Diagnosis: Spelling
Arabic text in question
ู ุฏููุฉ ุงูู ูู ุนุจุฏุงููู ุงูุฅูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ
Arabic text as it should be
ู ูุฏููููุฉู ุงููู ููููู ุนูุจูุฏู ุงููููฐูู ุงููุงูููุชูุตุงุฏููููุฉู
Note: You don’t use diacritics (ุชุดููู) in everyday Arabic. We use them here to clearly explain the grammar, spelling and meaning of words. To avoid confusion, we generally ignore auxiliary vowels that are necessary for pronunciation to avoid consonant clusters.
Analysis
There is a spelling mistake in ุงูุฅูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ.
The Arabic text ู ุฏููุฉ ุงูู ูู ุนุจุฏุงููู ุงูุฅูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ, which is written on the monitor in a train, translates into English as King Abdullah Economic City (ู ุฏููุฉ ุงูู ูู ุนุจุฏ ุงููู ุงูุงูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ). It is information about the next stop on the route.
โค Correct: The word ุงูุฅูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ should be written as ุงูุงูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ – with ุง and not with a cutting Hamza (ุฅ).
Why is this? In Arabic, the word ุงูุงูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ (economic) comes from the root ู-ุต-ุฏ and is the feminine form of ุงูููุชูุตุงุฏูููู, which is the Nisba adjective (ูุณุจุฉ) of the noun ุงูููุชูุตุงุฏู (economy), which itself is the verbal noun (ู ุตุฏุฑ) of the VIII-verb ุงูููุชูุตูุฏู – ููููุชูุตูุฏู (to economize, to save). The hamza (ุก) is not part of this root, nor is it part of the VIII-pattern ุงูููุชูุนููู and therefore must not be included in the word. Including such Hamza in ุงูุฅูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ is a common mistake.
- In the word ุงูุงูุชุตุงุฏูุฉ, the Hamza is called ููู ูุฒุฉู ุงููููุตููู. This type of Hamza is used to connect words and is not pronounced when it appears in the middle of a sentence (only if you start an utterance, you pronounce it as a glottal stop).
- It is different from ููู ูุฒุฉู ุงููููุทูุนู, which is always pronounced as a glottal stop.
Should we write Abd Allah (ุนุจุฏ ุงููู) or Abdallah (ุนุจุฏุงููู)?
In English, the answer is easy. But in Arabic?
What about the missing space between the words ุนุจุฏ and ุงููู? Especially in Saudi Arabia, but also in Egypt, you will see names like Abdallah written (and treated grammatically!) as one word and not, as expected, with a space (ู ูุณุงูุฉู).
There are some arguments in favor of treating the whole entity as a first name. But of course there are more arguments saying that you should treat the name as two Arabic words forming a ุฅููุถุงูุฉู construction that happens to be a person’s first name. My advice is to use the standard rules and put a space in between.
As far as I know, it is accepted today to treat it as one entity when the intended meaning is the first name Abdallah.
- Source: Real Place
- Time the photo was taken: 2022-11-30
- Location: Saudi Arabia
Background: This Arabic text appeared on a monitor in a high-speed train in Saudi Arabia. The Haramain High-Speed Railway ( ูุทุงุฑ ุงูุญุฑู ูู ุงูุณุฑูุน) connects the holy cities of Medina (ุงูู ุฏููุฉ ุงูู ููุฑุฉ) and Mecca (ู ูุฉ). This express train can travel up to 300 kilometers per hour (186 miles per hour). The track is 450 kilometers (280 miles) long. It can take people from these cities from start to finish in just two hours. It used to take six hours to drive the same distance. The railway also passes through Jeddah (ุฌุฏูุฉ) and King Abdullah Economic City.
Credit
Picture credit: Gerald Driรner
Added: 03/24/2025 Gerald Driรner
