transliterate
■ verb write or print (a letter or word) using the closest corresponding letters of a different alphabet or language.
—DERIVATIVES transliteration noun transliterator noun
(Concise Oxford English Dictionary)
Consonants
| Letter | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| א | aleph | ʾ |
| ב בּ |
bēt | ḇ b |
| ג גּ |
gimel | ḡ g |
| ד דּ |
dalet | ḏ d |
| ה | hēh | h |
| ו | vav (waw) |
w (or v) |
| ז | zayin | z |
| ח | ḥēt | ḥ (hard h) |
| ט | tēt | ṭ (hard t) |
| י | yōd | y |
| כ כּ ך (final) |
kaph | ḵ k |
| ל | lamed | l |
| מ ם |
mēm | m |
| נ ן |
nūn | n |
| ס | samek | s |
| ע | ayin | ʿ |
| פ פּ |
pē | p p̄ |
| צ ץ (final) |
tsadē | ṣ (hard s) |
| ק | qōph | q |
| ר | rēsh | r |
| שׂ | sīn | ś |
| שׁ | shīn | š |
| ת תּ |
tav | ṯ t |
Vowels
Long
| Vowel | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| ֽבָּ | Qamets[1] | ā |
| בֵּ | Tsere | ē |
| בֹּ | Ηοlem | ō |
Short
| Vowel | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| בַּ | Pathach | a |
| בֶּ | Seghol | e |
| בִּ | Ηireq | i |
| בָּ | Qamets Hatuf | o |
| בֻּ | Qibbuts | u |
Reduced
| Vowel | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| בֲּ | Hateph Pathach | ă |
| בֱּ | Hateph Seghol | ĕ |
| בֳּ | Hateph Qamets | ŏ |
Vowel Letters
| Vowel | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| בָּה | Qamets He | â |
| בֵּי | Tsere Yod | ê |
| בֶּי | Seghol Yod | ê |
| בִּי | Hireq Yod | î |
| בּוֹ | Holem Waw | ô |
| בּוּ | Shureq | û |
Miscellaneous
| Mark | Name | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| לְ | Shewa (vocal) | e |
| שּׁ זּ |
Dhagesh Forte | šš zz |
Note: Dhagesh Forte doubles the consonant in which it appears. The guttural consonants (ח ,ה ,ע ,א) and ר cannot take a Dhagesh Forte.
Examples
Footnotes:
[1]. The vertical bar (called a “meteg”) doesn’t always appear with a Qamets. I have only included it here to make it clear from the tables that it is really distinct from Qamets Hatuf.
[1]. The vertical bar (called a “meteg”) doesn’t always appear with a Qamets. I have only included it here to make it clear from the tables that it is really distinct from Qamets Hatuf.
