On Sun, 30 Sep 2001, Philipp Reichmuth wrote: > >> This includes 'Subscript Alef' and 'Turned Damma' (Ulta Pesh), used in > >> Iran and Pakistan; > > MMA> I think these are also used in Arab countries, because even my Arabic teacher > MMA> who's from Syria referred to this "ulta pesh" as a "Koranic sign". > > Hm, as far as I understand it, it is mainly used as a calligraphic > sign in Arab-speaking countries and carries no phonetic or > recitational information of its own. I've checked through my own > copies of the Qur'an briefly, but as far as I can see, it's used only > in calligraphic script as an ornamental sign. Since Qur'anic verses > tend to be rather ornately decorated, the association with the Qur'an > appears quite straightforward. On the other hand, all of my copies are > printed (says something already) either in Egypt or Sudan, so they > need not be representative.
At least not in the Korans I've seen. In those, Turned Damma is clearly used to mark an /u:/ sound when a Waw is not there (and only that). It is not an ornament in any way. I'm talking about Iranian Korans. roozbeh
