The Hebrew Alphabet - Vowels, Consonants, Numerals & more

Q: How many letters are in Hebrew?

The Hebrew script consists of 22 letters, all of which are consonants . Vowels are represented using diacritical marks called niqqud , which are placed above, below, or inside the consonant letters to indicate the correct pronunciation. However, these diacritical marks are primarily used in religious texts, poetry, and materials for learning the language, rather than in everyday modern Hebrew writing.

Q: Why does Hebrew not have vowel letters?

Hebrew developed as a consonantal writing system thousands of years ago! Here's why: • Ancient tradition - originally, Hebrew speakers knew how to pronounce words from context • Space-saving - writing without vowels used less precious writing material • Cultural preference - Semitic languages traditionally focus on consonant patterns • Modern efficiency - Hebrew readers today can still understand text without vowel marks! Think of it like reading abbreviations - you fill in the vowels naturally!

Q: What are niqqud marks and when do I need them?

Niqqud are tiny dots and lines that show you exactly how to pronounce Hebrew letters: • Prayer books - religious texts always use them • Children's books - helps kids learn to read Hebrew • Poetry and songs - ensures correct pronunciation • Language textbooks - essential for beginners! But in newspapers, websites, and texts , Hebrew is usually written without niqqud !

Q: Where is Hebrew spoken today?

Hebrew is alive and thriving in several places: • Israel - the main country where it's the official language • Jewish communities worldwide - for religious and cultural purposes • Universities - studied as an ancient and modern language • Online - Hebrew websites, social media, and apps About 9-10 million people speak Hebrew as their main language today!

Q: Is Hebrew hard to learn for English speakers?

Hebrew has some unique challenges , but it's totally doable: The tricky parts: • Right-to-left writing - opposite of English • Different alphabet - 22 new letters to learn • No vowel letters - takes practice to read fluently The easier parts: • No verb conjugations like Spanish or French • Logical grammar patterns based on 3-letter roots With consistent practice , most people can start reading Hebrew in a few months!

Hebrew Alphabet at a Glance

22 letters, all consonants (vowels indicated by diacritical marks called nikud)
Spoken by approximately 9-10 million people, primarily in Israel
Official language of Israel; recognized minority language in Poland
Written right-to-left, one of the oldest writing systems (10th century BCE)
Uses pointing system (nikud) with symbols like kamatz, patach, segol for vowels
Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic family
Language standards maintained by Academy of the Hebrew Language ^[2]

Hebrew Vowel Letters

Hebrew does not have separate vowel letters like many other alphabets. Instead, vowels are represented by diacritical marks called niqqud (נִקּוּד), which are small dots and dashes placed above, below, or inside the consonant letters, as illustrated below.

These marks are primarily used in religious texts and language learning materials. In modern Hebrew, however, they are typically omitted, with readers relying on context to determine the correct pronunciation.

Vowels (Nikkud):

[ah]

[eh]

[ee]

[oh]

[oo]

[uh]

[dagesh]

[ah]

A short "a" sound, as in "cat".

[ah]

An "a" sound, often like "father".

[eh]

A long "e" sound, as in "they".

[eh]

A short "e" sound, as in "met".

[ee]

An "i" sound, as in "machine".

[oh]

An "o" sound, as in "go".

[oo]

A "u" sound, as in "blue".

[uh]

A very short or reduced vowel sound, similar to a schwa in English.

[dagesh]

Used in consonants to double the letter or harden the sound, though not a vowel itself.

Hebrew Consonant Letters

The Hebrew alphabet consists of 22 letters, all of which are consonants. In traditional Hebrew, vowel sounds are indicated by diacritical marks called niqqud, which are combined with the consonants to determine the correct pronunciation.

For example, the consonant ב (Bet) can be paired with different niqqud to represent vowel sounds:

בַ = "ba" (with the patah vowel mark, a short "a" sound)
בִ = "bi" (with the hiriq vowel mark, a short "i" sound)
בָ = "ba" (with the kamatz vowel mark, a long "a" sound)
בֻ = "bu" (with the kubutz vowel mark, a short "u" sound)

Consonants:

[silent/ah]

[beh/veh]

[geh]

[deh]

[heh]

[veh/weh]

[zeh]

[kheh]

[teh]

[yeh]

[keh/kheh]

[leh]

[meh]

[neh]

[seh]

[silent/ah]

[peh/feh]

[tseh]

[koh]

[reh]

[sheh/seh]

[teh]

[silent/ah]

Silent or glottal stop

[beh/veh]

B as in "boy" (with a dagesh); V as in "vase" (without a dagesh)

[geh]

G as in "go"

[deh]

D as in "dog"

[heh]

H as in "house"

[veh/weh]

V as in "vowel"; sometimes W or O/U in vowelized texts

[zeh]

Z as in "zebra"

[kheh]

CH (guttural, like in "loch")

[teh]

T as in "toy"

[yeh]

Y as in "yes"

[keh/kheh]

K as in "kite" (with dagesh); CH (guttural, without dagesh)

[leh]

L as in "lamp"

[meh]

M as in "mother"

[neh]

N as in "nice"

[seh]

S as in "sun"

[silent/ah]

Silent or guttural stop

[peh/feh]

P as in "pie" (with dagesh); F as in "fun" (without dagesh)

[tseh]

TS as in "cats"

[koh]

K (pronounced further back in the throat)

[reh]

Rolled or guttural R

[sheh/seh]

SH as in "shoe" (dot over right branch); S as in "sun" (dot over left branch)

[teh]

T as in "time" (modern Hebrew sometimes pronounces it as S without a dagesh)

[echad]

[shnayim]

[shlosha]

[arba'a]

[chamisha]

[shisha]

[shiv'a]

[shmona]

[tish'a]

[asara]

[esrim]

[shloshim]

[arba'im]

[chamishim]

[shishim]

[shiv'im]

[shmonim]

[tish'im]

[me'a]

[matayim]

[shlosh me'ot]

[arba' me'ot]

[echad]

Represents the number 1.

[shnayim]

Represents the number 2.

[shlosha]

Represents the number 3.

[arba'a]

Represents the number 4.

[chamisha]

Represents the number 5.

[shisha]

Represents the number 6.

[shiv'a]

Represents the number 7.

[shmona]

Represents the number 8.

[tish'a]

Represents the number 9.

[asara]

Represents the number 10.

[esrim]

Represents the number 20.

[shloshim]

Represents the number 30.

[arba'im]

Represents the number 40.

[chamishim]

Represents the number 50.

[shishim]

Represents the number 60.

[shiv'im]

Represents the number 70.

[shmonim]

Represents the number 80.

[tish'im]

Represents the number 90.

[me'a]

Represents the number 100.

[matayim]

Represents the number 200.

[shlosh me'ot]

Represents the number 300.

[arba' me'ot]

Represents the number 400.

[kheh]

[meh]

[neh]

[feh]

[tseh]

[maqaf]

[gershayim]

[geresh]

[sof pasuq]

[sof pasken]

[oh]

[veh]

[yeh]

[rafe]

[dagesh]

[mappiq]

[eh]

…

[shlosh nekudot]

–

[maqaf arukh]

—

[maqaf aroch me'od]

׳׳

[geresh kaful]

[maqaf]

Hyphen used to connect words or syllables, similar to a hyphen in English.

[gershayim]

Double quote-like mark used for abbreviations, acronyms, or to denote titles.

[geresh]

Single quote-like mark used for abbreviations, foreign words, or to indicate a consonantal pronunciation.

[sof pasuq]

Punctuation mark used to denote the end of a verse in biblical texts, similar to a colon or period.

[sof pasken]

Less common punctuation mark used to denote the end of a verse, similar to Sof Pasuq.

[oh]

A variant of the Qamats vowel mark used to indicate a short "o" sound.

[veh]

Represents the "v" sound with a dagesh (dot) inside the letter Vav.

[yeh]

Represents the "y" sound with a dagesh inside the letter Yod.

[rafe]

A diacritical mark used to indicate a softened pronunciation of certain consonants.

[dagesh]

A dot placed inside a consonant to indicate a doubled or "hard" pronunciation.

[mappiq]

A diacritical mark used in the letter He (ה) at the end of words to indicate it is pronounced as a consonant rather than a vowel.

[eh]

A variant of the Tsere vowel mark used in specific linguistic contexts.

…

[shlosh nekudot]

Used to indicate a pause or omission in text, similar to its use in English.

–

[maqaf arukh]

Used to represent ranges or connections between words, similar to its use in English.

—

[maqaf aroch me'od]

Used to create a strong break in the structure of a sentence, similar to its use in English.

׳׳

[geresh kaful]

Used in specific linguistic or typographical contexts, such as in certain transliterations.

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How many letters are in Hebrew?

Why does Hebrew not have vowel letters?

What are niqqud marks and when do I need them?

Where is Hebrew spoken today?

Is Hebrew hard to learn for English speakers?

References:

[1] Unicode Consortium. "Hebrew Unicode Block (U+0590-U+05FF)". Retrieved from Unicode Hebrew Block
[2] Academy of the Hebrew Language. "About Us - Official Hebrew Language Authority". Retrieved from Hebrew Language Academy