The Sounds of Sanskrit, Bengali and Hindi
In the charts below, both Bengali and Hindi are pronounced as they are in Sanskrit, except where otherwise noted.
Vowels
| Sanskrit Pronunciation | Bengali Pronunciation | Hindi Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| a – as in 'about' | pronounced in two ways: a as in the British pronunciation of hot1 or ô as in 'sofa' | same as Sanskrit |
| ā – as in 'father' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| i – as in 'see' | as in 'hit' | same as Sanskrit |
| ī – as in 'see' but pronounced longer | same as 'i' | same as Sanskrit |
| u – as in 'mood' | as in 'put' | same as Sanskrit |
| ū – as in 'mood' but pronounced longer | same as 'u' | same as Sanskrit |
| ṛ – as in 'rip' and sometimes as in 'reed' (the 'r' sound should be slightly trilled) | pronounced like 'ri' in 'trick' | same as Sanskrit |
| e – as in French 'café' | similar to Sanskrit, but sometimes more like 'a' in 'day' | same as Sanskrit |
| ai – as in 'high' | as in 'boy' | as in 'hen' |
| o – as in 'sofa' | as in 'go' or 'boat' | same as Sanskrit |
| au – as in 'now' | the sounds 'o' and 'u' joined together | the sounds 'a' and 'u' joined together |
Consonants
The Sanskrit alphabet is grouped according to the place of articulation in the mouth.
| Sanskrit | Bengali | Hindi |
|---|---|---|
| Velar | ||
| ka – as in 'skit' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| kha – aspirated form of 'ka' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ga – as in 'god' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| gha – aspirated form of 'ga' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ṅ – as in 'ink' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| Palatal | ||
| ca – as in 'cheap' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| cha – aspirated form of 'ca' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ja – as in 'joke' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| jha – aspirated form of 'ja' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ñ – as in 'inch' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| Retroflex | ||
| ṭa – as in 'train' but harder | less distinct than in Sanskrit, often like 'ta' | same as Sanskrit, very distinct |
| ṭha – aspirated form of 'ṭa' | less distinct than in Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ḍa – as in 'drain' but harder | less distinct than in Sanskrit, often like 'da' | same as Sanskrit, very distinct |
| ḍha – aspirated form of 'ḍa' | less distinct than in Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ḓa – a hard 'r' – the tongue makes a 'ḍa' sound as it moves past the palate.2 | often pronounced similar to 'ra' in Bengali | same as Sanskrit |
| ḓha – aspirated form of 'ḓa' | often pronounced similar to 'rha' in Bengali | same as Sanskrit but with stronger aspiration |
| Dental | ||
| ta – as in 'at' with the phrase 'at the' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| tha – aspirated form of 'ta' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| da – as in 'breadth' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| dha – aspirated form of 'da' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| na – as in 'anthem' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| Labial | ||
| pa – as in 'spin' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| pha – aspirated form of 'pa' | same as Sanskrit | pronounced somewhere in between 'pha' and 'fa' |
| ba – as in 'bin' | same as Sanskrit, often alternates with 'va' | same as Sanskrit |
| bha – aspirated form of 'ba' | same as Sanskrit | stronger aspiration than Sanskrit |
| ma – as in 'mom' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| Semivowels | ||
| ya – as in 'yet' | if this consonant begins a Bengali word it is written 'ĵa' – as in 'joke' | same as Sanskrit |
| ra – as in 'Rome' (the 'r' sound should be slightly trilled) | usually less trilled than Sanskrit | can be heavily trilled in Hindi |
| la – as in 'loud' | same as Sanskrit | same as Sanskrit |
| va – as in 'vest' | this consonant doesn't appear in the Bengali alphabet, usually replaced by 'ba' | pronounced somewhere in between 'vest' and 'west' |
| Sibilants | ||
| śa – as in 'ship' | in Bengali, the three sibilants (śa, ṣa, sa) are all pronounced as 'sh' | same as Sanskrit |
| ṣa – retroflex form of 'śa' | same as 'śa' | same as 'śa' |
| sa – as in 'sip' | same as 'śa' | same as Sanskrit |
| Aspirate | ||
| ha – as in 'hip' | same as Sanskrit, but often softer | same as Sanskrit |
| kṣa – as in 'section' | same as 'kha' | same as Sanskrit |
| jña – pronounced as 'gya' | often simplified to 'gya' or 'gga' | same as Sanskrit |
Challenges for English Speakers
The challenge in pronouncing Sanskrit, Bengali, and Hindi is in differentiating between the non-aspirated and aspirated forms of consonants and between retroflex and dental consonants. In English our pronunciation is somewhere in between both of these. Another challenge is in pronouncing nasal sounds.
Aspirated and Non-aspirated
The non-aspirated consonants—ka, ga, ca, ja, ṭa, ḍa, ta, da, and pa— are pronounced with minimal breath.
The aspirated consonants—kha, gha, cha, jha, ṭha, ḍha, tha, dha, and pha—are pronounced while releasing the breath, as in 'brick-house', 'dog-house', 'pitch-hook' etc.
Retroflex and Dental
Retroflex sounds are more hard and they are made by making a 'ta', 'da,' or 'na' sound by curling the tongue back to touch the roof of the mouth in the center.
Dental sounds are more soft and they are made by making a 'ta', 'da,' or 'na' sound by touching the tongue to the top of the teeth.
Nasals
All the vowels in Bengali and Hindi, except for 'ṛ', can be nasalized. This is done by diverting some of the breath to the nose. You can easily make the sound by pinching your nose! In our transliteration, this is represented with a tilde (~) above the letter (eg. kā̃diya).
1 'Ḓa' is the most difficult sound for English speakers to make but it may be substituted with the American pronunciation of tt in 'butter.'