Bengali alphabet for kids বাংলা বর্ণমালা

Bengali alphabet chart with pictures

50 letters · tap 🔊 to hear each one.

Picture	Letter	Word	Meaning	Listen
	অ	অজগর	python	🔊
	আ	আম	mango	🔊
	ই	ইঁদুর	mouse	🔊
	ঈ	ঈগল	eagle	🔊
	উ	উট	camel	🔊
	ঊ	ঊষা	dawn	🔊
	ঋ	ঋষি	sage	🔊
	এ	একতারা	one-string lute	🔊
	ঐ	ঐরাবত	Indra's elephant	🔊
	ও	ওল	elephant-foot yam	🔊
	ঔ	ঔষধ	medicine	🔊
	ক	কলা	banana	🔊
	খ	খরগোশ	rabbit	🔊
	গ	গরু	cow	🔊
	ঘ	ঘড়ি	clock	🔊
	ঙ	ব্যাঙ	frog	🔊
	চ	চশমা	glasses	🔊
	ছ	ছাতা	umbrella	🔊
	জ	জবা	hibiscus	🔊
	ঝ	ঝুড়ি	basket	🔊
	ঞ	ইঞ্জিন	engine	🔊
	ট	টিয়া	parrot	🔊
	ঠ	ঠোঙা	paper bag	🔊
	ড	ডাব	tender coconut	🔊
	ঢ	ঢাক	big drum	🔊
	ণ	হরিণ	deer	🔊
	ত	তরমুজ	watermelon	🔊
	থ	থালা	plate	🔊
	দ	দাঁত	tooth	🔊
	ধ	ধান	paddy	🔊
	ন	নৌকা	boat	🔊
	প	পাখি	bird	🔊
	ফ	ফুল	flower	🔊
	ব	বাঘ	tiger	🔊
	ভ	ভালুক	bear	🔊
	ম	মাছ	fish	🔊
	য	যাঁতা	hand mill	🔊
	র	রথ	chariot	🔊
	ল	লেবু	lemon	🔊
	শ	শসা	cucumber	🔊
	ষ	ষাঁড়	bull	🔊
	স	সাপ	snake	🔊
	হ	হাঁস	duck	🔊
	ড়	পাহাড়	hill	🔊
	ঢ়	আষাঢ়	monsoon month	🔊
	য়	ময়ূর	peacock	🔊
	ৎ	শরৎ	autumn	🔊
	ং	রং	colour	🔊
	ঃ	দুঃখ	sadness	🔊
	ঁ	চাঁদ	moon	🔊

The Bengali alphabet for kids, the বাংলা বর্ণমালা (bangla bornomala), has 50 letters: 11 স্বরবর্ণ (shorborno, vowels) and 39 ব্যঞ্জনবর্ণ (byanjonborno, consonants). This page shows every one with a picture word your child knows, like আ for আম (aam, mango) and ক for কলা (kola, banana). Tap a letter to hear it and its word, then play Find it or Memory.

How many letters are in the bangla bornomala? (koyta?)

This 11 + 39 count is what schools in West Bengal and Bangladesh teach today. It goes back to Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar's primer বর্ণপরিচয় (Borno Porichoy, 1855), the book that shaped how Bengali children learn to read. The last four consonants, ৎ ং ঃ ঁ, are small signs rather than full letters, so the game shows them inside words: শরৎ (autumn), রং (colour), দুঃখ (sadness) and চাঁদ (moon).

Shorborno: the 11 Bengali vowels with words

• অ অজগর python · আ আম mango · ই ইঁদুর mouse · ঈ ঈগল eagle
• উ উট camel · ঊ ঊষা dawn · ঋ ঋষি sage
• এ একতারা one-string lute · ঐ ঐরাবত Indra's elephant · ও ওল yam · ঔ ঔষধ medicine

A key point for families who also speak Hindi: Bengali অ is said "ô", like the o in "hot", not "a". So কলা is "kola", not "kala". The game says every letter the Bengali way, so let your child's ear lead.

Byanjonborno: consonants in five borgo

The first 25 consonants come in five rows called বর্গ (borgo), each made in a different part of the mouth. Chanting them row by row is how most Bengali children learn them:

Then come য র ল (যাঁতা, রথ, লেবু), the three s-letters শ ষ স (শসা, ষাঁড়, সাপ), হ (হাঁস), and the dotted letters ড় ঢ় য় (পাহাড়, আষাঢ়, ময়ূর).

Letters that sound the same

Some Bengali letters share a sound in everyday speech: শ ষ স are mostly all "sh", জ and য both sound "j", and ন and ণ both sound "n". Young children only need to hear and recognise them. Which one to use in spelling is a class 2 and 3 skill, learned word by word.

After the letters: kar, fola and juktakkhor

1. কার (kar) signs. Vowels join a consonant as signs: া (aa-kar), ি (i-kar), ী, ু, ূ, ৃ, ে (e-kar), ৈ, ো, ৌ. So ক becomes কা কি কী কু কূ. Notice that i-kar and e-kar sit before the letter but are said after it; this puzzles many beginners.
2. ফলা (fola). Small forms of য র ল ব ন ম that attach to a letter, as in ব্যাঙ (with jo-fola).
3. যুক্তাক্ষর (juktakkhor). Joined letters, like ক্ষ and ঞ্জ in ইঞ্জিন. Leave these until your child reads simple words well, usually around 6 or 7.

The matra line

Most Bengali letters hang from a line on top, the মাত্রা (matra). Some letters have a full matra (ক), some half (খ, গ) and some none (এ, ঐ, ও, ঔ, ঙ, ঞ). When your child writes, draw the letter first and the matra last. Sorting letters by "full, half, none" is a fun visual game for 5-year-olds.

How to teach the bornomala at home

• Shorborno first, one or two a day, always with the picture word: "আ for আম".
• One borgo a week. Chant "ko kho go gho ungo" like a rhyme.
• Trace big. In sand, rice flour or on a slate with chalk, as in hatekhori, before pencil and paper.
• Letter hunt. Find ক on a sweet box, a shop sign or the newspaper.
• Print and copy. Print this page from your browser; the letter list below the game makes a simple chart for tracing and handwriting practice.

At 3, listen and point. At 4, most children know the shorborno. At 5 to 6, they learn the byanjonborno and the kar signs and read words like জল, ফুল and মাছ. Use new letters in words on animals name in Bengali and fruits name in Bengali. Children who also learn Hindi can compare with the Hindi varnamala: the order is the same, the shapes and some sounds differ. For counting practice with Bangla digits, try numbers in Bengali.

অভিভাবকদের জন্য

বর্ণমালা শেখাতে তাড়াহুড়ো করবেন না। আগে এগারোটি স্বরবর্ণ: অ, আ, ই, ঈ। প্রতিটি অক্ষরের সঙ্গে একটা ছবি আর একটা শব্দ বলুন, যেমন আ-তে আম।

তারপর ব্যঞ্জনবর্ণ, এক এক বর্গ করে: ক খ গ ঘ ঙ। বালিতে বা স্লেটে বড় করে অক্ষর লিখে দেখান, শিশুকে আঙুল দিয়ে বোলাতে দিন।

অক্ষর চেনা হলে আ-কার, ই-কার শেখান: কা, কি, কী। শিশু ভুল করলেও চেষ্টার প্রশংসা করুন। এই খেলা কখনও "ভুল" বলে না।

Now do it for real

When the screen goes off, do something with your hands. Try 🥣 Sink or float? — an easy science experiment for ages 2-6, with every step read aloud in your language. You will need a big bowl of water, a spoon, a leaf, a coin, a bottle cap, a stone; nothing that needs a trip to a shop.

There are 56 more on the things to do at home page, and free printable worksheets if you would rather have something on paper. Ten minutes on a screen and twenty minutes off it is a good shape for a day at this age.

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