Manchu alphabet

The **Manchu alphabet** is used to write the endangered Manchu language. The Xibe people also use a similar script, called Xibe script, which is considered either a dialect of Manchu or a closely related language. This alphabet is written vertically from top to bottom, with columns going from left to right.

## History

In the 1800s, there were three ways to write Manchu: standard writing, semi-cursive writing , and cursive writing. The semi-cursive writing  had letters closer together, while cursive writing had rounded tails.

The Manchu alphabet was also used to write Chinese. For example, a book called "Manchu: a Textbook for Reading Documents" shows how Chinese sounds are written in Manchu letters. This helps the Xibe language borrow some words. Some books have Chinese words written with Manchu letters. The Manchu versions of the Thousand Character Classic and Dream of the Red Chamber are just Manchu writings of all the Chinese letters.

In a book made by the Qianlong Emperor, the Manchu alphabet is used for Evenki (Solon) words. In another book, also made by the Qianlong Emperor, the Manchu alphabet is used to write down Tibetan and Chagatai (related to Uyghur) words.

## Alphabets

|colspan="4"|Characters|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|Transliteration|rowspan="2"|Notes||||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|||||||A second final form is used after  ( ) and  ( ).|||||||
|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||A second final form is used after  ( ) and  ( ).|||
|||The undotted medial form is used after  and before  and . The final form is used after  ( ). A second final form is used after  ( ),  ( ), and  ( ).|||||||||||
||rowspan="2"|||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|The second isolated form serves as genitive case marker. The second medial form is used after vowels.||
|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|The bow-less final form is used in single-syllable words only.|
|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|The dotless medial form is used after . The bow-less final form is used in single-syllable words only.||
||dotted||||||||||||
|||||||Denotes **' after **' [qʰ], **' [q], **' [χ].|||||||
|||||||Used in Chinese loanwords.|||||||
|||||||Used in Chinese loanwords.|||||||
|rowspan="2"|—|rowspan="2"|||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|The dotted form is used before vowels; undotted form before consonants. A dotted final form is used in some words of chinese origin.|
|—|—|||||The medial form is used before consonants.|||||||
|rowspan="3"|—|rowspan="2"|||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|The undotted medial form is used before __; dotted form before consonants.|
||||||Initial and medial forms are used before __.||||||||
|rowspan="2"|—|||—|||Used before __.||||||
|||—|||Used before __.||||||||
|rowspan="2"|—|||—|||Used before __.||||||
|||—|||Used before __.||||||||
|—|||||||||||||
|—|||—||||||||||
|—|||||,  before||||||||
|—|||—||,  before||||||||
|rowspan="3"|—|||—|rowspan="3"||rowspan="3"||Used before __.||||
|—|||Medial form is used before consonants.||||||||||
|||—|Used before __.||||||||||
|rowspan="2"|—|||rowspan="2"|—|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||Used before __.|||
|||Used before __.|||||||||||
|—||||||Initial and final forms usually exist in foreign words.|||||||
|—|||||||||||||
|—|||—||,  before||||||||
|—|||—||,  before||||||||
|—|||—||||||||||
|—||||||Initial and final forms exist mostly in foreign words.|||||||
|rowspan="2"|—|||rowspan="2"|—|rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"||rowspan="2"|First initial and medial forms are used before **'; second initial and medial forms are used before **'.||
|—|||—||, -||||||||
|—|||—|||Used for Chinese k [kʰ]. Used before __.|||||||
|—|||—|||Used for Chinese g [k]. Used before __.|||||||
|—|||—|||Used in Chinese h [x]. Used before __.|||||||
|—|||—|||Used in Chinese c [t͡sʰ].|||||||
|—||||||Used in Chinese z [t͡s].|||||||
|—|||—|||Used in Chinese r [ʐ].|||||||
|—|||—|||Used in Chinese ch [tʂʰ] and chi/c'y [tʂʰɨ]|||||||
|—||||||Used in Chinese zh [tʂ] and zhi/j'y [tʂɨ]|||||||

## Infobox (writing system)

- **name**: Manchu script
- **altname**:
_manju hergen_
- **languages**: Manchu language, Manchu
Xibe language, Xibe
- **type**: Alphabet
- **fam1**: Egyptian hieroglyphs
- **fam2**: Proto-Sinaitic alphabet
- **fam3**: Phoenician alphabet
- **fam4**: Aramaic alphabet
- **fam5**: Syriac alphabet
- **fam6**: Sogdian alphabet
- **fam7**: Old Uyghur alphabet
- **fam8**: Mongolian script
- **sample**: Harvard drs 45809275 正紅旗奏摺檔 v.37.pdf
- **caption**: 18th century manuscript
- **imagesize**: 250px