Gujarati script

The Gujarati script is a special way to write the Gujarati language. It is used by people in the state of Gujarat in India and also in some nearby areas. This script helps people write and read their language easily.

Where It Comes From

The Gujarati script grew from an old script called Nagari. It developed in steps from the 10th to the 19th century. First, people used languages like Prakrit and Apabramsa. Later, the Old Gujarati script became common. The oldest book in this script is from 1591 to 1592. It was first printed in 1797. Over time, the script changed to make writing simpler. The top line, called shirorekhā, was removed. For a long time, this script was mostly used for letters and accounting. It was also called the śarāphī (banker’s), vāṇiāśāī (merchant’s), or mahājanī (trader’s) script.

How It Looks

The Gujarati script is a type of writing called an abugida. In this system, each basic letter for a consonant has a built-in vowel sound, like the "a" sound in "cat." To make other vowel sounds, special marks are added to the letters. Gujarati is written from left to right, just like English. It does not have uppercase and lowercase letters.

Sometimes, when two consonants come together, they join to form one special letter. Gujarati uses English punctuation, like question marks and commas, to help make sentences clear. It also uses apostrophes for special small words.

Numbers and Letters

Gujarati has its own set of numbers. These numbers look different from the ones we use every day. They give the script its own special style.

The script also has special ways to write vowels and consonants. Some letters change shape when they are used with certain vowel sounds. Consonants are grouped by how and where they are made in the mouth, such as with the lips, teeth, or throat. They follow a special order.

abugida
Gujarati language
Kutchi language
official scripts of the Indian Republic
Devanagari
numerical digits
Nagari script
Prakrit
Apabramsa
Old Gujarati
Jain
English punctuation
Vowels
Wikipedia
Gujarati phonology
Unicode
Indian Script Code for Information Interchange