The first letter of the Arabic alphabet, corresponding to the sound 'a' and shaped like a vertical line, similar to the Phoenician aleph.
From Arabic 'ālif', derived from the Phoenician 'aleph' meaning ox (the letter originally depicted an ox head). As written systems evolved, the letter became abstract but kept its name and position as the first letter.
The letter 'A' in English, 'aleph' in Hebrew, and 'alif' in Arabic all come from the same ancient letter that looked like an ox—one of history's best examples of how languages stay connected through writing systems.
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