Reading Devanagari road signs: Hindi, Marathi, Nepali

Devanagari writes Hindi across northern and central India, Marathi in Maharashtra and Nepali in Nepal. Letters hang from a line along the top, each consonant carries a short ‘a’, and other vowels are small signs added to it.

Indian road signs often give the name in Devanagari and in English, but not always both. Learn the common letters and vowel signs and दिल्ली (Delhi) or पुणे (Pune) read themselves.

Devanagari at a glance

Devanagari writes Hindi, Marathi and Nepali, across northern India and in Nepal.

It is read left to right, and most letters hang from a line along the top. Each letter is a consonant with an ‘a’ built in; other vowels are added as small signs around it.

Every consonant comes with an ‘a’

On its own, every consonant is read with a short ‘a’ built in, like the ‘u’ in “but”: क is ka.

The built-in ‘a’ is not written, so below it is shown in a lighter colour.

• कka
• गga
• चcha
• जja
• तta
• दda
• नna
• पpa
• बba
• मma
• रra
• लla
• वva
• सsa

Vowel signs

Every other vowel is a sign added to the consonant, replacing the built-in one. Even a long ‘a’ has its own sign: ना is nā (as in “father”), while न alone is the short na.

Signs can sit after, under, over or before the letter, but are always read after it: पि is pi. The line over ‘ā’, ‘ī’, ‘ū’ just marks a long vowel; English names drop it, so न and ना both become na.

Here are प (p) and न (n), from the sign below, first on their own and then with every vowel sign; the ones the name uses are marked.

• पpa
• पाpā
• पिpi
• पीpī
• पुpu
• पूpū
• पेpe
• पैpai
• पोpo
• पौpau
• नna
• नाnā
• निni
• नीnī
• नुnu
• नूnū
• नेne
• नैnai
• नोno
• नौnau

When the ‘a’ goes quiet

The built-in ‘a’ is dropped at the end of a word, and often in the middle too. कानपुर is read Kan-pur, not Ka-na-pu-ra.

An h means a breath

An h after a letter in the Latin spelling means a puff of breath: ख is kh, भ is bh. फ is mostly read f.

• खkha
• घgha
• छchha
• झjha
• ठtha
• थtha
• धdha
• भbha
• फfa
• हha

Same sound, different letter

Some sounds have two letters; you can read them alike. ट and ड are said with the tongue curled back.

With a dot underneath, ड़ becomes an r and ज़ a z. Marathi also has ळ, an l.

• शsha
• षsha
• नna
• णna
• टta
• डda
• ड़ra
• ज़za
• ळla

Letters joined together

When two consonants meet with no vowel between them, they are joined into one shape, usually by cutting the first one short.

र is the odd one: before a consonant it becomes a small hook on top (र्ग), after one a short stroke at the bottom (प्र).

• प्रpra
• द्रdra
• ग्रgra
• श्रshra
• र्गrga
• ल्लlla
• ज्जjja
• द्वdwa

A few more letters

At the start of a word a vowel is written as a letter of its own.

The dot on top (मुं) adds n, or m before p, b or m: मुंबई is Mumbai.

• अa
• आa
• इi
• ईi
• उu
• एe
• ओo
• औau
• मुंmum
• चंchan

Name parts worth knowing

Some pieces come back again and again. Spot them and half the name is read.

Many places keep an older English spelling: लखनऊ, read Lakhnau, is Lucknow, and मुंबई was Bombay. When you type, either one counts.

Try it

Which city is on the sign?

All the letters

Consonants

• कk
• खkh
• गg
• घgh
• ङng
• चch
• छchh
• जj
• झjh
• ञn
• टt
• ठth
• डd
• ढdh
• णn
• तt
• थth
• दd
• धdh
• नn
• पp
• फf
• बb
• भbh
• मm
• यy
• रr
• लl
• वv
• शsh
• षsh
• सs
• हh
• ळl
• क़q
• ख़kh
• ग़gh
• ज़z
• ड़r
• ढ़rh
• फ़f

Vowels

• अa
• आa
• इi
• ईi
• उu
• ऊu
• ऋri
• एe
• ऐai
• ओo
• औau
• ऑo
• ऍe

Vowel signs, shown on क

• कka
• काka
• किki
• कीki
• कुku
• कूku
• कृkri
• केke
• कैkai
• कोko
• कौkau
• कॉko
• कॅke

Other signs

• क्k
• कँkan
• कंkan
• कःkah

Clusters in these place names

• ल्लlla
• ल्हlha
• फ्फffa
• द्रdra
• र्णrna
• ञ्जnja
• श्वshwa
• ल्यlya
• प्रpra
• ग्वgwa
• ग्रgra
• ज्जjja
• र्रrra
• र्गrga
• श्रshra
• र्जrja
• द्वdwa
• ल्द्वldwa
• ण्ठntha
• न्नnna
• त्यtya
• ध्यdhya
• न्द्रndra
• ब्यbya

Digits

• ०0
• १1
• २2
• ३3
• ४4
• ५5
• ६6
• ७7
• ८8
• ९9

A consonant with no vowel sign carries an unwritten a, and that vowel often falls silent.

The 200 places in the quiz

The quiz has about 200 of the largest cities that write in Devanagari: the Hindi-speaking states, Maharashtra (in Marathi) and Nepal (in Nepali).