Fatha, kasra and damma are the first marks a Noorani Qaida student learns after the letters. They tell you which short vowel to say with each letter. Below, you will see each mark, where it sits and what sound it adds. You also get four Quran examples that open on Quran.com.
English letters only hint at Arabic sounds, so check each one with your teacher. Our Noorani Qaida lessons guide shows the whole book in order. The next two marks are in sukoon and shaddah.
What Are Fatha, Kasra and Damma?
Fatha, kasra and damma are the three short vowel marks in Arabic. A fatha is a small mark above a letter and adds an 'a' sound. A kasra is a small mark below a letter and adds an 'i' sound. A damma is a small curl above a letter and adds a 'u' sound. All three are short.
A letter has a sound of its own. A vowel mark tells you which vowel to say with it. The Arabic word for these marks is harakat.
In Noorani Qaida, you meet these marks after the single letters and the joined letters. In one common order, they are lesson 4. Your print may order the lessons differently, so go by the topic in your own book.
What Does Each Mark Look Like and Sound Like?
Here is the letter baa with each mark. Read the table from top to bottom:
| Mark | Where it sits | What it looks like | Sound it adds | Baa with the mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fatha | Above the letter | A small slanted stroke | a | ba (بَ) |
| Kasra | Below the letter | A small slanted stroke | i | bi (بِ) |
| Damma | Above the letter | A small curl | u | bu (بُ) |
Fatha and kasra look alike, but they sit in different places. One is above the letter and one is below it. Always check the place first. A damma is a small curl, so it does not look like the other two.
How Do You Read a Letter With a Short Vowel?
Follow these four steps for every letter you meet:
- Step 1: Find the letter and say its sound. Arabic reads from right to left.
- Step 2: Look for the mark. If it is below the letter, it is a kasra. If it is above, check the shape. A small slanted stroke is a fatha. A small curl is a damma.
- Step 3: Add the vowel to the letter, and keep it short: ba, bi or bu.
- Step 4: Read the next letter the same way. Then join the letters into one word.
Keep all three vowels short. Do not stretch them. Stretching comes later in the Qaida, with standing marks and long vowel letters, and you hold those for 2 counts. Our guide to madd rules explains how.
Four Quran Examples of Short Vowels
Each row shows one word and what its marks do. Tap the link to open the ayah on Quran.com:
| Mark | Example word | Ayah |
|---|---|---|
| Fatha | 'abasa (عَبَسَ): all three letters have a fatha, so you say 'a-ba-sa' | Quran 80:1 |
| Kasra | bismi (بِسْمِ): the baa and the meem have a kasra, so you say 'bi' and 'mi' | Quran 1:1 |
| Damma | qul (قُلْ): the qaaf has a damma, so you say 'qu' | Quran 112:1 |
| All three | khuliqa (خُلِقَ): khaa has a damma, laam has a kasra and qaaf has a fatha. You say 'khu-li-qa' | Quran 86:6 |
In 'bismi' and 'qul', one letter has a different mark. It is a sukoon, the mark for no vowel. We explain it in our guide to sukoon and shaddah. Khaa and qaaf in 'khuliqa' are heavy letters. Ask your teacher to show you how to say them full and deep.
A Common Slip: Stretching a Short Vowel
The most common slip is to stretch a short vowel, so that 'ba' sounds like 'baa'. A stretched sound is a long vowel, and long vowels have their own marks and letters. A short mark gets a short sound.
To fix it, tap the table once for each short vowel. Tap twice only when you stretch a long vowel. Here are two more slips to watch:
- Mixing up fatha and kasra. Both are small slanted strokes, so check if the mark is above or below the letter.
- Dropping a vowel when you read fast. Read slowly first. Speed comes after clean sounds.
Practise Fatha, Kasra and Damma With Your Teacher
Try this plan over five days, and keep each day to about 10 minutes:
- Day 1: Print sheet 3 of the chart. Read each row from right to left. Say each letter with each mark, like ba, bi, bu.
- Day 2: For each mark, say if it is above or below the letter. Then say its sound.
- Day 3: Say the four table examples slowly, one by one. Open each ayah on Quran.com.
- Day 4: Open Surah Al-Ikhlas (112). Read one ayah at a time. Point at each fatha, kasra and damma, and name it.
- Day 5: Read three rows to your teacher. Ask which vowel to fix first.
Sheet 3 of our free Noorani Qaida chart is a grid made for this. Every letter has a box for a fatha, a kasra and a damma, then for the double marks and sukoon. Every row has a tick box.
Get Your Short Vowels Checked
In our Noorani Qaida course, a live 1-on-1 tutor shows each page on screen, and a class is 30 minutes. The tutor checks each vowel as you read and helps you fix slips. You can ask for a male or a female tutor.
Not sure where to start? Book a free 30-minute trial class. The tutor checks your level and says which lesson to begin with. No card is needed.