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Punjabi basics — the script, sounds and first steps
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The starting point: the Gurmukhi, your first words, and the honest answer to where to begin. Gurmukhi has 35 core letters — the ਪੈਂਟੀ ਅਖਰ (paintī akhar, 'the 35'). It runs left to right with no headline bar, and its letters look rounder than Devanagari. Six dotted letters (ਸ਼ ਖ਼ ਗ਼ ਜ਼ ਫ਼ ਲ਼) cover Persian sounds, and nasalization is marked with ਬਿੰਦੀ (ਂ) and ਟਿੱਪੀ (ੰ): ਮਾਂ (mān, mother) needs its bindi — drop it and the word breaks. Across the border, Pakistani Punjabi is written in Shahmukhi (Perso-Arabic) — same language, different script. Punjabi is tonal: ਘ ਝ ਢ ਧ ਭ and ਹ colour the pitch of nearby vowels — listen more than you read at first.
The alphabet at a glance
The Gurmukhi script has 10 vowels and 41 consonants. The full tables with sounds are on the pronunciation page — learn to recognise them before you memorise any words.
Your first five words
| English | Hindi | Punjabi | Say it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hello! (Sikh greeting) | सत श्री अकाल | ਸਤਿ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਅਕਾਲ! | Sat Srī Akāl! |
| 'God is truth' — the standard hello, all day, for everyone | |||
| How are you? | आप कैसे हैं? | ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਹੋ? | Tusīn kiven ho? |
| ਕੀ ਹਾਲ ਹੈ (kī hāl hai) is the casual 'how's it going' | |||
| I'm fine | मैं ठीक हूँ | ਮੈਂ ਠੀਕ ਹਾਂ | Main ṭhīk hān |
| What is your name? | आपका नाम क्या है? | ਤੁਹਾਡਾ ਨਾਮ ਕੀ ਹੈ? | Tuhāḍā nām kī hai? |
| My name is … | मेरा नाम … है | ਮੇਰਾ ਨਾਮ … ਹੈ | Merā nām … hai |
The order to learn in
- Script + sounds — Punjabi is phonetic: learn the letters and you can read anything.
- Greetings + pronouns — say hello, introduce yourself, ask where.
- Numbers 1–20 — prices, time and quantities unlock immediately.
- Word order + present tense — one pattern (ਮੈਂ ਰੋਟੀ ਖਾਂਦਾ ਹਾਂ।) builds a thousand sentences.
- Topics (food, travel, shopping) — learn what your life needs first.