Atik Arabic Phonetic Keyboard

An intuitive phonetic Arabic input method for IBus-m17n that allows you to type Arabic text using English phonetic transliteration.

Features

• Phonetic transliteration - Type Arabic using English letters that sound similar
• Full Arabic alphabet support - All 28 Arabic letters plus special characters
• Diacritical marks (Tashkeel) - Fatha, Kasra, Damma, Shadda, Sukun, and Tanwin
• Arabic-Indic numerals - Automatic conversion of digits 0-9 to ٠-٩
• Lam-Alif ligatures - Automatic ligature formation
• Common phrases - Shortcuts for frequently used Arabic/Islamic phrases
• Arabic punctuation - Special Arabic comma, semicolon, and question mark

Installation

Prerequisites

Ensure you have IBus and m17n-db installed:

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt install ibus ibus-m17n m17n-db

Fedora/RHEL:

sudo dnf install ibus ibus-m17n m17n-db

Arch Linux:

sudo pacman -S ibus ibus-m17n m17n-db

Install the Keyboard

1. Save the keyboard file as ar-atik-phonetic.mim

2. Copy to the m17n directory:

   # System-wide installation (requires sudo)
   sudo cp ar-atik-phonetic.mim /usr/share/m17n/
   sudo cp ar-atik-phonetic.png /usr/share/m17n/icons/

3. Restart IBus:

   ibus-daemon -drx

4. Add the input method:

   • Open IBus Preferences (usually in system tray)
   • Go to "Input Method" tab
   • Click "Add"
   • Select "Arabic" → "Atik Phonetic (m17n)"
   • Click "Add"

5. Switch to the keyboard:

   • Use Super + Space (or your configured shortcut) to switch between input methods
   • Look for the "ع" icon in your system tray

Keyboard Layout Reference

Basic Arabic Letters

Input	Output	Letter Name	Input	Output	Letter Name
a	ا	Alif	S	ص	Sad
b	ب	Ba	D	ض	Dad
t	ت	Ta	T	ط	Ta (emphatic)
th	ث	Tha	Z	ظ	Za (emphatic)
j	ج	Jim	3	ع	Ayn
H	ح	Ha (emphatic)	gh	غ	Ghayn
kh	خ	Kha	f	ف	Fa
d	د	Dal	q	ق	Qaf
dh	ذ	Dhal	k	ك	Kaf
r	ر	Ra	l	ل	Lam
z	ز	Zay	m	م	Mim
s	س	Sin	n	ن	Nun
sh	ش	Shin	h	ه	Ha
-	-	-	w	و	Waw
-	-	-	y	ي	Ya

Hamza Forms

Input	Output	Description
' or 2	ء	Hamza
A	أ	Alif with Hamza above
aa	آ	Alif Madda
i	إ	Alif with Hamza below
o	ؤ	Waw with Hamza
e	ئ	Ya with Hamza

Special Characters

Input	Output	Description
p	ة	Taa Marbuta
Y	ى	Alif Maqsura
_	ـ	Tatweel (Kashida)

Diacritical Marks (Tashkeel)

Input	Output	Name	Input	Output	Name
F	َ	Fatha	N	ً	Tanwin Fath
K	ِ	Kasra	I	ٍ	Tanwin Kasr
u	ُ	Damma	U	ٌ	Tanwin Damm
~	ّ	Shadda	O	ْ	Sukun

Arabic Punctuation

Input	Output	Description
,	،	Arabic comma
;	؛	Arabic semicolon
?	؟	Arabic question mark

Numbers

By default, digits convert to Arabic-Indic numerals:

Input	Output	Input	Output
0	٠	5	٥
1	١	6	٦
2	٢	7	٧
3	٣	8	٨
4	٤	9	٩

To type Western numerals, prefix with #:

• #0 → 0, #1 → 1, #2 → 2, etc.

Lam-Alif Ligatures

Input	Output	Description
la	لا	Lam-Alif
lA	لأ	Lam-Alif with Hamza above
li	لإ	Lam-Alif with Hamza below
laa	لآ	Lam-Alif Madda

Common Phrases Shortcuts

Input	Output	Transliteration
allah	الله	Allah
alhamdulillah	الحمد لله	Alhamdulillah
inshallah	إن شاء الله	Insha'Allah
mashallah	ما شاء الله	Masha'Allah
bismillah	بسم الله	Bismillah
assalamu	السلام عليكم	As-salamu alaykum

Usage Examples

Example 1: Simple Word

Input: salam
Output: سلام
(Peace)

Example 2: With Hamza

Input: salAm
Output: سلأم

Example 3: With Diacritics

Input: saFlaFm
Output: سَلَم
(with Fatha marks)

Example 4: Complete Phrase

Input: assalamu 3alaykum
Output: السلام عليكم ؏لايكم
Note: Use the shortcut assalamu for the full phrase: السلام عليكم

Example 5: With Numbers

Input: 2023
Output: ٢٠٢٣

Input: #2023
Output: 2023

Tips for Best Results

1. Capital letters matter - H, S, D, T, Z are different from their lowercase versions
2. Use digraphs - th, sh, kh, dh, gh should be typed together for special letters
3. Number 3 for Ayn - Type 3 to get ع (a common romanization convention)
4. Phrase shortcuts - Use the built-in shortcuts for common phrases instead of typing letter by letter
5. Diacritics last - Type the letter first, then add diacritical marks

Troubleshooting

Keyboard doesn't appear in IBus

• Verify the file is in the correct directory: /usr/share/m17n/
• Restart IBus: ibus-daemon -drx
• Check file permissions: chmod 644 ar-atik-phonetic.mim

Wrong characters appearing

• Make sure you're using the correct input method (look for "ع" icon)
• Check that CAPS LOCK is not interfering with capital letter inputs
• Some letters require specific capitalization (e.g., H for ح, not h)

Can't type Western numerals

• Remember to prefix numbers with # when you need Western digits

Uninstallation

To remove the keyboard:

# If installed system-wide
sudo rm /usr/share/m17n/ar-atik-phonetic.mim
sudo rm /usr/share/m17n/ar-atik-phonetic.png

# Restart IBus
ibus-daemon -drx

Then remove the input method from IBus Preferences.

Contributing

Found a bug or have a suggestion? Feel free to:

• Report issues
• Suggest improvements to the phonetic mappings
• Add more phrase shortcuts
• Improve documentation

License

This input method is released under the MIT License.

Credits

Atik Arabic Phonetic Keyboard - Designed for ease of use and intuitive Arabic typing.