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The Mizo alphabet (Mizo: Mizo hawrâwp, lit. 'Mizo letters') is the modern writing script for the Mizo language. It uses the Latin script based on the Hunterian transliteration originally developed by F.W. Savidge and J.H. Lorrain.
| Mizo alphabet Mizo hawrâwp | |
|---|---|
| Script type | |
| Creator | Frederick William Savidge, James Herbert Lorrain[1][2] |
| Languages | Mizo |
| Related scripts | |
Parent systems | |
Child systems | Hmar alphabet, Mara alphabet, Paite alphabet |
The foundations of the Mizo alphabet can be traced back to the work of Sir William Jones and Dr. John Wilson, who adapted the Latin script for writing the Mizo language. Influenced by Sydney Endle's methods and adopting the Hunterian System of Orthography, they created an early version of the Mizo alphabet in the 19th century.[3]
In 1893, J.H. Lorrain refined the alphabet during his time in Silchar. He introduced a new alphabet with 23 letters, which included a blend of vowels, consonants, and digraphs. The 1893 version of the alphabet was as follows:
- å, a, b, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, u, v, z, ch
This alphabet was used in the translation of the biblical passage the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) in 1896. An example from this translation reads:[4]
| 1893 Mizo letters | Modern Mizo letters |
|---|---|
11. Mî tûinemå fápá pahnih a nê. |
11. Mi tuin emaw fapa pahnih a nei. |
In 1898, J.H. Lorrain's Grammar and Dictionary of the Lushai Language was published. By this time, the alphabet had been expanded to 24 letters:
- a, aw, b, ch, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, ṭ, u, v, z
In addition to the letters used in the 1893 version, this alphabet included new vowel sounds and consonants. However, some letters, such as g and j, remained unused in the Mizo language and were kept for completeness.
Lorrain's work was further refined in 1940 when his Mizo Dictionary was published. The final Mizo alphabet consisted of 23 letters, with one important change: the letter ng was added to represent the "ng" sound, which had previously been written as an "n" and a "g". J was removed from the alphabet, as it was not used in the language. The final Mizo alphabet became:
- a, aw, b, ch, d, e, f, g, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, ṭ, u, v, z, ng
Edwin Rowlands, a Welsh missionary and scholar, joined the Mizo language efforts after learning the language. He felt that Lorrain’s alphabet was insufficient for fully capturing the sounds of Mizo. In 1901, Rowlands published the second edition of his Mizo Zir Tirna Bu (Mizo Language Book), which included the 25 letters used in the current Mizo alphabet:[5]
- a, aw, b, ch, d, e, f, g, ng, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, ṭ, u, v, z
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| Letter | Name (when pronounced) | |
|---|---|---|
| Northern | Southern | |
| A, a | á | á |
| Aw, aw | áw | áw |
| B, b | bí | bí |
| Ch, ch | cháw | cháw |
| D, d | dí | dí |
| E, e | é | é |
| F, f | éfì | éfì |
| G, g | ék | jí |
| Ng, ng | éng | énjí |
| H, h | éihchhì | héihchhì |
| I, i | í | í |
| J, j | jé | jé |
| K, ke | ké | ké |
| L, l | él | él |
| M, m | ém | ém |
| N, n | én | én |
| O, o | ó | ó |
| P, p | pí | pí |
| R, r | ár | ár |
| S, s | ésì | ésì |
| T, t | tí | tí |
| Ṭ, ṭ | ṭí | ṭí |
| U, u | ú/iú | ú |
| V, v | ví | ví |
| Z, z | zét/zí | zét |
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