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enganagri1.gif

The Enganagri alphabet was invented by Dr. David B. Kelley as an alternative alphabet for English. It was modeled on the Devanagari alphabet with influence from the Korean alphabet. There are a number of different ways of writing English with Enganagri. The main difference between them is in the representation of vowels and diphthongs. The version below is the comprehensive form, which was developed to represent all the sounds of the English language, including both General American and British Received Pronunciation (RP). The vowels, here, attempt to replicate English speech rather than English spelling. The sample text represents the pronunciation of General American.

Notable features

  • Type of script: alphabet
  • Direction of writing: left to right in horizontal lines
  • Used to write: English (General American or British RP)

The Enganagri alphabet

Enganagri alphabet

Notes

  • The vowel diacritics are written over the consonant which follows them. If vowels appear at the end of a word, the diacritics are written over the vowel carrier (as above). The vowel carrier changes in the case of non-rhoticized British RP vowels, to a larger version of the symbol for "schwa." The larger version can also be used in the case of words ending in simple "schwa."
  • Consonantal "r" has two forms: a full-sized form that is used to represent a single sound, and a smaller version that is attached to the base of other consonants when there is a consonant cluster. This is also attached to the vowel carrier in General American, to show the presence of that sound (in contrast to its absence in British RP words).
  • Consonantal "l" has two forms: a full-sized form that is used to represent a single sound, and a smaller version that is attached to the base of other consonants when there is a consonant cluster.

Sample text

Sample text in the Enganagari alphabet

Transliteration

"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood."
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

International Phonetic Alphabet and Enganagri Equivalents (English)

IPA symbols and their Enganagri equivalents

Date created and my name

Download a font for the Enganagri alphabet (TrueType, 5K)

Enganagri also appears on Simon Ager's website, OMNIGLOT.COM, here: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/enganagri.php