Alif
/ˈælɪf/noun
The first letter of the Arabic alphabet, usually representing a long /ā/ or serving as a seat for other marks.
Did you know?In the traditional abjad numeral system, alif has the value one, linking its first position with unity and beginnings.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*ʾalp
“Ox; the name of the first letter, likely associated with an ox’s head”
1st Millennium BCE
Phoenician
𐤀 ʾlp
“Aleph, the first consonant-letter, historically named for an ox”
8th–5th Century BCE
Ancient Greek
ἄλφα (álpha)
“Alpha, adopted from Phoenician aleph as the first Greek letter”
Before 7th Century CE
Arabic
ألف (ʾalif)
“The first Arabic letter, inherited within the Semitic writing tradition”
7th Century CE
Arabic
ألف (alif)
“The letter’s established Arabic form in the early Islamic writing tradition”
Modern English
English
alif
“The Arabic alphabet’s first letter”