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# Finite State Machine Pattern-Root Arabic Morphological Generator, Analyzer and Diacritizer

**Authors:** Maha Alkhairy; Afshan Jafri; [David Smith](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/papers/authors/david-smith/) · **Year:** 2020 · **Venue:** Proceedings of the Twelfth Language Resources and Evaluation Conference (LREC 2020), pp. 3834–3841 **Link:** [aclanthology.org/2020.lrec-1.473](https://aclanthology.org/2020.lrec-1.473/) · library `lingbulk-2020-alkhairy-finite-state-machine-pattern-root` · **Licence:** [CC BY-NC 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) (ELRA, LREC proceedings) — summary only

[**4** citations](https://openalex.org/works?filter=cites:W3030946051) openalex · 2026-10-19[**1** citations in our library](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/papers/cited-by/lingbulk-2020-alkhairy-finite-state-machine-pattern-root/) of the 140673 papers whose bibliographies we read[Proceedings of the Twelfth Language Resources and Evaluation Conference](https://aclanthology.org/volumes/2020.lrec-1/)[licence](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

- [Publisher's page](https://aclanthology.org/2020.lrec-1.473/)
- [PDF](https://aclanthology.org/2020.lrec-1.473.pdf)
- [OpenAlex](https://openalex.org/W3030946051)

**Authors (3)**

1. [Maha Alkhairy](https://openalex.org/A5084551864) [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0314-8003) · [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/1725440902) · h 1 · 5 citations · 5 works
2. [Afshan Jafri](https://openalex.org/A5088900183) [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6039-9621) · [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/49939152) · h 3 · 22 citations · 9 works
3. [David Smith](https://openalex.org/A5101722493) [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6636-6940) · [Semantic Scholar](https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/32941713) · h 37 · 6101 citations · 246 works

Citations and author metrics from openalex (2026-10-19); authors with the same name are not always told apart.

## What it is about

The authors build FSAM, a rule-based finite-state system for undiacritized MSA. It has three layers: a templatic automaton (root plus pattern), a concatenative automaton (prefix, stem, suffix), and a rewrite transducer for orthography. The same network is used to analyse, to generate from a root, and to diacritize, since a finite-state transducer can be read in both directions. The system uses no stem lists and no training. It is evaluated on Tashkeela (a diacritized corpus), which gives 82% coverage (MADAMIRA 82%). Against the gold standard built from the intersection of PADT UD and Tashkeela, the root is found from a word with about 92% accuracy and generation from a root reaches 100%. Full diacritization reaches 84%, against 59% for MADAMIRA. The gold data have spelling inconsistencies that lower the diacritization score.

## Ideas

- I1. Use the segmenter of `tools/hbo` as a validity filter: a root-pattern check. A segmentation is kept only when its consonants can fill a known pattern (binyan, or a noun pattern) in [The verb](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/06-verb/) and [The Noun, the Adjective and the Numeral](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/04-noun/). The check can run after `gparse` and before CoNLL-U output, and it is deterministic.
- I2. Diacritize an unpointed Hebrew word by inserting vowels into a fixed consonant skeleton, with the pattern table as the only source. This is a finite-state insertion transducer, the reverse of the analyser. It fits the unpointed mode in [2. Cantillation: the accents (te'amim)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/02-cantillation/) and [Phonology of Biblical Hebrew](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/03-phonology/), and it can be measured against pointed Hebrew in the treebanks.
- I3. Report coverage, root accuracy and diacritization accuracy separately, and check the gold standard for spelling mismatches first. Use the same reporting for `tools/hbo`, and state the gold's own errors as a limit.

## For Mova

I1 is a filter in `tools/hbo`, with the patterns written in [The verb](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/06-verb/). I2 is a rule set for the unpointed mode in [Phonology of Biblical Hebrew](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/languages/hbo/03-phonology/); the measure is the treebank comparison. I3 is the reporting rule for `tools/hbo`. The paper is Arabic, so no Arabic chapter is needed.

## Cite

The paper itself, not this card. BibTeX from the library's record of the work.

```
@inproceedings{alkhairy2020finite,
  title = {{Finite State Machine Pattern-Root Arabic Morphological Generator, Analyzer and Diacritizer}},
  author = {Alkhairy, Maha and Jafri, Afshan and Smith, David},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the Twelfth Language Resources and Evaluation Conference},
  year = {2020},
  url = {https://aclanthology.org/2020.lrec-1.473/}
}
```

- [← previous Concord and agreement features in Modern Standard Arabic](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/papers/lingbulk-2019-winchester-concord-agreement-features-modern-standard/)
- [next → Character Alignment in Morphologically Complex Translation Sets for Related Languages](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/papers/lingbulk-2020-gasser-character-alignment-morphologically-complex-translation/)
- [↑ back to Semitic languages](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/docs/papers/sem/)

## References

9 references, 0 of them with a card of ours. ↗ leads to the work, «find» searches for one we have no id for yet.

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2. Allauzen, C., Riley, M., Schalkwyk, J., Skut, W., and Mohri, M. (2007). OpenFst: A general and efficient weighted finite-state transducer library. In International Conference on Implementation and Application of Automata, pages 11–23. Springer. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Allauzen%2C+C%2E%2C+Riley%2C+M%2E%2C+Schalkwyk%2C+J%2E%2C+Skut%2C+W%2E%2C+and+Mohri%2C+M%2E+%282007%29%2E+OpenFst%3A+A+general+and+efficient+weighted+finite%2Dstate+transducer+library%2E+In+International+Conference+on+Implementation+and+App)
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4. Bird, S., Klein, E., and Loper, E. (2009). Natural language processing with Python: Analyzing text with the Natural Language Toolkit. O’Reilly Media, Inc. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Bird%2C+S%2E%2C+Klein%2C+E%2E%2C+and+Loper%2C+E%2E+%282009%29%2E+Natural+language+processing+with+Python%3A+Analyzing+text+with+the+Natural+Language+Toolkit%2E+O%E2%80%99Reilly+Media%2C+Inc%2E)
5. Dahdah, A. and Abdulmassih, G. M. (1981). A dictionary of Arabic grammar in charts and tables. Librairie du Liban. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Dahdah%2C+A%2E+and+Abdulmassih%2C+G%2E+M%2E+%281981%29%2E+A+dictionary+of+Arabic+grammar+in+charts+and+tables%2E+Librairie+du+Liban%2E)
6. El-Dahdah, A., Matar, E., and Abdul-Massih, G. M. (1990). Majam qawaaid al-arabiiat al-aalamiiat (A Dictionary of Universal Arabic Grammar). [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=El%2DDahdah%2C+A%2E%2C+Matar%2C+E%2E%2C+and+Abdul%2DMassih%2C+G%2E+M%2E+%281990%29%2E+Majam+qawaaid+al%2Darabiiat+al%2Daalamiiat+%28A+Dictionary+of+Universal+Arabic+Grammar%29%2E)
7. Farghaly, A. A. S. (2010). Arabic computational linguistics. CSLI Publications, Center for the Study of Language and Information. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Farghaly%2C+A%2E+A%2E+S%2E+%282010%29%2E+Arabic+computational+linguistics%2E+CSLI+Publications%2C+Center+for+the+Study+of+Language+and+Information%2E)
8. Habash, N. Y. (2010). Introduction to Arabic natural language processing. Synthesis Lectures on Human Language Technologies, 3(1):1–187. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Habash%2C+N%2E+Y%2E+%282010%29%2E+Introduction+to+Arabic+natural+language+processing%2E+Synthesis+Lectures+on+Human+Language+Technologies%2C+3%281%29%3A1%E2%80%93187%2E)
9. Hajič, J., Smrz, O., Zemánek, P., Šnaidauf, J., and Beška, E. (2004). Prague Arabic dependency treebank: Development in data and tools. In Proc. of the NEMLAR Intern. [find](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Hajic%CC%8C%2C+J%2E%2C+Smrz%2C+O%2E%2C+Zema%CC%81nek%2C+P%2E%2C+S%CC%8Cnaidauf%2C+J%2E%2C+and+Bes%CC%8Cka%2C+E%2E+%282004%29%2E+Prague+Arabic+dependency+treebank%3A+Development+in+data+and+tools%2E+In+Proc%2E+of+the+NEMLAR+Intern%2E)