Quick Facts Type Syllabic Alphabetic Genealogy Brahmi Location South Asia Time 8th century CE to Present CE Direction Left to Right

Sinhala has been a distinctive script used to write the Sinhalese language spoken in Sri Lanka. Sinhala is a most closely related to the Grantha script, but also takes some elements from the Kadamba script as well.

The following is the basic Sinhala script.

Like other South Asian scripts, a Sinhala letter has an inherent vowel of /a/. To change this vowel to another, extra strokes called matras are added to the basic letter, as in the following example:

Related links:

• Languages and Scripts of India
• Eden's Page: Scripts of all of Asia