Sanskrit was traditionally written in various scripts over time, but Devanagari is now the most widely recognized script for Sanskrit[1]. Early inscriptions of Sanskrit were written in the Brahmi script, from which other Indian scripts eventually evolved. The Devanagari script, which is commonly used today for Sanskrit, evolved from the Brahmi script via intermediary scripts like Gupta and Nagari.
Today, Sanskrit is an official language of the Indian states of Uttarakhand and is also used for religious, academic, and cultural purposes throughout India and beyond[2][3]. It is commonly studied and spoken by scholars, practitioners, and enthusiasts worldwide.
The Sanskrit alphabet in Devanagari is categorized into Vowels and Consonants . Additionally, Sanskrit includes specific numerals which, although less common today, are part of traditional Sanskrit texts and inscriptions.
Below is a breakdown of the Vowels, Consonants, and Numerals in the Sanskrit (Devanagari) script.
Sanskrit Vowel Letters
In Sanskrit, vowels are called स्वराः (svarāḥ) and are essential phonetic sounds that form the basis of the language. There are 13 main vowels in Sanskrit, characterized by their pure, open sounds. Unlike in English, Sanskrit vowels can exist as independent vowels, without a consonant, or as dependent vowels that combine with consonants. Dependent vowels are used in combination with consonants and cannot stand alone.
For instance, अ in अग्नि (agni), meaning "fire," is an independent vowel. When the consonant क (ka) combines with the vowel आ (ā), it forms का (kā), where "ा" is the dependent vowel mark for "ā".
Independent Vowels:
Dependent Vowels:
Sanskrit Consonant Letters
In Sanskrit, consonants are called व्यञ्जनानि (vyañjanāni). There are 33 main consonants in Sanskrit, each representing a distinct sound. These consonants are organised into groups called वर्गाः (vargāḥ), based on where and how they are pronounced:
- Gutturals (कण्ठ्याः / kaṇṭhyāḥ): क, ख, ग, घ, ङ (ka, kha, ga, gha, ṅa) — produced from the throat.
- Palatals (तालव्याः / tālavyāḥ): च, छ, ज, झ, ञ (ca, cha, ja, jha, ña) — produced from the palate.
- Cerebrals (मूर्धन्याः / mūrdhanyāḥ): ट, ठ, ड, ढ, ण (ṭa, ṭha, ḍa, ḍha, ṇa) — produced with the tongue touching the roof of the mouth.
- Dentals (दन्त्याः / dantyāḥ): त, थ, द, ध, न (ta, tha, da, dha, na) — produced with the tongue against the teeth.
- Labials (ओष्ठ्याः / oṣṭhyāḥ): प, फ, ब, भ, म (pa, pha, ba, bha, ma) — produced with the lips.
- Sonorants and Sibilants: य, र, ल, व, श, ष, स, ह (ya, ra, la, va, śa, ṣa, sa, ha)
Below are all the consonants used in Sanskrit.
Additional Consonant Letters in Sanskrit
In addition to the primary 33 consonants in Sanskrit, there are also a few additional consonants that have been introduced to represent sounds borrowed from other languages, especially for accurate pronunciation of loanwords from Persian, Arabic, and modern Indian languages. These are also called उपध्मानीय (upadhmānīya) or supplementary consonants.
Traditional Sanskrit grammar does not include these characters.
Sanskrit Numeral Letters
Sanskrit has its own unique numeric symbols, which were historically used to represent numbers and fractions in various texts and inscriptions. These numeral letters are part of a larger system of ancient Indian mathematics and have roots in the Brahmi script.
At present, however, they have largely fallen out of use in favor of the Hindu-Arabic numeral system (0-9) and Latin numerals for everyday calculations.
Sanskrit Special Character Letters
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
References:
- [1] Unicode Consortium. "Devanagari". The Unicode Standard, Version 15.0. Retrieved from https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0900.pdf
- [2] Government of Uttarakhand. "Official Language Act". Retrieved from https://uk.gov.in/pages/view/79-language-policy
- [3] Government of India, Ministry of Education. "Sanskrit Language Policy". Retrieved from https://www.education.gov.in/sanskrit-education
- [4] Pāṇini. "Aṣṭādhyāyī". 4th century BCE. Historical Sanskrit Grammar Text.
Sambhu Raj Singh · 
