transliteration

transliteration

UK[ˌtrænzlɪtəˈreɪʃn]US[ˌtrænslɪtəˈreɪʃn]
n

the act or process of writing words or letters in the characters of a different alphabet or writing system.

n

an instance or result of such a process.

Morpheme Breakdown

trans
liter
ation
trans

across

liter

letter

ation

noun suffix

Etymology

the word "transliteration" is a modern english formation built directly from classical latin components. the prefix "trans-" carries its enduring sense of moving or converting something from one state or place to another. it is combined with the root "liter-", derived from "littera," meaning a letter of the alphabet. the suffix "-ation" is then added to denote the process or result of this action. therefore, the literal morphemic logic is "the process of carrying letters across," which perfectly describes the act of converting text from one script to another while preserving its phonetic sequence, distinct from translation which deals with meaning.

Analysis

Structure: trans (across) + liter (letter) + ation (noun suffix) trans: from latin, a prefix meaning "across, beyond, through." liter: from latin littera (letter of the alphabet). ation: from latin -ationem, a suffix forming nouns of action or state.

Examples

the transliteration of the greek word 'philosophia' into the roman alphabet gives us 'philosophy'.

many library catalogs use a standard system for the transliteration of cyrillic texts.

his name, when written in english, is a transliteration from the original arabic script.