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Dhivehi Alphabet
Thaana Script
Thaana is the script used for Dhivehi, the official language of the Maldives. Uniquely, it was developed from Arabic numerals and local Maldivian symbols in the 18th century. It has 24 letters and is written right to left. Unlike Brahmic scripts, vowels appear as mandatory diacritics above or below every consonant.
Written right to leftLetters
| Character | Name | Romanization | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ή | Haa | h | like 'h' in 'house' |
| ή | Shaviyani | sh | like 'sh' in 'shoe' |
| ή | Noonu | n | like 'n' in 'night' |
| ή | Raa | r | like 'r' in 'run' |
| ή | Baa | b | like 'b' in 'book' |
| ή | Lhaviyani | lh | a lateral flap unique to Dhivehi |
| ή | Kaafu | k | like 'k' in 'key' |
| ή | Alifu | ΚΎ / a | a glottal stop or vowel carrier |
| ή | Vaavu | v | like 'v' in 'van' |
| ή | Meemu | m | like 'm' in 'moon' |
| ή | Faafu | f | like 'f' in 'fan' |
| ή | Dhaalu | dh | like 'd' in 'dog' |
| ή | Thaalu | th | like 'th' in 'this' |
| ή | Laamu | l | like 'l' in 'lamp' |
| ή | Gaaf | g | like 'g' in 'go' |
| ή | Gnaviyani | gn | like 'ny' in 'canyon' |
| ή | Seenu | s | like 's' in 'sun' |
| ή | Daviyani | d | like 'd' (retroflex) |
| ή | Zaainu | z | like 'z' in 'zebra' |
| ή | Taviyani | t | like 't' (retroflex) |
| ή | Yaafu | y | like 'y' in 'yes' |
| ή | Paviyani | p | like 'p' in 'pen' |
| ή | Jawiyani | j | like 'j' in 'jam' |
| ή | Chaviyani | ch | like 'ch' in 'cheese' |