Dalet — the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet (ד)

Dalet (ד) is the fourth Hebrew letter, pronounced like English D, with numeric value four in gematria; its name means 'door' and it has historical links to a Proto-Sinaitic pictogram and Greek delta.

Overview

Dalet (also written dāleth or daleth) is the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In modern Hebrew it represents the voiced dental plosive similar to the English "d". The character is commonly transliterated as D and appears as ד in the standard square script used for printed Hebrew.

Form and pronunciation

In printed (block) Hebrew the glyph ד is composed of straight strokes with an open side; in handwritten and cursive styles it takes simpler flowing shapes. Dalet has no special final form (it does not change shape at the end of a word). Its Unicode code point is U+05D3. Historically some traditions distinguished a plosive [d] from a fricative [ð] depending on the presence of a dagesh (a dot placed inside the letter), though in Modern Hebrew both are typically pronounced as [d].

Characteristics

Position: 4th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Sound: generally /d/ in Modern Hebrew.
Numerical value: 4 in gematria (Hebrew numeral system).
Name meaning: related to the word "delet," meaning "door."
Unicode: U+05D3 for the Hebrew letter dalet.

History and linguistic origin

The letter descends from an ancient Semitic pictogram thought to depict a door, reflected in the Hebrew name that echoes the word for door. This pictorial origin is shared with related early alphabets; the Semitic letter gave rise to the Greek letter delta, and thus it is linked to the broader Greek alphabet family. Over centuries the form evolved from linear pictograph to the abstract shapes used in square, cursive, and medieval scripts.

Uses, symbolism, and notation

Beyond everyday writing, dalet appears in religious texts, liturgy, personal names (for example, names beginning with ד such as David), and in systems of numeration where letters double as numbers. Its semantic root and name connection to "door" has fostered symbolic uses in literature and religious commentary describing thresholds or passages. Typographically it is an ordinary consonant with predictable behavior in spelling and vocalization patterns.

Relation to mathematics and modern references

Hebrew letters sometimes serve as symbols in mathematical logic and set theory; most famously the aleph and beth symbols label infinite cardinals. References to dalet occur occasionally in historical or expository notes about notation and the sequence of Hebrew-derived symbols used to discuss transfinite cardinals, though it is not a standard symbol for a primary cardinal in contemporary set theory. For context on the mathematical tradition of using Hebrew letters see general treatments of set theory and discussions of transfinite cardinals.