Zanabazar Square letter pha

The language being written controls its reading.

A transliteration writes a script’s sounds with another writing system. In Mongolian, 𑨟 is written as pa; in Sanskrit and Tibetan, it is pha. The h marks aspiration: a short puff of air after p. Both readings can be right.

What changes its role in a syllable?

Its built-in vowel and the language’s spelling rules shape the syllable.

A Zanabazar Square consonant normally carries an unwritten a vowel. A vowel sign changes that vowel. Mongolian uses a final-consonant mark to silence it at a syllable’s end; Sanskrit and Tibetan use a virama, a mark that suppresses the vowel, and can stack consonants into a cluster.

Where did Zanabazar Square come from?

Zanabazar developed the script in the late 17th century.

Named for Mongolian Buddhist leader Zanabazar, the script was used to write Mongolian, Sanskrit, and Tibetan. It draws on Tibetan script and the Brahmi model, where consonants carry a default vowel; Zanabazar also developed Soyombo.

It was once called Mongolian Square, a name that could also refer to Phags-pa, a separate vertical square script. Surviving examples include a block print from Zanabazar’s collected works and handwritten manuscript pages; the script was rediscovered in 1801.