Mem

Mem, also spelled Meem, Meme, or Mim, is the thirteenth letter of the Semitic abjads. This includes the Hebrew mēm מ‎, Aramaic mem 𐡌, Syriac mīm ܡ, Arabic mīm م‎, and Phoenician mēm 𐤌. The sound value of Mem is m.

The Phoenician letter Mem later influenced many other writing systems. It gave rise to the Greek mu (Μ), the Etruscan letter, the Latin M, and the Cyrillic М. Mem is also connected to the Ancient North Arabian 𐪃‎‎‎, the South Arabian 𐩣, and the Ge'ez መ.

Origins

Mem likely started from an Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol for water.

It was made simpler in the Proto-Sinaitic script and named after the West Semitic word for "water", mem. This word is similar to the Biblical Hebrew word maym (מַיִם), meaning "water". The word comes from Proto-Semitic *may-.

Arabic mīm

The letter mīm is a key part of the Arabic alphabet. It can look different depending on where it appears in a word.

In Modern Standard Arabic, mīm helps create special kinds of words called ism. These include nouns and adjectives. It is also used to form verbal nouns of certain verbs and to make names for subjects and objects in different verb forms. For example, place-names like maktab meaning "office" and maṣnaʿ meaning "factory" are built using mīm.

Hebrew mem

Hebrew spelling: מֵם

Hebrew pronunciation

Mem makes the sound m.

Variations on written form/pronunciation

In Hebrew, Mem, like Kaph, Nun, Pe, and Tzadi, has a special shape at the end of words: it changes from מ‎ to ם‎.

Significance

In gematria, Mem stands for the number 40. The special ending form of Mem, called mem sofit, has a value of 40 in one way of counting and 600 in another.

In the Sefer Yetzirah, Mem is linked to water, earth, cold, and the belly.

As a short word, it can mean metre. In the Israeli army it can also mean mefaked, commander. In religious texts, it can stand for the name of God Makom, the Place.

Mem and Tarot

Mem is connected to The Hanged Man (Atu XII), the element of water, and a path on the Tree of Life.

Syriac mim

The letter "mim" is an important part of the Syriac alphabet. It makes the "m" sound, just like in many other ancient writing systems. Syriac is a language used in some parts of the Middle East today, and mim is one of its basic letters.

Character encodings

The letter "Mem" appears in many ancient writing systems. It is the thirteenth letter in several languages that use similar alphabets, such as Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Arabic, and Phoenician. In all these languages, Mem makes the "m" sound. It is also connected to older writing systems from places like North Arabia, South Arabia, and Ge'ez.