Ahom letter nga

It spells the “ng” sound at the end of “sing.” This velar nasal, written /ŋ/ in phonetic notation, is made with the back of the tongue near the soft palate. In Tai Ahom, it is a consonant within words.

If 𑜂 arrives by itself, read it as a letter sample or Ahom-writing reference. The surrounding word or text is needed to translate it.

How did the Ahom script develop?

It served Tai Ahom and developed within wider Tai-script traditions. Ahom manuscripts preserve chronicles, word lists, ritual and mantra texts, divination (seeking signs about the future), and astrology. 𑜂 is one consonant in that writing system, not the name of a particular subject.

The oldest surviving Ahom examples include the Sadiya Snake Pillar inscription and coins from the sixteenth century. Ahom is an evolved script related to Tai Le and Khamti. Comparative research places the wider Lik Tai (Tai-script) tradition in Moeng Maw between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries and points to a Burmese prototype from Pagan, a historic Burmese kingdom.

Ahom language use declined from the late 17th century and was probably no longer a first language in Assam by around 1800. Priests continued religious use of the script, and revival work has continued since at least 1920.

Why does Ahom nga look different?

Manuscript forms and font support can change the shape you see. Ahom manuscripts preserve variant letter forms. A vowel sign is encoded after 𑜂 even when a font displays it above or around the consonant; without an Ahom-capable font and software that positions marks, letters or vowel signs may appear missing or misplaced.