The Engwo Alphabet

The Engwo segmental alphabet has a total of 36 letters. Among these 36 letters are 29 consonants and 7 vowels. The letters are presented below in alphabetical order:

A a, B b, Ch ch, D d, Dz dz, E e, Ɛ ɛ, F f, G g, Gb gb, Gh gh, H h, ’ ’, I i, J j, K k, Kp kp, L l, M m, N n, Ny ny, Ŋ ŋ, O o, Ɔ ɔ, P p, R r, S s, Sh sh, T t, Ts ts, U u, V v, W w, Y y, Z z, Zh zh.

Phoneme
Letter
Word
Translation
a A a atán chair
b B b dog
tS Ch ch echú red fly
d D d endé food
dz Dz dz àdzo honey bee
e E e ekèrè up
ɛ Ɛ ɛ èkɛ̀rɛ̀ pepper
f F f afú leaves
g G g agɛ́ grass
gb Gb gb ńgbáa salt
Ä Gh gh ghô human being
h H h ahlá hoe
? ’ ’ akó’ fufu
i I i ebírí war
J j eju shame
k K k aká pan
kp Kp kp ekpê canoe/boat
l L l álo leg/foot
m M m émɛ́n saliva
n N n enɔ́ soldier ant
ø Ny ny nyɛ̂m meat
ŋ Ŋ ŋ elɔ́ŋɔ́ trousers
o O o ató head
ɔ Ɔ ɔ atɔ́ branches
p P p épan curse
R R r akírí umbrella
s S s àsɛ̀’ comb
S Sh sh shúu fish
t T t átɛ́’ hut
ts Ts ts etsâ song
u U u goat
v V v vánà vine
w W w éwu fire
j Y y ayé woman
z Z z azó’ yam
Z Zh zh ezhú nose

The letter ‘v’ does not occur in any typical Engwo word, but has been added to the alphabet to serve in case of borrowed words and names. It is nicknamed ‘the sleeping letter.’