Your name in Arabic · Interactive tool
Write Your Name in Arabic: Free Phonetic Converter
Type your name in Latin letters and this tool spells it out in Arabic script, sound by sound. It works best for checking how a name might look in Arabic; for anything permanent, compare it with the common spellings below and ask a native speaker.
Quick answer
To write your name in Arabic, match its sounds, not its letters, to Arabic letters: Sarah becomes سارة, David becomes ديفيد. Arabic has no p, v or hard g, so these are written ب, ف and ج or غ. Short vowels are often left out. Many names have more than one accepted spelling.
Key takeaways
- Names are converted by sound, not letter by letter.
- Arabic has no p, v or hard g; ب, ف and ج or غ stand in for them.
- Short vowels are often not written, so spellings look shorter than in English.
- Many international names have more than one accepted Arabic spelling.
- For documents or tattoos, always have a native speaker check the spelling.
Your name in Arabic
سارة
This is a phonetic approximation, so ask a native Arabic speaker to check it before using it on official documents or a tattoo.
Common names in Arabic
Try these
Letter by letter
sh | ش | Like sh in Shadi. |
ch | ش | French-style ch (Charlotte). English ch as in Charles is often written تش. |
th | ث | Like th in think. In many names th is just t and is written ت (Thomas: توماس). |
dh | ذ | Like th in this. |
kh | خ | Like ch in Scottish loch (Khalid). |
gh | غ | A gargled sound close to the French r (Ghada). |
ph | ف | Sounds like f (Sophie: صوفي). |
ou | أو | French ou at the start of a name. |
ou | و | French ou, as in Louis. |
oo | و | Long oo, as in food. |
ee | ي | Long ee, as in see. |
ai | أي | At the start: sounds like eye or ay. |
ai | اي | Sounds like eye or ay. |
ay | أي | At the start: sounds like eye or ay (Ayman). |
ay | اي | Sounds like eye or ay. |
a | أ | A name starting with a vowel begins with alif and a hamza (أ); some write plain ا. |
a | ا | Most international names keep ا (Maria: ماريا). Arabic-origin feminine names often end in ة instead (Sarah: سارة). |
a | ا | A long a. A short a is often not written at all. |
b | ب | Same sound as b in English. |
c | ك | Hard c, as in Carl. Before e or i, c sounds like s and is written س (Cecilia). |
d | د | Same sound as d in English. |
e | إي | An initial e is written with alif, hamza below and yāʾ (Elena: إيلينا). |
e | ي | A pronounced final e (Chloé: كلوي). A silent final e, as in Louise, is usually dropped. |
e | ي | A long e. A short e in the middle is often left unwritten (Michael: مايكل). |
f | ف | Same sound as f in English. |
g | ج | Arabic has no hard g. ج is common, and Egyptians pronounce it as a hard g; غ is also used (Google: غوغل). |
h | ه | At the end of a name after a vowel, h is often silent (Sarah: سارة). |
i | إي | An initial i is written with alif, hamza below and yāʾ. |
i | ي | A long i. A short i is often left unwritten. |
j | ج | Like j in John. Spanish j (José) is closer to خ. |
k | ك | Same sound as k in English. |
l | ل | Same sound as l in English. |
m | م | Same sound as m in English. |
n | ن | Same sound as n in English. |
o | أو | An initial o is written with alif, hamza and wāw (Olivia: أوليفيا). |
o | و | Arabic has no separate o letter; و is used (Noah: نوح). |
p | ب | Arabic has no p, so it is written ب (Peter: بيتر). Persian پ is sometimes seen but is not standard Arabic. |
q | ق | A k said further back in the throat (Qasim). |
r | ر | A tapped or rolled r. |
s | س | Same sound as s in English. |
t | ت | Same sound as t in English. |
u | أو | An initial u is written with alif, hamza and wāw. |
u | و | Like oo. Where u sounds like a in English (Justin), ا or nothing may fit better. |
v | ف | Arabic has no v, so it is usually written ف (David: ديفيد). The letter ڤ is sometimes used informally. |
w | و | Like w in William. |
x | كس | Written as k plus s (Alex: أليكس). |
y | ي | Like y in Yasmine. |
y | ي | As a consonant or a vowel (Lily), y is written ي. |
z | ز | Same sound as z in English. |
How to use it
- Type your first name in Latin letters.
- Read the Arabic result and the letter-by-letter breakdown.
- Compare it with the common names list, then copy it or download it as an image.
Why there is no single correct spelling
Arabic and English do not share the same set of sounds, and there is no single official rule for writing foreign names in Arabic script. Each spelling is a choice made by ear, so the same name can appear in different forms: Daniel is usually دانيال in Arabic media, but you will also see دانييل.
Habit matters too. Names that already exist in Arabic, such as Adam (آدم), Noah (نوح) or Sarah (سارة), are normally written the traditional Arabic way rather than spelled out letter by letter. Regional accents and the language a name comes from, such as French or Spanish, also shape the result.
Sounds that Arabic does not have
Standard Arabic has no p, v or hard g. P is written ب (b), so Paul becomes بول. V is usually written ف (f), as in ديفيد for David, and some writers use the extra letter ڤ. Hard g has no fixed solution: ج is common, and Egyptians pronounce it as g, while غ is also used, as in غوغل for Google.
Vowels work differently as well. Arabic writes long vowels with ا, و and ي, and usually leaves short vowels unwritten. There is no separate letter for o or e, so they are written with و and ي, or left out.
How to check your Arabic name
Before you print, engrave or tattoo your name, ask a native speaker to read it back to you. If they pronounce it the way you do, the spelling works.
For official use, follow the spelling already on your documents, such as a residence permit or visa issued in an Arab country. If you share your name with a well-known person, search for how major Arabic news sites write it: that is the spelling most readers will recognise.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write my name in Arabic?
Break your name into sounds and write each sound with the closest Arabic letter, from right to left. Long vowels are written with ا, و or ي, and short vowels are usually left out. The converter above does this automatically and shows each step.
Is there one correct Arabic spelling of my name?
Usually not. Foreign names are transcribed by ear, so the same name can be spelled in more than one way: David is often ديفيد, sometimes دافيد. The spelling used in your passport, on an official document or by Arabic media for a famous namesake is a good reference.
How is the letter p written in Arabic?
Arabic has no p sound, so it is normally written with ب (b). Peter becomes بيتر. Persian and Urdu use an extra letter, پ, which you may occasionally see, but it is not part of standard Arabic.
Why does my name look shorter in Arabic?
Arabic usually writes consonants and long vowels only. Short vowels are shown with optional marks that are almost always left out, so a name like Karim is written كريم, with no letter for the short a.
Can I use this for a tattoo or an official document?
Use it as a starting point only. Phonetic conversion gives a reasonable approximation, but the final spelling should be checked by a native Arabic speaker or taken from an official transliteration, because a small mistake is hard to undo.
Sources
- Pe (Persian letter) (Wikipedia)
- Arabic alphabet: letters used in other languages (Wikipedia)
- Ve (Arabic letter) (Wikipedia)
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