Nun (letter)

The letter Nun is the fourteenth letter in several ancient writing systems called Semitic abjads. These include the Phoenician, Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, and Arabic alphabets. In all of these languages, Nun makes the "n" sound, like in the word "no". It also helps in counting, with a value of 50.

Nun is also the third letter in the Thaana alphabet used in the Maldives, where it is called "noonu".

The shape of Nun in these languages comes from even older writing systems. It is related to letters used by people in Ancient North Arabia, South Arabia, and Ge'ez.

Later, the Phoenician Nun inspired the Greek letter nu, the Etruscan letter, the Latin letter N, and the Cyrillic letter Н. This shows how early writing systems influenced the letters we use today.

Origins

See also: Middle Bronze Age alphabets

Nun likely started from an ancient Egyptian picture of a snake. The Hebrew word for snake, נָחָשׁ (nakhash), begins with Nun. Some people think it may also have come from a picture of a fish. In Aramaic and Akkadian, nun means fish, and in Arabic, nūn means a large fish or whale. The Phoenician letter was called nūn, meaning "fish," and some believe this name comes from an even older word in Proto-Canaanite for "snake."

Arabic nūn

The letter nūn is a special letter used in Arabic writing. It can look different depending on where it appears in a word. In Arabic, nūn helps change verbs to show who is doing the action.

The letter nūn is also used in other writing systems in different ways.

Hebrew nun

The Hebrew letter נוּן is written as נ‎ but changes to ן‎ at the end of words. It sounds like the English letter N.

In a special counting system called gematria, נוּן stands for the number 50. It is one of seven letters that get a special decoration called a tag when written in very important books. In a game called dreidel, if you roll a נוּן, the turn passes to the next player.

Syriac nun

The Syriac letter nūn is written as ܢ. It is part of the Syriac abjad, a group of writing systems used for several languages. Like other letters in this group, nūn has a special value when used in numbers. It stands for the number 50.

Character encodings

The letter Nun is found in many old writing systems. These include Phoenician, Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, and Arabic. In all of these languages, Nun makes a sound like the “n” we use today.

In these writings, Nun can also stand for the number 50. It is the third letter in the Thaana script of the Maldives, where it is named "noonu".