alayha

Alayha is an Arabic grammatical form created by combining the preposition ala, meaning on or upon, with the feminine third-person pronominal suffix -ha. The resulting phrase, usually written as عَلىٰهَا or عَليها in Arabic script, translates roughly as “on her” or “upon it” when the referent is feminine. In Arabic, prepositional phrases with attached pronouns indicate the noun to which the preposition is related, and alayha specifically signals a feminine antecedent.

In use, alayha functions as a locative or contextual modifier within a sentence. It can denote physical location, as in something being situated on a feminine noun, or serve metaphorical or idiomatic roles depending on the surrounding text. The form is common in classical and modern Arabic, including literary prose, religious texts, and everyday speech. When the referent is masculine, the corresponding form is alayhi (on him/on it), illustrating a broader pattern of pronoun attachment to prepositions in Arabic grammar.

Grammatical notes include its behavior as a prepositional object that does not carry independent case endings beyond the noun it attaches to. The choice between alayha and alayhi is determined by the gender of the antecedent noun. Diacritical markings (harakat) may vary in transliterations, but the underlying construction remains the same: ala (on) plus a feminine suffix to indicate the referent.

Overall, alayha is a standard example of Arabic preposition–pronoun fusion, widely recognized in linguistic descriptions of Arabic morphology and syntax.