AlSaifTeam at AR-MS NAKBA-NLP 2026: Building Expert-Quality Ground Truth for Arabic Handwritten Manuscripts

Joud Fahad AlSaif, Alhasan Hamood Mohammed, Jana Mohammad Alseed


Abstract
This paper describes our participation in Subtask 1 of the NAKBA NLP 2026 Arabic Manuscript Understanding Shared Task, which focuses on the manual creation of expert-quality, line-level transcriptions for Arabic handwritten manuscripts. To ensure reliable ground truth, we adopt a protocol-driven methodology based on fixed transcription rules, collaborative verification, and confidence-based quality control. The proposed approach aims to improve consistency, reduce annotation bias, and support the creation of trustworthy benchmark resources for future Arabic OCR and HTR research. Keywords:Arabic handwritten manuscripts, ground truth construction, manual transcription, handwritten text recognition, optical character recognition, benchmark enrichment
Anthology ID:
2026.nakbanlp-1.39
Volume:
Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Nakba Narratives as Language Resources @ LREC 2026
Month:
May
Year:
2026
Address:
Palma, Mallorca (Spain)
Editors:
Mustafa Jarrar, Mo El-Haj, Amal Haddad, Serin Atiani, Shadi Abudalfa, Terry Regier, Paul Rayson, Khalil Sima’an, Camille Mansour
Venues:
NakbaNLP | WS
SIG:
Publisher:
ELRA Language Resources Association (ELRA)
Note:
Pages:
262–264
Language:
External URL:
https://lrec.elra.info/lrec2026-ws-nakbanlp-39
DOI:
10.63317/5pcgw3fzbc6i
Bibkey:
Cite (ACL):
Joud Fahad AlSaif, Alhasan Hamood Mohammed, and Jana Mohammad Alseed. 2026. AlSaifTeam at AR-MS NAKBA-NLP 2026: Building Expert-Quality Ground Truth for Arabic Handwritten Manuscripts. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Nakba Narratives as Language Resources @ LREC 2026, pages 262–264, Palma, Mallorca (Spain). ELRA Language Resources Association (ELRA).
Cite (Informal):
AlSaifTeam at AR-MS NAKBA-NLP 2026: Building Expert-Quality Ground Truth for Arabic Handwritten Manuscripts (AlSaif et al., NakbaNLP 2026)
Copy Citation: