Learn Shahmukhi
Shahmukhi is Punjabi written in the Perso-Arabic script, usually in the flowing Nastaliq style. It is the script of Punjabi in Pakistan, and of much of the classical Sufi poetry. If you already read Gurmukhi, you know the language; this page shows you how the same sounds are written.
Four things to know first
Right to left
Words and lines run from right to left. Numbers still run left to right.
Letters join
Most letters join to their neighbours and change shape at the start, middle and end of a word: ب becomes بـ ـبـ ـب.
Short vowels are left out
The short vowels a, i, u are usually not written. دل is just d-l; you read it as ਦਿਲ because you know the word.
Breath is a separate letter
Breathy sounds are written with ھ after the letter: ک + ھ = کھ is ਖ.
The letters
Each tile shows the letter on its own, its name, its sound, and (below the dashed line) the matching Gurmukhi.
Several letters, one sound
Shahmukhi keeps the original spelling of Arabic and Persian words, so some sounds can be written with more than one letter. Gurmukhi writes each of these sounds with a single letter.
| Sound | Gurmukhi | Shahmukhi letters |
|---|---|---|
| s | ਸ | س ، ث ، ص |
| z | ਜ਼ | ز ، ذ ، ض ، ظ |
| soft t | ਤ | ت ، ط |
| h | ਹ | ہ ، ح |
| k | ਕ | ک ، ق |
Vowels
Long vowels are written with three letters, each of which can stand for more than one sound. Short vowels can be shown with small marks above or below a letter, but everyday writing leaves them out.
| Shahmukhi | Can be read as | Example | In Gurmukhi |
|---|---|---|---|
| ا | ā (or short a at the start of a word) | کار | ਕਾਰ |
| و | o, ū, au, or the consonant v | لوک ، دور ، کون | ਲੋਕ, ਦੂਰ, ਕੌਣ |
| ی | ī, e, ai, or the consonant y | تیر ، شیر ، پیر | ਤੀਰ, ਸ਼ੇਰ, ਪੈਰ |
| ے | e or ai at the end of a word | دے ، ہے | ਦੇ, ਹੈ |
| ں | nasal sound at the end of a word | ماں | ਮਾਂ |
| ◌َ ◌ِ ◌ُ | short a, i, u (zabar, zer, pesh) | دِل ، سُکھ | ਦਿਲ, ਸੁੱਖ |
Read these words
Cover the Gurmukhi column and try reading the Shahmukhi first.
| Gurmukhi | Shahmukhi | Said as | Meaning |
|---|