Nunation

Nunation (Arabic تنوين tanwīn ) is the name for two different linguistic phenomena in Arabic or Hebrew.

Nunation in Arabic

The Arab high-level language has two sets of nominal endings: -u,- i,- a for nouns in certain status ( determined by item or status constructus, ie genitive compound), -un, -in,- on for nouns in the indeterminate state. The termination of this extra " n" to indefinite nouns is called nunation. The name comes from the letter ن now.

Example:

• Al - babu - the door (determined )
• Babun - a door ( indefinite)

In all modern Arabic dialects, the case endings and thus the nunation are gone. In some dialects, which are spoken in the Tihama in Yemen, it is no designation of the case as a sign of indetermination. In spoken language, the use of high- Arabic case endings is optional and is considered a sign particularly correct pronunciation.

In the Arabic -written nunation is not now with, the ordinary characters for " N", written but only in a few texts, such as the Koran, by later introduced above or below the set Rasm additional characters: / -an, - un / and in /.

Nunation in Hebrew

The letter is in the ( Old ) Hebrew Now hung on verb forms. However, this has no grammatical meaning, but serves the good sound.