Hebrew Alphabet used in writing STA"M (Sifrei
Torah,Tefillin,and Mezuzos)
There are over 150 laws concerning how the Hebrew Alphabet must be written by the Jewish Scribe.
I have scanned in each letter separately, and try to point out some of the things to look for in good writing.
Note: This is only a reference and is by no means complete.
Please check your STA"M with a competent certified Sofer. Ask your Sofer if he is certified by the Vaad Mishmeres STA"M.
B"H - Thanks to my friend at GF GREETINGS I have put up the pictures of the letters. Click on the letter to see a larger version.
Letter Aleph
The Letter Aleph has 3 distinct parts and 10 laws concerning its form. There
is an upper Yud, a lower Yud, and a body that is similar to a Vov. There should
be a clear connection from the body of the Aleph to the Yuds but none of the
faces of the Yuds are allowed to touch its body. The face of the upper Yud
should be slightly angled upward. The very bottom end of the Vov part should
be slightly turned upwards. The size of the Aleph should be 3X3 kulmusim. Note: The word Kulmus(im)
means the width of the tip of the quill.
Letter Beis
The Letter Beis is made of 3 parts. The size of the letter is 3X3 kulmusim.
The space in the middle of the Beis should be exactly equal the width of the
top and bottom lines, which is 1 kulmus.
The Beis should have a small heel coming out of its back on the bottom, so
that it is clearly distinguished that it is a Beis and not a Chof Kefufa.
It should also have a single Tag (pronounced tahg) on top of its head on the
left side. A Tag is a single, short line, which usually will have a "crown"
at the top. (Click on the Beis to see it better. This Tag should not
be on the very end of the left side, nor be made too large, or it can cause
a number of different problems.)
Letter Gimel
The Letter Gimel has a head of a Zayin, and has a leg sticking out of it
on bottom whose face points slightly upward. There should be three Tagin on
its head. All of the corners of the head should be squared. The right leg
should be slightly longer than the left one. The height of the Gimel should
be three kulmusim. Originally, Sofrim
made the Gimel with a long neck, so as to be able to put the top of the next
letter near the head of the Gimel. Nowadays, we arch the back of the right
leg slanting downwards towards the right, to avoid any problems and to create
ample space.
Letter Daled
The Letter Daled has 2 main parts. There is a roof and a leg. If the heel
which sticks out on the top right corner is missing, the letter is still kosher.
We want there to be a heel sticking out so that the Daled is distinct from
the Letter Reish. The roof should be 3 kulmusim
long. There should be one Tag at the left end of the roof. (This Tag should
not be on the very end of the left side, nor be made too large, because it
can be a problem.) The leg should be slightly shorter than 3 kulmusim.
Letter Heh
The Letter Heh is basically a Daled which has an upside down Yud at the
lower left hand corner, at an equal distance away from the roof as from the
leg. The heel that was found on the roof of the Daled isn't necessary on a
Heh, as even if the body looked like a Reish it would be kosher, but most
Sofrim put a heel on top anyway. There should be one Tag at the left end of
the roof. (This Tag should not be on the very end of the left side, nor be
made too large, because it can be a problem.) Great care must be taken so
that the left leg does not touch the roof of the Heh. If
it does touch, even with an amount as thin as a hair, it would be invalid.
Letter Vov
The Letter Vov should be 1X3 kulmusim.
The top right part of the Vov should be completely rounded, because if it's
squared it would look like a Zayin. The face of the Vov should be straight
up and down, not angled. Neither the head nor leg of the Vov should be made
too long, because then it will look like another letter. (ie- a Reish or a
Nun Peshuta)
Letter Zayin
The Letter Zayin should be 1X3 kulmusim.
It should have a completely squared head with 3 Tagin on it. The leg should
be no longer than 3 kulmusim, as otherwise
the Zayin can be mistaken for a Nun Peshuta.
Letter Ches
The Letter Ches is made up of 2 Zayins which are written next to one another
and connected together on top. The right Zayin should have no Tagin. All of
it's corners should be squared, except for the top right corner, which should
be rounded. The left Zayin should have all of its corners squared, and instead
of having 3 Tagin like a regular Zayin, it should have 1 Tag coming out of
the upper left corner. The connection between the two Zayins is imperative,
as if it's broken the letter will look like two Zayins instead of a Ches.
Letter Tes
The Letter Tes has a size of 3X3 kulmusim.
The left head of the Tes should look like the head of a Zayin, having completely
squared corners and 3 Tagin on top of it. The lower left corner of the Tes
should be squared as well. However, the lower right corner should be rounded.
The right head of the Tes should curve inside the Tes, not far enough to touch
the base of the Tes, but rather enough so that it's clear that it is curved
inwards. The two heads of the Tes should not touch each other, as this would
make it invalid.
Letter Yud
The Letter Yud is the smallest letter of the alphabet, yet it can be the
trickiest to write properly. The Yud should have a size of 1X2 kulmusim.
The Yud should have a small Tag on the top left corner. This Tag should not
be made too tall, because it can cause the letter to be invalid. The top right
corner should be clearly rounded. The leg should not be too long, because
otherwise the Yud can turn into a Vov. There should be a small kotz
sticking out of the bottom left corner of the head of the Yud. According to
many Poskim, a Yud without this kotz
is invalid. Note: A kotz is a small stick or thorn, and in
this case it's used to represent a small point sticking out of the letter.
Letter Chof Kefufa
The Letter Chof Kefufa is one of the 5 letters which have a special letter
which replaces it,when it is used at the end of a word. The Chof Kefufa has
a size of 3X3 kulmusim. The upper and
lower corners of it's back should be clearly rounded, so that there is no
confusion on whether it's a Beis or Chof Kefufa. The space in the middle of
the Chof Kefufa should be exactly equal the width of the top and bottom lines,
which is 1 kulmus.
Letter Chof Peshuta
The Letter Chof Peshuta should have a roof which is no longer than 3 kulmusim.
We should not lengthen its roof any further, nor make it shorter, as it could
very possibly look like the Letter Reish or the Letter Vov. The leg of the
Chof Peshuta should be a total of 5 1/2 kulmusim,when
measuring from the top of the Chof to its tip. If it is any shorter, it could
look like the Letter Reish. The top right corner of the Chof Peshuta should
be rounded, as it is similar to it's cousin, the Chof Kefufa, which has a
rounded top corner.
Letter Lamed
The Letter Lamed is made up of two separate letters. There is a Chof Kefufa
which is written within the lines, and then a Vov whose bottom point touches
the very top left corner of the Chof Kefufa. The Letter Lamed, therefore,
is one of the largest letters, and one must make sure that there is enough
space above it, because if the body of the Vov must be shortened, it can become
invalid. The Lamed's dimensions are 6 kulmusim
in height, (that is, 3 kulmusim for
the Chof Kefufa, and 3 kulmusim for
the Vov) and 4 kulmusim in width.(That
is- 3 kulmusim for the Chof Kefufa, and 1 kulmus
for the Vov.) The top and bottom corners of the body of the Chof Kefufa should
be rounded, and the space in the middle of the Chof Kefufa should be 1 kulmus.(Exactly
like the rules given above for a Chof Kefufa.) Our minhag is not to complete
the bottom section of the Chof Kefufa part of the Lamed, rather we stop somewhere
between 1/2 to 3/4 of the way from the end. As long as there is a clear bottom
section to the Lamed, it will be valid. There should also be a small kotz
sticking out of the middle of the head of the Vov section of the Lamed.
Letter Mem Pesucha
The Letter Mem Pesucha is another letter which has a special letter which
replaces it when it is used at the end of a word. The Mem Pesucha is made
up of two different letters- a Chof Peshuta, and a Vov. The dimensions of
the Mem Pesucha are 3X3 kulmusim. That
is, that the top and bottom of the Chof Peshuta part of the Mem Pesucha, are
only 2 kulmusim in length. The top
right corner should be rounded, (like a Letter Chof Peshuta should be,)and
the right leg would then go down until it reaches a total length of 3 kulmusim.
By the same token, the space in middle of the Mem Pesucha should equal 1 kulmus.
The bottom right corner of the Mem Pesucha should be squared. The Vov part
of the Mem Pesucha, (which is sometimes referred to as the "nose") should
be angled so that the face of the Vov is angled upward. At the point where
the head of the Vov connects to its leg, is where the Vov should touch the
Chof Peshuta part of the Mem Pesucha. There should be a clear notch in between
the two heads of the letters. Also, the connection between them should be
thick, so that it's clear they are connected. At the bottom, the Vov and Chof
Peshuta must not touch at all, as that would invalidate the letter since it
would become a Mem Stumah.
Letter Mem Stumah
The Letter Mem Stumah comes at the end of a word that ends with a Mem. The
Mem Stumah has a size of 3X3 kulmusim.
The top right corner should be rounded, while the remaining corners must be
squared. The box of space inside the Mem Stumah should also be completely
squared, as we want to make the Mem Stumah clearly different from a Samech.
There should be a slight protrusion from the top left corner which should
extend a little bit past the body of the Mem Stumah. There should not be any
splits along any portion of the Mem Stumah, as this would render it invalid.
The Letter Nun Kefufa is another letter which has a special letter which
replaces it when it is used at the end of a word. The Nun Kefufa should have
a head like a Zayin, that is- a square head with 3 Tagin on it. Originally,
Sofrim made the Nun Kefufa with a long neck, so as to be able to put the top
of the next letter near the head of the Nun Kefufa. Nowadays, we arch the
back of the right leg slanting downwards towards the right, to avoid any problems
and to create ample space. The base of the Nun Kefufa should extend beyond
the end of the head. The total size of the Nun Kefufa should therefore be
1 1/2 X3 kulmusim.
Letter Nun Peshuta
The Letter Nun Peshuta comes at the end of a word that ends with a Nun.
The size of the Nun Peshuta should be 1X5 kulmusim.
It should have a completely squared head with 3 Tagin on it. The leg should
be no shorter than 4 kulmusim, as otherwise
the Nun Peshuta can be mistaken for a Zayin.
Letter Samech
The Letter Samech has a size of 3X3 kulmusim.
The space in the middle of the Samech should be exactly equal the width of
the top and bottom lines, which is 1 kulmus.
The left corner should be squared, while the other corners must be rounded,
inside and outside. Great care should be taken to ensure that the corners
are clearly rounded, so that the Samech doesn't look like the Mem Stumah.
There should be a slight protrusion from the top left corner which should
extend a little bit past the body of the Samech. There should not be any splits
along any portion of the Samech, as this would render it invalid.
Letter Ayin
The Letter Ayin has a size of slightly larger than 3X3kulmusim.
The Ayin is made of 5 parts, and each part should be distinct. The right leg
has the head of a Vov, with a rounded top right corner. The left leg should
have the head of a Zayin. (According to the Arizal,the left leg has the head
of a Vov.) The head should have 3 Tagin on it, like a regular Zayin. The heads
should not touch one another at all. The Ayin has a slight slant toward the
right, so that letters can fit comfortably next to it. The bottom portion
which the two legs fit into should be thick and have a protrusion, to show
that the Ayin is not a Tes, and also to create more room for nearby letters.
Letter Pay Kefufa
The Letter Pay Kefufa has a number of different parts. The overall size
should be 4X3 kulmusim. The Pay should
have an upside down Vov at the top left end, and the head of the Vov should
enter the face of the Pay. If you look closely, you should see the outline
of a Letter Bais (complete with its bottom heel) inside the empty part inside
the Pay. It is because sofrim want so much to get this outline of the Bais
in, that the letter is written slightly larger than the other letters. The
space between the bottom of the upside down Vov and the top of the base of
the bottom of the pay should be 1/2 a kulmus,
in order to assure that the Vov doesn't touch the bottom.
Letter Pay Peshuta
The Letter Pay Peshuta comes at the end of a word which ends with a Pay.
It has a size of 3X5 kulmusim. The
Pay Peshuta is similar to the Pay Kefufa, as they both have an upside down
Vov at the top left end, whose head (of the Vov) enters the face of the Pay.
Where they differ is in the right leg, whereas the Pay Kefufa has a curled
body, the right leg of the Pay Peshuta goes straight down. Of course, the
head of the Vov should not touch the right leg, and the right leg should be
clearly longer than the upside down Vov, since it otherwise can be invalid.
Letter Tzadi Kefufa
The Letter Tzadi Kefufa consists of pieces from 2 different letters. There
is a Nun Kefufa, which is more curved than it normally is, and has a bigger
bottom base than normal. There is also a Yud, which is resting on the back
of the Nun part. The left head should have 3 Tagin on it, like a regular Zayin.
The overall size should be 3X3kulmusim.
The heads should not touch one another at all.
Letter Tzadi Peshuta
The Letter Tzadi Peshuta comes at the end of a word that ends with a Tzadi.
It has a size of 3X5 kulmusim. The
Tzadi Peshuta is similar to the Tzadi Kefufa, as they both have a Yud resting
on the Nun part at the right side. Where they differ is in the left leg, whereas
the Tzadi Kefufa has a curled body, from the Nun Kefufa part, the left leg
of the Tzadi Peshuta goes straight down, like a Nun Peshuta. Of course, the
head of the Yud should not touch the left head, and the right leg should be
clearly longer than where the Yud meets the body, since it otherwise can be
invalid.
Letter Kuf
The Letter Kuf is made up of two separate letters. There is a Chof Kefufa
which is written within the lines, and then a part that is longer than a Zayin,
but not as long as a Nun Peshuta,which is angled next to the Chof Kefufa.
The Letter Kuf, therefore, is a large letter, and one must make sure that
there is enough space below it, in order to have ample room for Zayin part
of the Kuf. The Kuf's dimensions are 5 kulmusim
in height, (that is, 3 kulmusim for
the Chof Kefufa, and 4 kulmusim for
the Zayin) and 3 kulmusim in width.
(That is- 3 kulmusim for the Chof Kefufa,
and the Zayin section is neatly placed and angled slightly under the roof
of the Chof Kefufa section.) The top and bottom corners of the body of the
Chof Kefufa should be rounded, and the space in the middle of the Chof Kefufa
should be 1 kulmus.(Exactly like the
rules given above for a Chof Kefufa.) We do not to complete the bottom section
of the Chof Kefufa part of the Kuf, rather we stop about 1/4 to 1/2 of the
way from the beginning. As long as there is a clear bottom section to the
Kuf, it will be valid. There should be one Tag at the left end of the roof.
(This Tag should not be on the very end of the left side, nor be made too
large, because it can be a problem of possibly looking like a Lamed.) The
two parts of the Kuf should not touch each other at all. If they do touch,
even with an amount as thin as a hair, it would be invalid.
Letter Reish
The Letter Reish should have a size of 3X3kulmusim.
However, Sofrim are usually careful to make the roof slightly longer than
the leg, so that the Reish cannot have a problem of appearing like a Chof
Peshuta. The top right corner should be clearly rounded, so as to avoid any
problems of looking like a Daled.
Letter Shin
The Letter Shin is easily distinguished by its three heads. The spacing
of the Shin is something that takes practice for a Sofer to write correctly.
The leftmost leg should have the head of a Zayin. (According to the Arizal,the
left leg has the head of a Vov.) The head should have 3 Tagin on it, like
a regular Zayin. The heads should not touch one another at all. Also, there
should be no more than 3 heads in total, or the letter would be rendered invalid.
The bottom should come to a point, and not be rounded or flat.
Letter Tof
The Letter Tof consists of 3 parts. The total size of the Tof should be
3X3 kulmusim. The right leg is very
similar to that of the Letter Daled and Heh, which also have a protrusion
of the roof on the top right corner. The left leg is an upside down Vov, whose
face points outward. Sofrim try to be careful not to let the head of the left
leg protrude past the end of the roof, as it could cause spacing problems
with nearby letters.
NOTES: For the purpose of this document, we have only
dealt with the Beis Yosef's opinion on how the letters should be written. There
are several letters where the Arizal has a difference of opinion. Consult your
local, competent, Orthodox Rabbi as to what writing style you should use.
When we refer to a leg having a certain size, we almost always refer to it as
the size from the top of the letter (including it's roof) to the bottom of the
leg. An example is the Letter Daled, which has a total leg height
of just under 3 kulmusim.
The Letters Gimel,Zayin,Tes,Nun,Ayin,Tzadi,and Shin are called by the abbreviation
"Shatnez Getz" to show that they all have 3 Tagin on their respective heads.(On
letters with more than one head, it's the square head.)
Gematrias (Numeric Equivalents):
The letters of the Hebrew Alphabet each have a numerical value. The Letter Aleph
is equal to 1. The Letter Bais is equal to 2. The Letter Gimel is equal to 3.
The Letter Daled is equal to 4. The Letter Heh is equal to 5. The Letter Vov
is equal to 6. The Letter Zayin is equal to 7. The Letter Ches is equal to 8.
The Letter Tes is equal to 9. The Letter Yud is equal to 10. The Letter Chof
is equal to 20. The Letter Lamed is equal to 30. The Letter Mem is equal to
40. The Letter Nun is equal to 50. The Letter Samech is equal to 60. The Letter
Ayin is equal to 70. The Letter Pay is equal to 80. The Letter Tzadi is equal
to 90. The Letter Kuf is equal to 100. The Letter Reish is equal to 200. The
Letter Shin is equal to 300. The Letter Tof is equal to 400.
>FAQ:
(1) How can I learn Hebrew?
I recommend a computer program called Triple Play Hebrew, which can be found
at your local Jewish bookstore, or at http://www.rosenblums.com,
a bookstore with which I am familiar. Another idea would be to attend a local
college offering courses in Hebrew.
(2) Can you tell me how I can become a Sofer (Jewish Scribe)?
The way to become a Sofer is not by copying this page and imitating
the letters found here. A Sofer must spend a long time learning the laws of
how to write the letters. There are certain errors in writing which cannot be
corrected, nor can they be detected by looking at the writing. For this reason,
a Sofer must be G-d fearing and pious, as no one but he knows if an error was
made. I suggest that people only purchase scrolls that come from reputable dealers,
those who deal with scribes which are certified.
(3) The Letter Vov has a numerical value of six. Is there a connection between 666 and the Internet? After all, the closest letter in the English Alphabet for Letter Vov is a W?
The question incorrectly assumes there is a connection between the English
alphabet and Hebrew alphabet. This is wrong because Hebrew preexists English
by thousands of years. (English, which is based primarily on Latin, may have
borrowed certain sounds or rules from Hebrew, not vice-versa!) However, to try
and explain some of the sounds of the Hebrew letters, we can say that some letters
of the Hebrew language have pronunciations and sounds which are similar to some
English letters. For example the Letter Aleph sounds like the Letter A, Letter
Beis sounds like Letter B. Letter Gimel sounds like a hard Letter G, so don't
assume they follow the sound order of the ABC's.
(4) Where can I get Hebrew fonts?
I give people two suggestions. One is two run a search on Hebrew fonts and
see what you come up with. The other is to go to http://www.davka.com
where they sell Hebrew word fonts as well as word processing programs which
come with many fonts.
(5) How many letters are there in the Torah?
There are 304,805 letters.
(6) How can I write Hebrew numbers?
This requires some basic knowledge of the GEMATRIAS
that I wrote about above. Basically, you would put the letters together to equal
the number you are seeking. ie- 22 would be CHOF-BEIS. However, if you wanted
to write out the number fully, like when we write seventy one in English instead
of 71, you would need to know the Hebrew words for seventy and one and put them
next to one another. Finally, keep in mind that in Hebrew they also use the
numbers 1234567890, and so even though they are not Hebrew characters, they
are universally known and used by the name Arabic characters.
(7)Are the letters provided for only for certified scribes or do they apply for anyone wishing to write Hebrew letters?
The Hebrew language is similar to English in that there are many different fonts which one can use to write the letters. The letters I have posted is the only font that is allowed for writing the Holy Scrolls that we use.
(8)Why don't you call the second letter a Bet, but rather you call it a Beis? Are letters pronounced differently in different fonts?
Letter Beis and Letter Bet are the same thing. Beis is the Ashkenazic pronunciation
of Bet. For example, in English we say Letter Z as "zee", while in Canada they
say "zed". We both refer to the same thing. For the other letters as well, I
have written their exact name with the Ashkenazic as opposed to Sefardic pronunciation.
The difference between Ashkenazic and Sefardic pronunciations is based on which
European countries your ancestors lived in.
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I am also a certified sofer! Please use a Hebrew-English dictionary to
look up words that you would like translated. Additionally, I will not respond
to those who ask me to translate their names into Hebrew. I have been inundated
with requests and cannot possibly answer all of them. If you have scribal
questions??? Just send me an e-mail!
