damm

Damm is a German noun meaning a dam, a barrier built to hold back water or earth. Dams are used for flood control, water supply, hydroelectric power, irrigation, and river navigation. They can be classified by construction type, such as embankment (earth or rock-fill) or concrete gravity dams, and by purpose, including storage, diversion, or multi-purpose projects.

The term derives from Germanic roots and is cognate with similar words in other Germanic languages, including English and Dutch. In German-speaking regions, dam structures are a common feature of landscapes and infrastructure, and the word Damm also appears in place names and as a surname.

As a surname, Damm is found in Germany, Austria, and other parts of Europe, often indicating historical association with a dam or with locations where embankments or flood-control works were present. In some cases, placenames and family names reflecting damp or watery environments arise from nearby rivers, coastlines, or floodplains.

In Arabic linguistics, damm (often referred to as damma) designates a diacritic placed above a letter to indicate a short /u/ vowel. It is one of the harakat used to annotate pronunciation, particularly in instructional texts and Qur’anic editions. While the term damm appears in some English-language discussions of Arabic orthography, the standard transliteration for the diacritic is damma.