Pashto Alphabet
The Pashto alphabet is based on the Arabic script with 44 letters, including 12 letters unique to Pashto.
ا
Alef
a
ب
Be
b
پ
Pe
p
ت
Te
t
ټ
Tte
tt
ث
Se
s
ج
Jeem
j
ځ
Dzeem
dz
چ
Che
ch
ح
Ha
h
خ
Khe
kh
د
Dal
d
ډ
Ddal
dd
ذ
Zal
z
ر
Re
r
ړ
Rre
rr
ز
Ze
z
ژ
Zhe
zh
ږ
Gge
gg
س
Sin
s
ش
Shin
sh
ښ
Xxin
xx
ص
Sad
s
ض
Zad
z
ط
To
t
ظ
Zo
z
ع
Ayn
a
غ
Ghayn
gh
ف
Fe
f
ق
Qaf
q
ک
Kaf
k
ګ
Gaf
g
ل
Lam
l
م
Mim
m
ن
Nun
n
ڼ
Nnun
nn
و
Waw
w/u/o
ه
He
h
ۀ
Hhe
a
ي
Ye
y/i
ې
Yye
e
ی
Yey
ay
ۍ
Eyy
ey
ئ
Hamza
a
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About the Pashto Alphabet
The Pashto alphabet is based on the Arabic script with significant modifications. It contains 44 letters, including 12 letters that are unique to Pashto and not found in the Arabic alphabet. These additional letters represent sounds specific to the Pashto language, which is spoken in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
History
Pashto has been written in a modified Arabic script since the 16th century. The modern Pashto alphabet was standardized in the 20th century with the addition of special letters to represent retroflex and other sounds unique to Pashto. The script continues to evolve with ongoing discussions about standardization.
Key Features
- Written from right to left
- 44 letters total
- 12 letters unique to Pashto
- Modified Arabic script
- Represents retroflex sounds
- Used in Afghanistan and Pakistan