Devanagari (Nagari)

Q: What type of writing system is Devanagari (Nagari)?

Devanagari (Nagari) is an Abugida used in the South Asian region. It reads Left-to-right.

Q: How many languages use the Devanagari (Nagari) script?

61 languages use the Devanagari (Nagari) script according to Unicode CLDR data. These languages are spoken by approximately 810M people combined.

Q: What direction does Devanagari (Nagari) read?

Devanagari (Nagari) is written Left-to-right, meaning text flows from left to right.

देवनागरी

Deva Left-to-right Living Abugida South Asian

Sample Text

नमस्ते दुनिया

About Devanagari (Nagari)

Devanagari is an abugida — each consonant carries an inherent vowel sound that can be changed or suppressed with diacritics. It is used to write Hindi, the most widely spoken language in India, as well as Sanskrit, Marathi, Nepali, Maithili, and several other South Asian languages.

The script is written left-to-right and is characterized by a distinctive horizontal line (mātrā) that runs along the top of letters and connects them. Devanagari descended from the Brahmi script and is closely related to Bengali, Gujarati, and other Indic scripts.

Data sourced from the ISO 15924 registry, Unicode CLDR, and the Unicode Character Database.

Script Family & Lineage

Ancestor Chain

Brahmi › Devanagari (Nagari)

Descended Scripts

Modi, Moḍī

Languages Using Devanagari (Nagari) 61

Angika Awadhi Bhojpuri भोजपुरी Bodo बर’ Braj Dogri डोगरी Fiji Hindi Gondi Haryanvi हरियाणवी Hindi हिन्दी Kangri कांगड़ी Kashmiri کٲشُر Konkani कोंकणी Kurukh Magahi Maithili मैथिली Marathi मराठी Marwari Nepali नेपाली Newari Rajasthani राजस्थानी Sindhi سنڌي bap bfy bhb bhi bjj btv dty gbm gvr hne hoc hoj jml kfr kfy khn knn lif mgp mrd mtr noe rjs sck srx suz swv taj tdg tdh thl thq thr tkt unr unx wbr wtm xsr

Frequently Asked Questions

What type of writing system is Devanagari (Nagari)?

Devanagari (Nagari) is an Abugida. Abugidas (alphasyllabaries) use consonant characters with an inherent vowel modified by diacritics.

What direction does Devanagari (Nagari) read?

Devanagari (Nagari) is written Left-to-right, the same direction as most European scripts.

How many languages use the Devanagari (Nagari) script?

61 languages use Devanagari (Nagari) according to Unicode CLDR data. Together these languages are spoken by approximately 810M people worldwide.

When was the Devanagari (Nagari) script created?

The Devanagari (Nagari) script originated around 1200 CE.

Does Devanagari (Nagari) have uppercase and lowercase letters?

Devanagari (Nagari) does not have separate uppercase and lowercase forms. Each consonant carries an inherent vowel sound that is modified by diacritical marks.

Compare Devanagari (Nagari) With Another Script

Direction, characters, languages — side by side.

Key Facts

ISO Code: Deva
ISO Number: 315
Script Type: Abugida
Direction: Left-to-right
Status: Living
Region: South Asian
Introduced: 1200 CE
Languages: 61
Total Speakers: ~810M