Lesson 1 of 45 min
What is உயிர் எழுத்து?
The letters that have their own life
Tamil calls its vowels உயிர் எழுத்து - literally "life letters", because they can be spoken on their own. There are twelve of them, and every other letter in Tamil borrows its sound from one of these twelve.
| Letter | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|
| அ | a | 🐿️ அணில் - squirrel |
| ஆ | aa | 🐐 ஆடு - goat |
| இ | i | 🍃 இலை - leaf |
| ஈ | ee | 🪰 ஈ - fly |
| உ | u | 🪨 உரல் - grinding stone |
| ஊ | oo | 🛝 ஊஞ்சல் - swing |
| எ | e | 🐁 எலி - mouse |
| ஏ | ae | 🪜 ஏணி - ladder |
| ஐ | ai | 5️⃣ ஐந்து - five |
| ஒ | o | 🐫 ஒட்டகம் - camel |
| ஓ | oa | 🛶 ஓடம் - boat |
| ஔ | au | 📜 ஔவையார் - Auvaiyar (poet) |
Six of the vowels are short (குறில்) and six are long (நெடில்). Say அ and ஆ one after the other and you can hear the difference: the second one is simply held longer.