Kannada alphabet for kids ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ವರ್ಣಮಾಲೆ

Kannada alphabet chart with pictures

49 letters · tap 🔊 to hear each one.

Picture	Letter	Word	Meaning	Listen
	ಅ	ಅಮ್ಮ	mother	🔊
	ಆ	ಆನೆ	elephant	🔊
	ಇ	ಇಲಿ	mouse	🔊
	ಈ	ಈರುಳ್ಳಿ	onion	🔊
	ಉ	ಉಂಗುರ	ring	🔊
	ಊ	ಊಟ	meal	🔊
	ಋ	ಋಷಿ	sage	🔊
	ಎ	ಎಲೆ	leaf	🔊
	ಏ	ಏಣಿ	ladder	🔊
	ಐ	ಐದು	five	🔊
	ಒ	ಒಂಟೆ	camel	🔊
	ಓ	ಓದು	read	🔊
	ಔ	ಔಷಧಿ	medicine	🔊
	ಅಂ	ಅಂಗಡಿ	shop	🔊
	ಅಃ	ಅಃ	(sound only)	🔊
	ಕ	ಕಮಲ	lotus	🔊
	ಖ	ಖಡ್ಗ	sword	🔊
	ಗ	ಗಡಿಯಾರ	clock	🔊
	ಘ	ಘಂಟೆ	bell	🔊
	ಙ	ಙ	(sound only)	🔊
	ಚ	ಚಮಚ	spoon	🔊
	ಛ	ಛತ್ರಿ	umbrella	🔊
	ಜ	ಜಿಂಕೆ	deer	🔊
	ಝ	ಝರಿ	stream	🔊
	ಞ	ಞ	(sound only)	🔊
	ಟ	ಟೊಮೆಟೊ	tomato	🔊
	ಠ	ಕಂಠ	throat	🔊
	ಡ	ಡಬ್ಬಿ	box	🔊
	ಢ	ಢಕ್ಕೆ	drum	🔊
	ಣ	ಬಾಣ	arrow	🔊
	ತ	ತಬಲ	tabla	🔊
	ಥ	ರಥ	chariot	🔊
	ದ	ದನ	cow	🔊
	ಧ	ಧ್ವಜ	flag	🔊
	ನ	ನವಿಲು	peacock	🔊
	ಪ	ಪಟ	kite	🔊
	ಫ	ಫಲ	fruit	🔊
	ಬ	ಬಸ್	bus	🔊
	ಭ	ಭಾರತ	India	🔊
	ಮ	ಮರ	tree	🔊
	ಯ	ಯಂತ್ರ	machine	🔊
	ರ	ರೈಲು	train	🔊
	ಲ	ಲಡ್ಡು	laddu	🔊
	ವ	ವಜ್ರ	diamond	🔊
	ಶ	ಶಂಖ	conch	🔊
	ಷ	ಷಟ್ಕೋನ	hexagon	🔊
	ಸ	ಸಿಂಹ	lion	🔊
	ಹ	ಹಾವು	snake	🔊
	ಳ	ಕೋಳಿ	hen	🔊

This Kannada alphabet for kids page turns the classroom chart into a game. The ಕನ್ನಡ ವರ್ಣಮಾಲೆ (Kannada varnamale) appears letter by letter, each with a picture word such as ಇಲಿ (mouse) or ಕಮಲ (lotus). Tap a card to hear the letter and its word in clear audio, then say it in English too. When your child knows a few letters, switch to Find it, where Golu asks for one letter at a time, or Memory to match pairs.

What is the Kannada varnamale?

ವರ್ಣಮಾಲೆ means "garland of letters". It is the name Kannada teachers use for the alphabet. The letters are called ಅಕ್ಷರಗಳು (aksharagalu), and they are arranged in the same sound-based order used by many Indian scripts: first the vowels, then two special signs, then the consonants grouped by where the sound is made in the mouth.

How many letters are there in the Kannada varnamale?

The Kannada alphabets total 49 letters in the school chart used in Karnataka:

Some older books count 50 or 51 letters because they add rarely used sounds. For young children, the 49-letter chart is the one they will see in LKG and UKG.

Kannada vowels for kids with words

Most children start with the swaragalu. Here are the vowels with the same words your child hears in the game, and a simple English sound guide:

Notice the pairs: short ಎ and long ಏ, short ಒ and long ಓ. Kannada keeps short and long e and o apart, which Hindi does not, so children who know both scripts often find this a fun difference to spot.

Kannada consonants in their groups

The 34 consonants sit in five neat rows of five (the vargiya letters) followed by the rest. Saying a row aloud helps children feel where each sound comes from:

• Throat: ಕ ಖ ಗ ಘ ಙ, with ಕಮಲ (lotus) and ಗಡಿಯಾರ (clock)
• Palate: ಚ ಛ ಜ ಝ ಞ, with ಚಮಚ (spoon) and ಜಿಂಕೆ (deer)
• Tongue curled back: ಟ ಠ ಡ ಢ ಣ, with ಟೊಮೆಟೊ and ಡಬ್ಬಿ (box)
• Teeth: ತ ಥ ದ ಧ ನ, with ತಬಲ and ನವಿಲು (peacock)
• Lips: ಪ ಫ ಬ ಭ ಮ, with ಪಟ (kite) and ಮರ (tree)
• The rest: ಯ ರ ಲ ವ ಶ ಷ ಸ ಹ ಳ, with ರೈಲು (train), ಸಿಂಹ (lion) and ಹಾವು (snake)

Three letters, ಙ, ಞ and ಅಃ, rarely begin a word, so the game plays their sound alone. Words for ಠ, ಣ and ಳ have the letter in the middle, as in ಕಂಠ, ಬಾಣ and ಕೋಳಿ.

How to teach Kannada alphabets at home

Here is a gentle way to teach Kannada letters to kids, in a unique way that feels like play rather than homework:

1. Sound before shape. Sing the vowels as a Kannada alphabets song, ಅ ಆ ಇ ಈ, clapping once for each letter.
2. Two letters a week. Tap them in the game, find them on packets and signs, and make them with play dough or ragi flour.
3. Letter hunts. Bus boards, shop names and calendars in Karnataka are full of letters. Ask, "Can you find ಬ like ಬಸ್?"
4. Trace big, then small. Let your child trace a letter in the air, on your back, then in sand. Kannada letters are built from round loops, so large arm movements help before pencil work.
5. Play Find it. Two or three choices suit a four-year-old. Raise the age in Settings for more choices.

Kannada alphabets for colouring and a varnamale chart project are popular in UKG. Print this page for the tables, and let your child colour a letter each day.

What comes after the alphabet: kagunita and ottakshara

Once the letters are familiar, children learn the ಕಾಗುಣಿತ (kagunita, also called gunitakshara). This is how each consonant changes with a vowel sign: ಕ ಕಾ ಕಿ ಕೀ ಕು ಕೂ and so on. Many children meet it in UKG or class 1. After that come the ಒತ್ತಕ್ಷರ (ottakshara), the half-letters written below a consonant, as in ಅಮ್ಮ. These belong to class 1 and 2, so there is no hurry at age four.

ಪೋಷಕರಿಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ

ಕನ್ನಡ ವರ್ಣಮಾಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಒಟ್ಟು ನಲವತ್ತೊಂಬತ್ತು ಅಕ್ಷರಗಳಿವೆ: ಹದಿಮೂರು ಸ್ವರಗಳು, ಎರಡು ಯೋಗವಾಹಗಳು ಮತ್ತು ಮೂವತ್ತನಾಲ್ಕು ವ್ಯಂಜನಗಳು. ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಮೊದಲು ಸ್ವರಗಳನ್ನು ಹಾಡಿನ ರೂಪದಲ್ಲಿ ಕಲಿಸಿ, ನಂತರ ವ್ಯಂಜನಗಳನ್ನು ಪರಿಚಯಿಸಿ.

ಪ್ರತಿ ಅಕ್ಷರಕ್ಕೂ ಒಂದು ಚಿತ್ರ ಮತ್ತು ಪದ ಇರುವುದರಿಂದ ಮಗು ಸುಲಭವಾಗಿ ನೆನಪಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತದೆ. ಅಂಗಡಿಯ ಫಲಕ, ಬಸ್ಸಿನ ಹೆಸರು, ಪುಸ್ತಕದ ಮುಖಪುಟ ನೋಡಿದಾಗ ಅಕ್ಷರಗಳನ್ನು ಹುಡುಕುವ ಆಟ ಆಡಿ.

ಕಾಗುಣಿತ ಮತ್ತು ಒತ್ತಕ್ಷರಗಳನ್ನು ಆತುರವಿಲ್ಲದೆ ನಂತರ ಕಲಿಸಬಹುದು. ಮಗು ಖುಷಿಯಿಂದ ಕಲಿಯುವುದೇ ಮುಖ್ಯ.

For bilingual homes and families abroad

If your child already knows English letters, explain that Kannada letters stand for whole syllables: ಕ is "ka", not just "k". Children who also learn Hindi can compare charts, since the order is almost the same as the Hindi varnamala. In the US, UK and Gulf, weekend Kannada classes often begin with this exact chart, so a few minutes here each week gives your child a head start. See also English vowels for kids for the English side.

When your child is ready for more, try numbers in Kannada or animal names in Kannada, or go back to the Kannada learning hub.

How to use this page at home

Say it, then find it

Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: kannada words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.

Ten minutes is enough

Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.

Use both languages

Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.