page_title: Manchu alphabet
section_title: Method of teaching
hierarchical_section_title: Manchu alphabet / Method of teaching
context_page_description: The Manchu alphabet is the alphabet used to write the now nearly-extinct Manchu language. A similar script is used today by the Xibe people, who speak a language considered either as a dialect of Manchu or a closely related, mutually intelligible language. It is written vertically from top to bottom, with columns proceeding from left to right.
context_section_description: Despite the alphabetic nature of its script, Manchu was traditionally taught as a syllabary.  Like the Mongols, Manchu children were taught to memorize all the syllables in the Manchu language separately as they learned to write,
  dividing the syllables into twelve different classes,
  based on the final phonemes of the syllables, all of which ended in vowels. When learning the language, Manchus were taught to say right away "la, lo", etc., instead of saying "l, a — la"; "l, o — lo"; etc. As a result, the syllables contained in their syllabary do not contain all possible combinations that can be formed with their letters. They made, for instance, no such use of the consonants l, m, n and r as English; hence if the Manchu letters s, m, a, r and t were joined in that order, a Manchu would not pronounce them as "smart".
  Today, the opinion on whether it is alphabet or syllabic in nature is still split between different experts. In China, it is considered syllabic, and Manchu is still taught in this manner, while in the West it is treated like an alphabet.  The alphabetic approach is used mainly by foreigners who want to learn the language, as studying the Manchu script as a syllabary takes longer.
caption: Manju ("Manchu") in Manchu script