ا Alif is the first letter of the Arabic and Persian alphabets. At the beginning of Hindī words, denoted by the characters of these alphabets, ا with the vowel fatḥa, written or more commonly understood, represents the Devanāgari letter अ a; with kasr, the letter इ i; with ẓamm, the letter ऊ u; and with the sign madda ي, the letter आ ā: at the beginning of Hindī words, moreover, when ا is followed immediately by ي, the two letters together, according to the vowel written or understood with ا, stand for ई ī ए e or ऐ ai; and when ا is followed in like manner by و, these two letters together represent, according to the vowel used with ا, either ऊ ū ओ o or औ au; but, in the middle or at the end of such words, ا stands invariably for आ ā, In the representation of numbers by the Arabic letters, ا stands for one; whence it is used also as a symbol of the deity: it signifies, moreover, the first day of the week, or Sunday; and, in astronomical descriptions, the sign Taurus of the Zodiack. From its form, too, this letter is adopted to denote straightness; hence, also, a brave man. And, in allusion to its simple, unadorned, figure, it is sometimes used to mean naked.
