Gujarati letter Dda

Say d with your voice on and the tongue tip curled back.

That is the Gujarati retroflex d; Gujarati distinguishes it from દ, made with the tongue at the teeth. Latin transliteration writes ડ as ḍ; ઢ adds a puff of breath at the same tongue position.

A bare ડ carries an inherent vowel, supplied by the writing system when no vowel mark is added. A vowel sign changes the syllable; virama ્ cancels the vowel so ડ can join another consonant.

How did ડ become part of Gujarati writing?

Gujarati writing developed from Nagari through regional forms.

A faster local hand dropped Nagari's headline and was used for letters and accounts. The earliest known Gujarati-script document is a handwritten manuscript of Adi Parva, dated around 1592.

Gujarati and Devanagari are related northern Indian scripts, but their letters have different shapes. Gujarati script is also used to write Kutchi and has appeared in Parsi religious writing.

How do I type ડ on an English keyboard?

Choose a Gujarati phonetic keyboard or InScript layout, then select the letter.

Phonetic keyboards may offer Gujarati candidates when you enter ḍa or Da. Some use uppercase D for retroflex letters; lowercase d may produce dental દ, and suggestions vary by keyboard.

InScript is a fixed keyboard layout: switch to Gujarati and use the mapped key. Add virama ્ when ડ must join another consonant without its inherent vowel.