Hiriq

Hiriq (Hebrew: חִירִיק‎ ḥiriq  IPA: [χiˈʁik]) is a Hebrew niqqud vowel sign represented by a dot ⟨ ִ‎ ⟩ underneath the letter. In Modern Hebrew, it indicates the phoneme /i/ which is the same as the "ee" sound in the English word deep and is transliterated with "i". In Yiddish, it indicates the phoneme /ɪ/ which is the same as the "i" sound in the English word skip and is transliterated with "i".

In Israeli writing a ḥiriq is often promoted to ḥiriq male (Hebrew: חִירִיק מָלֵא‎ IPA: [χiˈʁik maˈle]) for the sake of disambiguation (see ktiv male). A ḥiriq male in Hebrew spelling is a ḥiriq under the preceding yud ⟨ִי‎⟩, while in Yiddish orthography the ḥiriq is placed under the yud ⟨יִ‎⟩. In writing without niqqud, the ḥiriq is omitted leaving only the yud ⟨י‎⟩. The usage of a consonant (in this case yud) to indicate a vowel comes from mater lectionis.

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