Vowel signs, part 1: a, i and u

Vowels are marks on letters

A letter on its own says a short “a”; that bare vowel is called mukta. For any other vowel, Gurmukhi adds a mark to the letter. There are nine marks, and with mukta they make ten vowels.

Every Punjabi school child chants them on ਕ, in order: ka kaa ki kee ku koo ke kai ko kau. That chant is the muharni. This lesson covers its first half: short and long a, i and u.

Five marks, and the bare letter

Each short vowel has a long partner. Notice where each mark sits: one sits before the letter even though you say it after.

• ਕkamuktaNo mark: the letter’s own short a, as in about.
• ਕਾkaakannaA long aa, as in father. The stroke after the letter.
• ਕਿkisihariA short i, as in bit. Written before the letter, said after it.
• ਕੀkeebihariA long ee, as in see. The stroke after the letter.
• ਕੁkuaunkarA short u, as in put. One hook under the letter.
• ਕੂkoodulainkarA long oo, as in food. Two hooks under the letter.

Tip: Sihari is the one that fools everyone: ਕਿ looks like “i-k” and says “ki”.

Reading words

These words use only the marks above. Read the Gurmukhi first, then check the line under it.

• ਪਾਣੀ

  pani

  water

• ਦਿਲ

  dil

  heart

• ਕਿਤਾਬ

  kitaab

  book

• ਦਾਦੀ

  dadi

  grandmother, your father’s mother

• ਗੁਰੂ

  Guru

  the Guru

• ਦੂਰ

  door

  far, far away

• ਸੁਣ

  sun

  listen

  Said to a friend or a child. To an elder, it’s suno.

How the romanization spells them

The muharni above shows sounds. Words are spelled the way families text, which follows three habits.

A vowel at the end of a word is one letter: ਪਾਣੀ is pani, ਗੁਰੂ is Guru, ਕੀ is ki.

A long vowel in a word’s last syllable, or in a one-syllable word, is doubled so you hear its length: ਕਿਤਾਬ kitaab, ਦੂਰ door, ਠੀਕ theek.

Anywhere else a long vowel is written once: ਪਾਣੀ is pani, not paani, and ਚਾਚਾ is chacha. When the spelling leaves you unsure, the Gurmukhi never does.

A few everyday words keep the doubled spelling families already use. ਆ at the start of a word is aa, so ਆਓ is aao and ਆਇਆ is aaya, and ਸਾਡਾ, ਸਾਨੂੰ and ਬਾਰੇ are saada, saanu and baare.