Localizing video into Arabic and Hebrew: getting right-to-left text right

What changes when the target language reads right to left

Arabic and Hebrew are written from right to left, but numbers, and any embedded Latin-script words such as product names, run left to right inside those lines. Every subtitle line that mixes the two is bidirectional text. Software handles it with the Unicode Bidirectional Algorithm, which works out the visual order of characters from their logical order in the file. Most of the time this works; at the edges of a line, especially around punctuation, numbers and Latin words, it can produce results that look wrong to a native reader.

Audio is unaffected. An Arabic or Hebrew voice track has no direction. The issues are all in text: subtitles, captions, on-screen graphics and metadata.

How SRT and VTT store right-to-left text

Subtitle files store text in logical order, the order in which it is read, not the order in which it appears on screen. An Arabic line in an SRT file begins with the first word a reader reads, which is displayed at the right-hand end. The player's text renderer applies the bidirectional algorithm and lays the line out from right to left.

Two consequences follow. First, never reverse text manually to make it look right in an editor that lacks RTL support; it will then display backwards in every proper player. Second, the base direction of each line is usually inferred from its first strong character, meaning the first letter that has an inherent direction. A line that begins with a Latin-script word may be treated as left to right, which moves punctuation and word order around. WebVTT cue settings include start and end alignment, which follow the text's direction, but neither format has a widely supported way to force a line's base direction, so players infer it. The SRT vs VTT guide covers the formats' other differences.

Player support to test before publishing

RTL rendering depends on the player, the platform and sometimes the device. Major browsers implement the bidirectional algorithm well, and mainstream video platforms generally display Arabic and Hebrew captions correctly. Older smart TV apps, some embedded players, desktop media players with limited fonts, and tools that burn captions into the picture are less predictable. Font coverage matters too: a player without an Arabic font shows empty boxes, and Arabic letters must be shaped, meaning joined to their neighbors, which some minimal renderers do not do.

Test the actual file everywhere you publish: the player on your website, your video platform, your learning platform, and a phone. A text editor's preview proves nothing.

Punctuation and mixed-direction lines

Periods, commas, question marks and parentheses are neutral characters: they take their direction from the surrounding text. Parentheses and brackets are mirrored automatically in right-to-left runs, so an opening parenthesis looks reversed compared with English, which is correct. Arabic also has its own comma (،) and question mark (؟), which should replace the Latin forms in Arabic subtitles.

Rewording so the line opens with a Hebrew or Arabic word achieves the same result without invisible characters, and it is easier for the next editor to understand.

Numbers, dates and units

Numbers inside Arabic and Hebrew text are written left to right, so a year still appears as 2026 within a right-to-left line. Hebrew uses the same digits as English. Arabic text may use Western digits (0 to 9) or Eastern Arabic digits (٠ to ٩); usage varies by country and publication, with North African countries tending toward Western digits and many Middle Eastern publications using Eastern ones. Pick one convention per project, apply it consistently, and never mix digit systems within a video.

Ranges, phone numbers, times and negative numbers are where the bidirectional algorithm most often surprises people: a range like 10–20 or a time like 14:30 next to right-to-left words can be displayed in an unexpected order. Read every subtitle that contains numbers in a real player. Most business content uses the Gregorian calendar; the Hebrew and Hijri calendars matter only if your content refers to them.

On-screen graphics and layout

Graphics designed for left-to-right audiences carry assumptions: timelines that run left to right, arrows pointing right for forward, step numbers ordered left to right, lower thirds anchored on the left. For RTL audiences, a fully localized graphic mirrors these, with timelines running right to left and text blocks aligned right. Not everything should be mirrored: clocks, media playback controls, logos and screenshots of real interfaces normally stay as they are.

Translating the audio does not touch the picture, so any graphic with text or direction has to be re-exported from the editing project. Check subtitle placement too: if the source video has a lower third or burned-in caption at the bottom, the new subtitles may sit on top of it.

Steps to check RTL subtitles before release

1. Open the SRT or VTT file in an editor with right-to-left support and confirm the text reads naturally, with no manual reversal.
2. Load it in every player and platform you publish to, on desktop and on a phone.
3. Read every line that starts or ends with a number, a Latin-script word or punctuation.
4. Check Arabic punctuation (، and ؟) and the digit convention you chose.
5. Watch scenes with on-screen graphics for overlaps and direction conflicts.
6. Get sign-off from a native reader, since a non-reader cannot tell a misplaced period from a correct one.

Known limits with right-to-left video

• Bidirectional rendering differs between players, so a file can look right in one and wrong in another, and some player behavior cannot be fixed from the file.
• Graphics, burned-in text and interface footage stay left to right unless someone edits them.
• Spoken Arabic dialects differ widely; Modern Standard Arabic subtitles and voice are broadly understood but feel formal for casual content.
• Everyday Hebrew omits vowel marks (niqqud), which suits adult viewers but may not suit young children or learners.
• Caption-burning tools vary in RTL support, so inspect the output if you burn subtitles into the picture yourself.

Arabic and Hebrew in mydubly

mydubly translates into Arabic and Hebrew and can transcribe both as source languages. Arabic output is Modern Standard Arabic. Each job gives you SRT and VTT subtitle files and transcripts in both languages, and the full output adds a translated MP4 with an AI voice speaking the target language. Subtitles are delivered as separate files rather than burned into the picture, so how they render depends on the player, and the checks above still apply. On-screen text and graphics are not translated. Language pages cover Arabic, Hebrew and English to Arabic, and the subtitle generator produces subtitle files without a voice track.

Next step

Take one video you want in Arabic or Hebrew, generate the subtitle files, and run them through the checks above in your real players before anything else. RTL problems tend to repeat, so the first file shows you which fixes your setup needs. Start with the subtitle generator.