The Syriac Alphabet

Q: What is the Syriac alphabet?

The Syriac alphabet is an ancient right-to-left abjad of 22 consonant letters used to write Classical Syriac — an Eastern Aramaic language [1] . It belongs to the same Northwest Semitic script family as Hebrew, Phoenician, and the Nabataean script (from which Arabic developed). The Syriac letters connect within words and exist in three calligraphic forms: Estrangela (the ancient rounded tradition), Serto (the West Syriac cursive), and Madnhaya/East Syriac (the East Syriac tradition). All three forms encode the same 22-letter inventory.

Q: What are the three forms of the Syriac script?

The Syriac script exists in three calligraphic traditions [2] : (1) Estrangela (ܐܣܛܪܢܓܠܐ, "rounded letters") — the oldest form, used for classical inscriptions, headings, and academic publications; (2) Serto (ܣܪܛܐ, "line/stroke") — the West Syriac cursive, used by Syriac Orthodox, Maronite, and Syriac Catholic communities. (3) Madnhaya/East Syriac (ܡܕܢܚܝܐ) — used by the Assyrian Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, and related Neo-Aramaic speakers. All three traditions encode the same 22-letter alphabet but differ in letterform style and which vowel-pointing system is used.

Q: What is Classical Syriac?

Classical Syriac is an Eastern Aramaic language (ISO 639-3: syc) that emerged as a major literary and liturgical language in Edessa (modern Urfa, Turkey) in the 1st century CE [2] . At its peak from approximately the 1st to 8th centuries CE, it served as the cultural and intellectual lingua franca of the Middle East — a role it shared with Greek. An enormous literature in theology, philosophy, science, and poetry was produced in Classical Syriac. Translations of Greek philosophical works into Syriac were later used as the basis for Arabic translations, making Syriac a critical link in the transmission of classical knowledge. It remains the liturgical language of several Eastern Christian churches.

Q: What is the "Bgdkpt" rule in Syriac?

The "Bgdkpt" rule refers to the six Syriac letters — Beth (ܒ), Gamal (ܓ), Dalat (ܕ), Kap (ܟ), Pe (ܦ), Taw (ܬ) — each of which has two phonemic realisations [1] . After a vowel, these letters are pronounced as fricatives: ܒ→/v/, ܓ→/ɣ/, ܕ→/ð/, ܟ→/x/, ܦ→/f/, ܬ→/θ/. After a consonant or at the start of a word, they are plosives (/b/, /g/, /d/, /k/, /p/, /t/). This spirantisation pattern is also found in Classical Hebrew and is a shared feature of the Northwest Semitic languages, reflecting a common ancient phonological rule.

Q: How many letters does the Syriac alphabet have?

The Syriac alphabet has exactly 22 consonant letters — from Alaf (ܐ) to Taw (ܬ) [1] . This is the same count as the Hebrew alphabet and the original Phoenician/Northwest Semitic alphabet, reflecting their shared origin in the ancient Northwest Semitic abjad. The number 22 corresponds to the 22 Semitic consonant phonemes of the ancient common ancestor. Syriac encodes vowels using a separate system — diacritics (vowel pointing) or matres lectionis — rather than integrating them into the primary alphabet letters.

Q: Is the Syriac script related to the Arabic script?

Yes — the Arabic script is descended from the Syriac/Aramaic script via the Nabataean Aramaic script [2] . The Nabataean script — used in the ancient Nabataean kingdom centred on Petra — was itself derived from Aramaic. When the Nabataean script evolved into what we recognise as Arabic writing, it retained the right-to-left direction, the connecting cursive style, and the overall letter inventory of its Aramaic ancestor. The Syriac and Arabic alphabets thus share common origin in the ancient Northwest Semitic abjad tradition.

Q: What is the Unicode block for Syriac?

The Syriac script is encoded in the Unicode Syriac block (U+0700–U+074F) [1] . This 80-character block includes the 22 consonant letters in all three calligraphic traditions (Estrangela, Serto, East Syriac), Syriac-specific punctuation marks, and vowel diacritics for the West and East Syriac vowel pointing systems. The block also includes special marks like the Seyame (a double dot above a letter, indicating plurals) and was part of the original Unicode 3.0 release in 1999. Additional Syriac characters are encoded in the Syriac Supplement block (U+0860–U+086F).

Q: What is the ISO code for Classical Syriac?

The ISO 639-3 code for Classical Syriac is syc [2] . This code covers Classical Syriac as a literary and liturgical language — not as a modern vernacular. Living Neo-Aramaic languages that use the Syriac script have their own separate ISO codes: Assyrian Neo-Aramaic (aii), Chaldean Neo-Aramaic (cld), Turoyo (tru), Western Neo-Aramaic (amw), and others. The use of separate codes reflects the significant divergence between Classical Syriac and the modern spoken Neo-Aramaic varieties.

Q: Which churches still use Classical Syriac?

Classical Syriac remains in active use as a liturgical language in several Eastern Christian churches [2] : the Syriac Orthodox Church (using West Syriac Serto script), the Maronite Church (Lebanon), the Chaldean Catholic Church (Iraq, using East Syriac Madnhaya script), and the Assyrian Church of the East (Iraq, Iran, diaspora). Also the Syriac Catholic Church and the Malankara Syrian Catholic Church (India) use Classical Syriac in their liturgy. The script thus bridges liturgical practice from the Middle East to South Asia, representing an unbroken Christian tradition of over 1,800 years.

Syriac Alphabet at a Glance

The Syriac alphabet has exactly 22 consonant letters — the same count as Hebrew, Phoenician, and the original Northwest Semitic abjad from which they all descend; the letters are written right-to-left and connect within words in three calligraphic traditions: Estrangela, West Syriac Serto, and East Syriac Madnhaya ^[1]
Classical Syriac (ISO 639-3: syc) is an Aramaic language that served as a major literary, liturgical, and cultural lingua franca of the Middle East from approximately the 1st century CE to the 8th century CE; it remains the liturgical language of several Eastern Christian churches including the Syriac Orthodox, Chaldean Catholic, and Assyrian Church of the East ^[2]
Six of the 22 Syriac letters — Beth (ܒ), Gamal (ܓ), Dalat (ܕ), Kap (ܟ), Pe (ܦ), and Taw (ܬ) — each have two pronunciations: a plosive (hard) form and a fricative (soft) form depending on whether they follow a vowel or a consonant; this is called the "Bgdkpt" rule after the letters' transliterations ^[1]
The three calligraphic traditions of Syriac serve different communities: Estrangela (the oldest, rounded form) is used for inscriptions and academic titles; Serto (the West Syriac cursive) is used by the Syriac Orthodox and Maronite churches; Madnhaya/East Syriac is used by the Assyrian Church of the East and Chaldean Catholics ^[2]
The Unicode Syriac block (U+0700–U+074F) encodes all three calligraphic forms of the Syriac alphabet, along with unique Syriac punctuation marks and vowel diacritics that differ from Arabic; Syriac was one of the early scripts encoded in Unicode ^[1]
Syriac script influenced the development of several other scripts: it is the ancestor of the Arabic script (via Nabataean Aramaic), and was a significant influence on the early development of Hebrew square script and numerous medieval scripts across Central Asia
The Syriac language produced an extensive medieval literature — philosophy, theology, science, and poetry — serving as a conduit for Greek knowledge to the Islamic world; many Greek texts were preserved in Syriac translation and later retranslated into Arabic, influencing the Islamic Golden Age ^[2]

Syriac Vowel Diacritics and Matres Lectionis

Syriac is primarily a consonantal abjad — vowels are generally not written in running text. Long vowels are sometimes indicated by matres lectionis (the consonant letters Alaf ܐ, Waw ܘ, Yodh ܝ used as vowel carriers). Full vowel marking uses either the West Syriac Greek-derived vowel signs or the East Syriac dot-based system — both only in liturgical and educational texts.

Classical Syriac had a 5-vowel system. Modern Neo-Aramaic languages have undergone significant vowel shifts from the classical system.

Syriac Vowel Diacritics (Matres Lectionis):

[aa/glottal]

[w/uu]

[y/ii]

[h/aa]

ܐܵ

[aa]

ܐܻ

[i]

[aa/glottal]

Alaf — the first letter of the Syriac alphabet; functions as a vowel carrier for /a/, /ā/, and the glottal stop /ʔ/; equivalent to Hebrew Aleph and Arabic Alef

[w/uu]

Waw — represents long vowel /uː/ or consonant /w/; a mater lectionis for the back rounded vowel in Syriac

[y/ii]

Yodh — represents long vowel /iː/ or consonant /j/; used as a mater lectionis for front vowels in Syriac

[h/aa]

He — at the end of words, can function as a mater lectionis for final /aː/; as a consonant, voiceless glottal fricative /h/

ܐܵ

[aa]

Alaf with Zqapa — East Syriac vowel point for the long open vowel /aː/; one of five East Syriac vowel diacritics

ܐܻ

[i]

Alaf with Ḥvasa — East Syriac vowel point for /i/ (close front vowel); part of the East Syriac diacritic system

Syriac Consonants (22 Estrangela Letters):

[aa / glottal]

[b / v]

[g / gh]

[d / dh]

[h]

[w / uu]

[z]

[ħ]

[ṭ]

[y / ii]

[k / kh]

[l]

[m]

[n]

[s]

[ʕ]

[p / f]

[ṣ]

[q]

[r]

[sh]

[t / th]

[aa / glottal]

Alaf — first letter; voiceless glottal stop /ʔ/ or vowel carrier for /ā/; one of the "Bgdkpt" letters with fricative alternant

[b / v]

Beth — voiced bilabial plosive /b/ after a vowel; voiced labiodental fricative /v/ after a consonant (one of the Bgdkpt letters); cognate with Hebrew ב and Arabic ب; the name means "house"

[g / gh]

Gamal — voiced velar plosive /g/ (hard) or voiced uvular fricative /ɣ/ (soft); one of the Bgdkpt letters; cognate with Hebrew ג and Arabic ج; the name means "camel"

[d / dh]

Dalat — voiced alveolar plosive /d/ (hard) or voiced dental fricative /ð/ (soft); one of the Bgdkpt letters; cognate with Hebrew ד and Arabic د; the name means "door"

[h]

He — voiceless glottal fricative /h/; cognate with Hebrew ה and Arabic ه; the name means "behold" or "window"

[w / uu]

Waw — voiced bilabial approximant /w/ as consonant; long vowel /uː/ as mater lectionis; cognate with Hebrew ו and Arabic و; the name means "hook"

[z]

Zayn — voiced alveolar fricative /z/; cognate with Hebrew ז and Arabic ز; the name means "weapon" or "olive"

[ħ]

Ḥeth — voiceless pharyngeal fricative /ħ/; a Semitic sound absent from most European languages; preserved in Syriac; cognate with Hebrew ח and Arabic ح; the name means "fence"

[ṭ]

Ṭeth — pharyngealised (emphatic) alveolar plosive /tˤ/; distinct from the regular Ta /t/ (ܬ); cognate with Hebrew ט and Arabic ط; the name means "wheel"

[y / ii]

Yodh — voiced palatal approximant /j/ as consonant; long vowel /iː/ as mater lectionis; the smallest letter of the Syriac alphabet; cognate with Hebrew י and Arabic ي; the name means "hand"

[k / kh]

Kap — voiceless velar plosive /k/ (hard) or voiceless velar fricative /x/ (soft); one of the Bgdkpt letters; cognate with Hebrew כ and Arabic ك; the name means "palm of hand"

[l]

Lamad — voiced alveolar lateral approximant /l/; very common in Syriac; cognate with Hebrew ל and Arabic ل; the name means "goad/staff"

[m]

Mim — voiced bilabial nasal /m/; very common in Syriac morphology; cognate with Hebrew מ and Arabic م; the name means "water"

[n]

Nun — voiced alveolar nasal /n/; very common in Syriac; cognate with Hebrew נ and Arabic ن; the name means "fish"

[s]

Simkat — voiceless alveolar fricative /s/; cognate with Hebrew ס (samekh) and Arabic س; the name means "support" or "fish"

[ʕ]

Ayin — voiced pharyngeal fricative /ʕ/; one of the characteristic Semitic pharyngeal consonants; cognate with Hebrew ע and Arabic ع; the name means "eye"

[p / f]

Pe — voiceless bilabial plosive /p/ (hard) or voiceless labiodental fricative /f/ (soft); one of the Bgdkpt letters; cognate with Hebrew פ and Arabic ف; the name means "mouth"

[ṣ]

Ṣade — pharyngealised (emphatic) alveolar fricative /sˤ/; distinct from regular Simkat /s/ (ܣ); cognate with Hebrew צ and Arabic ص; the name means "fish hook"

[q]

Qop — voiceless uvular plosive /q/; produced at the back of the uvula, deeper than /k/; cognate with Hebrew ק and Arabic ق; the name means "eye of needle" or "back of head"

[r]

Resh — voiced alveolar flap or uvular /r/; cognate with Hebrew ר and Arabic ر; the name means "head"

[sh]

Shin — voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/; one of the most frequent Syriac consonants; cognate with Hebrew ש (shin) and Arabic ش; the name means "tooth"

[t / th]

Taw — voiceless alveolar plosive /t/ (hard) or voiceless dental fricative /θ/ (soft); the last letter of the Syriac alphabet; one of the Bgdkpt letters; cognate with Hebrew ת and Arabic ت; the name means "mark/sign"

[.]

[,]

[;]

[·]

[:]

[.]

Syriac End of Paragraph — two dots above and below, used to mark the end of a major section in Syriac manuscripts

[.]

Syriac Supralinear Full Stop — placed above the line; marks end of clause or sentence

[.]

Syriac Sublinear Full Stop — placed below the line; marks a lighter pause than the supralinear stop

[,]

Syriac Supralinear Colon — functions as a comma or minor pause in Syriac text

[;]

Syriac Sublinear Colon — functions as a heavier pause, similar to semicolon, in Syriac texts

[·]

Syriac Horizontal Colon — a full stop variant used in East Syriac Madnhaya script manuscripts

[:]

Syriac Colon Skewed Left — marks end of a verse or section in West Syriac Serto manuscripts

[:]

Syriac Colon Skewed Right — end-of-verse marker in East Syriac manuscripts

[khad]

[tren]

[tlatha]

[arba]

[khamsha]

[eshta]

[shawa]

[tmania]

[tsha]

[asra]

[khad]

One in Syriac: ܚܕ (khad)

[tren]

Two in Syriac: ܬܪܝܢ (tren/trēn)

[tlatha]

Three in Syriac: ܬܠܬܐ (tlathā)

[arba]

Four in Syriac: ܐܪܒܥܐ (arbaʕā)

[khamsha]

Five in Syriac: ܚܡܫܐ (khamshā)

[eshta]

Six in Syriac: ܫܬܐ (eshtā)

[shawa]

Seven in Syriac: ܫܒܥܐ (shawaʕā)

[tmania]

Eight in Syriac: ܬܡܢܝܐ (tmaniyā)

[tsha]

Nine in Syriac: ܬܫܥܐ (tshaʕā)

[asra]

Ten in Syriac: ܥܣܪܐ (ʕasrā)

Alaf (1st) — glottal stop /ʔ/ or vowel carrier

Beth (2nd) — /b/ hard or /v/ soft (Bgdkpt)

Gamal (3rd) — /g/ hard or /ɣ/ soft (Bgdkpt)

Dalat (4th) — /d/ hard or /ð/ soft (Bgdkpt)

He (5th) — voiceless glottal fricative /h/

Waw (6th) — /w/ consonant or /uː/ vowel

Zayn (7th) — voiced alveolar fricative /z/

Ḥeth (8th) — voiceless pharyngeal fricative /ħ/

Ṭeth (9th) — emphatic alveolar plosive /tˤ/

Yodh (10th) — /j/ consonant or /iː/ vowel

Kap (11th) — /k/ hard or /x/ soft (Bgdkpt)

Lamad (12th) — voiced lateral approximant /l/

Mim (13th) — voiced bilabial nasal /m/

Nun (14th) — voiced alveolar nasal /n/

Simkat (15th) — voiceless alveolar fricative /s/

Ayin (16th) — voiced pharyngeal fricative /ʕ/

Pe (17th) — /p/ hard or /f/ soft (Bgdkpt)

Ṣade (18th) — emphatic alveolar fricative /sˤ/

Qop (19th) — voiceless uvular plosive /q/

Resh (20th) — voiced alveolar/uvular /r/

Shin (21st) — voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/

Taw (22nd) — /t/ hard or /θ/ soft (Bgdkpt); last letter

Expand All Collapse All

What is the Syriac alphabet?

What are the three forms of the Syriac script?

What is Classical Syriac?

What is the "Bgdkpt" rule in Syriac?

How many letters does the Syriac alphabet have?

Is the Syriac script related to the Arabic script?

What is the Unicode block for Syriac?

What is the ISO code for Classical Syriac?

Which churches still use Classical Syriac?

References:

[1] Unicode Consortium. "Syriac Unicode Block (U+0700–U+074F)". Retrieved from Unicode Syriac Block Chart
[2] Beth Mardutho — The Syriac Institute. "The Syriac Alphabet and Script Resources — Beth Mardutho" — Beth Mardutho (ܒܝܬ ܡܪܕܘܬܐ, meaning "House of Culture") is a Syriac cultural and academic institute dedicated to the preservation, documentation, and digital study of the Syriac language and its writing systems. Beth Mardutho develops digital tools and academic resources for Classical Syriac (ISO 639-3: syc), including the SEDRA (Syriac Electronic Data Retrieval Archive) database, contributions to the Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon (CAL) project, and Unicode-compliant Syriac fonts and keyboard tools used by scholars worldwide. The institute documents all three main script variants of Syriac: Estrangela (the oldest), Serto (Western Syriac), and Madnhaya (Eastern Syriac / Assyrian). Retrieved from Beth Mardutho — The Syriac Institute