; ...bars? : bar (???)(''There are no public bars in Pakistan some bars found in five star hotels though for foreigners.'') ; ...sites to see? : tafreehi maqaam (?????? ????) ; Can you show me on the map? : naqsha par dikha saktay hain? (???? ?? ???????? ????) ; footpath: footpath (?? ????) ; road: sarak / road (??? / ???) ; Turn left. : bain / ultay haath murrain(???? ???? / ???? ????) ; Turn right. : dain / seedhay haath murrain (????? ???? / ???? ????) ; left : bain / ultay haath (???? ???? / ????) ; right : dain / seedhay haath (????? ???? / ???? ????) ; straight ahead : seedha (?????) ; towards the _____ : _____ ki taraf(?? ???_____ ) ; past the _____ : _____ kay baad( ?? ???_____ ) ; before the _____ : _____ say pehlay (?? ????_____ ) ; uphill : oopar(????) ; downhill : nichay (????)
; Do you have any rooms available? : aap keh paas dasteyaab kamrein hain? (??? ??? ???? ???? ???) ; How much is a single/doube bed room? : Aik/douh bistar keh kamron keey kya keemat hai? (????/?? ???? ?? ???? ???? ?? ???) ; Does the room come with... : Kya kamre kay sath _____ bhi shamil hai? (??? ???? ?? ????_____??? ???) ; ...a bathroom? : gusal khana/bathroom (???????, ??? ????) ; ...a telephone? : phone (???) ; ...a TV? : TV (?? ??) ; ...a safe? : mehfooz (???) ; ...a wardrobe? : almaari (??????) ; May I see the room first? : Kia mei kamra pehleh dekh loon? (??? ??? ???? ???? ????) ; Do you have anything...? :Ap keh paas koi cheez hai? (?? ??_____??? ???) ; ...quieter? : pur sakoon (??????) ; ...comfortable? : aaraam deh (???? ??) ; ...bigger? : barra (???) ; ...cleaner? : saaf (???) ; ...cheaper? : sasta (????) ; OK, I'll take it. : Theek hai, lay leta <leti> hoon. (???? ??, ?? ???? <????> ???) <females> ; I will stay for _____ night(s). : Mei _____ raat(raatain) rukoon ga. (??? _____ ???(?????) ???? ??) ; Can you suggest another hotel? : aap kisi aur hotel ki tajwiz karsaktein hain? (??? ??? ???? ???) ; Is breakfast/supper included? : Nashta/Khana shamil hai? (?????/????? ???? ???) ; What time is breakfast/supper? : Nashta/Khana kis waqt milta hai? (?????/????? ?? ??? ???? ???) ; Please clean my room. : Mehrbaani, mera kamra saaf kar dijeiy. (???? ???? ??? ?????) ; Can you wake me at _____? : Mujhe _____ bajay utha dijyeh ghein? (???? _____ ??? ???? ???? ???) ; I want to check out. : Mujhe dekhn hai. (???? ??? ??? ???? ??)
; Do you accept American/Australian/Canadian dollars? : Aap amrikan/autralian/canadian pasia lay thain hain? ; Do you accept British pounds? : Aap angraze pasia lay thain hain? ; Do you accept credit cards? : Do you accept credit cards? (?? ???? ??????? ???? ???? ????) ; Can you change money for me? : Can you change money for me? (?? ???? ???? ??? ??? ?????????) ; Where can I get money changed? : Where can I get money changed? (??? ??? ???? ??? ?????) ; Can you change a traveler's check for me? : Can you change a traveler's check for me? (?? ???? ???? ?? ?????? ??? ?????????) ; Where can I get a traveler's check changed? : Where can I get a traveler's check changed? (??? ?? ?????? ???? ??? ?????) ; What is the exchange rate? : What is the exchange rate? (???? ?????? ??? ???)
; A table for one person/two people, please. : A table for one person/two people, please. (?? ??? ????? ?? ?? ?? ???, ????????) ; Can I look at the menu, please? : Can I look at the menu, please? (??? ???? ?????? ??????) ; Can I look in the kitchen? : Can I look in the kitchen? (??? ???? ????? ??????) ; Is there a house specialty? : Is there a house specialty? (???????? ??? ???) ; Is there a local specialty? : Is there a local specialty? (???? ?????? ???) ; I'm a vegetarian. : mein gosht naheen kahtah, or mein sirf sabzee kahtah hoon. (??? ???? ??? ???) ; I don't eat pork. : mein laham-e-khinzeer naheen kahtah. (??? ????? ???? ????? ???? ???) ; I don't eat beef. : mein gaa'ay ka gosht naheen kahtah. (??? ????? ??? ???? ????? ???? ???) ; I only eat kosher food. : mein sirf kosher khana kahta hoon. (??? ??? ????? ????? ????? ???? ???) ; Can you make it "lite", please? (''less oil/butter/lard'') : Zara halka banana, maharbani? (??? ??? ????, ????????. ?? ???, ????, ?? ????? ?????) ; fixed-price meal : fixed-price meal (???? ???????) ; a la carte : a la carte (??? ??? ????? ???? ??) ; breakfast : naashta (?????) ; lunch : Khana (????) ?? ??????) ; tea (''meal'') : chai (???) ; supper : supper (??? ?? ????) ; I want _____. : Mujhe ______ chahiyeh. (???? ______ ?? ????? ??) ; I want a dish containing _____. : I want a dish containing _____. (???? ???? ?? _______ ???? ??) ; chicken : murghiye (???) ; beef : gaa'ay ka ghosht (????) ; fish : machlih (????) ; ham : ham (?????) ; sausage : sausage (?????) ; cheese : paneer (????) ; eggs : andhey (???) ; salad : salad (????) ; (fresh) vegetables : (fresh) sabzee (????) ; (fresh) fruit : (fresh) phaal (????) ; bread : bread (???) ; toast : toast (??? ?????) ; noodles : noodles (???? ?????) ; rice : chaval (????) ; beans : beans (?????) ; May I have a glass of _____? : May I have a glass of _____? (??? ?? ????? _____ ??????) ; May I have a cup of _____? : May I have a cup of _____? (??? ?? ???? _____ ??????) ; May I have a bottle of _____? : May I have a bottle of _____? (??? ?? ???? _____ ??????) ; coffee : coffee (????) ; tea (''drink'') : chai (???) ; juice : juice (????) ; (bubbly) water : (bubbly) panih (???? ?????) ; water : pani (????) ; beer : daru (????) ; red/white wine : red/white wine (???? ???? ?? ???) ; May I have some _____? : May I have some _____? (??? ???? ______ ?? ????) ; salt : namak (???) ; black pepper : black pepper (???? ????) ; butter : makhaan(????) ; Excuse me, waiter? (''getting attention of server''): Excuse me, waiter? (????? ????????) ; I'm finished. : meineh khatam kar liya hai. (?? ??, ????) ; It was delicious. : bohot mazeydaar/lazeez tha. (?????? ???) ; Please clear the plates. : Please clear the plates. (??? ??? ?????) ; The check, please. : The check, please. (????? ????, ?????)
; Do you serve alcohol? : Aap sharaab bechte karte hain? (?? ???? ????? ???? ????) ; A beer/two beers, please. : Aik / Dou beer dijye. (??? / ?? ???? ??????) ; A glass of red/white wine, please. : Aik glass laal/safaid sharaab dijye. (??? ???? ????/??? ???? ??????) ; A bottle, please. : aik botal dijye. ( ??? ???? ??????) ; whiskey : whiskey (????) ; vodka : vodka (?????) ; rum : rum (??) ; water : paani (????) ; club soda : club soda (??? ????) ; tonic water : tonic water (???? ????) ; orange juice : orange juice (????? ?? ???) ; Coke : Coke (???) ; Do you have any bar snacks? : Kuch khanay ko hai? (??? ????? ?? ???) ; One more, please. : Aik aur dijye. (??? ??? ??????) ; When is closing time? : Bar kis waqt bund hota hai? (??? ?? ??? ??? ???????)
; Do you have this in my size? : Merhey Qaad mein hai? (???? ???? ??? ???) ; How much is this? : Kitney ka hai? (??? ??? ?? ?????) ; That's too expensive. : Yeh bohot hi zyaada meheingha hai. (?? ???? ??) ; Would you take _____? : aap kuch lehnghey_____? (____???????) ; expensive : mehengha (????) ; cheap : sustaah (?????) ; I can't afford it. : meri itnih gunjaish naheen hai . (???? ???? ???? ??) ; I don't want it. : Mujhey iskih nahin chahiye/ Mujhe iskih naheen zaroorat (???? ???? ?????) ; You're cheating me. : aap mujhey dhohka dey rahey hain. (?? ???? ????? ??) ; I'm not interested. : mhujhey ismeh koih dilchaspi naheen hai. (??? ????? ????) ; OK, I'll take it. : Theekh hai, mein lehleh thi hoon. (??? ??, ???? ?? ???) ; Can I have a bag? : mein koi thelaa leinloon? (????? ?????) ; Do you ship (overseas)? : Do you ship (overseas)? (?????? ??? ????? ???? ????) ; I need... : (???? _____ ?? ????? ??) ; ...toothpaste. : mhujey daant ki paste ki zaroorat hai(???? ?????) ; ...a toothbrush. : mhujhey daant brush ki zaroorat hai (?????) ; ...tampons. : (?????) ; ...soap. : sabun(?????) ; ...shampoo. : (????) ; ...pain reliever. (''e.g., aspirin or ibuprofen'') :(?????) ; ...cold medicine.davaa : (???? ??) ; ...stomach medicine. : (???? ????) ; ...a razor. : (???) ; ...an umbrella. : chattrih(???) ; ...sunblock lotion. : ...sunblock lotion. (???? ??? ??????)(''...'') ; ...a postcard. : (????? ?????) ; ...postage stamp. : (???? ?????) ; ...batteries. : (?????) ; ...writing paper. : (????) ; ...a pen. :KAHlam (???) ; ...a pencil : (????) ; ...an English-language book. :angreyzih-zabaan ki kitaab (????? ????? ???????) ; ... an English-language magazine. : angreyzih-zabaan ka risallah(?????? ????? ???????) ; ...an English-language newspaper. : angreyzih-zabaan ka akhbaar (????????? ????? ???????) ; ...an English-Urdu dictionary. :(?????? ???? ? ???????)
; I want to rent a car. : I want to rent a car. (??? ?? ???? ????? ???? ??) ; Can I get insurance? : Can I get insurance? (???? ??????) ; stop (''on a street sign'') : rukh jao (????) ; one way : one way (?? ???) ; yield : yield (?????) ; no parking : no parking (???? ???? ??? ??) ; speed limit : speed limit (??? ????) ; gas (''petrol'') station : gas station (???) ; petrol : petrol (?????) ; diesel : diesel (????)
; I haven't done anything wrong. : meiney koi bura kaam naheen kiya??? ?? ??? ??? ???? ??) ; It was a misunderstanding. : ghalat fehmi hogai hai ; Where are you taking me? : aap mhujhe kahan lay kay ja rahe hain? (???? ?????? ???) ; Am I under arrest? : mein giraftar ho raahan hoon? (??? ?????? ??? ????) ; I am an American/Australian/British/Canadian citizen. : mein American/Australian/British/Canadian citizen hoon. (??? ?????? ???? ???) ; I want to talk to the American/Australian/British/Canadian embassy/consulate. : merheey American/Australian/British/Canadian embassy/consulate seh baat kara dheeh jaey. (??? ?? ?? ?????? ????? ???? ???? ??) ; I want to talk to a lawyer. : I want to talk to a lawyer. (??? ?? ?? ???? ???? ???? ??) ; Can I just pay a fine now? : mein fine abhiy pay kardhoon (??? ???? ????? ??????)
; How do you say _____ ? : How do you say _____ ? (______ ???? ???? ????) ; What is this/that called? : What is this/that called? (?? ??? ???)