The Yoruba alphabet has 25 letters and is written in the Latin script with a few special characters and tone marks. Learning it is the first step to reading, writing and speaking Yoruba correctly. This guide lists every letter, explains the sounds that confuse beginners and shows why tone marks change meaning.
The 25 Letters of the Yoruba Alphabet
A, B, D, E, Ẹ, F, G, GB, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, Ọ, P, R, S, Ṣ, T, U, W, Y
Yoruba does not use the letters C, Q, V, X or Z. Note that GB counts as one letter, and that Ẹ, Ọ and Ṣ carry a dot underneath.
Sounds That Need Special Attention
- Ẹ sounds like the “e” in “bed”, while E is closer to the “ay” in “day”.
- Ọ sounds like the “o” in “law”, while O is closer to the “o” in “go”.
- Ṣ is pronounced “sh”, as in “shoe”.
- GB is a single sound, made by saying “g” and “b” almost together.
- P is pronounced with the sound “kp”, made at the lips and back of the mouth at once.
Yoruba Vowels
Yoruba has seven oral vowels (a, e, ẹ, i, o, ọ, u) and five nasal vowels, written with an “n” after the vowel, as in an, ẹn, in, ọn, un.
Yoruba Tone Marks
Yoruba is a tonal language with three tones: high (acute accent, as in á), low (grave accent, as in à) and mid (no mark). The same letters can mean different things depending on tone. For example, ọkọ (husband), ọkọ́ (hoe), ọkọ̀ (vehicle) and ọ̀kọ̀ (spear) are written with the same letters. Our article on why Yoruba tone marks matter shows how one word can change meaning completely.
Where to Practise
Start with everyday phrases in our guide to Yoruba greetings, then explore Yoruba baby names and their meanings and Yoruba proverbs. For a full beginner roadmap, see how to learn Yoruba, and for background on the language, visit Wikipedia’s Yoruba language page.
Yoruba Alphabet FAQs
How many letters are in the Yoruba alphabet?
The Yoruba alphabet has 25 letters, including the digraph GB.
How many tones does Yoruba have?
Yoruba has three tones: high, mid and low.
Why do some Yoruba letters have dots under them?
The dot marks different vowel and consonant sounds: Ẹ, Ọ and Ṣ are separate letters from E, O and S.
