The IRCAM Tifinagh alphabet
Here are the 33 letters of Tifinagh as standardised by IRCAM, each with its name and Latin transcription. It is a good starting point for reading a road sign, a school book or a message in Amazigh.
- ⴰyaa
- ⴱyabb
- ⴳyagg
- ⴳⵯyagʷgʷ
- ⴷyadd
- ⴹyaḍḍ
- ⴻyeye
- ⴼyaff
- ⴽyakk
- ⴽⵯyakʷkʷ
- ⵀyahh
- ⵃyaḥḥ
- ⵄyaɛɛ
- ⵅyaxx (kh)
- ⵇyaqq
- ⵉyii
- ⵊyajj
- ⵍyall
- ⵎyamm
- ⵏyann
- ⵓyuu (ou)
- ⵔyarr
- ⵕyaṛṛ
- ⵖyaɣɣ (gh)
- ⵙyass
- ⵚyaṣṣ
- ⵛyacc (ch)
- ⵜyatt
- ⵟyaṭṭ
- ⵡyaww
- ⵢyayy
- ⵣyazz
- ⵥyaẓẓ
How to use
- Browse the grid of 33 letters.
- Note each letter's name (ya, yab, yag…) and its Latin value.
- Compare look-alike pairs such as ⴷ (d) and ⴹ (ḍ), or ⵙ (s) and ⵚ (ṣ).
- Then write a word with the Tifinagh keyboard.
The 33 letters and their names
The Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (IRCAM) set out a version of Tifinagh for teaching and writing Amazigh in Morocco. Every letter has a name built on “ya”. The table below sorts them into families; the tool’s grid also gives the Latin value of each one.
| Family | Letters and names |
|---|---|
| Vowels | ⴰ ya, ⴻ yey, ⵉ yi, ⵓ yu |
| Common consonants | ⴱ yab, ⴳ yag, ⴷ yad, ⴼ yaf, ⴽ yak, ⵀ yah, ⵊ yaj, ⵍ yal, ⵎ yam, ⵏ yan, ⵔ yar, ⵙ yas, ⵜ yat, ⵡ yaw, ⵢ yay, ⵣ yaz |
| Emphatics | ⴹ yaḍ, ⵕ yaṛ, ⵚ yaṣ, ⵟ yaṭ, ⵥ yaẓ |
| Throat sounds | ⵃ yaḥ, ⵄ yaɛ, ⵅ yax, ⵇ yaq, ⵖ yaɣ |
| Others | ⵛ yac, ⴳⵯ yagʷ, ⴽⵯ yakʷ |
You can recognise the emphatic letters by the dot under their transcription (ḍ, ṛ, ṣ, ṭ, ẓ). The letters ⵄ and ⵖ, written ɛ and ɣ in Latin, roughly match Arabic ع and غ.
A script without joins
Unlike Arabic, Tifinagh does not link its letters: each one keeps the same shape at the start, middle or end of a word. Letters simply follow one another from left to right. The word ⴰⵣⵓⵍ (azul, “hello”) breaks down into ⴰ a, ⵣ z, ⵓ u and ⵍ l.
Two letters often surprise learners. ⵅ (yax) is transcribed x but sounds like “kh”, and ⵛ (yac) is transcribed c but sounds like “sh”. As for the small sign ⵯ, it tells you that the consonant before it is said with rounded lips.
There is no listen button on this page, so rely on the names and Latin equivalents for pronunciation.
From the alphabet to writing
Once you know the letters, the Tifinagh keyboard lets you type a text and copy it. To read a Tifinagh text in Latin letters, or to go the other way, use the Tifinagh ↔ Latin converter.