Muqattaʿat

The mysterious letters (muqaṭṭaʿāt, Arabic: حُرُوف مُقَطَّعَات ḥurūf muqaṭṭaʿāt, "disjoined letters" or "disconnected letters") are combinations of between one and five Arabic letters that appear at the beginning of 29 out of the 114 chapters (surahs) of the Quran just after the Bismillāh Islamic phrase. The letters are also known as fawātiḥ (فَوَاتِح) or "openers" as they form the opening verse of their respective surahs.

"Alif Laam Meem" redirects here. For the Muslim fraternity, see Alpha Lambda Mu.
For the Ottoman instrument for financing state expenses, see Muqata'ah.

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Four chapters are named for their muqaṭṭaʿāt: Ṭā-Hā, Yā-Sīn, Ṣād and Qāf.

The original significance of the letters is unknown. Tafsir (exegesis) has interpreted them as abbreviations for either names or qualities of God or for the names or content of the respective surahs. The general belief of most Muslims is that their meaning is known only to Allah.

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