Without qalqalah, these five letters tend to get swallowed when they have a sukoon. Say ุฃูุญูุฏู with a dead stop on the ุฏ and it almost disappears. Qalqalah gives the letter a small release so the listener can hear it.
Why only these five letters?
All five are made with a complete closure in the mouth (shiddah, the air stops) and they are also voiced in a way that holds the breath back (jahr). When such a letter is still, the sound has no way out, so Arabic gives it a tiny bounce. Letters like ู and ุช also stop the air but let breath escape, so they do not need it.
A handy way to remember the letters: ููุทูุจู ุฌูุฏูู, qutbu jaddin.
The levels of qalqalah
1. Minor (sughra): in the middle of a word
The letter has a sukoon and is not the last letter you read. The bounce is short and light.
- ููุฏูุฎูููููู (an-Nasr 110:2)
- ุฎูููููููุง
- ุงููุฃูุจูุชูุฑู (al-Kawthar 108:3)
- ููุฌูุนูููููู
- ุฃูุทูุนูู ูููู ู (Quraysh 106:4)
2. Major (kubra): when you stop on it
The letter is at the end of a word where you stop, usually the end of a verse. It had a vowel in continuous reading but becomes sakin when you pause, and the bounce is clearer.
- ูููู ุฃูุนููุฐู ุจูุฑูุจูู ุงูููููููู (al-Falaq 113:1)
- ูููู ูููู ุงูููููู ุฃูุญูุฏู (al-Ikhlas 112:1)
- ููุงูุณููู ูุงุกู ุฐูุงุชู ุงููุจูุฑููุฌู (al-Buruj 85:1)
- ุชูุจููุชู ููุฏูุง ุฃูุจูู ููููุจู (al-Masad 111:1)
3. Strongest: stopping on a letter with shaddah
When the final letter is doubled and you stop on it, you hold the closure a moment longer and then release. Examples: ููุชูุจู (al-Masad 111:1), ุงููุญููู.
Some teachers count these as three levels and some as two (treating the third as part of kubra). The practical point is the same: middle of a word is light, at a stop is stronger.
What should the bounce sound like?
It is a short release, not a vowel. A common beginner mistake is turning ุฃูุญูุฏู into aแธฅadah or aแธฅada. There is a difference of opinion on the exact colour of the sound. Many teachers say it should lean toward fatha, others say it follows the vowel before it. Either way, it must not become a full vowel or an extra syllable. Listen to a precise reciter like Sheikh al-Husary on Surah al-Ikhlas, and copy the length.
Other mistakes to watch for
- Adding qalqalah to the wrong letters. Students sometimes bounce ู or ุช. Only the five letters get it.
- Making it too heavy on light letters. ุจ, ุฌ and ุฏ are light, so their bounce should be light. ู and ุท are heavy and naturally sound fuller.
- Bouncing letters that are not sakin. In ููุงูู, the ู has a fatha, so there is no qalqalah.
- Forgetting it in the middle of words because it is light, for example on the ุจ in ุงููุฃูุจูุชูุฑู.
Where to practise
The last juz is ideal. Surah al-Falaq ends every verse with ู or ุจ. Surah al-Ikhlas ends verses on ุฏ. Surah al-Buruj and al-Masad give you ุฌ and ุจ. Read each surah once focusing only on qalqalah, then again normally.
Qalqalah is one of the first rules our students hear corrected in their tajweed lessons, because it changes how short surahs sound in prayer straight away. For the full picture of what to learn next, see our tajweed roadmap for beginners.
Questions parents and students ask us
What are the letters of qalqalah?
Five letters: ู ุท ุจ ุฌ ุฏ, remembered with the phrase ูุทุจ ุฌุฏ (qutbu jaddin).
When does qalqalah happen?
When one of the five letters has a sukoon, either in the middle of a word or because you stop on it at the end of a word.
What is the difference between qalqalah sughra and kubra?
Sughra is in the middle of a word and is light. Kubra is when you stop on the letter at the end of a word and is stronger.
Is qalqalah pronounced with a vowel?
No. It is a short release of the letter, not a full vowel. Turning it into an extra syllable is a common mistake.
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