🎙️ Tajweed: recite beautifully · Step 2 of 11
Makhaarij: where each letter comes from
Every Arabic letter has its own place in the mouth or throat. There are five main areas.
The five areas
| Area | Letters | Tip |
|---|---|---|
The empty space of the mouth and throat (al-jawf) | The long vowels: ا و ي when they are madd letters | The sound flows out with the breath |
The throat (al-halq) | ء ه (deepest), ع ح (middle), غ خ (top) | Feel them in your throat, from deep to near the mouth |
The tongue (al-lisan) | Most letters: ق ك ج ش ي ض ل ن ر ط د ت ص س ز ظ ذ ث | Different parts of the tongue touch different places |
The lips (ash-shafatan) | ف ب م و | ف: top teeth on the lower lip; ب م: lips together; و: lips rounded |
The nose (al-khayshum) | The ghunnah of ن and م | Hold your nose: the ghunnah stops |
How to find a letter's place
Put a hamzah with a fatha before the letter and make the letter saakin: for ب say أَبْ, for ق say أَقْ. Where the sound stops is the letter's place (makhraj).
Listen: the heavy [[ض]] in Al-Faatiḥah
ض comes from the side of the tongue against the upper back teeth. Do not change it into د or ز.
✅ Check yourself
-
Which letters come from the lips?
Show the answer
ف ب م و
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Which throat letters are the deepest?
Show the answer
ء and ه