Education
Learn the Rohingya language
From the Hanifi script to everyday words and phrases — a self-guided introduction to the language of the Rohingya people.
In 10 minutes
Skim the Hanifi alphabet below and learn the first ten letters.
In an hour
Learn all 28 letters, the vowel signs, and the digits.
In a week
Add the vocabulary and practice full phrases with the translator.
The script
About the Hanifi Rohingya alphabet
Rohingya has been written in Arabic, Burmese, and Latin letters for centuries. In the 1980s, Maulana Mohammad Hanif designed a dedicated alphabet — right-to-left and cursive, like Arabic — that fits the sounds of the language.
Origin
Devised in Rakhine State in the 1980s by Maulana Mohammad Hanif and colleagues so Rohingya could be written phonetically in its own alphabet.
Structure
28 consonants, 7 vowel signs, 4 tone marks, and 10 digits. Written right-to-left with joined, cursive letters.
Unicode
Added in Unicode 11.0 (2018) in the block U+10D00–U+10D3F. Fully supported on modern phones, laptops, and the web.
The Hanifi alphabet
All 28 consonant letters. Tap through each one — the Rohingyalish column shows how the same letter is written on a normal keyboard.
Vowels, tones & digits
Vowel signs
Tone marks
Rohingya is tonal — the same word can mean different things depending on pitch.
Digits 0–9
Latin orthography
Rohingyalish — Rohingya on a normal keyboard
Rohingyalish uses the Latin alphabet so anyone with an English keyboard or a phone can write Rohingya. It's the most common way Rohingya appears online today.
| Letter | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a | a as in 'father' | aañí — I |
| b | b as in 'book' | baaf — father |
| c | ch as in 'church' | caabi — key |
| ch | aspirated ch | chikkil — hard |
| d | d as in 'day' | duk — pain |
| e | e as in 'bed' | ekku — one |
| f | f as in 'fish' | fua — son |
| g | g as in 'go' | gorom — hot |
| h | h as in 'house' | hañsa — true |
| i | ee as in 'see' | ita — brick |
| j | j as in 'jam' | jaga — place |
| k | k as in 'kite' | kitab — book |
| l | l as in 'like' | loo — blood |
| m | m as in 'moon' | maa — mother |
| n | n as in 'nose' | naam — name |
| ñ | nasal ny | añí — I |
| o | o as in 'go' | ora — them |
| p | p as in 'pen' | pañí — water |
| q | uvular k | qoran — Qur'an |
| r | trilled r | roilla — village |
| s | s as in 'sun' | sagor — sea |
| sh | sh as in 'shoe' | shohor — city |
| t | t as in 'stop' | tara — them |
| u | oo as in 'moon' | ustad — teacher |
| w | w as in 'wet' | wakot — time |
| y | y as in 'yes' | yian — here |
| z | z as in 'zoo' | zomin — land |
Vocabulary
Everyday words
A starter vocabulary grouped by theme. English, Rohingyalish, Hanifi, and a rough pronunciation guide.
Greetings
Family
Numbers 1–10
Food & drink
Time & places
Speak
Common phrases
Full sentences for greetings, introductions, and daily life.
How to learn
A four-step path
Learn the letters
Spend a session with the 28 Hanifi consonants above. Say the name of each one aloud.
Add vowels & tones
Practice attaching vowel signs to A, and try the four tone marks on a single vowel.
Build vocabulary
Pick one vocabulary theme per day. Say each word in both Rohingyalish and Hanifi.
Speak in sentences
Try the common phrases with a friend, or type them into the translator to hear alternatives.
Ask the AI Assistant
Practice with a patient, calm tutor — ask about grammar, history, or how to say something.
Translate anything
Type in English and see it in Rohingya (Rohingyalish). Great for drilling new phrases.
Glossary
A handful of terms that appear throughout this site.
- Arakan / Rakhine State
- The western coastal region of Myanmar where the Rohingya have historically lived.
- Hanifi Rohingya
- The right-to-left, cursive alphabet devised by Maulana Mohammad Hanif in the 1980s. Encoded in Unicode 11.0 (2018).
- Rohingyalish
- A Latin-script orthography for writing Rohingya, widely used on phones and social media.
- 1982 Citizenship Law
- Burmese law that ties citizenship to 135 'national races' — a list excluding the Rohingya.
- Mrauk-U
- The independent Arakanese kingdom (1430–1784) where Muslims served at every level of the court.
- Tatmadaw
- The official name of Myanmar's armed forces.
- Cox's Bazar
- District in southeastern Bangladesh hosting the world's largest Rohingya refugee settlement.
- ICJ
- International Court of Justice — the UN's principal judicial organ, currently hearing The Gambia v. Myanmar.
- IIMM
- Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar — UN body preserving evidence of serious crimes.
Reading list
- Thant Myint-U — The Hidden History of Burma
- Michael Charney — A History of Modern Burma
- Azeem Ibrahim — The Rohingyas: Inside Myanmar's Hidden Genocide
- Francis Wade — Myanmar's Enemy Within
- Moshe Yegar — The Muslims of Burma
- OHCHR Fact-Finding Mission reports (2018, 2019)
Test yourself
Rohingya history & language quiz
A quick check of what you've learned. No score is stored.
10-question warmup