1
Lam Qamariyya (moon)
The lam is heard clearly. Moon letters: ا ب ج ح خ ع غ ف ق ك م ه و ي. A sukoon sits on the lam.
الْقَمَرُ الْبَيْتُ الْكِتَابُ
al-qamar · al-bayt · al-kitāb
Intermediate
Lam Shamsi & Lam Qamari
The definite article ال
The Arabic 'the' is ال (alif + lam). Sometimes the lam is pronounced (qamariyya — 'moon lam'), and sometimes it is silent and the next letter is doubled (shamsiyya — 'sun lam'). There are 14 sun letters and 14 moon letters.
2
Lam Shamsiyya (sun)
The lam is silent. The next letter carries a shadda and is doubled. Sun letters: ت ث د ذ ر ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ل ن.
الشَّمْسُ النُّورُ الرَّحْمَٰنُ
ash-shams · an-nūr · ar-Rahmān
3
How to spot it
Look at the lam: if it has a sukoon ْ it is moon; if the next letter has a shadda ّ it is sun.
الْـ vs الـّ
Sukoon on lam vs shadda on next letter.
4
Memory trick
Say the 14 sun letters aloud: 'ta, tha, dal, dhal, ra, zay, sin, shin, sad, dad, ta, dha, lam, nun.' Everything else is moon.
ت ث د ذ ر ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ل ن
The 14 sun letters — the tongue tip letters.
5
Practice
Read each pair — first moon, then sun.
الْقُرْآنُ الرَّحِيمُ
al-Qur'ān (moon) · ar-Rahīm (sun)