The Armenian alphabet

39 letters, each with its name and roughly the sound it makes. The sounds are English approximations — enough to sound a word out, not enough to pass for a local.

🇦🇲 Armenian · An alphabet: vowels and consonants are letters of equal standing.

Thirty-nine letters, devised in the fifth century for this language alone and used for nothing else since. It writes vowels and consonants as equals, and the order below is the traditional one.

• Ա ա ayb a in father
• Բ բ ben b
• Գ գ gim g
• Դ դ da d
• Ե ե ech ye at the start, e elsewhere
• Զ զ za z
• Է է eh e in bet
• Ը ը et u in but
• Թ թ to t with a puff of air
• Ժ ժ zhe s in measure
• Ի ի ini ee in see
• Լ լ liwn l
• Խ խ xeh ch in loch
• Ծ ծ ca ts
• Կ կ ken k
• Հ հ ho h
• Ձ ձ ja dz
• Ղ ղ ghat French r
• Ճ ճ cheh ch
• Մ մ men m
• Յ յ yi y
• Ն ն now n
• Շ շ sha sh
• Ո ո vo vo at the start, o elsewhere
• Չ չ cha ch with a puff of air
• Պ պ peh p
• Ջ ջ jheh j in jam
• Ռ ռ ra rolled r
• Ս ս seh s
• Վ վ vew v
• Տ տ tiwn t
• Ր ր reh r
• Ց ց co ts with a puff of air
• Ւ ւ yiwn w
• Փ փ piwr p with a puff of air
• Ք ք keh k with a puff of air
• Օ օ oh o in more
• Ֆ ֆ feh f
• և yev yev, a ligature meaning "and"

Now read something in it

The letters are the smaller half. The 1,825 commonest Armenian words are where they start meaning something.

Reading it is one thing.

Being understood when you say it is another. That takes a person.

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