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The Devanagari Script
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Consonants
The consonants in Sanskrit are
known as "vyanjanani" and total thirtythree in number, though in recent
times, a few additional ones have been included to support some frequently
used syllables.
The consonants are grouped into six groups.
The first five have five consonants each and the last one has eight. The
grouping is based on the natural ordering of sounds such as gutterals,
palatals etc..
An interesting observation is that the
letters of Sanskrit are given names exactly matching the sound they represent.
A consonant derives its name from the sound when the basic vowel "a" is
sounded with the consonant. In Sanskrit and in other Indian languages,
each consonant has a generic form in which its pronounciation will not
have any vowel sound associated with it. The generic form is required when
more than one consonant is used in forming syllables and there are many
such combinations in Sanskrit. It was common practice to introduce the
consonants to the children learning the language, not in their generic
form but in the form where they are used with the first vowel "a". The
writing system in Devanagari has a representation for the generic form
of a consonant through the use of a special mark written at the bottom
of the consonant's familiar representation. This mark is known as the "nether
stroke" or the "halanth".
Next section:
Gutterals
Previous section: Support
Vowels
Return to Contents
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Contents
Introduction
Short
Vowels
Long
Vowels
Support
Vowels
Generic form of a Consonant
Gutterals
Palatals
Cerebrals
Dentals
Labials
Semi
Vowels, Sibilants etc.
Consonant
Vowel combinations
Conjunct
characters
Writing
methods for Conjuncts
Conjuncts
with "ra"
Summary
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