1.2.3 Connecting letters

Understanding Connecting Letters in Urdu

In Urdu, most letters join to the next letter. Learning how letters connect is essential for reading and writing full words, not just isolated shapes.

In this chapter we focus on how and when letters connect. You already know about isolated, initial, medial, and final forms in general, so here we look specifically at connection behavior: which letters join on the left, which do not, and how that changes the shape of a word.

Two main types of letters

Urdu letters belong to two basic connection types:

1. Connecting letters
   These can connect to the letter that comes after them.
2. Non‑connecting letters
   These break the connection on their right side. A new word shape starts after them.

Think of a word as a chain of letters. A connecting letter passes the chain onward. A non‑connecting letter stops the chain, so the next letter starts fresh.

Non‑connecting letters (right‑joining only)

Some Urdu letters only join to the letter on their right side, not on their left. These letters break the word shape after them.

Here are the most important non‑connecting letters:

Remember: “joins to the right” means it can join to a letter before it in the word, but not to a letter after it.

So in the middle of a word, these letters will look like final forms on their left side, and the next letter will start a new shape.

Fully connecting letters

All other Urdu letters can connect on both sides when possible. That is, they can:

• connect to a letter before them, and
• pass the connection to the letter after them.

Some common fully connecting letters:

You do not need to memorize all here. The key idea: if a letter is not in the non‑connecting group, it usually connects both ways.

How connection changes shapes inside words

Each connecting letter has up to four shapes:

• Isolated: used alone, not connecting to any letter
• Initial: at the beginning of a connected word, connecting to the right
• Medial: in the middle, connecting to both sides
• Final: at the end, connecting to the left

Connection in a word depends on:

1. The type of the letter itself, and
2. The type of the previous letter.

If the previous letter is non‑connecting, the current letter will start a new connection and use its initial (or isolated) form.

Example with a fully connecting letter: ب (be)

In real handwriting and print, the shapes look more flowing, but this gives the placement idea.

Visualizing connection in a word

When you write a word:

• You write letters from right to left.
• Each new letter either:
• Continues the line of the previous letter, or
• Starts a new little shape segment after a non‑connecting letter.

Imagine the word as a train. Each connecting letter is a carriage with a hook on both sides. Non‑connecting letters have a hook only on the right. So:

• If the next carriage has nothing to connect to on its right side, the line breaks.

---

Step‑by‑step connection examples

We will use simple made‑up or very basic words so that you can focus on shapes, not meanings.

Example 1: A word with only fully connecting letters

Word: بن (ban)

Letters:

• ب (be)
• ن (nūn)

Both ب and ن are fully connecting.

1. Start with ب at the right side. At the beginning it is initial, so: بـ
2. Add ن to the left. It connects back to ب and ends the word, so it is final: ـن

So together: بـ + ـن → بن

The whole word looks like one smooth stroke.

Example 2: Word with a non‑connecting letter in the middle

Word: بار (bār)

Letters:

• ب (be)
• ا (alif, non‑connecting)
• ر (re, non‑connecting)

Steps:

1. ب at the right, initial: بـ
2. ا follows. Alif only connects to the right, so it connects back to ب but will not pass the connection onward. It is in the medial position, but visually it looks like a final connection from ب: با
3. ر comes next. Since ا does not connect on the left, ر starts fresh with an isolated/initial shape. It will not connect to ا.

Result: بار

Visually, you see a shape for با and then a separate shape for ر.

Example 3: Combination with و (vāv, non‑connecting)

Word: بول (bol)

Letters:

• ب (be, connecting)
• و (vāv, non‑connecting)
• ل (lām, connecting)

1. ب at start, initial: بـ
2. و after it. It connects back to ب, so you see بو. But و does not connect forward.
3. ل after و. It must start new, so it is initial: ل

Result: بول

The part بو and the ل are visually separate pieces.

Practice with connection logic

You do not need to draw perfectly yet. Focus on thinking about connection.

Practice set 1: Identify possible connections

Look at each cluster of letters (right to left). Decide which pairs connect.

1. بر
• ب (connecting) + ر (non‑connecting)
• They connect: بـر
2. بد
• ب (connecting) + د (non‑connecting)
• They connect: بـد
3. بز
• ب (connecting) + ز (non‑connecting)
• They connect: بز
4. بنز
• ب (connecting) + ن (connecting) + ز (non‑connecting)
• ب connects to ن → بن
• ن connects to ز → نز
• Whole thing is a chain: بنز

Here, ز at the very end does not need to connect further.

Practice set 2: Where does the break happen?

Consider:

1. بارش (bārish)
   Letters: ب, ا, ر, ش
• ب connects to ا → با
• ا does not connect to ر, so ر starts fresh
• ر connects to ش → رش

You can think of it as: با + رش

2. دن (din)
   Letters: د, ن
• د does not connect to left, but can connect to right, here: د + ن
• ن connects back and is final. The word is written as a single connected form: دن
3. راز (rāz)
   Letters: ر, ا, ز
• ر connects to ا → را
• ا does not connect to ز, so ز starts new

Think: را + ز

How to practice writing connections

Step 1: Practice chains of the same letter

Use a fully connecting letter like م (mīm).

Try writing these chains, right to left:

• مم
• ممم
• مممم

Say “m m m” as you write to feel the flow.

Then practice another letter like ب (be):

• بب
• ببب
• بب بب (with a small space, to see separate words)

Step 2: Mix connecting with non‑connecting

Choose a non‑connecting letter, for example ر (re).

Try:

• بر
• برر
• مر
• برا

Notice where the line breaks after ر.

Step 3: Short real‑word practice

Try writing and observing connection in these common words:

Do not worry yet if you cannot read all meanings. The goal here is to see where shapes join or separate.

Recognizing connection patterns when reading

When you read Nastaliq script, you will often see:

• A long flowing piece of letters with no breaks,
• Followed by small separate shapes after letters like و, ر, ا, etc.

Your eyes will learn to recognize that:

• A break often appears after ا, د, ر, و and the other non‑connectors.
• A long curved line with many dots probably includes several fully connecting letters.

Over time, this helps you guess word boundaries and letter types, even before you know every word.

Simple connection maps

To help your memory, here is a small map of effects:

Mini drill: Predict shapes

Without drawing exact calligraphic shapes, answer: will these be one connected piece or two pieces?

1. برف (barf, “snow”)
   Letters: ب, ر, ف
• ب connects to ر → بر
• ر connects to ف → رف
• Result: one piece
2. بارا (bārā)
   Letters: ب, ا, ر, ا
• ب connects to ا → با
• ا breaks, ر starts new → را
• ر connects to ا → راا (in writing, the last alif sits straight after)
• Visually: با + راا
• So there are two visual pieces
3. دنیا (dunyā, “world”)
   Letters: د, ن, ی, ا
• د connects to ن → دن
• ن connects to ی → نیا
• ی connects to ا → یا
• Result: كله a single chain: one piece

(Do not worry about actual vowel sounds here, just the connection.)

New vocabulary from this chapter

These words appear in examples. You will learn grammar and usage in later chapters, but you can start to recognize them visually.

And key technical terms to remember:

In later chapters on writing practice, you will practice these connections with full lines of words and sentences. For now, focus on noticing which letters break the line and which letters keep it going.