Articulation of Letters — All Seventeen Makharij

1. What is a makhraj, and why does it matter?

A makhraj is the articulation point from which a letter is pronounced, or at which its characteristic sound is formed. Similar-sounding letters may still have different places of articulation.

For example, ق and ك both involve the rear of the tongue, but not precisely the same point. Likewise, ح and ه should not be reduced to an undifferentiated breath sound.

The traditional analysis presented here distinguishes 17 articulation points. Knowing the label is only the beginning: accurate recitation requires producing and hearing the sound correctly.

2. Five regions and seventeen articulation points

The seventeen points fall into five major regions:

1. Jawf: the open oral/pharyngeal cavity — one point.
2. Halq: three regions of the throat — three points.
3. Lisan: distinct tongue positions and their opposing surfaces — ten points.
4. Shafatan: the lower lip and both lips — two points.
5. Khayshum: the nasal passage for ghunnah — one point.

Hence 1 + 3 + 10 + 2 + 1 = 17. A shared broad region does not mean that the detailed articulation of its letters is identical.

3. Point 1 — the cavity and long vowels

The jawf is the open space inside the mouth and throat in which a long-vowel sound resonates without a precise contact point. The three letters ا، و، ي use this region when functioning as letters of madd.

Long alif: a silent alif after fatḥah, as in قَالَ.
Long waw: a silent waw after ḍammah, as in يَقُولُ.
Long ya: a silent ya after kasrah, as in قِيلَ.

Each extends its corresponding vowel sound. Artificial blocking in the throat or mouth interferes with the natural sustained sound.

4. Long vowels, soft letters, and hamzah

Not every و or ي is a long-vowel letter. For madd, the preceding short vowel must match: ḍammah before a silent waw, and kasrah before a silent ya. A silent waw or ya after fatḥah is instead called a letter of layn.

خَوْف contains a soft waw.
بَيْت contains a soft ya.
قَالَ contains long alif.

Also, hamzah (ء) is articulated in the deepest region of the throat. It is not the same sound as the long vowel alif merely because the written forms can look related.

5. Point 2 — deepest throat: hamzah and ha

Aqṣā al-ḥalq is the deepest part of the throat, furthest from the mouth. It articulates ء and ه, which share a region but not an identical sound.

ء: begins with a distinct glottal closure/release, as in أَنْ.
ه: is a gentle, audible breath-like consonant, as in هُمْ.

Practise the consonants separately and then within short syllables. Turning hamzah into a soft ha, or pronouncing ha with hamzah's abrupt closure, confuses two separate letters.

6. Point 3 — middle throat: ayn and ha

Wasaṭ al-ḥalq is the middle region of the throat, from which ع and ح are pronounced.

ع: is a distinct middle-throat consonant, as in عَلِمَ.
ح: is characterized by a distinct breath-friction sound from the same broad region, as in حَمْد.

Do not replace ayn with hamzah or an open vowel, and do not reduce ḥa to ه. Since learners often confuse these sounds, direct listening and correction by a qualified reciter are especially important.

7. Point 4 — nearest throat: ghayn and kha

Adnā al-ḥalq is the part of the throat nearest the mouth. It produces غ and خ. They occupy a related region but have different acoustic properties.

غ: a voiced, resonant back-throat consonant, as in غَفُور.
خ: a frictional, largely voiceless consonant, as in خَلَقَ.

Do not shift these sounds to the front of the tongue, or replace ghayn with kha. Their audible distinction must remain clear in recitation.

8. Organized practice of the six throat letters

The three throat positions account for six letters. Recite them in order to remember the progression from the deepest region toward the mouth.

Deepest: ء، ه.
Middle: ع، ح.
Nearest mouth: غ، خ.

First articulate each one in isolation. Then compare commonly confused pairs: ء / ع, ه / ح, and ح / خ. The paired drills do not imply that the letters have one exact point; they train the ear to preserve their differences.

9. Point 5 — qaf from the rear of the tongue

ق is articulated with the back/root of the tongue rising toward the soft palate. It is the rearmost of the tongue articulation points.

In words such as قَلْب and خَلَقَ, qaf must retain its distinct identity. Its point is slightly further back than that of ك; everyday pronunciation habits must not erase that difference.

Practise أَقْ and أَكْ alternately, listening for the deeper contact of qaf and the relatively forward contact of kaf.

10. Point 6 — kaf slightly forward of qaf

ك also uses the rear of the tongue, but slightly further forward than ق. This distinction accounts for their separate makharij.

Compare the kaf in كِتَاب with the qaf in قَرِيب. Do not force kaf into an artificially deep qaf, or weaken qaf until it sounds like kaf.

The exact rear-tongue contact is not fully visible in a mirror. Focus on the sensation of tongue movement and the sound heard from a skilled reciter rather than the shape of the lips alone.

11. Point 7 — middle of the tongue: jim, shin and ya

ج، ش، ي involve the middle of the tongue and the opposing upper palate, provided ya is not a long-vowel letter. They are also known as the shajariyyah letters.

ج involves middle-tongue contact and release.
ش produces audible friction from this region.
ي when pronounced as a consonant, as in يَد, is not the open long vowel.

Distinguish the long ya in قِيلَ (jawf) from the consonantal ya in يَد (middle tongue).

12. Teeth and the opposing surfaces of the tongue

The remaining tongue points are easier to learn by locating the upper teeth and gums. The front incisors are thanaya, followed by the rabaʿiyyat, the an-yab (canines), then ḍawāḥik and ṭawāḥin further back.

Different letters use the side of the tongue, the tip, or the front tongue surface. The opposing point may be the tooth root, edge or gum. A small change of contact can alter the letter.

A mental map of the palate, teeth, tongue and nasal region helps locate these points. Work from the front teeth back toward the molars.

13. Point 8 — the distinctive articulation of dad

ض is articulated with the side of the tongue against the opposing upper molars. Many find the left side easier, though correct production may also involve the right or both sides.

In ضَالِّينَ, dad must not simply be replaced with د or ظ. Its defining articulation involves the tongue's side and the upper molar region rather than only the tip used for dal.

This letter needs careful guided practice. Scholars have discussed details of its performance; a skilled teacher’s ear is important when correcting it.

14. Point 9 — lam

ل is articulated by the forward sides/front of the tongue against the corresponding upper gum region. The tongue touches above while the sound finds its characteristic path.

Pronounce lam distinctly in لَهُ. Shifting the contact carelessly can obscure the identity of the letter.

Compare it with ن and ر: all involve the front tongue region, but they do not have precisely the same point or manner. Begin with أَلْ to feel the forward contact.

15. Point 10 — nun and its tongue articulation

ن is produced with the part near the tongue tip against the upper gums. Its contact lies slightly forward of ل, although both use the front tongue region.

Listen to the onset of nun in نَعْبُدُ. Omitting the tongue closure or letting it flow like lam does not produce a proper nun.

Nun also has ghunnah, a nasal sound associated with another region. Distinguish the tongue articulation of nun from the nasal resonance of ghunnah, discussed at point 17.

16. Point 11 — ra

ر is made near the tongue tip against the upper gum area. It is close to nun's point but differs in tongue movement and manner of sound.

In رَبِّ, pronounce one clear, controlled ra. Exaggerated repeated trilling that produces several audible ra sounds is not the goal; nor should it collapse into lam or nun.

The weight of ra concerns its letter qualities; the present focus is identifying its correct articulation point.

17. Point 12 — ta, dal and emphatic ta

ط، د، ت share an articulation point near the tongue tip and the roots of the upper front teeth. Their qualities differ, so they remain three distinct letters.

طَيِّب has emphatic ta.
دِين has dal.
تَابَ has ordinary ta.

A shared makhraj does not make these sounds interchangeable. Replacing ط with ت changes the actual letter, not merely its decorative quality.

18. Point 13 — za, dhal and tha

ظ، ذ، ث are articulated with the tip of the tongue near the edges of the upper front teeth. Accurate placement of the tongue tip is essential.

ظَلَمَ — emphatic ẓa.
ذَكَرَ — voiced dhal.
ثُمَّ — voiceless fricative tha.

They share a point but differ in their phonetic qualities. In particular, avoid turning ث into س, ذ into ز, or ظ into an ordinary z sound.

19. Point 14 — sad, zay and sin

ص، ز، س involve the tongue tip close to the lower front teeth, with the sound passing through the corresponding narrow space. They are called the ṣafiriyyah letters because of their characteristic hiss or whistle-like sound.

صَبْر — emphatic sad.
زَكَى — voiced zay.
سَمِعَ — voiceless sin.

Their points are closely related, but their qualities make them distinct. Do not replace sad with sin. A fuller treatment of their characteristics follows in the next chapter.

20. Point 15 — fa: lower lip and upper teeth

ف uses the inner edge of the lower lip with the upper front teeth. Complete closure of both lips is not required: the contact is between the upper teeth and lower lip.

Listen to fa in فَتَحَ. Closing both lips as for ba prevents the proper frictional fa sound.

Repeat أَفْ slowly, observing where the upper teeth meet the lower lip. Its point must remain distinct from the lip articulation of ب and و.

21. Point 16 — both lips: ba, mim and waw

ب، م، و involve the two lips, but their production differs.

ب: the lips close and release, as in بِسْمِ.
م: the lips close with possible accompanying nasal resonance, as in مَالِك.
و: when consonantal rather than a letter of madd, the lips round without the full closure of ba, as in وَلَد.

Keep in mind the contrast between consonantal waw here and long-vowel waw at point 1: the letter's function determines the relevant articulation description.

22. Point 17 — the nasal passage and ghunnah

The khayshum is the nasal passage from which the sound of ghunnah resonates. It is associated with nun and mim, but it is not a separate consonant called nun or mim.

Nun's principal tongue contact was discussed at point 10; mim's lip contact at point 16. In particular pronunciations of both letters, nasal resonance becomes prominent. The resonating region is the khayshum.

Slowly pronounce أَنْ and أَمْ, attending separately to tongue/lip closure and nasal sound. The length and required forms of ghunnah are determined by their own Tajweed rules.

23. Finding articulation with a silent consonant

A useful traditional test is to put a vowelled hamzah before the target consonant and pronounce that consonant with sukūn. The place at which its sound is blocked or distinctly formed helps identify its articulation point.

أَقْ — rear-tongue qaf.
أَكْ — somewhat more forward kaf.
أَفْ — upper teeth with lower lip for fa.
أَبْ — complete lip closure for ba.

Long vowels do not have the same fixed blocking contact; identify them from the preceding short vowel and sustained open sound.

24. Preserving differences among nearby letters

Sharing a broad region or an exact articulation point does not make letters interchangeable. Their distinguishing qualities also matter. Practise these contrasts:

ق / ك: different places in the rear tongue.
ء / ع: different throat regions.
ه / ح: distinct throat positions and sounds.
ط / ت: same point, different qualities.
ظ / ذ / ث: shared point with distinct phonetic properties.
ص / س: related region but emphatic versus plain sound.

Produce the sounds separately before comparing them in words. Establish accuracy before increasing speed.

25. Complete review of all seventeen points

Cavity: 1 — long-vowel ا، و، ي.

Throat: 2 — ء، ه; 3 — ع، ح; 4 — غ، خ.

Tongue: 5 — ق; 6 — ك; 7 — ج، ش، non-madd ي; 8 — ض; 9 — ل; 10 — ن; 11 — ر; 12 — ط، د، ت; 13 — ظ، ذ، ث; 14 — ص، ز، س.

Lips: 15 — ف; 16 — ب، م، non-madd و.

Nasal passage: 17 — ghunnah (associated with nun and mim).

The objective is not only to memorize numbers but to identify the precise organ and region and explain the difference between nearby letters.