FSI. Classical Arabic: The Writing System

FSI. — 60 p.Arabic is customarily written and printed in a special alphabet of its, called the Arabic alphabet, consisting of 26 letters and several signs.Some of the salient features of this alphabet are as follows:
Arabic is written and printed from right to left.
Normally only the consonants and the long vowels are indicated.
There are no capital letters.
The manner of writing is cursive and most of the letters are connected to preceding and following letters within the same word.
Most of the letters have three or more variant shapes, depending on whether they are connected to preceding and/or following letters or not.
Some, letters are identical in basic form and are distinguished from one another by small dots.The system of writing described here is the handwriting commonly used in the Syrian area. In other parts of the Arab world, and in Iran, the handwriting styles vary from slightly to considerably different. Printing types also vary, some being quite complex and ornate.