A consonant on its own says "a". To make it say anything else, Kannada adds a small sign to it. To join two consonants with no vowel between them, it writes the second one underneath the first.
Vowel signs
Take ಕ (ka). In what follows a doubled letter means a long vowel: aa, ii, uu, ee, oo. Add the signs and it becomes ಕಾ (kaa), ಕಿ (ki), ಕೀ (kii), ಕು (ku), ಕೂ (kuu), ಕೆ (ke), ಕೇ (kee), ಕೈ (kai), ಕೊ (ko), ಕೋ (koo) and ಕೌ (kau). The same signs go on every consonant, so learning them once on ಕ is learning them for the whole script. A few letters change shape slightly when a sign is added; your eye soon gets used to them.
Joined letters
In ಅಕ್ಕ (akka, elder sister) there are two k sounds with no vowel between them. Kannada writes the first ಕ in full and the second as a small mark underneath it. Most consonants have such a mark, and many of them look like a smaller copy of the letter. ಅಮ್ಮ (amma, mother) works the same way with ಮ.
Look closely
In ಅಕ್ಕಿ (akki, rice), the ಇ sign sits on the top ಕ, but you say it after the small ಕ underneath: k, k, then i. A vowel sign on a joined letter always belongs to the last sound in it.
Two small signs that follow a letter
A small circle after a letter, ಂ, adds a nasal sound, as in ಅಂಗಡಿ (angadi, shop). Two small circles, ಃ, appear mostly in words that came from Sanskrit. Both are written after the letter, on the same line.
Try this today
- Write ಕ with every vowel sign, in order.
- Do the same with ಮ, and notice which signs look different.
- Find one joined letter on a sign or a packet in your kitchen.