Reading Somali Words

Level 1

The five vowel letters have long counterparts: aa, ee, ii, oo, uu. The digraphs dh, kh, sh each represent one consonant.

How It Works

A doubled vowel represents a long vowel. Standard spelling doubles only bb, dd, gg, ll, mm, nn, rr for intense consonants. Two letters in a digraph work differently: dh represents one consonant and is never doubled in ordinary spelling.

Attached determiners can create doubled consonants. In buuggan cusub “this new book,” the article-related consonant assimilates to the noun's final g. Preserve gg as part of the complete written form.

The reference adds accents for high tone and special symbols for heavy vowels; ordinary text omits these. Capitals occur in names and commonly in language names, nationalities, months and weekdays. Standard spelling permits variation between ay/ey and aw/ow. The examples are reading fragments, with noun-phrase meanings rather than complete statements.

Examples (3)

  1. shaah kulul

    hot tea

    Reading fragment: sh is a digraph and aa marks length.

  2. dhalo yar

    a small bottle

    Reading fragment: dh represents one consonant.

  3. buuggan cusub

    this new book

    Reading fragment: uu marks length and gg an intense consonant.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Reading Somali WordsLevel 1