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Aramaic / Syriac Alphabet
Syriac Script
Syriac is a dialect of Middle Aramaic, the language of Jesus of Nazareth. The Syriac script has 22 letters, all consonants, written right to left. It is one of the oldest continuously used scripts in the world, with inscriptions from the 1st century CE. Three main calligraphic styles exist: Estrangela, Serto, and East Syriac.
Written right to leftLetters
| Character | Name | Romanization | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ܐ | Alap | ʾ (silent) | a glottal stop or vowel carrier |
| ܒ | Beth | b / v | like 'b' in 'book' or 'v' in 'van' |
| ܓ | Gamal | g | like 'g' in 'go' |
| ܕ | Dalat | d | like 'd' in 'dog' |
| ܗ | He | h | like 'h' in 'house' |
| ܘ | Waw | w / u | like 'w' in 'water' or 'oo' |
| ܙ | Zayn | z | like 'z' in 'zebra' |
| ܚ | Heth | ḥ | a strong 'h' from the throat |
| ܛ | Teth | ṭ | an emphatic 't' sound |
| ܝ | Yudh | y / i | like 'y' in 'yes' or 'ee' |
| ܟ | Kaph | k / kh | like 'k' in 'key' or 'ch' in 'loch' |
| ܠ | Lamadh | l | like 'l' in 'lamp' |
| ܡ | Mim | m | like 'm' in 'moon' |
| ܢ | Nun | n | like 'n' in 'night' |
| ܣ | Semkath | s | like 's' in 'sun' |
| ܥ | E | ʿ | a voiced pharyngeal sound |
| ܦ | Pe | p / f | like 'p' in 'pen' or 'f' in 'fan' |
| ܨ | Sadhe | ṣ | an emphatic 's' sound |
| ܩ | Qaph | q | a deep 'k' from the throat |
| ܪ | Resh | r | like 'r' in 'run' |
| ܫ | Shin | sh | like 'sh' in 'shoe' |
| ܬ | Taw | t / th | like 't' in 'top' or 'th' in 'thin' |