Abjad Numerology
Abjad is the system of numerical values for the letters of the Arabic alphabet. Twenty-eight letters are assigned values from 1 to 1000, and an entire discipline is built on this: ʿilm al-huruf, the science of letters.
How the Count Works
The abjad order differs from the usual Arabic alphabetical order: the letters follow a sequence inherited from the Phoenician alphabet.
| Range | Values |
|---|---|
| 1–9 | Alif, ba, jim, dal and so on |
| 10–90 | Ya, kaf, lam, mim and so on |
| 100–1000 | Qaf, ra, shin, ta, tha and so on |
There are two orders: the Eastern one, used in the Arab countries of the Mashriq, and the Maghrebi one, in which some letters have different values. This is the first source of discrepancies between calculations.
Where It's Used
Abjad was used as a system for writing numbers, for example for dates in inscriptions and manuscripts. The mystical tradition of ʿilm al-huruf is also built on it: the values of the letters of a name are interpreted, and compatibility is calculated, usually from the remainder when the sum is divided by 9 or 12.
In Iran and Turkey, abjad was used for chronograms: a phrase was chosen so that the sum of its letters gave the year of an event.
Why There's No Calculator
The calculation requires a name written in Arabic script, and transliterating a Russian name is ambiguous: the same sounds can be written with different letters that have different values.
On top of that, there are the two abjad orders mentioned above. Calculating without choosing an order means presenting one of two possible values as the only one.