Shakespear, John: A grammar of the Hindustani language (London, 1826)

HINDUSTANI LANGUAGK

11

CHAPTER II.

On Vronunciation.

\ a. According to the orthography of the Arabs, initial
alif (!) has no sound but that of its accompanying vowel,
which, in this case, is fat’ha ('); and, as pronounced
in Hindustan, it resembles the English u in up,fun, or
the Erench e in le.

T 3fT a, like a in all, or aw in hawl; being the foregoing
letter prolonged in sound.

\ X i) as i in fn, being the power of the vowel kasr (.)
merely in the Arabic character.

\ T, as ee in peer; being the last doubled in sound.

1 3’ u, like oo in wool; or as u in pull, full; being the
power of the Arabic vowel zamm (') sirnply.

^ u, as the last prolonged in utterance; or, as oo in
cool, fool.

e, as ai in pair or a infate. rl'his is the sound of
ya-i-maj’hul, apparently so termed because not known
in the Arabic ; and, though of frequent occurrence in
the Persian language, it has no peculiar mark or cha~
racter to distinguish it.

ai, like z in dire, hite, or ei in height; being, in
Arabic, a compound of fat’ha and ye quiescent.