Learn to read Nepali
A short, active path into reading Nepali: learn how a Devanagari letter carries its own vowel, decode ten real words before the full alphabet, follow the verb to the end of the sentence, and read a small story before opening your first book.
Letters that stack on top of each other
- When a consonant has no vowel of its own it loses its upright stroke and leans on the next letter, or slides underneath it.
- Two stacks are not said the way their parts look; learn those two whole.
- य and र are the two letters you will meet stacked most often.
- A र that comes first climbs onto the roof of the word as a small hook.
A stack looks alarming and is mechanical. Find the piece that lost its upright stroke and say it first, then say the letter it is leaning on. You never have to build one yourself.
How two letters become one stack
Three stacks worth knowing on sight
| Stack | Built from | Said as | In a word |
|---|---|---|---|
| क्ष | क + ष | chya | क्षमाkṣamā“forgiveness” |
| त्र | त + र | tra | मित्रmitra“friend” |
| ज्ञ | ज + ञ | gya | ज्ञानjñān“knowledge” |
The guide spells the first and third as they are written — kṣ, jñ. The “said as” column is what a Nepali mouth does with them, and for those two it is nothing like the spelling. The middle one is here for its shape: it really is t then r.
Take the stack apart
Find the leaning piece, then say the whole word.
- त्यो
A stroke-less त leaning on a whole य, then the o mark.
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त्योtyo“that” - भन्यो
Three letters written, two syllables said: bha, n, yo.
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भन्योbhanyo“he said” - स्याल
The leaning piece lost its stroke; the letter it leans on is a whole य.
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स्यालsyāl“jackal” - छन्
The cutting hook is on the last letter, so nothing follows it.
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छन्chan“they are”