I want to clear up some confusion. While Arabic words and names may be spelled many different ways in English, they are only spelled one way in Arabic. Arabic doesn’t have any confusion or ambiguity when it comes to spelling.
So while the US Library of Congress supposedly has twenty-three ways to spell the name of the president of Libya, in Arabic his name is spelled one way and every Arabic speaker knows how to spell it without any confusion. It’s معمر القذافي
And the reason I bring this up is because I occasionally see someone on a message board or a blog get overly creative with transliterating an Arabic word.
For example: Irak. You can’t interchange a ‘k’ and ‘q.’ Different letters, different words. Knock it off. Unless you’re speaking German, in which case, that’s okay.
Another example I saw recently: taqfir. Come on now, what the hell is that? You can not interchange and ‘k’ and a ‘q’!
Q in English represents this Arabic letter: ق
K in English represents this Arabic letter: ك
You change the letter, you change the word. Barking is not the same as parking. Sleep is not the same as sleet.
Wow, this site says there are 87 different official spellings of the president of Libya’s name.
Anonymous Arabist وين الناس 
Can you please tell me how to spell dorothy smith and 1942 – 2008.
thankyou
Sure. دوروثي سميث is the name and unfortunately, my keyboard is not letting me type Arabic Arabic numbers.
Just wanted to say how good is it that you take the time to help these people with their translations. Good on you
In english that is ‘good for you’ …
how do you spell “god willing” in arabic?
ان شاء الله
how do you spell Sarah in arabic?
سارة…but if you’re going to get it tattooed on you, I recommend that you find a graphic artist who knows Arabic to pretty it up for you.
I just started learning Arabic and I love it. Hope to drop back here if I need help / recommendations.
Nice blog by the way. I’m adding you to my roll.
That’s great! Please do feel free to ask question or make suggestions. Sometimes I run out of ideas.
HOW U SPELL PRESIDENTIAL IN ARABIC
how doy you spell
i love you sebastian
or
my love for you
or
always will love you
I love you Sebastian=احبك سباستيان
sabastian smells
or you can say, ANA BAHEKBAK, its the same than “i love you” but writen in phonetic way. i mean, the way you should pronunciate it.
how do you spell rebel in arabic and felipe and kiara in arabic
The Arabic word for “rebel” is متمرد or ثائر. But “rebel” might have a more negative connotation in Arabic.
Felipe is فيليبي.
For Kiara, it depends on how you pronounce it. If it’s kee-ar-ah, then كيارا, and if it’s keer-ah, then كيرا. If it’s pronounced some other way, let me know.
If you want to say Felipe and Kiara together, then put a و in between them.
hey snarla im sorry once againa
how do you write
” I Will Always Love You Sebas M ”
or instead of Sebas M ( Sebastian M )
سوف احبك دائما يا سيباس م
سوف احبك دائما يا سيباستيان م
Now that I think about it, you could leave off the سوف
What are the names Cameron and Desiree in Arabic?
Cameron = كاميرون you can tell it’s right because if you copy and paste it into Google, it’ll bring up pictures of Cameron Diaz.
Desiree = ديسيري
how do you spell Mounir in Arabic?
Hi Yara, Mounir=منير
How do you spell amen and angel
“Amen,” like at the end of prayer? That’s آمين.
The name Angel is آنجل, but the word “angel” is ملك.
How do you spell the quote this too shall pass
Hi Desiree, sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner. I’d have to think of a phrase they say in Arabic that means essentially the same thing. I’ll have to think about and get back to you.
Hi snarla, just wondering if you found out how to spell the quote “this too shall pass”
Hi Desired, no, sorry, I forgot about it. Well, I’ve been keeping an ear open for an idiom in Arabic that conveys the same message. I think it’s better to say what the natives would say than to translate the words literally and end up with a phrase that sounds awkward or even nonsensical to a native. But now that you’ve prodded me, I’ll look around and see if I can find anything.
could you please tell me how to spell the name Ameenah? Thank you
Sure, Will. It’s امينة.
how do u spell kiara in arabic
How do you pronounce it?
hey can you tell me how to spell Unique and Random in Arabic please! many thanks
Tricky one.
The Arabic word for “unique” is وحيد (for a female, وحيدة). Transliterated into Arabic letters, the English word “unique” is يونيك.
The Arabic word for “random” is عشواءي(for a female, عشواءية). Transliterated into Arabic letters, the English word “random” is راندوم.
so the last Arabic translations are the ones which i want!!that right? cheers
Can you tell me the symbols for love and strength?
Love= الحب
Strength= القوة
German.. or Dutch.
Hi, how do we spell “strength” in arabic?
Thank you
The most common word would be القوة
How do you spell charlotte in saudi arabia
Charlotte in Arabic: شارلوت or شارلوط. I think the first version might be a little more common.
how do you spell maquaela in saudi arabia
How is it pronounced?
can you please spell crazy in arabic?
If you mean the word for ‘crazy,’ it’s مجنون if you´re describing a man and مجنونة if you´re describing a woman. If know someone named Crazy and you want to see how that would look in Arabic, it’s كريزي.
Can you please translate for me the name Felipe and if you also can do Julissa/Juli
i seen you already translated Felipe but i can’t read it or copy it for a tattoo of my husbands name.. if you can please e-mail it to me.
I’m sorry Julissa, but I don’t send emails. You can try asking on Yahoo Answers.
Juli = جولي
Julissa = جوليسا
Felipe = فيليبي
i already tried yahoo.. google and ask.com… thank you tho’ im sure with this i can zoom in …
Hello snarla,
I found the word strength in arabic in this website http://images.cafepress.com/image/19634831_400x400.jpg I was wondering its also right because I saw its spells a bit different from what you posted.
And could you please tell me how to spell the name Karolina.
Thanks!
Hi Karen. The word in your link is correct. It’s the same as القوة but it also includes the vowels to make it prettier. Karolina is كارولينا. I´ll have to get back to you about “inner strength.”
Thanks a lot snarla!!
Oh and if you could also translate “inner strength”
Thank you
Snarla, I was just wondering if you had the chance to figure out how to spell”inner strength”.
Thanks so much.
Hi Karen,
It’s not that I don’t know how to write “inner strength” in Arabic, it’s that I’m afraid a native speaker might think it’s something that would be written on the side of a can of oven cleaner or a box of laundry detergent. I haven’t had a chance to ask a native about it.
I think it might end up that قوة by itself is the word you’re looking for.
how do u spell Karen in Arabic
كارن = Karen
Dear Snarla
Could you please translate ‘Rachel my Angel, forever in my heart’ – into native Tunisian.
My father was tunisian and my wife, partner and best friend of 18 years Rachel passed away last year at 33 from a brain tumor. I am having a portrait of her as an angel tatood on tuesday and would like these words put on it. Please send it in a format that i can copy and print.
Many Thanks
Jason
I’m sorry, John, but I don’t know Tunisian. Good luck.
Dear Snarla
Could you translate the Rachel sentence into arabic then?
Thamks
Jason (not John)
I recommend that you get a second opinion, but here’s my take:
ريتشيل ملكتي في قلبي دائمأ
I don´t know that the Arabs have the concept of female angels. What I have written above also means “my queen.”
If you want something more authentically Arab, go with
ريتشيل قرة عيني في قلبي دائمأ
“Rachel, delight of my eye, in my heart always.”
When you copy and paste this, be absolutely sure that the formatting doesn’t get messed up. That would be embarrassing.
There are some people on the internet who specialize in designing Arabic tattoos. I would consult with them.
Hi. What does “Raida” mean?(smb told me its an arabic word)
I’d have to see it in Arabic to know, but my best guess based on the English spelling is that that’s رائدة, which means pioneer or scout, female.
Here’s a publication named al-Raida, with the Arabic and the English side by side: http://www.lau.edu.lb/centers-institutes/iwsaw/raida.html
What does ‘Rhaida’ mean?(somebody told me its an arabic word)
‘Rh’ is not a sound in Arabic. If the ‘h’ matters, it’s not Arabic. See my answer to your question on 11 September.
hey could you tell me how to write
‘steadfast and adversity’
or
‘in hardship faithful’
in arabic please?
isla, I asked a friend for suggestions and here are his answers:
Anyway, for the the latter of the two I have a good phrase taken from the title of a an Arabic song I found on the web.
The title of the song is:
رافع رأسي بتحدي صامد في وجه الشدة
And I think صامد في وجه الشدة would be good for “in hardship faithful”
And you can always reverse it to match the English:
في وجه الشدة صامد
how do your write love is pain in arabic
الحب الم is the simplest way. I can try to find some love songs with some more poetic lyrics, but it’ll probably be a while before I get to it.
How do you spell the word Two in arabic?
thanks
Hi Gilly. It’s اثنينand also اثنان.
can you please spell this in arabic I would like to get it as a tattoo.
“If you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best”
Hi Kristy, I’m not a native speaker of Arabic, so I’m not going to try to come up with a good way to say that. But I will keep an eye out in case I see something like that.
how do you spell= live in freedom
and
karen and samuel
can u plz tell me how to say in english – arabic_what is the time?
In Arabic: كم الساعة؟
how do you spell desiree in arabic
how do you spell mysha in arabic
mysha= ميشا
Is there a difference in the name Mysha and Misha in Arabic? What is the meanig of these names and how do u write them in Arabic? PLease help as I am planning to keep this name of my daughter 🙂
Is this pronounced as mee-sha or my-sha ??
hi could someone tell me how to write aaliyah in arabic please?
how to spell aliya in arabic….actually im naming my daughter aliya…which means high,exalted…is it aaliya or aliya??aliya as in alisha…whats the right way to prononuce it?aaliya or aliya?
If you’re talking about the same name as the singer who died in 2001, then the Arabic is عالية.
It starts with a sound we don´t have in English. You probably don´t want to pronounce it Arabic way, anyhow.
Try this. Start to say ah-lee-uh, but just as you start to say the first syllable, pretend you dropped something heavy on your foot.
thank u for ur response,i want to prononuce it the arabic way…im still not clear if it has to be pronounced like ‘a’ in cat or ‘a’in ran….aa li ya or a’liya…i want to use aliya as the spellin…is it acceptable in arabic text?
Sure, Aliya seems fine. The first syllable is close to the ‘a’ in ‘father.’
Congratulations on your baby girl.
How do you write the name Lee in arabic?
It’s spelled لي with two dots under that low part. I don’t know why they aren’t showing.
just wondering… how do you spell Celeste? (I learned that there is no C in the Arabic language, so i have no idea how to spell my neme 😦 )
Hi Celeste. You’d spell it سليست
how do i spell ishtiaq in arabic??
how do i spell zara in arabic
How do u spell hussain in arabic
Lately I see numbers used to represent Arabic consonants when using the western alphabet in email, for example 7 for Ha (it looks somewhat like the Arabic symbol), 3 for ‘ayn (looks like a mirror-image of the Arabic symbol). My question, in this system what does 9 stand for? (example: “…bey3raf ye9tar atmana ye9tarni…”)
Hi Dick,
The 9 is a ص. The 6 is a ط. If you get confused and want to check, go to Yamli.com and type it in the box there. It’s a pretty cool tool.
Pls can U spell Bismarck for me in arabic
how do you spell “simone” in arabic writing?
Hi Lisa. Simone is spelled سيمون. However, you can´t tell by looking whether this says Simon or Simone. They look the same.
Hi my name is Amirah, how do I spell my name in arabic? I know I have an arabic name, and no, I’m not arabic, so I’m unsure of the spelling. LOL :]
Hi Amirah, sorry for the delay. Amirah is spelled اميرة. Enjoy!
how do you spell “december” in arabic?
Hi dg12. The Arabic term for December is كانون الاول , but “December” transliterated in English is ديسمبر.
hi, Snarla!
you came up in my google search and i was wondering how you spell “relentless” in Arabic? Thanks so much!
Hi marenna. The Arabic word closest in meaning to “relentless” is probably قاس (for a man) and قاسية (for a woman). But it also means “cruel” and “stern.”
“Relentless” transliterated in English is ريلنتلس
thank you for this…..maybe “resilient ” would be a better word? could you show me how that is spelled?
Hi Snarla,
Can you please put this in Arabic for me? ( My strength, My Courage ) or ( 11-9-06 )
thanx
Hi Marlenia,
“My strength, my courage” is قوتي, شجاعتي.
But be aware that the formatting might have gotten/might get messed up if you copy and paste this.
I can’t do the numerals for you because my keyboard doesn’t do them.
Have a good day
Can you please tell us what Arabic letters are used to spell the name “Hussein” ? Tell us in English transliteration, please. Thank you.
Hey Snarla… What’s the most apt arabic word for a combination of strength(inner) and endurance… Please let me know the pronunciation in english as well as how it is written in arabic. Thanks
Hi Mufeeda,
I don’t know if it’s the most apt word, but I like good old قوة–it means “strength; vigor; intensity; potential; power” and many other good things.
The first letter, ق, is pronounced like a ‘k’ but as far back in your throat as you can do it. Bearing that in mind, it’s pronounced KOO-uh.
You might prefer صمود, which means “staying power (in the face of an opponent).”
It starts with the letter ص, which is similar to our ‘s’ but you keep your tongue more flat and full. Bearing that in mind, it’s pronounced suh-MOOD.
How do you spell the name Bobbi-Dee in arabic??? 😀
Hi there, I would spell it بابي دي
Thanks ^_^
thanks
Hi, I hope you’re well. How do you spell Resistance in Arabic? Many thanks.
Leighton
Hey Snarla, I have a phrase for you in arabic.. I need it transliterated into arabic: “Until Forever” (La hataa’l an) OR “From now until the end” (Min el daee’a la hataa’l abad).
Hi Dania, you put me in a quandary. That’s either Egyptian dialect or Egyptian pronunciation, so I’m not sure if I should spell it in MSA or following the Egyptian pronunciation. Do you have a preference?
I’m seeing la hataa’l an used to mean “so far,” and so I’m not sure it won’t be misinterpreted.
Here’s your second phrase, if I’m understanding it right: من الدقيقة الي حتى الابد.
How do u spell Brother in Arabic?
The Arabic word for “brother” is اخ.
The Arabic word for “my brother” is اخي.
I was wondering how to spell evolving in arabic and love…
plss tell me how to spell AAZEEN in arabic
Could you spell my daughter’s name : Amerie in arabic pls..
Im wondering whats the spelling for evolving and love
can you please show me how to spell the name Nuzhat.. I have a friend who spells her name as Nazhat but i dont think the pronounciation of that is correct, i think shes supposed to be Nuzhat.
How do u spell lawrence in arabic Pls
Can anyone reverse-transcribe this for me? أول ضوء
Sure! It means “First light.”
Can anyone please trasncribe for me?
For every dark night there is a brighter day
I’m not sure if anyone’s on here anymore, but I was wondering how either ثائر or متمرد is pronounced in Arabic and/or a romanized version? thanks ^^
Hey this is urgent!!! Can u translate “this too shall pass” into Arabics please
Hi, I hope you can help. Im trying to get “Echelon placement solutions” written in Arabic not translated.
Hey could yountranslate “This too shall pass” in Arabic please
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Hey, how can i spell “i am”, “fan”, “legend”. and “football/soccer”? This words i can’t get it right T,T
How do you spell the name Blake please
Hi Ian, I would spell it بليك
how do you spell the name “Jeimie” in Arabic?
Hi Chastity. How do you pronounce “Jeimie”?
How do u spell Daniel in arabic. I keep getting different answers, is there only one way for each word.
how about ” to infinity and beyond”
Hello, would like to get my daughter’s name tattooed its ZAAFIRA, would like to know the spelling in Arabic, thanks
Hi Josanne, can you please tell me how it’s pronounced? There is more than one Arabic letter that gets spelled as a Z in English. Or tell me what it means so I can look it up. Thanks.
Someone please help me spell Oasis in Arabic but with the letters seperately, I’m making a crossword. If you find a site that does that, please reply and tell me.
I also need the words;
-sand dunes
-souk
-Muhhamad
-muslim
-Islam
-mosque
-Qur’an
-caravan
-sedentary
-Five Pillars of Islam
-Sunnah
-jihad
-pilgrimage
-shrine
all with the letter spelled seperately, please, I need these words urgently.
hello,
how do you say ‘handsome fashion’? As in, Allah created man in a handsome fashion. I believe it’s ‘hasan taqi’ but i am unsure. i need this clarified for it is our unborn son’s name and he is due soon 🙂 thank you in advance, salams
can you please spell for me my name Jamillah in arabic..thanks!
جميلة
“Spelling Arabic Words in English | Anonymous Arabist وين الناس” was actually compelling and useful!
In the present day world honestly, that is tricky to deliver.
Thank you, Kassandra
I’m so glad I found this blog. Could you please help me?
My name is Saliha. It also has MANY different spellings such as Saaliegah, Sauligah, Soliga, Solikha, Saaliha, Salikha… Etc. I want to keep my name spelled “Saliha” but people always mispronounce it. So I was wondering if I put an accent on the first “a” in my name, then that part of my name will carry the emphasis so when people pronounce it, it will then sound closer to the Arabic pronunciation.
So which accent do I use?
Sâliha, Sãliha, Sàliha, Sáliha?
Thanks a lot. 🙂
I would spell your name صالحة
But how do I spell it in English so that it’s pronunced properly? Which accent do I use?
how do you spell area in arabic with a tanweens on it
Unfortunately, I haven’t mastered the diacritical marks on the keyboard. Sorry!
Is there a difference in the name Mysha and Misha in Arabic? What is the meanig of these names and how do u write them in Arabic?
Is this pronounced as mee-sha or my-sha ??
I’d like to know how to spell you’re my angel in americanized arabic for a tattoo.
Can you please tell me how to spell desiree Marie in Arabic (: I tried posting this question up before but I’m not sure it went threw. Thank you
ديزيريه ماري
How do you spell, god is a fraud?
can you please translate Damian Rafael
Perhaps داميان رافائيل
Thank You Very much
How do you spell LeShaun and Tamara
How do you spell “give me strength” in arabic
How do you spell “this too shall pass”
The arabic letters in english are wrong spelling
How do you spell “narcissist” VERTICALLY in Arabic?
I’m afraid you can’t spell vertically in Arabic. You could try finding an Arabic calligrapher to design it for you, though.
Thanks for the reply. Want it for a tattoo
How is “you are my sunshine” and “you bring sunshine to my heart” spelled out in Arabic?
please i want to know how can i write my arabic last name in proper english way >> my last name is ” العبيدي ” .. thanks in advance
What is an Arabic last name that means ‘to lead’ or anything along them lines?
قائد would be a good one. I´d probably transliterate it Qaed. Another possibility is سيد, Sayyid. امير , Amir, means both ´prince´and ´commander.’
Do you mean ‘to lead’ more like ‘to guide’ or more like ‘to command’?
Hi. How do you write
Ellie
Hallie
Jonah
In arabic…
X X X X
Hi just wondering is there different ways to spell ‘angels’ in arabic?
How do u spell spoiled brat in Syrian
Can you please help spell zeus in Arabic.
Could you please write Aliyah and Amirah for me in Arabic? Thank you!
Please tell me the proper way in American English to spell the words A salaam a lakum and crazy I read that No is La in Arabic is that true?
The Arabic word for ‘no’ is ‘la’–that’s true.
As for how to spell as-salam alaykum, well, that’s up to the individual. There is no official way to transliterate Arabic words in English, or vice versa.