Myanmar Letter Da

The Burmese da letter starts a syllable with a d sound.

Each Myanmar consonant has an inherent, or built-in, vowel; vowel signs and other marks shape the syllable around it. On Windows, the Myanmar Visual order keyboard maps Shift+K to ဒ; other layouts use different keys.

The script also writes Mon, Karen, Shan, Pali, and Sanskrit, so the language and word around the letter settle its reading.

Where does the Burmese letter ဒ come from?

Its writing tradition connects South India, Mon, and Myanmar.

A Brahmi-related script from South India was adopted for writing Mon about the eighth century. The first Myanmar-script inscription dates to the 11th century and uses an alphabet almost identical to Mon inscriptions.

Early writing served Buddhist and practical needs: Buddhist texts used Pali, an old language of Buddhist scripture, and stone inscriptions recorded gifts of land, buildings, and property. Earlier carved letters were square; rounded forms are traditionally linked to palm leaves, which can split under straight cuts. The Myazedi inscription, a stone record, presents Burmese, Mon, Pyu, and Pali together.