Myanmar (Burmese)

Q: What type of writing system is Myanmar (Burmese)?

Myanmar (Burmese) is an Abugida used in the Southeast Asian region. It reads Left-to-right.

Q: How many languages use the Myanmar (Burmese) script?

4 languages use the Myanmar (Burmese) script according to Unicode CLDR data. These languages are spoken by approximately 33M people combined.

Q: What direction does Myanmar (Burmese) read?

Myanmar (Burmese) is written Left-to-right, meaning text flows from left to right.

မြန်မာအက္ခရာ

Mymr Left-to-right Living Abugida Southeast Asian

Sample Text

မင်္ဂလာပါ

About Myanmar (Burmese)

The Myanmar script (also called Burmese script) is a circular, rounded abugida used to write Burmese, Shan, Karen, Mon, and many other languages of Myanmar. It descends from the Mon script, which derives from the Brahmi script of ancient India.

Myanmar script is written left-to-right and is notable for its oval shapes, which evolved because early writing was done on palm leaves — angular strokes would have torn the leaf. The script has a complex system of medial consonants, vowel diacritics, and tone markers.

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

Script Family & Lineage

Ancestor Chain

Brahmi › Myanmar (Burmese)

Languages Using Myanmar (Burmese) 4

Burmese မြန်မာ Shan တႆး kht mnw

Frequently Asked Questions

What type of writing system is Myanmar (Burmese)?

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

What direction does Myanmar (Burmese) read?

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

How many languages use the Myanmar (Burmese) script?

4 languages use Myanmar (Burmese) according to Unicode CLDR data. Together these languages are spoken by approximately 33M people worldwide.

When was the Myanmar (Burmese) script created?

The Myanmar (Burmese) script originated around 1050 CE.

Does Myanmar (Burmese) have uppercase and lowercase letters?

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

Compare Myanmar (Burmese) With Another Script

Direction, characters, languages — side by side.

Key Facts

ISO Code: Mymr
ISO Number: 350
Script Type: Abugida
Direction: Left-to-right
Status: Living
Region: Southeast Asian
Introduced: 1050 CE
Languages: 4
Total Speakers: ~33M

Script Properties

Has Case: No
Cursive: No
Vowels: inherent