The Urdu Alphabet

Q: How many letters does the Urdu alphabet have?

The Urdu alphabet has 38 letters written right to left in Nastaliq: 28 Arabic letters, 4 Persian additions (پ, چ, ژ, گ), and 6 South Asian letters. The 6 South Asian additions are: ٹ (/ʈ/), ڈ (/ɖ/), ڑ (/ɽ/) for retroflex consonants, ں for nasalised vowels, ھ for aspiration, and ے for a final /eː/ vowel.

Q: What is the difference between Urdu and Hindi?

Urdu and Hindi share a common spoken base ( Hindustani ) and are largely mutually intelligible colloquially. The divergence is greatest in formal registers, literary vocabulary, and written form. Urdu uses the Nastaliq Perso-Arabic script (right to left) with formal vocabulary from Persian and Arabic — Pakistan's national language. Hindi uses Devanagari (left to right) with formal vocabulary from Sanskrit — an official language of India.

Q: What is the Nastaliq script?

Nastaliq (نستعلیق) is a Perso-Arabic calligraphic style with a distinctive diagonal baseline — letters flow downward right to left, unlike the horizontal baseline of Arabic Naskh. Developed in Persia in the 15th century, it carries deep cultural significance in Pakistan. Urdu Nastaliq adds 6 South Asian letters (ٹ, ڈ, ڑ, ں, ھ, ے) not found in Arabic or Persian, representing sounds unique to South Asian phonology.

Q: Is Urdu written right to left?

Yes. Urdu is written right to left in Nastaliq. Mixed numerals and Latin text are handled automatically by bidirectional text rendering. Urdu uses Western Arabic numerals (0–9) rather than Eastern Arabic-Indic numerals (۰–۹), consistent with Pakistani convention and distinct from Persian and Dari usage.

Q: Where is Urdu spoken?

Urdu is the national language of Pakistan , used in education, government, and media across the country. In India , it is one of 22 scheduled languages with official status in several states. Large diaspora communities exist in the UK, USA, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Total speakers — including second-language users — are estimated at 200–400 million .

Q: What makes Urdu vocabulary distinctive?

Urdu vocabulary layers multiple sources: everyday words shared with Hindi from Sanskrit/Prakrit ; formal and literary vocabulary from Persian and Arabic (Mughal court and Islamic scholarship); and some Turkic words from the Mughal dynasty's Central Asian roots. Modern English loanwords are also common in technical and professional domains. This layered vocabulary gives Urdu an unusually wide register range — from everyday speech shared with Hindi to highly Persianised formal registers.

Urdu Alphabet at a Glance

38 letters written right to left using the Nastaliq Perso-Arabic script: the 28 Arabic letters plus 4 Persian additions (پ, چ, ژ, گ) and 6 South Asian letters unique to Nastaliq (ٹ, ڈ, ڑ, ں, ھ, ے)
Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and one of India's 22 scheduled languages; spoken as a first language by over 70 million people and understood by hundreds of millions more ^[2]
Urdu belongs to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family, closely related to Hindi — both languages share a common spoken base (Hindustani) but diverge in vocabulary and script ^[1]
The Nastaliq script is written right-to-left and is an abjad — short vowels are not written in standard text but indicated by optional harakat diacritics (zabar, zer, pesh) in educational materials ^[3]
Urdu developed from the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal court, blending Sanskrit-derived vocabulary with Persian, Arabic, and Turkic loanwords in a linguistically rich register known as Rekhta in poetry ^[4]
The 10 Urdu-specific letters not in standard Arabic include retroflex consonants (ٹ, ڈ, ڑ), South Asian phonological markers (ں, ھ), and a final vowel form (ے)
Urdu is the medium of a rich literary tradition encompassing classical poetry (ghazal, nazm), prose, and drama — the works of poets such as Mir, Ghalib, and Iqbal are central to South Asian cultural heritage

Urdu Consonant Letters (Nastaliq)

The Urdu alphabet contains 38 letters based on the Nastaliq Perso-Arabic script, written right to left. It includes the 28 standard Arabic letters, 4 Persian additions (پ /p/, چ /tʃ/, ژ /ʒ/, گ /g/), and 6 South Asian letters unique to Urdu Nastaliq: ٹ (tte /ʈ/), ڈ (ddal /ɖ/), ڑ (rre /ɽ/) for retroflex sounds; ں (noon ghunna) for nasalisation; ھ (do chashmi he) for aspiration; and ے (bari ye) for the final /eː/ vowel.

Urdu Letters

[alef]

[be]

[pe]

[te]

[tte]

[se]

[jeem]

[che]

[badi he]

[khe]

[dal]

[ddal]

[zal]

[re]

[rre]

[ze]

[zhe]

[seen]

[sheen]

[swad]

[zwad]

[tway]

[zhway]

[ain]

[ghain]

[fe]

[qaf]

[kaf]

[gaf]

[lam]

[meem]

[noon]

[noon ghunna]

[waw]

[he]

[hamza]

[ye]

[bari ye]

[alef]

Alef — represents the glottal stop or initial vowel carrier. The first letter of the Urdu alphabet.

[be]

Be — represents the voiced bilabial stop /b/, like "b" in "bed".

[pe]

Pe — represents the voiceless bilabial stop /p/, like "p" in "pen". This letter is unique to Urdu and does not exist in Arabic.

[te]

Te — represents the voiceless dental stop /t/, like "t" in "table".

[tte]

Tte — represents the voiceless retroflex stop /ʈ/, a sound made with the tongue curled back. Unique to Urdu/South Asian languages.

[se]

Se — pronounced /s/ in Urdu (same as seen), though it represents /θ/ in Classical Arabic. Used in Arabic loanwords.

[jeem]

Jeem — represents the voiced postalveolar affricate /dʒ/, like "j" in "jump".

[che]

Che — represents the voiceless postalveolar affricate /tʃ/, like "ch" in "church". Unique to Urdu; not in Arabic.

[badi he]

Badi He — a pharyngeal fricative /ħ/ in Arabic; in Urdu, pronounced as /h/. Used in Arabic loanwords.

[khe]

Khe — represents the voiceless velar fricative /x/, like "ch" in Scottish "loch".

[dal]

Dal — represents the voiced dental stop /d/, like "d" in "dog".

[ddal]

Ddal — represents the voiced retroflex stop /ɖ/, made with the tongue curled back. Unique to Urdu and South Asian languages.

[zal]

Zal — pronounced /z/ in Urdu (same as ze). Represents /ð/ in Classical Arabic; used in Arabic loanwords.

[re]

Re — represents the alveolar trill or tap /r/, like a rolled "r".

[rre]

Rre — represents the retroflex flap /ɽ/, a retroflex "r" sound unique to Urdu and South Asian languages.

[ze]

Ze — represents the voiced alveolar fricative /z/, like "z" in "zebra".

[zhe]

Zhe — represents the voiced postalveolar fricative /ʒ/, like "s" in "measure". Appears in loanwords from Persian.

[seen]

Seen — represents the voiceless alveolar fricative /s/, like "s" in "sun".

[sheen]

Sheen — represents the voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/, like "sh" in "ship".

[swad]

Swad — pronounced /s/ in Urdu (emphatic in Arabic). Used in Arabic loanwords.

[zwad]

Zwad — pronounced /z/ in Urdu (emphatic in Arabic). Used in Arabic loanwords.

[tway]

Tway — pronounced /t/ in Urdu (emphatic in Arabic). Used in Arabic loanwords.

[zhway]

Zhway — pronounced /z/ in Urdu (emphatic in Arabic). Used in Arabic loanwords.

[ain]

Ain — a pharyngeal consonant /ʕ/ in Arabic; in Urdu it functions as a vowel carrier or glottal stop.

[ghain]

Ghain — represents the voiced velar fricative /ɣ/, a deep throaty sound like a gargled "g".

[fe]

Fe — represents the voiceless labiodental fricative /f/, like "f" in "fan".

[qaf]

Qaf — represents the voiceless uvular stop /q/, pronounced deep in the throat. Common in Arabic and Persian loanwords.

[kaf]

Kaf — represents the voiceless velar stop /k/, like "k" in "king". The Urdu form differs slightly from Arabic ك.

[gaf]

Gaf — represents the voiced velar stop /g/, like "g" in "go". Unique to Urdu; not in Arabic.

[lam]

Lam — represents the voiced alveolar lateral /l/, like "l" in "light".

[meem]

Meem — represents the voiced bilabial nasal /m/, like "m" in "mother".

[noon]

Noon — represents the voiced alveolar nasal /n/, like "n" in "night".

[noon ghunna]

Noon Ghunna — represents a nasalisation of the preceding vowel /◌̃/. Unique to Urdu; not in Arabic.

[waw]

Waw — represents the bilabial approximant /w/ or the long vowel /uː/ (oo). Functions as both consonant and vowel in Urdu.

[he]

He — represents the voiceless glottal fricative /h/, like "h" in "hat". The Urdu form ہ differs from Arabic ه.

[hamza]

Hamza — represents the glottal stop. Used as an independent letter in Urdu, particularly in loanwords from Arabic.

[ye]

Ye — represents the palatal approximant /j/, like "y" in "yes", or the long vowel /iː/ (ee). Functions as both consonant and vowel.

[bari ye]

Bari Ye — represents the long vowel /eː/ (ay). This letter appears only at the end of words. Unique to Urdu.

Urdu Vowel Diacritics (Harakat)

Urdu, like all Nastaliq Perso-Arabic script languages, is an abjad — short vowels are typically not written in normal text. In educational materials, diacritical marks are used: zabar (fatha /a/), zer (kasra /e/, /i/), pesh (damma /o/, /u/), tashdid (consonant doubling), jazm (no vowel / sukun), and tanwin (Arabic nominal suffix -an). These Urdu names for the harakat are used in Pakistani and Indian educational tradition.

Urdu Vowel Diacritics (Harakat / اعراب)

[zabar]

[zer]

[pesh]

[tashdid]

[jazm]

[tanwin]

Digits (0–9)

Zero — Western Arabic numeral used in modern Urdu writing.

One — Western Arabic numeral.

Two — Western Arabic numeral.

Three — Western Arabic numeral.

Four — Western Arabic numeral.

Five — Western Arabic numeral.

Six — Western Arabic numeral.

Seven — Western Arabic numeral.

Eight — Western Arabic numeral.

Nine — Western Arabic numeral.

Expand All Collapse All

How many letters does the Urdu alphabet have?

What is the difference between Urdu and Hindi?

What is the Nastaliq script?

Is Urdu written right to left?

Where is Urdu spoken?

What makes Urdu vocabulary distinctive?

References:

[1] Hammarström, Harald et al. "Urdu [urdu1245]". Glottolog 5.3. Retrieved from Glottolog: Urdu
[2] SIL International. "Urdu — ISO 639-3 Language Code: urd". Retrieved from SIL ISO 639-3: urd
[3] Unicode Consortium. "Arabic Unicode Block (U+0600–U+06FF) — Urdu Nastaliq Extended Characters". Retrieved from Unicode Arabic Block
[4] Unicode Consortium. "Arabic Unicode Block (U+0600-U+06FF)". Retrieved from Unicode Arabic Block