Hindi Varnamala Chart — स्वर और व्यंजन

About the Hindi alphabet

Hindi is written in the Devanagari script. Every consonant carries a built-in “a” sound — क is “ka”, not “k” — and vowel signs (मात्राएँ) change it: का, कि, की, कु. Children usually learn the letters first and the vowel signs after.

• Vowels (स्वर). अ to औ, plus अं and अः. Strictly, अं (anusvara, a nasal sound) and अः (visarga, a breathy “h”) are not vowels, but most school charts list them with the vowels, and so does this one. ऋ is said like “ri” in modern Hindi.
• The five rows. The first 25 consonants are grouped by where the sound is made — the throat, the palate, the tongue curled back, the teeth and the lips — and each row ends in a nasal: ङ ञ ण न म.
• Joined letters. क्ष (क् + ष), त्र (त् + र) and ज्ञ (ज् + ञ) are taught with the alphabet because they are so common. Some charts also add श्र and the dotted ड़ ढ़; this one keeps to the 36 most schools start with.
• Letters without a picture. अः, ङ, ञ, ठ, ण, ष, क्ष, ज्ञ rarely or never begin a word a small child knows, so they are shown on their own.

The Hindi words are ABC Fun!'s. If you spot one that is wrong or unusual where you live, please tell us.