THE VOWEL SIGNS AND DIACRITICAL MARKS

In the same way that there were no vowel signs and diacritical points on the scripts gathered during the period of Caliph Abu Bakr, there were no vowel signs or diacritical points in the Qur’an that were copied and sent to the   major Islamic cities during the period of Uthman, because the vowel signs and diacritical points were not used in the Arab Peninsula at that time. As the Companions and believers of that period learnt the Qur’an by ear, everyone recited the Qur’an correctly in the way they had heard and been taught, therefore there was no question of the Qur’an being recited incorrectly.

However, as the boundaries of the Islamic state expanded and the  Arabs began to mix with the languages and cultures of other nations, certain changes emerged in Arabic lettering. The non-Arabs found it difficult to read the Qur’an without any vowel signs and diacritical marks. Therefore the practice of using diacritical marks began when Zayd, the governor of Basra informed Abu al-Aswad al-Du’ali, a man who had great knowledge in the field of Arabic of this request. In that period this was done by placing a dot above the letter instead of the fatha (a small diagonal line above the letter), a dot below the letter rather than the kasra (a diagonal line below the letter), a dot in front of the letter instead of the dhamma (a small curl like sign above the letter) and two dots rather than the sukun (a small circle above the letter).

Later in 791, the diacritical and vowel signs we are familiar with today were introduced by Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi.

The decorative signs indicating the beginning of a surah, the circles that signify the end of a verse and the marks indicating the different sections of the Qur’an were all introduce in later periods.

 

Akgul, Muhittin. Tafsir: An Introduction to Qur’anic Exegesis. Tughra Books Press, Inc. 2013