Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 1

The Bangla Alphabet Vowels, Consonants, Vowel Diacritics, Compound Consonants

Supriyo Sen October 2013, Toronto, Canada

Table of Contents Preface ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 2

Vowels ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 3

Consonants .............................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Sample Bangla Words with Vowels & Consonants .............................................................................................. 10

Vowel and Vowel Signs .................................................................................................................................................... 11

Sample Bangla Words with Vowels Signs ............................................................................................................... 14 Compound Consonants .................................................................................................................................................... 17

Sample Bangla Words with Compound Consonants .......................................................................................... 22 Alphabet Review-sohoj paTh ........................................................................................................................................ 23

The Bangla Alphabet & English Phonetic Representation ............................................................................... 34

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 2

Preface Bengali or Bangla () is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent which evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages circa 1000 AD. Bangla is native to the Indian state of West Bengal and the country, Bangladesh. People who speak this language are called (baNgali). There are nearly 230 million speakers of Bangla, according to a 2007 census, making it the sixth most used language in the world (after Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, English, Arabic and Hindi).

This eBook is written to teach the Bangla Alphabet to:

a. Children of Bengali parents who want to communicate with elderly relatives, b. Spouses and friends of Bengali speakers who want to participate in conversations, c. English speakers who want to learn some Bangla but are unable to invest significant effort in doing so.

The Phonetic English used in this book is the same as the scheme used in the companion website for writing Bangla (currently in the website http://supriyosen.net/). All Bangla content for this book was generated using this Phonetic Editor. An abbreviated version shown here will help you interactively see the formation of Bangla characters.

This eBook contains words in Bangla, their Phonetic representation and words in English. The color coding scheme used is as follows:

Source English Word

Bangla Word

Phonetic English

Part of Speech

Color Code Example

I ami Pronoun

Thr color coding scheme is implemented on the online version.

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 3

Vowels The Bangla alphabet has 11 vowels in common usage.

Two vowel sounds have short and long forms. For example, the normal "i" sound is called the short i (hroswo-i) and the letter is the long i (dIrgho-i). Similarly, the letters and represent the short and long "u" sound, respectively. These reflect Bangla's Sanskrit origin. In modern Bangla usage, the short and long forms have similar pronunciation. These vowels are shown here because they are still used in spelling Bangla words.

Non-native speakers may find that spelling of words becomes a challenge when choosing between the long and short forms of the "i" and "u" sounds as they are pronounced similarly in common modern usage.

Pure Vowels

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

o aw awe In Online version a aah Aadvark In Online version i hroswo-i(short i) hit In Online version I dIrgho-i(long i) skiing In Online version u hroswo-u(short u) put In Online version U dIrgho-u(long u) vacuum In Online version

Former Semi-Vowel

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

rri ree wring In Online version

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 4

Compound Vowels or Dipthongs

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

e eh bed In Online version OI oi going In Online version O o moat In Online version OU ou o+u In Online version

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

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Consonants There are 35 consonants and 4 consonant signs in common usage.

The consonant letters are pronounced as if they had "aw" (as in the sound of the English "awe") at the end. So the

letter (k) sounds like "kaw". There is a logic to the grouping of the letters, each set having a sound that emanates from the mouth with a different combination of the lips, tongue, palate and diaphragm.

Gutturals - in the throat - (k kh g gh Ng).

The first and third letters are pronounced unaspirated, while the second and fourth are pronounced aspirated (as if with a puff of breath). The last letter is pronounced nasally.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

k kaw skin In Online version kh khaw khaki In Online version g gaw go In Online version gh ghaw ghetto In Online version Ng ungaw king In Online version

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 6

Palatals - on the palate - (ch chh j jh NG).

The first and third letters are pronounced unaspirated, while the second and fourth are pronounced aspirated (as if with a puff of breath). The last letter is pronounced nasally.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

ch chaw cheat In Online version chh chhaw watch In Online version j borgiyo-jaw jingle In Online version jh jhaw jhansi In Online version NG ingaw gnome In Online version

Cerebrals - with the tongue bent back on the roof of the mouth - (T Th D Dh N).

The first and third letters are pronounced unaspirated, while the second and fourth are pronounced aspirated (as if with a puff of breath). The last letter is pronounced nasally.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

T taw token In Online version Th ttaw whittle In Online version D daw dive In Online version Dh dhaw adhere In Online version N moddheno-naw noise In Online version

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

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Dentals - with the tongue on the teeth - (t th d dh n).

The first and third letters are pronounced unaspirated, while the second and fourth are pronounced aspirated (as if with a puff of breath). The last letter is pronounced nasally.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

t taw(soft) Wyeth In Online version th thaw(hard) think In Online version d daw Dostoevsky In Online version dh dhaw sadhu In Online version n donte-naw no In Online version

Labials - on the lips - (p ph,f b,w bh,v m).

The first and third letters are pronounced unaspirated, while the second and fourth are pronounced aspirated (as if with a puff of breath). The last letter is pronounced nasally.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

p paw pauper In Online version ph,f phaw cipher In Online version b,w baw boy In Online version bh,v bhaw abhorrent In Online version m maw mother In Online version

Text from Learn The Bangla Alphabet at http://supriyosen.net

December 5, 2013 8

Sibilants - s sounds as if hissing - (sh Sh s).

These letters sound similar (shaw) in common modern usage and are separately retained for historical reasons from Bangla's Sanskrit origin.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

sh talibo-shaw show In Online version Sh moddheno-shaw cash In Online version s donte-shaw wish In Online version

Semi-Vowels - letters sometimes used as vowels - (J,Y r l h y R Rh).

These letters are sometimes used as vowels especially when combined with other consonants. The three

"raws" (r R Rh) sound similar in common modern usage and are separately retained for historical reasons from Bangla's Sanskrit origin.

Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter Name

Pronounced as in

Hear Sound

J,Y ontesto-jaw joy In Online version r boye-sunno-raw right In Online version l law lady In Online version Bangla form

English Phonetic

Letter