Use of the Arabic script in West African languages, especially in the Sahel, developed with the spread of Islam. To a certain degree the style and usage tends to follow those of the Maghreb (for instance the position of the dots in the letters "Pe (Semitic letter)" and "Qoph"). Additional diacritics have come into use to facilitate the writing of sounds not represented in the Arabic language. The term "Ajami script", which comes from the Arabic root for "foreign," has been applied to Arabic-based orthographies of African languages.