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SenoritaMaxie · 05-08-2006, 11:47 AM

Assalam-0-Alaikum

Main chah rahi thi kay kyon kay aksar Language Forums mein mukhtalaif zabanaain sikhanay kay liyay asbaq diyay ja rahay hain, to mein bhi aik aisa hi thread shoru karon. Yay English mein is liyay hay kyon kay mein chahti hon ki har koi isay parh sakay. Is Thread mein tab tak na kuch bhaijain jab tak ap ko urdu kay in asbaq kay saath koi masala na ho.

Translated:I was thinking that because most Language Forums offer lessons to learn different languages I should start one such thread too. The lessons will be written in English because I want everyoen to be able to understand it.

Do not post here unless and until you have a proble mregarding the lessons.

Lesson#1:
Courtesy Ukinda.com

Urdu is written in the opposite direction to English i.e. from right to left.
It is an easy language to write fast in because it has a built in shorthand ! It is very important to read each line slowly and study each part of a figure closely the first time, and then re-read it carefully again to make the whole learning experience easy.

*

This is the most important lesson so do it very slowly and carefully and the rest of the 20 or so lessons will then seem very easy.
Each sound is represented by a letter. For example let’s look at the letter K and N in the next figure.

Each letter is written in a slightly different form depending on whether it comes in the beginning , middle or end of a word or whether it occurs on its own ie in a detached form .

*

If for example you look at the figure below, K on its own is on your extreme right marked detached . If it occurs in the beginning of a word as in the word Kill it is written as in the next one along –i.e. its initial form marked 2. If it occurs in the middle of a word e.g. lucKy it is written in the medial form 3 and if it occurs at the end of the word as in ducK it is like the 4th final form to your extreme left.

The above figure has the detached, initial medial and final forms of K and N.

You may have noted that the detached and final form are usually very similar.

Note again that the detached form is on your extreme right then the initial, medial and final.

*

Supposing we wanted to make say a meaningless two letter word with a starting ( initial) letter K and ending with N .

We would take the intial form of K marked 2 in the figure above and the final form of N marked 4 and join them together. Remember to read it R to L.

Easy isnt it?

*

Stick around for Lesson#2: Vowel Marks, coming soon.

Maxie.

SenoritaMaxie · 05-10-2006, 12:32 PM

I am sure everyone understands how busy I was with my Final Exams. Else I could never have neglected this thread.

Now that I'm back, Lesson 2 begins here.

Lesson#2: Vowel Marks
Courtesy Ukinda.com

Let's add some accent and vowel marks in between the letter K and N.

Reading from the right of the screen the second word is k'n with the k pronounced a little longer since the accent mark (zabar) is over the k .

The next word kn' has a longer n since the accent mark is over the n. The shapes of the vowels aa, i, ee, u, oo, o, au, ae and aae are obvious from the figure and are explained in more detail after the figure.

Let's take our meaningless word kn and add vowel marks to it. The left word in the next figure reads kAAn (meaning ear in English). The AA is a vertical straight line. A vowel is not joined to the letter following it so the letter n in kaan is written in its detached form. Note also the slight change in the shape of K .

*

To make kin (as in kith and kin) we put a small slanting mark called "ZER" below the letter K.

This vowel mark is often left out in newspapers so when you see kn.

You may have to read it as:

*

To write the word kEEn we add two dots to the slanting "zer" mark:

*

To make the sound u as in kUmar a "PESH" mark is put over the letter as in this word kUn:

To make the long OO as cOOl another fat worm like mark is put after the letter as well as the "pesh" above it as in this word kOOn.

For the mark O as in cOne the worm like mark is on its own without the "pesh":

*

To make the AU sound as in AUtumn the "ZABAR" mark is put above the O . The next figure reads as kAUn (who?)

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For the AE sound as in cAEn (cane) we write just two dots below the letter:

*

To make the AAE sound we add a slanting "zabar" above the AE mark:

*

Stick around for Lesson#2 - Part 2.

Maxie

SenoritaMaxie · 05-10-2006, 01:18 PM

Lesson#2: Vowel Marks - Part 1
Courtesy Ukinda.com

Here is the deal:

Note the difference between kEEn and kAEn (cane):

And between kEEn and cAAEn:

And between kUn and kAUn:

And between kOOn and kAUn:

*

This is a very important area so make sure you get them all right . There is revision of the vowel marks in the figure below. Note however there is a new accent mark called a zabar above the kn word second from your right. It signifies that the accent should be on k so making and not on n in this word here - so it should sound kughn and not knugh. This will become clearer later. Continuing , the third word from R to L on the top line is the word kaan (ear) . The vowel mark AA is a straight vertical line put after K .Note the K changing shape slightly in the figure for KAAN. A vowel mark like AA is not attached to the letter which follows after it, so N here is written on its own.

*

The vowel mark AA as we noted above is written as a straight vertical line. The next word to it on your left is kin . The vowel mark little "i" is a small slant line called in urdu ZER is placed BELOW the letter, in this case K. The next word on the second line is KEEN. Two dots are added to the little "i" - ZER - mark to make a big EE mark below the letter.

Then little u - KUN as in the word crook - the u mark -called PESH - is always above the letter ; next is big U -KOON as in sOOn - note you get a big fat worm like figure added to the little u-pesh- mark but this worm is on level with the letter.

*

Next in the figure here:

O is as in "cone" (icecream cone) - the worm on its own makes an O sound ; but when a zabar is added above the letter it makes an Au - KAUN who in Urdu) as in AUtumn. Note the difference between the words KOON and KAUN in the bigger figure above. kOOn has a pesh on top of the worm while kAUn has a zabar on top of the worm.

*

Next below is ae as in cane (sugar) with two dots below. See if you can spot the difference between the word Cane below and the word KEEN above. Thats right! Rhe only difference between an AE vowel mark and an EE one is that EE has an extra zabar in addition to the two dots.This is important to remember.

Look again at CANE with the two dots marking the AE sound and the next figure to it CAN . We get the AAE sound in cAAEnada (Canada) by just adding a zabar at the top of the letter.

*

Just go over the vowel marks again. Spend a lot of time sudying the figure below and get up and get it imprinted on your mind. It is extremely important to get the vowel marks right. After finishing these introductory lessons red some children's study books. The reason is that newspapers tend to leave out the small vowel marks of little "i" and little "u" and tend to put one word on top of another and you will get very confused unless you are confident of your vowels.

The following are the vowel marks which modify the letters.

You might not be familair with some of these. Such as the Madd, Hamza and Tashdid. Because these are all special characters which we will look at in the next lesson.

*

Next Up: Some delicious Urdudish tidbits and a very simple and easy-to-do test to check your knowledge about Vowel Marks.

Maxie

SenoritaMaxie · 05-10-2006, 02:15 PM

Testing Your Urdu Skills So Far
Courtesy Ukinda.com

Fast Fact: Sometimes the letter N when it is the final letter is written without the dot in the middle and is not sounded except from the back of the throat as example in the word Maa'n for mother. (We shall look at that in detail later on).

Point to Remember: One important point to note is that the "Zabar" mark and tue i mark called a "Zer" are similar but the Zabar is on top of a letter while Zer which signifies i is below.

.....And her comes you eagerly awaited test.....

The Test

What to do: I will provide you with an Image from Ukinda.com and you will have to write the correct pronunciation of each word next to it. And you can even print the image to do this properly.

That would be so much fun.

This test is extremely easy and you should have absolutely no problem doing it. If you do have a problem, simply go over the previous lessons again and then try to take this test. Repeat if necessary. (Which I hope you won’t have to – Learning Urdu is pretty easy if you’re determined enough).

………………
………………
………………
………………
………………

Done?

If you have done it, read on.

Warning: If you haven’t done it yet do not read on because I’m putting up the answers next. – And if you’re thinking of cheating, NO cheating allowed. Absolutely not.

Now for all those who have done your test without having a peek below *pets* it is time to see how much you scored. Your solved test should match this:

It doesn’t? Not to worry dears. Just go over the previous lessons again and have another go.

Here is the grading scheme: There are a total of 11 “words” in the image given. The grades are going to be given according to how many pronunciations you got right. Fewer than 5 – Give it another go. 5+ – Good. 7+ – Exceeds Expectations. 10+ – Outstanding.

Which grade did you get?

I would love to know. So if you really want to tell feel free to PM me or mail me [senoritamaxie@hotmail.com] but do not post your score here please.

Next up: Lesson#3: Vowel at the Beginning of a Sentence – so mind you keep an eye out for it.

Maxie

mayhem · 05-10-2006, 03:11 PM

wow! gr8 job!!!

SenoritaMaxie · 05-11-2006, 04:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mayhem

wow! gr8 job!!!

Thanks. I'm glad someone said that.

It takes me hours to post one lesson because of all the encoding I have to do.

So I finally have Lesson#3: Vowel at the Beginning of a Sentence here. It's going to be extremely easy because it's a very short lesson which is bound to be a piece-of-cake (hopefully).

Lesson#3: Vowel at the Beginning of a Sentence
Courtesy Ukinda.com

If a word begins with a vowel e.gfor instance. arm, apple, Easter etc. an "Aliph" sign is always put before the Vowel mark.

Examples below. Note that the first word is "a" or "ugh" as in 'U'nder.

Note there are two ae letters. The bottom is used when ae is on its eg Ae cat sat while the one above it is used when AE joins the next letter eg in AEK (one).

*

If the vowel is not at the start of a word we dont use the vertical aliph and just use the vowel marks as below. Make sure you can tell the difference between ae and big eee ( there is an extra zer at the bottom for eee). Between u and big ooo and between ooo and au ( au has a zabar on top ). It is important to get up and cram these vowel marks as they make the language very easy to read once you have done that.

*As in Hindi the nasal n as in the word song is marked with a dot over the letter.*

*

After Aliph the next letters in the alphabet are B, P, Te (soft as in tota-parrot), T, and S - All written from your Right to Left. These letters are pronounced as Be (bay), Pe, Te, Te and Se.

The S above can be confused with SH which we shall see later, so look at it closely.

*

Its quite easy to guess the four forms of each letter depending on whether it is detached (to your right ), comes at the beginning (second right on your screen), middle - 3rd from the Right - or final (leftmost).

Looking at the above figure and keeping the sign of the aa vowel ( just a vertical line), and keeping in mind where the letter comes in the word, can you read your first sentence in Urdu? It has a final form of the “i” which you have not met before ( in the word KI below). Also note the little omega sign - called TASHDID - at the top of B in ABBA. It is a double ie and means you have to say B twice, the first B is half pronounced. Read R to L.

Do you know what the above - Aap ke Abba ki Kitab - means ? It says this book belongs to your father. Abba is Urdu for father. Aap means you and kitab is book. Note also that the two dots for the soft te in Kitab are placed well above the line.

*

Next Up: Your Test for this Lesson.

Maxie

SenoritaMaxie · 05-12-2006, 12:57 PM

Testing Your Urdu Skills So Far
Courtesy Ukinda.com

.....And here comes another test.

The Test

What to do: I will provide you with an Image and you will have to write the correct pronunciation of each word next to it. That will show whether you can read them or not. S I in the last test, you canprint the image to do this properly.

That would be so much fun.

This test is extremely easy and you should have absolutely no problem doing it. If you do have a problem, simply go over the previous lessons again and then try to take this test. Repeat if necessary. (Which I hope you won’t have to – Learning Urdu is pretty easy if you’re determined enough).

………………
………………
………………
………………
………………

Done?

If you have done it, read on.

Warning: If you haven’t done it yet do not read on because I’m putting up the answers next. – And if you’re thinking of cheating, NO cheating allowed. Absolutely not.

Now for all those who have done your test without having a peek below *pets* it is time to see how much you scored. Your solved test should match this:

(The unlabelled figure is of course the English word TENT).

It doesn’t? Not to worry dears. Just go over the previous lessons again and have another go.

Here is the grading scheme: There are a total of 4 words in the image given. The grades are going to be given according to how many pronunciations you got right. Fewer than 2 – Give it another go. 2+ – Exceeds Expectations. 4 Outstanding.

Which grade did you get?

I would love to know. So if you really want to tell feel free to PM me or mail me [senoritamaxie@hotmail.com] but do not post your score here please.

Next up: Lesson#4.

Maxie

Jessica · 05-13-2006, 05:17 PM

Buhat zabardast kaam kiya hay Maxie. Mein nay tumhay apnay results mail kar diyay hain. Test buhat mazay ka tha. Mein nay attempt kya tha halan kay mujhay urdu ati hay!

Love,
~~Jay~~

Maxie: Shukriya. Mujhay ap kay results to mil gaey thay magar post karnay ka waqt nahi mila. Insha Allah jald post kar don gi.

i-who-must-not-be-named · 05-14-2006, 12:05 PM

buht umda kaam..shabassh...mugr aap ko juwaab abhi neheen likhne chahie hey take koi cheating na kare...aap ko logon ko kahna chaiye tha keh wo aap ko jewab PM karein aur phir aap un ko bataien keh unki gia gultian hein etc/wegira..

waisey ye aapney Urdu computer pey kaisey likh leeeeeeee???

Maxie: Sab say pehlay to shukriya. Dosri baat yay kay ap Urdu Inpage khareed lo. Us say ap Urdu mein likh sako gay.

MissCongeniality · 05-29-2006, 06:35 PM

awww this is soo cool, nice job Maxie!!!!! u r a great mod here!! teaching ppl urdu . . . how sweet!

Maxie: Chandni ap ka buhat buhat shukriya.

Bas thora sa masroof honay ki waja say update na kar saki kafi ziada dinon say.

ali_fighter · 06-03-2006, 05:10 PM

Well done Maxie. I am seriously looking at this as i want to learn Urdu. Although i can speak it and read classical arabic, i have never learnt Urdu. As Arabic letters are similar to Urdu, i do have some headstart

Well done!

SenoritaMaxie · 06-03-2006, 05:28 PM

Thank you very much. I'm learning Arabic too since some of my relatives coem from Egypt. It's a beautiful Language. And I have a headstart too.

Maxie

i-who-must-not-be-named · 06-06-2006, 08:35 AM

mujhe yei sun keh buht khushi hui keh khuch laug Urdu sheek bhi rahein hai...bravo...

SenoritaMaxie · 06-11-2006, 04:00 PM

Closed because I'm too busy to continue. Will be re-opened in July.

Maxie

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