The Basque Alphabet - Vowels, Consonants, Digraphs & more

Q: How many letters are in the Basque alphabet?

The Basque alphabet consists of 27 letters [1] , including 26 Latin letters plus ñ. Additionally, Basque uses several distinctive digraphs (dd, ll, rr, ts, tt, tx, tz) that function as single phonetic units.

Q: What makes Basque unique among European languages?

Basque is super unique because it's a language isolate - meaning it has no relatives ! Here's what makes it special: • It's one of the oldest languages in Europe • It uses lots of digraphs (two letters that make one sound) • Words like "etxe" (house) show how tx sounds like "ch"

Q: Where is Basque spoken?

Basque (called Euskera by locals) is spoken in: • Northern Spain - in the Basque provinces • Southwest France - in the French Basque country About 806,000 people speak Basque today [3] !

Q: What are digraphs and why does Basque use so many?

Digraphs are two letters that work together to make one sound. Basque loves them! Examples: • tx = sounds like "ch" in chair • ts = sounds like "ts" in cats • rr = rolled R sound They help Basque write exactly how words sound !

Q: Is Basque hard to learn for English speakers?

Basque has some unique challenges , but also some helpful features: The tricky parts: • Different word order - verbs often come at the end • Complex verb conjugations - verbs change based on who's doing what to whom • Unique grammar - unlike any language you know The easier parts: • Phonetic spelling - words are spelled exactly how they sound • No gender - nouns don't have masculine/feminine like Spanish • Regular patterns - once you learn the rules, they're consistent It's definitely challenging but totally doable with patience!

The Basque alphabet consists of 27 letters^[1], including the standard Latin letters plus the distinctive ñ. What makes Basque unique among European languages is its extensive use of digraphs (two-letter combinations) such as dd, ll, rr, ts, tt, tx, and tz, which represent single sounds. Basque, known as Euskera, is a language isolate with no known relatives, making it one of the most linguistically unique languages in Europe^[2]. The writing system has been standardised since the 20th century^[2] and is essential for preserving this ancient language spoken by approximately 806,000 people in the Basque regions of Spain and France^[3].

Vowels (Uppercase):

[A]

[E]

[I]

[O]

[U]

Vowels (Lowercase):

[a]

[e]

[i]

[o]

[u]

Consonants (Uppercase):

[B]

[C]

[D]

[F]

[G]

[H]

[J]

[K]

[L]

[M]

[N]

[P]

[Q]

[R]

[S]

[T]

[V]

[W]

[X]

[Y]

[Z]

Consonants (Lowercase):

[b]

[c]

[d]

[f]

[g]

[h]

[j]

[k]

[l]

[m]

[n]

[p]

[q]

[r]

[s]

[t]

[v]

[w]

[x]

[y]

[z]

A a

[A]

B b

[B]

C c

[C]

D d

[D]

E e

[E]

F f

[F]

G g

[G]

H h

[H]

I i

[I]

J j

[J]

K k

[K]

L l

[L]

M m

[M]

N n

[N]

Ñ ñ

[N]

O o

[O]

P p

[P]

Q q

[Q]

R r

[R]

S s

[S]

T t

[T]

U u

[U]

V v

[V]

W w

[W]

X x

[X]

Y y

[Y]

Z z

[Z]

[zero]

[bat]

[bi]

[hiru]

[lau]

[bost]

[sei]

[zazpi]

[zortzi]

[bederatzi]

Accented Vowels (Lowercase):

[a]

[e]

[i]

[o]

[u]

Accented Vowels (Uppercase):

[A]

[E]

[I]

[O]

[U]

[dd]

[ll]

[rr]

[ts]

[tt]

[tx]

[tz]

;

–

—

(

)

[

]

{

}

€

How many letters are in the Basque alphabet?

What makes Basque unique among European languages?

Where is Basque spoken?

What are digraphs and why does Basque use so many?

Is Basque hard to learn for English speakers?

References:

[1] Omniglot. "Basque language and alphabet". Retrieved from https://www.omniglot.com/writing/basque.htm
[2] Euskaltzaindia. "About the institution - The Royal Academy of the Basque Language". Retrieved from https://www.euskaltzaindia.eus/en/euskaltzaindia/institution/the-institution
[3] EUSTAT. "Statistical tables: Basque Language (Euskera)". Retrieved from https://en.eustat.eus/estadisticas/tema_280/opt_0/tipo_1/ti_Basque_Language_Euskera/temas.html

Sambhu Raj Singh · LinkedIn · GitHub · Npm

Updated: 31 August 2025

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Basque Vowel Letters

Vowels (Uppercase):

Vowels (Lowercase):

Basque Consonant Letters

Consonants (Uppercase):

Consonants (Lowercase):

Complete Basque Alphabet

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