Jim (ج) — Arabic Letter Guide
English "j" as in "jam" — though regional pronunciation varies (Egyptian "g", Levantine soft "zh").
Last updated: May 2026 · Letter 5 of 28
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Move from reading to hands-on typing with Arabic Typing 101.
Jim — jīm (جِيم)
- Transliteration
- j
- IPA
- d͡ʒ
- Unicode
- U+062C
- Keyboard
- [
- Finger
- right pinky
- Connects?
- Yes — on both sides
What is the letter Jim?
Jim is the fifth letter of the Arabic alphabet and the first of the ج/ح/خ trio that share a curved base shape. Jim has a single dot inside the bowl. It connects on both sides.
The four forms of Jim
Arabic letters change shape depending on their position in a word. Jim has four distinct forms:
| Position | Shape | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Isolated | ج | Standing alone |
| Initial | جـ | At the start of a word, connecting to the right |
| Medial | ـجـ | In the middle of a word, connecting on both sides |
| Final | ـج | At the end of a word, connecting only on the right |
How to type Jim on Arabic keyboard
Arabic 101 key: press [.
Finger: right pinky finger.
The key for Jim is mapped via the standard Arabic 101 keyboard layout, which is the default Arabic input source on Windows, macOS (as “Arabic - PC”), and most Linux distributions.
How to pronounce Jim
In standard Arabic and most dialects, jim is "j" as in "jump". Egyptian Arabic pronounces it as a hard "g" (as in "go"). Choose the one that matches the variety you're learning — but the letter is the same.
Example words with Jim
Letters often confused with Jim
hha
Hha has the same base shape but no dot.
kha
Kha has the same base shape but with a dot above instead of inside.
Build muscle memory for the whole alphabet
Knowing where Jim sits on the keyboard is one thing — being able to touch-type it without thinking is another. Our drills work through every letter in the alphabet with structured progression.
Frequently asked questions
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How do I type jim (ج) on the Arabic 101 keyboard?
Press the [ (left bracket) key — jim is on the right-pinky reach beyond the home row.
Why does jim sound like "g" sometimes?
In Egyptian Arabic, jim is consistently pronounced as a hard "g" (as in "go") rather than "j". Both pronunciations are common in their respective regions and both are considered correct within their dialect. Modern Standard Arabic uses "j".
Are jim, hha, and kha the same letter with different dots?
Yes — they share the same base shape. Jim has one dot inside the bowl, hha has no dots, kha has one dot above. They represent three completely different sounds despite the visual similarity.
Related Arabic letters
Or see the full Arabic 101 keyboard layout.