The Esperanto Alphabet
Twenty-eight letters, each with a capital and a small form.
How It Works
Esperanto uses a 28-letter version of the Latin alphabet. It has no q, w, x or y. It adds six letters that carry a mark: a hat on ĉ ĝ ĥ ĵ ŝ and a small curve on ŭ.
| Plain letter | Marked letter | Example word |
|---|---|---|
| c | ĉ | ĉapelo (hat) |
| g | ĝ | ĝardeno (garden) |
| h | ĥ | ĥoro (choir) |
| j | ĵ | ĵurnalo (newspaper) |
| s | ŝ | ŝuo (shoe) |
| u | ŭ | aŭto (car) |
Each letter has a capital and a small form. The marked letters count as full letters, so a word with ĉ is spelled differently from the same word with c. In an alphabetical list, ĉ comes right after c, ĝ after g and ŭ after u.
Examples (5)
- En la ĝardeno de Ewa estas ĉapelo.
There is a hat in Ewa's garden.
Ĝ in ĝardeno and ĉ in ĉapelo are two of the six marked letters.
- Kenji legas ĵurnalon en Tokio.
Kenji is reading a newspaper in Tokyo.
Ĵ is the marked form of j.
- La aŭto de Amara estas nova.
Amara's car is new.
Ŭ comes after a vowel, here after a.
- Wei ŝatas la ĥoron.
Wei likes the choir.
Ĥ is the rarest of the marked letters.
- Pedro havas novajn ŝuojn.
Pedro has new shoes.
Ŝ is the marked form of s.
How It Connects
Related Patterns
- The Names of the Letters
The name of every letter, for spelling a word aloud.
Foundations - Letters ĉ, ĝ, ĵ and ŝThe Letters Ĉ, Ĝ, Ĵ and Ŝ
What four of the marked letters sound like.
Foundations - Letter ĥThe Letter Ĥ
The rough sound of ĥ.
Foundations - Typing ĉ ĝ ĥ ĵ ŝ ŭTyping the Six Letters
How to write the marked letters on a keyboard.
Foundations
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Practice The Esperanto Alphabet in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Esperanto lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
