Who Am I? - Family and Personal Characteristics

Reading Urdu

Urdu is written in a beautiful flowing script called Nastaliq, read from right to left (the opposite of English), and it has no capital letters. The letters join up into cursive words. In this module every word is shown three ways: the script, the sound (transliteration in brackets), and the English, so you learn to recognise it and say it.

Saying who you are

Two words to introduce yourself: - میں (main) = I - نام (naam) = name So میرا نام (mera naam) means "my name".

The family

The core family and friends words: - باپ (baap) = father, ماں (maan) = mother - بھائی (bhai) = brother, بہن (behen) = sister - خاندان (khandan) = family, دوست (dost) = friend

Match each Urdu word to its meaning

Spot the word

Which word means "father"?

• باپ (baap)
• ماں (maan)
• بھائی (bhai)
• دوست (dost)

Match each family word to its meaning

Check the notes

Tap the TWO statements that are accurate for this module.

• بہن (behen) means sister.
• Urdu uses capital letters like English.
• دوست (dost) means father.
• ہے (hai) closes these simple "is" sentences.

How the writing works

Urdu uses the Perso-Arabic script in the sloping Nastaliq style, read from right to left, with the letters joined up. There are no capital letters. For GCSE Urdu, keep the script point tight: recognise the Urdu form on the page, use the transliteration only as a reading aid, and do not try to answer in English word order.

True of Urdu?

Which statement about Urdu writing is correct?

• It is written right to left and the letters join up
• It is written left to right
• It uses capital letters like English
• Each symbol stands for a whole word

Family members

Select ALL THREE words that are family members.

• باپ (baap)
• ماں (maan)
• بھائی (bhai)
• دوست (dost)
• میں (main)
• نام (naam)

Introduce yourself

Choose the right word at each step to introduce yourself and your family.

• To say "I", which word do you use?
• To say "name", which word?
• To talk about your sister, which word?

Urdu builds the sentence its own way

These words become sentences once you add ہے (hai - is). Urdu reads right to left and puts that little word last, where English puts it in the middle:

Urdu puts "is" at the end of the sentence

Urdu puts "is" at the end of the sentence. Which of these says "my name is Ali"?

• میرا نام علی ہے (mera naam Ali hai)
• ہے میرا نام علی (hai mera naam Ali)
• میرا نام علی (mera naam Ali)
• وہ میرا دوست ہے (voh mera dost hai)

Build the sentence order

Put the Urdu words into the order for "my name is Ali".

• میرا (mera)
• نام (naam)
• علی (Ali)
• ہے (hai)

The right word

Using the script, complete: "father" is _____, "mother" is _____, "brother" is _____, and "friend" is _____.

Write a short answer

Write two short Urdu sentences using only the words and patterns from this module.

• Use میرا نام ... ہے for your name
• Use one family or friend word, such as خاندان, بھائی, بہن or دوست
• Keep ہے at the end of the simple sentence
• Write in Urdu script first; use transliteration only to help you check the sound