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Ihya Academy إحياء معهد العلوم االسالمية

History of Arabic Persian and Urdu Language

Scripts

Initially it was 22 and later Hazrath-e- Ali Raziallahu tala anhu made it as 28/29 called as Huruf-ul Hija

Here, same Arabic letters/alphabet with addition of some letters: Pay, Cheem, Zay, Gaaf and

interchanging Wow and Hay.

Ihya Academy إحياء معهد العلوم االسالمية Here, same Arabic and Persian letters/alphabet with addition of some letters: Pay, Cheem, Zay, Gaaf and

interchanging Wow and Hay + Tay, Day, De, Do chame wali Hay, Hamza and Ye.

Kufic

9th century Qur'an, an early Kufic example from the Abbasid period.

Kufic is the oldest form of the Arabic script. The style emphasizes rigid and angular strokes, which

appears as a modified form of the old Nabataean script. The Archaic Kufi consisted of about 17 letters

without diacritic dots or accents. Afterwards, dots and accents were added to help readers with

pronunciation, and the set of Arabic letters rose to 29.[4] It is developed around the end of the 7th century

in the areas of Kufa, Iraq, from which it takes its name.[5] The style later developed into several varieties,

including floral, foliated, plaited or interlaced, bordered, and squared kufi. It was the main script used to

copy Qur'ans from the 8th to 10th century and went out of general use in the 12th century when the

flowing naskh style become more practical, although it continued to be used as a decorative element to

contrast superseding styles.

There were no set rules of using the Kufic script; the only common feature is the angular, linear shapes of

the characters. Due to the lack of methods, the scripts in different regions and countries and even down

to the individuals themselves have different ways to write in the script creatively, ranging from very square

and rigid forms to flowery and decorative.

Common varieties includes:

1. Maghribi (Moroccan or western) Kufic is a slight modification of early Kufic. It features a

significant amount of curves and loops as opposed to the original Arabic kufic script. Loops for

the characters such as the Waw and the Meem are pronounced and perhaps more exaggerated.

2. Fatimi (or eastern) kufic is prevalent in the North African region, particularly in Egypt. The stylized

and decorative form was mainly used in the decoration of buildings.

3. Murabba (or square) kufic is absolutely straight with no decorative accents or curves. Due to this

rigidity, this type of script can be created using square tiles or bricks. In Iran, entire buildings may

be covered with tiles spelling sacred names like those of God, Muhammad and Ali in square

Kufic, a technique known as banna'i. Contemporary calligraphy using this style is also popular in

modern decorations.

Ihya Academy إحياء معهد العلوم االسالمية Decorative Kufic inscriptions are often imitated into pseudo-kufics in Middle age And Renaissance

Europe. Pesudo-kufics is especially common in Renaissance depictions of people from the Holy Land.

The exact reason for the incorporation of pseudo-Kufic is unclear. It seems that Westerners mistakenly

associated 13–14th century Middle-Eastern scripts as being identical with the scripts current during Isa

Alaihissalaam time, and thus found natural to represent early Christians in association with them.

Naskh

Naskh script in a 14th-century Qur'an from the Mamluk dynasty.

The use of cursive script coexisted with Kufic, but because in the early stages of their development they

lacked discipline and elegance, cursive were usually used for informal purposes. With the rise of Islam,

new script was needed to fit the pace of conversions, and a well-defined cursive called naskh first

appeared in the 10th century. The script is the most ubiquitous among other styles, used in Qur'ans,

official decrees, and private correspondence. It become the basis of modern Arabic print.

Standardization of the style was pioneered by Ibn Muqla (886-940 A.D.) and later expanded by Abu

Hayan at-Tawhidi (died 1009 A.D.) and Muhammad Ibn Abd ar-Rahman (1492–1545 A.D.). Ibn Muqla is

highly regarded in Muslim sources on calligraphy as the inventor of the naskh style, although this seems

to be erroneous. However, Ibn Muqla did establish systematic rules and proportions for shaping the

letters, which use 'alif as the x-height.

Variation of the naskh includes:

1. Thuluth is developed as a display script to decorate particular scriptural objects. Letters have

long vertical lines with broad spacing. The name reference to the x-height, which is one third of

the 'alif.

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2. Riq'ah is a handwriting style derived from naskh and thuluth, first appeared in the 9th century.

The shape is simple with short strokes and little flourishes.

3. Muhaqqaq is a majestic style used by accomplished calligrapher. It was considered one of the

most beautiful script, as well as one of the most the difficult to execute. It is commonly used

during the mamluk era, but the use become largely restricted to short phrases, such

as basmallah, from the 18th century onward.

Regional

Nasta'liq calligraphy by Mir Emad Hassani, perhaps the most celebrated Persian calligrapher.

With the spread of Islam, the Arabic script was established in a vast geographic area with many regions

developing their own unique style. From the 14th century onward, other cursive styles began to develop

in Turkey, Persia, and China.

1. Nasta'liq is a cursive style originally devised to write the Persian language for literary and non-

Qur'anic works. [Nasta'liq is thought to be a latter development of the naskh and the earlier ta'liq

script used in Iran. The name ta'liq means 'hanging', and refers to the slightly steeped lines of

which words run in, giving the script a hanging appearance. Letters have short vertical strokes

with broad and sweeping horizontal strokes. The shapes are deep, hook-like, and have high

contrast. A variant called Shikasteh is used in a more informal contexts.

2. Diwani is a cursive style of Arabic calligraphy developed during the reign of the

early Ottoman Turks in the 16th and early 17th centuries. It was invented by Housam Roumi and

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reached its height of popularity under Süleyman I the Magnificent (1520–1566). Spaces between

letters are often narrow, and lines ascend upwards from right to left. Larger variation

called djali are filled with dense decorations of dots and diacritical marks in the space between,

giving it a compact appearance. Diwani is difficult to read and write due to its heavy stylization,

and became ideal script for writing court documents as it insured confidentiality and prevented

forgery.

3. Sini is a style developed in China. The shape is greatly influenced by Chinese calligraphy, using

a horsehair brush instead of the standard reed pen. A famous modern calligrapher in this

tradition is Hajji Noor Deen Mi Guangjiang.

Kufic

Kufic script in a 11th-century Qur'an.

Maghribi kufic script in a 13th-century Qur'an.

Square kufic tilework in Yazd, Iran.

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Under-glaze terracotta bowl from the 11th century Nishapur.

Gold dinar from 10th century Syria.

Naskh

Muhaqqaq script in a 15th Century Qur'an from Turkey.

Muhaqqaq script in a 13th-century Qur'an.

Riq'ah script in an early 16th century Ottoman manuscript dedicated to Selim I.

Diploma of competency in calligraphy, written with thuluth and naskh script.

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Thuluth script tile in Samarkand.

One of the calligraphy decorating Hagia Sophia.

Regional varieties

Ta'liq script in an Ottoman manuscript.

Nasta'liq Script.

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Proportions of the nasta'liq script.

Sini script in an 11th-century Qur'an.

Chinese Qur'an written in Sini with Chinese translation.

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Modern examples

Bismallah calligraphy.

Bismallah calligraphy.

An example ofzoomorphic calligraphy.

Flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan 2001.

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Animation showing the calligraphic composition of the Al Jazeera logo.

The Emirates logo is written in traditional Arabic calligraphy.

The instruments and work of a student calligrapher.

Islamic calligraphy performed by a Malay Muslim in Malaysia. Calligrapher is making a rough draft.

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Nasta'liq Main article: Nasta'liq script

The Nasta'liq calligraphic writing style began as a Persian mixture of scripts Naskh and Ta'liq. After

the Mughal conquest, Nasta'liq became the preferred writing style for Urdu. It is the dominant style

in Pakistan, and many Urdu writers elsewhere in the world use it. Nasta'liq is more cursive and flowing

than its Naskh counterpart.

Nastaʿlīq (also anglicized as Nastaleeq; in Persian: قیلعتسن nastaʿlīq) is one of the main calligraphic

hands used in writing the Perso-Arabic script, and traditionally the predominant style in Persian

calligraphy.[1] It was developed in Iran in the 8th and 9th centuries.[citation needed] It is sometimes used to

write Arabic-language text (where it is known as Taʿliq and is mainly used for titles and headings), but its

use has always been more popular in the Persian, Turkic, and South Asian spheres of

influence. Nastaʿlīq has extensively been (and still is) practiced in Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan for

written poetry and as a form of art. However, it is harder to read than Naskh.

A less elaborate version of Nastaʿlīq serves as the preferred style for writing Persian, Kashmiri, Punjabi

and Urdu, and it is often used alongside Naskh for Pashto. Nastaʿlīq was historically used for writing

Ottoman Turkish, where it was known as tâlik (not to be confused with a totally different Persian style,

also called taʿliq; to distinguish the two, Ottomans referred to the latter as ta'liq-i qadim = old ta'liq).

Nastaʿlīq is the core script of the post-Sassanid Persian writing tradition, and is equally important in the

areas under its cultural influence. The languages of Afghanistan (Dari, Uzbek, Turkmen, etc.), Pakistan

(Punjabi, Urdu, Kashmiri, Saraiki, etc.), India (Urdu, Kashmiri, Rekhta), and the Turkic Uyghur language

of the Chinese province of Xinjiang, rely on Nastaʿlīq. Under the name taʿliq (lit. “Suspending [script]”), it

was also beloved by Ottoman calligraphers who developed the Diwani (divanî) and Ruqah (rık’a) styles

from it.

Nastaʿlīq is amongst the most fluid calligraphy styles for the Arabic alphabet. It has short verticals with no

serifs, and long horizontal strokes. It is written using a piece of trimmed reed with a tip of 5–10 mm (0.20–

0.39 in), called "qalam" ("pen", in Arabic and Persian "قلم"), and carbon ink, named "davat". The nib of

a qalam is usually split in the middle to facilitate ink absorption.

Two important forms of Nastaʿlīq panels are Chalipa and Siah-Masq. A Chalipa ("cross", in Persian) panel

usually consists of four diagonal hemistiches (half-lines) of poetry, clearly signifying a moral, ethical or

poetic concept. Siah-Masq ("inked drill") panels, however, communicate via composition and form, rather

than content. In Siah-Masq, repeating a few letters or words (sometimes even one) virtually inks the

whole panel. The content is thus of less significance and not clearly accessible.

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History After the Islamic conquest of Persia, Iranians adopted the Perso-Arabic script, and the art of Persian

calligraphy flourished in Iran as well as in other Islamic countries. Apparently, Mir Ali Tabrizi (14th

century) developed Nastaʿlīq by combining two existing scripts of Nasḫ and Taʿlīq. Hence, it was

originally called Nasḫ-Taʿlīq. Another theory holds that the name Nastaʿlīq means "that which abrogated

(naskh) Taʿlīq".

Nastaʿlīq thrived, and many prominent calligraphers contributed to its splendor and beauty. It is believed

that Nastaʿlīq reached its highest elegance in Mir Emad's works. The current practice of Nastaʿlīq is,

however, heavily based on Mirza Reza Kalhor's technique. Kalhor modified and adapted Nastaʿlīq to be

easily used with printing machines, which in turn helped wide dissemination of his transcripts. He also

devised methods for teaching Nastaʿlīq and specified clear proportional rules for it, which many could

follow.

The Mughal Empire used Persian as the court language during their rule over South Asia. During this

time, Nastaʿlīq came into widespread use in South Asia, including Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. The

influence continues to this day. In Pakistan, almost everything in Urdu is written in the script, constituting

the greatest part of Nastaʿlīq usage in the world. In Hyderabad, Lucknow, and other cities in India with

large Urdu-speaking populations, many street signs and such are written

in Nastaʿlīq alongside Devanagari, Telugu or other Indian scripts. Also, the education system

in India recognizes Urdu as a language of preference for students who wish to designate it as their first

language, and the quality of the language training is of a high standard. The situation

of Nastaʿlīq in Bangladesh used to be the same as in Pakistan until 1971, when Urdu ceased to remain

an official language. Today, only a few people use this form of writing in Bangladesh.

Nastaʿlīq is a descendant of Nasḫ and Taʿlīq. Shikasta Nastaʿlīq (literally "broken Nastaʿlīq") style is a

development of Nastaʿlīq.

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Urdu or more precisely Modern Standard Urdu, is a standardized register of the Hindustani

language. Urdu is historically associated with the Muslims of the region of Hindustan. It is the national

language and lingua franca of Pakistan, and an official language of six Indian states and one of the 22

scheduled languages in the Constitution of India. Apart from specialized vocabulary, Urdu is mutually

intelligible with Standard Hindi, which is associated with the Hindu community. The Urdu language

received recognition and patronage under the British Raj when the British replaced the Persian and local

official languages of North Indian states with the Urdu and English language in 1837.

Origin of Urdu Main article: History of Hindustani

The word Urdu is derived from the same Turkic word ordu (army) that has given English horde (meaning-

a large group of people).

The Mughal Empire's official language was Persian. With the advent of the British Raj Persian language

was replaced by the Hindustani written in the Persian script and this script was used by both Hindus and

Muslims. The language was variously known as Hindi, Hindavi and Dehlavi. The communal nature of the

language lasted until it replaced Persian as the official language in 1837 and was made co-official, along

with English. This triggered a Hindu backlash in northwestern India, which argued that the language

should be written in the native Devanagari script. Thus a new literary register, called "Hindi", replaced

traditional Hindustani as the official language of Bihar in 1881, establishing a sectarian divide of "Urdu" for

Muslims and "Hindi" for Hindus, a divide that was formalized with the division of India and Pakistan after

independence (though there are Hindu poets who continue to write in Urdu to this day, with post-

independence examples including Gopi Chand Narang and Gulzar). At independence, Pakistan

established a highly Persianized literary form of Urdu as its national language. Ain-ul-Haq

Faridkoti theorized that Urdu was not an Indo-European language. Faridkoti suggested that not only Urdu

but many other South Asian languages, including Punjabi and Sindhi, are Dravidian languages with

influences from Manda and the Indo-Chinese family of languages.

There have been attempts to "purify" Urdu and Hindi, by purging Urdu of Sanskrit loan words, and Hindi

of Persian loan words, and new vocabulary draws primarily from Persian and Arabic for Urdu and from

Sanskrit for Hindi. This has primarily affected academic and literary vocabulary, and both national

standards remain heavily influenced by both Persian and Sanskrit. English has exerted a heavy influence

on both as a co-official language.

Prepared by: Moulana Muhammed Mahaboob Radawi Ihya Academy Islamic Sciences Bangalore