{"id":16,"date":"2026-05-11T15:50:53","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T14:50:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/moagml\/front-matter\/introduction\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T12:23:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:23:52","slug":"introduction","status":"publish","type":"front-matter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/moagml\/front-matter\/introduction\/","title":{"raw":"Introduction","rendered":"Introduction"},"content":{"raw":"All writing systems in India are based on the Brahmi script, the first evidence of which is the group of inscriptions by King Ashoka in the third century BCE. Malayalam has been written in several scripts, including Brahmi, Vatteluttu, Grantha, and modern Malayalam scripts beginning in roughly the ninth century CE.\r\n\r\nFor English speakers, the Malayalam writing system, or script, may look intimidating. It\u2019s not really. It works a little differently and requires some memorization, but the script is\u00a0phonetic<\/strong>, meaning that you say it as you write it (mostly!), and\u00a0syllabic<\/strong>, meaning that it\u2019s based on an alphabet and the syllables you can make with an alphabet. With some hard work, you can learn the script within a week and never look back.\r\n\r\nThere are four types of letters or syllables in Malayalam: initial vowels, consonants, dependent vowels added to consonants, and combining consonants for conjunct sounds. That means there are three tricky parts about learning the Malayalam script for English readers.\u00a0 1) If a vowel begins a word, you must use its\u00a0initial vowel<\/strong>\u00a0form.\u00a0 When a vowel occurs in the middle of a word, you must use its\u00a0dependent vowel\u00a0<\/strong>form. 2)\u00a0Consonants<\/strong>\u00a0always have an inherent a-sound, unless they are marked with a different dependent vowel or \u201ccut off\u201d with the special sign that looks like small crescent, for example \u0d24\u0d4d \u0d32\u0d4d, or other marker. 3) For some clusters of consonants (str, pl, kr, ty, etc.) you will have to recognize and use a few special\u00a0combining consonant<\/strong>\u00a0forms. This guide covers the modern or reformed Malayalam script, established in the 1970s to facilitate typing and computer entry.\r\n\r\n
\r\n\r\nLet\u2019s learn the initial vowels first. The chart below is also the alphabetical order for Malayalam vowels. Rounded letters are characteristic of most South Indian language scripts and you will gradually get used to writing with lots of curves. The Roman letter equivalents indicate that most vowels have both a short and a long version. Click each letter below to see a clip showing how each should be written by hand.\r\n
\r\n
\r\n\r\n