Telugu Alphabet

Telugu alphabet is an essential component of the Telugu script, which is used to write the Telugu language. Telugu is spoken by about 96 million people, is the most widely spoken member of the Dravidian language family, and one of the twenty-two scheduled languages of the Republic of India. Telugu is one of the six languages designated as a classical language by the Government of India.

Structure of  Telugu Alphabet

The Telugu alphabet, renowned for its extensive composition, surpasses all other Indian languages in its array of characters. A total of 56 letters, comprising 18 vowels and 38 consonants (with 2 vowels and 2 consonants removed), form its foundation.

The core Telugu alphabet is composed of 52 letters.

Telugu Achchulu (Vowels)

Each Telugu Vowel has both an independent form and a diacritic form used with consonants to create syllables. Telugu consists of 16 vowels are following.

Telugu Vowels	Pronunciation	Typing Guidance on Google Input
అ (a)	a	Type “a”
ఆ (aa)	aa	Type “aa”
ఇ (i)	i	Type “i”
ఈ (ii)	ii	Type “ii”
ఉ (u)	u	Type “u”
ఊ (uu)	uu	Type “uu”
ఋ (ru)	ru	Type “ru”
ౠ (rū)	rū	Type “rū”
ఎ (e)	e	Type “e”
ఏ (ee)	ee	Type “ee”
ఐ (ai)	ai	Type “ai”
ఒ (o)	o	Type “o”
ఓ (oo)	oo	Type “oo”
ఔ (au)	au	Type “au”
అం (am)	am	Type “am”
అః (aha)	aha	Type “aha”

Telugu Hallulu (Consonants)

Consonants all have an inherent vowel. Telugu alphabets consists of 36 consonants are given followings.

Telugu Consonants	Pronunciation	Typing Guidance on Google Input
క (ka)	ka	Type “ka”
ఖ (kha)	kha	Type “kha”
గ (ga)	ga	Type “ga”
ఘ (gha)	gha	Type “gha”
ఙ (nga)	nga	Type “nga”
చ (ca)	ca	Type “ca”
ఛ (cha)	cha	Type “cha”
జ (ja)	ja	Type “ja”
ఝ (jha)	jha	Type “jha”
ఞ (nya)	nya	Type “nya”
ట (tta)	tta	Type “tta”
ఠ (ttha)	ttha	Type “ttha”
డ (dda)	dda	Type “dda”
ఢ (ddha)	ddha	Type “ddha”
ణ (nna)	nna	Type “nna”
త (ta)	ta	Type “ta”
థ (tha)	tha	Type “tha”
ద (da)	da	Type “da”
ధ (ddha)	ddha	Type “ddha”
న (na)	na	Type “na”
ప (pa)	pa	Type “pa”
ఫ (pha)	pha	Type “pha”
బ (ba)	ba	Type “ba”
భ (bha)	bha	Type “bha”
మ (ma)	ma	Type “ma”
య (ya)	ya	Type “ya”
ర (ra)	ra	Type “ra”
ల (la)	la	Type “la”
వ (va)	va	Type “va”
శ (sa)	sa	Type “sa”
ష (sha)	sha	Type “sha”
స (sa)	sa	Type “sa”
హ (ha)	ha	Type “ha”
ళ (la)	la	Type “la”
క్ష (ksha)	ksha	Type “ksha”
ఱ (Ra)	Ra	Type “Ra”

Telugu Removed Letters

Yet, several letters are earmarked for removal due to shifting linguistic trends. The “Tolaginchina Aksharaalu” (Removed Letters) include:

Achchulu (Vowels): ఌ ౡ

Hallulu (Consonants): ౘ ౙ

The “Tolaginchabotunna Aksharaalu” (Proposed Letters for Removal) are:

Achchulu (Vowels): ౠ

Hallulu (Consonants): ఙ

This process of removal aims to address words lost over time due to influences like Sanskrit, Urdu, and English. However, some letters’ removal, such as ఱ and శ, seems questionable, as certain words, like “గుఱ్ఱం” (Gurram for Horse), continue in use. Preservation of letters like శ, ష, and స, and their distinctions, is crucial, ensuring the language’s essence isn’t diluted.

Telugu Guninthalu | తెలుగు గుణింతములు

The Telugu alphabet’s richness extends further through “Guninthalu” (Vowel Combinations), where each consonant pairs with each vowel to craft over 600 unique words. Amidst this vibrant interplay of letters lies the soul of the Telugu language.

Here’s a small sample of Guninthalu:

Consonant	Vowel	Consonant + Vowel Combination
క (ka)	అ (a)	క (ka)
	ఆ (aa)	కా (kaa)
	ఇ (i)	కి (ki)
	ఈ (ii)	కీ (kii)
	ఉ (u)	కు (ku)
	ఊ (uu)	కూ (kuu)
	ఋ (ru)	కృ (kru)
	ౠ (rū)	కౄ (krū)
	ఎ (e)	కె (ke)
	ఏ (ee)	కే (kee)
	ఐ (ai)	కై (kai)
	ఒ (o)	కొ (ko)
	ఓ (oo)	కో (koo)
	ఔ (au)	కౌ (kau)
	అం (am)	కం (kam)
	అః (aha)	కః (kah)

Learn More: Telugu Numbers