The hebrev() function converts logical Hebrew (storage/typing order) into visual Hebrew (display order for left-to-right-only systems). It is a legacy helper for plain text—modern web pages should use HTML/CSS BiDi instead.
Right-to-left script.
Reorder for display.
max_chars_per_line.
Email, logs, terminals.
Use dir="rtl".
Newline conversion.
In PHP, hebrev() transforms Hebrew strings from logical order into visual order. When you type Hebrew, characters are stored in logical sequence. Browsers and modern Unicode-aware tools render that correctly with BiDi rules. Older plain-text channels (some email clients, terminals, log files) do not—so PHP can pre-arrange the characters with hebrev().
If you are building a normal HTML page, skip hebrev() and wrap Hebrew content in an element with dir="rtl" and lang="he". Use hebrev() only when the output target cannot handle BiDi.
The function accepts Hebrew text and an optional line-width limit:
string hebrev(
string $string,
int $max_chars_per_line = 0
)$string — Hebrew input in logical order.$max_chars_per_line — optional maximum characters per line. 0 (default) means no wrapping; a positive value wraps the visual output and tries to avoid breaking words.Returns a string containing the visual representation of the input Hebrew text.
hebrev($hebrew)Logical to visual
hebrev($hebrew, 40)Max 40 chars/line
$a === hebrev($a)Usually false
dir="rtl" lang="he"Preferred for web
These examples use UTF-8 Hebrew strings in PHP 7+. Each shows a pattern beginners encounter when working with hebrev().
Convert a simple Hebrew greeting from logical to visual order.
Convert the classic greeting “Hello, world!” in Hebrew and print both forms.
<?php
$logical = "שלום, עולם!";
$visual = hebrev($logical);
echo "Logical: $logical\n";
echo "Visual: $visual\n";
?>The visual string rearranges characters so the greeting reads correctly on a left-to-right-only display. Punctuation and Hebrew segments are repositioned according to PHP’s Hebrew conversion rules.
A quick check that hebrev() actually changed the string—useful when debugging encoding pipelines.
<?php
$word = "שלום";
$visual = hebrev($word);
echo "Same string? " . ($word === $visual ? "yes\n" : "no\n");
echo "Logical length: " . strlen($word) . "\n";
echo "Visual length: " . strlen($visual) . "\n";
?>Byte length stays the same (UTF-8 Hebrew letters), but character order changes. The strings are not identical even though they represent the same word.
Line wrapping, mixed-language text, and modern alternatives.
Wrap a longer Hebrew sentence for plain-text email or fixed-width output.
<?php
$sentence = "זהו משפט ארוך בעברית שמדגים שבירת שורות בטקסט ויזואלי";
$wrapped = hebrev($sentence, 20);
$lines = explode("\n", $wrapped);
echo "Line count: " . count($lines) . "\n";
echo "First line chars: " . strlen($lines[0]) . "\n";
?>When $max_chars_per_line is greater than zero, PHP inserts newline characters to keep each line within the limit. It attempts to avoid splitting Hebrew words mid-word.
Real content often mixes English product names or numbers with Hebrew. hebrev() handles BiDi segments in the conversion.
<?php
$text = "PHP 8.4 — שלום לכולם";
$visual = hebrev($text);
echo "Input: $text\n";
echo "Output: $visual\n";
echo "Changed: " . ($text === $visual ? "no\n" : "yes\n");
?>Latin segments and numbers are repositioned relative to Hebrew runs so the full line reads naturally on an LTR-only display. Run the script locally to inspect the exact visual string for your PHP version.
For web pages, let the browser handle direction instead of pre-converting text.
<?php
$hebrew = "שלום, עולם!";
// Plain-text log (no BiDi) — hebrev() helps:
file_put_contents('log.txt', hebrev($hebrew) . "\n");
// HTML page — use dir/lang, NOT hebrev():
$html = '<p dir="rtl" lang="he">' .
htmlspecialchars($hebrew, ENT_QUOTES, 'UTF-8') .
'</p>';
echo "Log uses hebrev(); HTML uses dir=rtl.\n";
?>Choose the tool for the output medium: hebrev() for plain text without BiDi support; HTML attributes and CSS for normal web rendering. Always pair HTML output with htmlspecialchars() for safety.
hebrev() WorksThe input string is in logical (typing/storage) order—what you would store in a UTF-8 database field.
The function applies Hebrew visual-order rules, repositioning RTL runs and neighboring Latin or numeric segments.
If $max_chars_per_line is set, PHP inserts newlines while trying to keep Hebrew words intact.
Ready for plain-text channels that cannot render BiDi themselves.
hebrev() supports Hebrew only—not Arabic or other RTL languages.dir="rtl" and lang="he" instead of pre-converting with hebrev().hebrevc() when you also need newline-to-<br> conversion for HTML snippets.The hebrev() function bridges logical Hebrew storage and visual display for plain-text environments. It remains useful for logs, email, and legacy systems, but it is not the right tool for modern web pages.
Match your approach to the output medium: hebrev() for BiDi-less plain text, HTML/CSS direction for browsers, and hebrevc() when newline conversion is also required.
dir="rtl" / lang="he" for HTML pagesmax_chars_per_line for fixed-width plain-text layoutshebrevc() when newlines must become <br>hebrev() on HTML that already uses BiDi CSShtmlspecialchars() when embedding Hebrew in HTMLhebrev()Use these points whenever you handle Hebrew strings in PHP.
Reorder for LTR display.
PurposeText + optional width.
Syntaxmax_chars_per_line.
Email, logs, CLI.
Usagedir="rtl" in HTML.
Continue with hebrevc(), htmlspecialchars(), and the rest of the string function reference.
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