Harari language

Harari is an Ethio-Semitic language spoken by the Harari people of Ethiopia. Old Harari is a literary language of the city of Harar, a central hub of Islam in Horn of Africa.^[4] According to the 2007 Ethiopian census, it is spoken by 25,810 people. Harari is closely related to the Eastern Gurage languages, Zay, and Siltʼe, all of whom are believed to be linked to the now extinct Semitic Harla language.^[5][6] Locals or natives of Harar refer to their language as Gēy Sinan or Gēy Ritma 'language of the City' (Gēy is the word for how Harari speakers refer to the city of Harar, whose name is an exonym).^[7] According to Wolf Leslau, Sidama is the substratum language of Harari and influenced the vocabulary greatly.^[8] He identified unique Cushitic loanwords found only in Harari and deduced that it may have Cushitic roots.^[9]

Harari
ሀረሪ (hăräri)
18th century manuscript in the Harari language; titled Kitāb Al Farā'id
Native to	Ethiopia
Region	Harari Region
Ethnicity	32,000 Harari (2007 census)[1]
Speakers	L1: 27,000 (2007 census)[1][2][3] L2: 8,300[1]
Language family	Afro-Asiatic Semitic West Semitic South Semitic Ethiopic South Transversal Harari–East Gurage Harari
Writing system	Geʽez script, Latin Alphabet, Arabic alphabet[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3	har
Glottolog	hara1271

Harari was originally written with a version of the Arabic script, then the Ethiopic script was adopted to write the language. Some Harari speakers in diaspora write their language with the Latin alphabet.

Phonology

Harari consonants

		Labial	Dental	Alveolar		Post-alv./ Palatal	Velar	Uvular	Pharyngeal	Glottal
				plain	emphatic
Nasal		m		n		ɲ
Stop	voiceless	p		t		tʃ	k	q		ʔ
	voiced	b		d	dˤ	dʒ	ɡ
	ejective			t’		tʃ’	k’
Fricative	voiceless	f	θ	s	sˤ	ʃ	x		ħ	h
	voiced	v	ð	z	zˁ	ʒ	ɣ		ʕ
Trill				r
Approximant				l		j	w

Harari vowels

	Front		Central	Back
	short	long		short	long
Close	ɪ	iː	ɨ	ʊ	uː
Mid	e	eː		o	oː
Open	æ		aː

Grammar

Nouns

Number

Wolf Leslau discusses Harari–East Gurage phonology and grammar:^[10] The noun has two numbers, singular and plural. The affix -ač changes singulars into plurals:

abōč 'a man'; abōčač 'men'

wandaq 'a servant'; wandaqač 'servants'

gar 'a house'; garač 'houses'

Nouns ending in a or i become plural without reduplicating this letter:

gafa 'a slave'; gafač 'slaves'

gubna 'a harlot'; gubnač 'harlots'

liği 'a son'; liğiyač 'sons'

qabri 'a grave'; qabriyač 'graves'

/s/ alternates with /z/:

färäz 'a horse'; färäzač 'horses'

iraaz 'toga'; iraazač 'togas'

Gender

Masculine nouns may be converted into feminines by three processes. The first changes the terminal vowel into -it, or adds -it to the terminal consonant:

rágá 'an old man'; rágít 'an old woman'

buchí 'male dog'; buchít 'female dog'

wasíf 'a slave boy'; wasífít 'a slave girl'

Animals of different sexes have different names. and this forms the second process:

bárá 'an ox'; lám 'a cow'

The third and the most common way of expressing sex is by means of korma 'male or man' and inistí 'woman, female', corresponding to English "he-" and "she-":

korma faraz 'a stallion'; inistí faraz 'a mare'

korma baqal 'a he-mule'; inistí basal 'a she-mule'

Pronouns

English	Independent	Object pronoun suffixes			Possessive suffixes
		Direct	Prepositional
			Benefactive	Locative/adversative
I	ኣን an
you (m. sg.)	አኻኽ äkhakh
you (f. sg.)	አኻሽ akhâsh
you (polite/formal)	አኻኹ akhâkhu
he/him	አዝዞ äzzo
she/her	አዝዜ äzze
s/he (polite/formal)	አዝዚዩ äzziyu
we	ኢኛች ignâch
you (pl.)	አኻኻች akhâkhâch
they	አዝዚያች äzziyach

Harari demonstrative pronouns

Number, Gender		Near	Far
Singular	Masculine	ዪ yi (i)	የእ yäǝ
	Feminine	ኢትተ ittä	የትተ yättä
Plural		ዪያች yiyâch	የኣች Ya’âch

Person	Singular	Plural
1	Án	Innách or Inyách.
2	Akhákh	Akhákhách
3	Azo	(383)[clarification needed] Azziyách

The affixed pronouns or possessives attached to nouns are:

Singular.

1st Pers. – e, my or mine. : Gár-e, my house.

2nd Pers. – khá, thy or thine. Gár-khá, thy house.

3rd Pers. – zo, or – so, his. Gár-zo, his house.

Plural.

1st Pers. – zinya or sinya, our. : Gár-zinya, our house.

2nd Pers. – kho, your. Gár-kho, your house.

3rd Pers. – ziyu or siyu, their. Gár-ziyu, their house. (384)^{[clarification needed]}

In the same way attached pronouns are affixed to verbs:

Sit-ayn: give (thou to) me.

Sit-ana: give (thou to) us.

The demonstrative pronouns are:

Sing. Yí, this.

Yá', that.

Plur. Yíách, these.

Yá'ách, those.

The interrogative pronouns are the following:

Mántá: who?

Mintá: what?

Án atti'e hárkho: I myself went.

Akhákh attikha hárkhí: thou thyself wentest.

Azo attiizo hára: he himself went.

Verbs

The following are the two auxiliary verbs:

'to be'

			Past		Present		Imperative
			Affirmative	Negative	Affirmative	Negative
Person	(s)	1	Án narkhú.	Án alnárkhúm.	Án halkho.	Án elkhúm.
		2	Akhákh nárkhí.	Akhákh alnárkhím.	Akhákh halkhí.	Akhákh elkhím.	Hal.
		3	Azo nárá.	Azo alnárum.	Azo hal (<A>[clarification needed]).	Azo elúm.
	(pl)	1	Inyách nárná.	Inyách alnárum.	Inyách halna.	Inyách elnám.
		2	Akhákhách narkhú.	Akhákhách alnárkhúm.	Akhákhách halkhú.	Akhákhách elkhúm.	Halkhú.
		3	Aziyách nárú.	Aziyách alnárúm.	Aziyách halú	Aziyásc elúm.

Past tense

Sing. 1. I became: Án ikaní náarkho.

2. Thou becamest: Akhákh tikání nárkhí.

3. He became: Azo ikáni nárá.

Plur. 1. We became: Innách nikání nárná.

2. Ye became: Akhákhách tikání nárkhú.

3. They became: Aziyách ikání nárú.

Present tense

Sing. 1. I become: Án ikánákh.

2. Thou becomest: Akhákh tikánákh.

3. He becomes: Azo ikánál.

Plur. 1. We become: Inyách nikánáná.

2. Ye become: Akhákhách tikánákhu.

3. They become: Aziyách yikánálú.

Imperative

Become thou, "Kanni". Become ye, "Kánnú".

Prohibitive

Sing. 2. Become not, ikánnumekh.

Plur. 2. Become not ye, tikánnumekhu.

Past tense

(Affirmative form)

Sing. 1. I went, Án letkho.

2. Thous wentest, Akhákh letkhí.

3. He went, Azo leta.

Plur. 1. We went, Inyách letna.

2. Ye went, Akhákhách letkhú.

3. They went, Aziyách letú.

(Negative form)

Sing. 1. I went not, Án alletkhúm.

2. Thou wentest not, Akbákh alletkhím.

3. He went not, Azo alletám.

Plur. 1. We went not, Inyách aletnám.

2. Ye went not, Akhákách alletkhúm.

3. They went not, Azziyách alletúm.

Present tense.

(Affirmative form)

1. I go, Án iletákh 1. Inyásh niletáná.

2. Thou goest, Akhákh tiletínakh 2. Akhákhách tiletákhú.

3. He goes, Azo yiletál 3. Azziyách yiletálú.

(Negative form)

Sing. 1. I go not, Án iletumekh.

2. Thou goest not, Akhákh tiletumekh.

3. He goes not, Azo yiletumel.

Plur. 1. We go not, Inyách niletumena.

2. Ye go not, Akhákhach tiletumekhú.

3. They go not, Azziyách iletuelú.

Sing. 1. I will go, Án iletle halkho.

2. Thou wilt go, Akháhk tiletle halkhí.

3. He will go, Azo iletle hal.

Plur. 1. We will go, Inyách niletle halns.

2. Ye will go, Akhákhách tiletle halkhú.

3. They will go, Azziyách niletle halns.

Writing system

Harari is generally written in three scripts. It was originally written in an unmodified and now in a standardized modified Arabic Script.^[11][12][13] The Ethiopic script was then adopted to write Harari.^[11] There is a Latin version of the script used by the Harari diaspora.^[12][14]

Harari Arabic script

Harari Arabic script consists of 36 letters, made up of the original 28 Arabic letters, plus 8 additional letters for sounds unique to Harari or to loanwords of European origin. 8 of the original 28 letters are only used for writing of loanwords of Arabic origin (shown in beige in the table below). 2 of the 8 new letters are only used for writing of loanwords of European origin (shown in green in the table below).

Harari Arabic script is also made up of 5 vowel diacritics. A unique and noteworthy feature of this script is that it indicates stressed syllables in an explicit manner, as explained in the following section.

Harari Arabic script^[15]

Isolated	Final	Medial	Initial	IPA	Romanization	Ge'ez Equivalent
أ / إ‎	ـا‎		ا‎	[∅ / ʔ]	a / '	አ
ب‎	ـب‎	ـبـ‎	بـ‎	[b]	b	በ
پ‎	ـپ‎	ـپـ‎	پـ‎	[p]	p	ፐ
ت‎	ـت‎	ـتـ‎	تـ‎	[t]	t	ተ
ث‎	ـث‎	ـثـ‎	ثـ‎	[θ]	ṫ	ሠ
ج‎	ـج‎	ـجـ‎	جـ‎	[dʒ]	j	ጀ
ݘ‎	ـݘ‎	ـݘـ‎	ݘـ‎	[g]	g	ገ
ح‎	ـح‎	ـحـ‎	حـ‎	[ħ]	h	ሐ
خ‎	ـخ‎	ـخـ‎	خـ‎	[x]	kh	ኸ
د‎	ـد‎		د‎	[d]	d	ደ
ذ‎	ـذ‎		ذ‎	[ð]	dh	ፀ
ر‎	ـر‎		ر‎	[r]	r	ረ
ز‎	ـز‎		ز‎	[z]	z	ዘ
ژ‎	ـژ‎		ژ‎	[ʒ]	zh	ዠ
س‎	ـس‎	ـسـ‎	سـ‎	[s]	s	ሰ
ش‎	ـش‎	ـشـ‎	شـ‎	[ʃ]	sh	ሸ
ڛ‎	ـڛ‎	ـڛـ‎	ڛـ‎	[tʃ]	ch	ቸ
ص‎	ـص‎	ـصـ‎	صـ‎	[sˁ]	ṡ	ጸ
ض‎	ـض‎	ـضـ‎	ضـ‎	[dˁ]	ḋ	ጰ
ط‎	ـط‎	ـطـ‎	طـ‎	[t’]	x	ጠ
ظ‎	ـظ‎	ـظـ‎	ظـ‎	[zˁ]	ż	ⶰ
ڟ‎	ـڟ‎	ـڟـ‎	ڟـ‎	[tʃ’]	c	ጨ
ع‎	ـع‎	ـعـ‎	عـ‎	[ʕ]	ȧ	ዐ
غ‎	ـغ‎	ـغـ‎	غـ‎	[ɣ]	gh	ኀ
ف‎	ـف‎	ـفـ‎	فـ‎	[ɣ]	f	ፈ
ڤ‎	ـڤ‎	ـڤـ‎	ڤـ‎	[v]	v	ቨ
ق‎	ـق‎	ـقـ‎	قـ‎	[q]	q	ቀ
ك‎	ـك‎	ـكـ‎	كـ‎	[k]	k	ከ
ڬ‎	ـڬ‎	ـڬـ‎	ڬـ‎	[k’]	xh	ዸ
ل‎	ـل‎	ـلـ‎	لـ‎	[l]	l	ለ
م‎	ـم‎	ـمـ‎	مـ‎	[m]	m	መ
ن‎	ـن‎	ـنـ‎	نـ‎	[n]	n	ነ
ڹ‎	ـڹ‎	ـڹـ‎	ڹـ‎	[ɲ]	gn	ኘ
ه‎	ـه‎	ـهـ‎	هـ‎	[h]	ḣ	ሀ
و‎	ـو‎		و‎	[w]	w	ወ
ي‎	ـي‎	ـيـ‎	يـ‎	[j]	y	የ

Vowel markings table

In Harari Arabic script, there are 5 vowels (a, e, i, o, u). These vowels are shown with the three Arabic diacritics (a, i, u), plus two additional diacritics (e, o). Furthermore, in Harari Arabic script, vowels are also distinguished by length, indicated by mater lectionis letters, and by stress, indicated by a combination of hamza and mater lectionis letters.

Vowels ^[15]

Independent
	short vowel	long vowel	Short stressed vowel	long stressed vowel
a	أَ‎ ‌( a ) [æ]	ءَا‎ ‌( â ) [aː]	ءَأْ‎ ‌( aʼ ) [ˈæ]	ءَاءْ‎ ‌( âʼ ) [ˈaː]
e	إٛ‎ ‌( e ) [e]	إٛىـ / إٛى‎ ‌( ê ) [eː]	ءٛئْـ / ءٛئْ‎ ‌( eʼ ) [ˈe]	إٛىءْ‎ ‌( êʼ ) [ˈeː]
i	إِ‎ ‌( i ) [ɪ]	إِىـ / إِى‎ ‌( î ) [iː]	ءِئْـ / ءِئْ‎ ‌( iʼ ) [ˈɪ]	إِىءْ‎ ‌( îʼ ) [ˈiː]
o	أٚ‎ ‌( o ) [o]	أٚو‎ ‌( ô ) [oː]	ءٚؤْ‎ ‌( oʼ ) [ˈo]	أٚوءْ‎ ‌( ôʼ ) [ˈoː]
u	أُ‎ ‌( u ) [ʊ]	أُو‎ ‌( û ) [uː]	ءُؤْ‎ ‌( uʼ ) [ˈʊ]	أُوءْ‎ ‌( ûʼ ) [ˈuː]
Dependent (Template)
-a	◌َ‎ ‌( -a ) [æ]	◌َـا‎ ‌( -â ) [aː]	◌َـأْ‎ ‌( -aʼ ) [ˈæ]	◌َـاءْ‎ ‌( -âʼ ) [ˈaː]
-e	◌ٛ‎ ‌( -e ) [e]	◌ٛىـ / ◌ٛـى‎ ‌( -ê ) [eː]	◌ٛـئْـ / ◌ٛـئْ‎ ‌( -eʼ ) [ˈe]	◌ٛـىءْ‎ ‌( -êʼ ) [ˈeː]
-i	◌ِ‎ ‌( -i ) [ɪ]	◌ِـىـ / ◌ِـى‎ ‌( -î ) [iː]	◌ِـئْـ / ◌ِـئْ‎ ‌( -iʼ ) [ˈɪ]	◌ِـىءْ‎ ‌( -îʼ ) [ˈiː]
-o	◌ٚ‎ ‌( -o ) [o]	◌ٚـو‎ ‌( -ô ) [oː]	◌ٚـؤْ‎ ‌( -oʼ ) [ˈo]	◌ٚـوءْ‎ ‌( -ôʼ ) [ˈoː]
-u	◌ُ‎ ‌( -u ) [ʊ]	◌ُـو‎ ‌( -û ) [uː]	◌ُـؤْ‎ ‌( -uʼ ) [ˈʊ]	◌ُـوءْ‎ ‌( -ûʼ ) [ˈuː]
Dependent (for letter ب‎ b as sample)
ba	بَـ / بَ‎ ‌( ba ) [bæ]	بَا‎ ‌( bâ ) [baː]	بَأْ‎ ‌( baʼ ) [ˈbæ]	بَاءْ‎ ‌( bâʼ ) [ˈbaː]
be	بٛـ / بٛ‎ ‌( be ) [be]	بٛىـ / بٛى‎ ‌( bê ) [beː]	بٛئْـ / بٛئْ‎ ‌( beʼ ) [ˈbe]	بٛىءْ‎ ‌( bêʼ ) [ˈbeː]
bi	بِـ / بِ‎ ‌( bi ) [bɪ]	بِىـ / بِى‎ ‌( bî ) [biː]	بِئْـ / بِئْ‎ ‌( biʼ ) [ˈbɪ]	بِىءْ‎ ‌( bîʼ ) [ˈbiː]
bo	بٚـ / بٚ‎ ‌( bo ) [bo]	بٚو‎ ‌( bô ) [boː]	بٚؤْ‎ ‌( boʼ ) [ˈbo]	بٚوءْ‎ ‌( bôʼ ) [ˈboː]
bu	بُـ‌ / بُ‎ ‌( bu ) [bʊ]	بُو‎ ‌( bû ) [buː]	بُؤْ‎ ‌( buʼ ) [ˈbʊ]	بُوءْ‎ ‌( bûʼ ) [ˈbuː]
Dependent (for a geminated letter بّ‎ bb as sample)
bba	بَّـ / بَّ‎ ‌( bba ) [bbæ]	بَّا‎ ‌( bbâ ) [bbaː]	بَّأْ‎ ‌( bbaʼ ) [ˈbbæ]	بَّاءْ‎ ‌( bbâʼ ) [ˈbbaː]
bbe	بّٛـ / بّٛ‎ ‌( bbe ) [be]	بّٛىـ / بّٛى‎ ‌( bbê ) [beː]	بّٛئْـ / بّٛئْ‎ ‌( bbeʼ ) [ˈbe]	بّٛىءْ‎ ‌( bbêʼ ) [ˈbeː]
bbi	بِّـ / بِّ‎ ‌( bbi ) [bbɪ]	بِّىـ / بِّى‎ ‌( bbî ) [bbiː]	بِّئْـ / بِّئْ‎ ‌( bbiʼ ) [ˈbbɪ]	بِّىءْ‎ ‌( bbîʼ ) [ˈbbiː]
bbo	بّٚـ / بّٚ‎ ‌( bbo ) [bbo]	بّٚو‎ ‌( bbô ) [bboː]	بّٚؤْ‎ ‌( bboʼ ) [ˈbbo]	بّٚوءْ‎ ‌( bbôʼ ) [ˈbboː]
bbu	بُّـ‌ / بُّ‎ ‌( bbu ) [bbʊ]	بُّو‎ ‌( bbû ) [bbuː]	بُّؤْ‎ ‌( bbuʼ ) [ˈbbʊ]	بُّوءْ‎ ‌( bbûʼ ) [ˈbbuː]
Zero-vowel Sign
-	◌ْ‎ ‌( - ) [-]	بْـ / بْ‎ ‌( b- ) [b]

Modified Ge'ez script

Further information: Ge'ez script § Adaptations_to_other_languages

Harari can be written in the unmodified Ethiopic script as most vowel differences can be disambiguated from context. The Harari adaptation of the Ethiopic script adds a long vowel version of the Ethiopic/Amharic vowels by adding a dot on top of the letter. In addition certain consonants are pronounced differently when compared to the Amharic pronunciation.

The table below shows the Harari alphasyllabary with the Romanized, Arabic equivalence, and IPA representation along the rows and the Romanized vowel markings along the columns.^[15]

Harari writing system

Romanization	Arabic Equivalent	IPA	a [æ]	â [aː]	u [ʊ]	û [uː]	i [ɪ]	î [iː]	e [e]	ê [eː]	o [o]	ô [oː]	∅/ə [∅/ɨ]
ḣ	ه‎	h	ሀ	ሃ	ሁ	ሁ፞	ሂ	ሂ፞	ሄ	ሄ፞	ሆ	ሆ፞	ህ
l	ل‎	l	ለ	ላ	ሉ	ሉ፞	ሊ	ሊ፞	ሌ	ሌ፞	ሎ	ሎ፞	ል
h	ح‎	ħ	ሐ	ሓ	ሑ	ሑ፞	ሒ	ሒ፞	ሔ	ሔ፞	ሖ	ሖ፞	ሕ
m	م‎	m	መ	ማ	ሙ	ሙ፞	ሚ	ሚ፞	ሜ	ሜ፞	ሞ	ሞ፞	ም
ṫ	ث‎	θ	ሠ	ሣ	ሡ	ሡ፞	ሢ	ሢ፞	ሤ	ሤ፞	ሦ	ሦ፞	ሥ
r	ر‎	r	ረ	ራ	ሩ	ሩ፞	ሪ	ሪ፞	ሬ	ሬ፞	ሮ	ሮ፞	ር
s	س‎	s	ሰ	ሳ	ሱ	ሱ፞	ሲ	ሲ፞	ሴ	ሴ፞	ሶ	ሶ፞	ስ
sh	ش‎	ʃ	ሸ	ሻ	ሹ	ሹ፞	ሺ	ሺ፞	ሼ	ሼ፞	ሾ	ሾ፞	ሽ
q	ق‎	q	ቀ	ቃ	ቁ	ቁ፞	ቂ	ቂ፞	ቄ	ቄ፞	ቆ	ቆ፞	ቅ
b	ب‎	b	በ	ባ	ቡ	ቡ፞	ቢ	ቢ፞	ቤ	ቤ፞	ቦ	ቦ፞	ብ
v	ڤ‎	v	ቨ	ቫ	ቩ	ቩ፞	ቪ	ቪ፞	ቬ	ቬ፞	ቮ	ቮ፞	ቭ
t	ت‎	t	ተ	ታ	ቱ	ቱ፞	ቲ	ቲ፞	ቴ	ቴ፞	ቶ	ቶ፞	ት
ch	ڛ‎	tʃ	ቸ	ቻ	ቹ	ቹ፞	ቺ	ቺ፞	ቼ	ቼ፞	ቾ	ቾ፞	ች
gh	غ‎	ɣ	ኀ	ኃ	ኁ	ኁ፞	ኂ	ኂ፞	ኄ	ኄ፞	ኆ	ኆ፞	ኅ
n	ن‎	n	ነ	ና	ኑ	ኑ፞	ኒ	ኒ፞	ኔ	ኔ፞	ኖ	ኖ፞	ን
gn	ڹ‎	ɲ	ኘ	ኛ	ኙ	ኙ፞	ኚ	ኚ፞	ኜ	ኜ፞	ኞ	ኞ፞	ኝ
'/a	أ / إ‎	∅ / ʔ	አ	ኣ	ኡ	ኡ፞	ኢ	ኢ፞	ኤ	ኤ፞	ኦ	ኦ፞	እ
k	ك‎	k	ከ	ካ	ኩ	ኩ፞	ኪ	ኪ፞	ኬ	ኬ፞	ኮ	ኮ፞	ክ
kh	خ‎	x	ኸ	ኻ	ኹ	ኹ፞	ኺ	ኺ፞	ኼ	ኼ፞	ኾ	ኾ፞	ኽ
w	و‎	w	ወ	ዋ	ዉ	ዉ፞	ዊ	ዊ፞	ዌ	ዌ፞	ዎ	ዎ፞	ው
ȧ	ع‎	ʕ	ዐ	ዓ	ዑ	ዑ፞	ዒ	ዒ፞	ዔ	ዔ፞	ዖ	ዖ፞	ዕ
z	ز‎	z	ዘ	ዛ	ዙ	ዙ፞	ዚ	ዚ፞	ዜ	ዜ፞	ዞ	ዞ፞	ዝ
zh	ژ‎	ʒ	ዠ	ዣ	ዡ	ዡ፞	ዢ	ዢ፞	ዤ	ዤ፞	ዦ	ዦ፞	ዥ
y	ي‎	j	የ	ያ	ዩ	ዩ፞	ዪ	ዪ፞	ዬ	ዬ፞	ዮ	ዮ፞	ይ
d	د‎	d	ደ	ዳ	ዱ	ዱ፞	ዲ	ዲ፞	ዴ	ዴ፞	ዶ	ዶ፞	ድ
xh	ڬ‎	k’	ዸ	ዻ	ዹ	ዹ፞	ዺ	ዺ፞	ዼ	ዼ፞	ዾ	ዾ፞	ዽ
j	ج‎	dʒ	ጀ	ጃ	ጁ	ጁ፞	ጂ	ጂ፞	ጄ	ጄ፞	ጆ	ጆ፞	ጅ
g	ݘ‎	g	ገ	ጋ	ጉ	ጉ፞	ጊ	ጊ፞	ጌ	ጌ፞	ጎ	ጎ፞	ግ
x	ط‎	t’	ጠ	ጣ	ጡ	ጡ፞	ጢ	ጢ፞	ጤ	ጤ፞	ጦ	ጦ፞	ጥ
c	ڟ‎	tʃ’	ጨ	ጫ	ጩ	ጩ፞	ጪ	ጪ፞	ጬ	ጬ፞	ጮ	ጮ፞	ጭ
ḋ	ض‎	dˁ	ጰ	ጳ	ጱ	ጱ፞	ጲ	ጲ፞	ጴ	ጴ፞	ጶ	ጶ፞	ጵ
ṡ	ص‎	sˁ	ጸ	ጻ	ጹ	ጹ፞	ጺ	ጺ፞	ጼ	ጼ፞	ጾ	ጾ፞	ጽ
dh	ذ‎	ð	ፀ	ፃ	ፁ	ፁ፞	ፂ	ፂ፞	ፄ	ፄ፞	ፆ	ፆ፞	ፅ
f	ف‎	f	ፈ	ፋ	ፉ	ፉ፞	ፊ	ፊ፞	ፌ	ፌ፞	ፎ	ፎ፞	ፍ
p	پ‎	p	ፐ	ፓ	ፑ	ፑ፞	ፒ	ፒ፞	ፔ	ፔ፞	ፖ	ፖ፞	ፕ
ż	ظ‎	zˁ	ⶰ	ⶳ	ⶱ	ⶱ፞	ⶲ	ⶲ፞	ⶴ	ⶴ፞	ⶶ	ⶶ፞	ⶵ
Romanization	IPA	a [æ]	â [aː]	u [ʊ]	û [uː]	i [ɪ]	î [iː]	e [e]	ê [eː]	o [o]	ô [oː]	∅/ə [∅/ɨ]

Notes

• Gemination can be done by simply writing the "∅/ə" variation of a letter before the letter itself.
• Stressed vowels can be written by following a letter with እ (The "no-vowel" variation of the "a" letter)
  • For example, the Harari demonstrative pronoun yaʼ (يَأْ‎) is written as የእ
• Formerly, long-e (ê) and long-i (î) were represented by adding እ (y) after the character. Now, a dot diacritic is preferred instead.
• Formerly, Long-o (ô) and long-u (û) were represented by adding ው (w) after the character Now, a dot diacritic is preferred instead.

Modified Latin script

Teble below shows the Latin script, modified and adapted for Harari language.^[15]

Upper case letter	Lower case letter	IPA	Arabic Equivalent	Ge'ez equivanelt
A	a	[æ]	أَ / ◌َ‎‎	አ
Â	â	[aː]	ءَا / ◌َـا‎‎	ኣ
Ȧ	ȧ	[ʕ]	ع‎	ዐ
B	b	[b]	ب‎	በ
C	c	[tʃ’]	ڟ‎	ጨ
Ch	ch	[tʃ]	ڛ‎	ቸ
D	d	[d]	د‎	ደ
Dh	dh	[ð]	ذ‎	ፀ
Ḋ	ḋ	[dˁ]	ض‎	ጰ
E	e	[e]	إٛ ‌/ ◌ٛ‎	ኤ
Ê	ê	[eː]	إٛى / ◌ٛـى‎	ኤ፞
F	f	[f]	ف‎	ɣ
G	g	[g]	ݘ‎	ገ
Gh	gh	[ɣ]	غ‎	ኀ
Gn	gn	[ɲ]	ڹ‎	ኘ
H	h	[ħ]	ح‎	ሐ
Ḣ	ḣ	[h]	ه‎	ሀ
I	i	[ɪ]	إِ / ◌ِ‎	ኢ
Î	î	[iː]	إِى‎ / ◌ِـى‎	ኢ፞
J	j	[dʒ]	ج‎	ጀ
K	k	[k]	ك‎	ከ
Kh	kh	[x]	خ‎	ኸ
L	l	[l]	ل‎	ለ
M	m	[m]	م‎	መ
N	n	[n]	ن‎	ነ
O	o	[o]	أٚ / ◌ٚ‎	ኦ
Ô	ô	[oː]	أٚو‎ / ◌ٚـو‎	ኦ፞
P	p	[p]	پ‎	ፐ
Q	q	[q]	ق‎	ቀ
R	r	[r]	ر‎	ረ
S	s	[s]	س‎	ሰ
Sh	sh	[ʃ]	ش‎	ሸ
Ṡ	ṡ	[sˁ]	ص‎	ጸ
T	t	[t]	ت‎	ተ
Ṫ	ṫ	[θ]	ث‎	ሠ
U	u	[ʊ]	أُ / ◌ُ‎‎	ኦ
Û	û	[uː]	أُو‎ / ◌ُـو‎	ኦ፞
V	v	[v]	ڤ‎	ቨ
W	w	[w]	و‎	ወ
X	x	[t’]	ط‎	ጠ
Xh	xh	[k’]	ڬ‎	ዸ
Y	y	[j]	ي‎	የ
Z	z	[z]	ز‎	ዘ
Zh	zh	[ʒ]	ژ‎	ዠ
Ż	ż	[zˁ]	ظ‎	ⶰ
ʼ		ء‎	እ

Notes

• The Harari Latin Alphabet has eight digraphs: ch, dh, gh, gn, kh, sh, xh, and zh. It is possible to have a geminated (double) consonant. In the case of digraphs, only the initial letter is doubled, i.e. “dh” followed by “dh” is written as “ddh” ፅፅ / ذّ‎)
• The apostrophe character has multiple functions in Harari Latin orthography:
  1. It indicates that the preceding consonant is an isolated consonant and not part of a digraph, e.g. hêgʼna (ሔ́ግነ / حٛىݘْنَ‎ - replace), i.e. gʼn is “g+n” rather than “gn”.
  2. It distinguishes between a geminated digraph and a consonant followed by digraph, magʼgna (መግኘ / مَݘْڹَ‎ - throwing) i.e. gʼgn is “g+gn” rather than “ggn”.
  3. It separates a consonant and a following independent vowel, Gaz’i (ገዝኢ / چَزْإِ‎ - God)
  4. If following a vowel, it indicates that the vowel is stressed, raʼyi (ረእዪ / رَأْيِ‎ - idea) or usuʼ (ኡሱእ / أُسُؤْ‎ - person).

Sample Text

Below is a sample text, in the three scripts for Harari.^[15][16]

Latin Script	Waldâchzinâw dînziyu wâ sinânzîw matlêmadle 1992be qurân gêy kafatnama gêy sinânuw amânbe matlêmad nifarkikut lâtin harfîbe matlêmad êgalna. Yîbe amânbe waldâchzina ûga zilahadube, 1999be bâdbe (ḣararbe) hukûmazina sabi harfibe sinânzinâw maktable murti huluf zâshasa igʼgnâchum fîtzanâw azzo garab gargab âshna. Yakhnimâm qâcibe zilêqu waldâchuw sabi harfîw matlêmad ôrkut tâb khânama agagnnêw.
Ge'ez Script	ወልዳችዚናው ዲ፞ንዚዩ ዋ ሲናንዚዩ፞ው መትሌ፞መድሌ 1992ቤ ቁራን ጌ፞ይ ከፈትነመ ጌ፞ይ ሲናኑው አማንቤ መትሌ፞መድ ኒፈርኪኩት ላቲ́ን ሐርፊ፞ቤ መትሌ፞መድ ኤ፞ገልነ፨ ዪ፞ቤ አማንቤ ወልዳችዚነ ኡ፞ገ ዚለሐዱቤ፣ 1999ቤ ባድቤ (ሀረርቤ) ሑኩ፞መዚነ ሰቢ ሐርፊቤ ሲናንዚናው መክተብሌ ሙርቲ ሑሉፍ ዛሸሰ ኢግኛቹም ፊ፞ትዚናው አዝዞ ገረብ ገርገብ ኣሽነ። የኽኒማም ቃጪቤ ዚሌ፞ቁ ወልዳቹው ሰቢ ሐርፊ፞ው መትሌ፞መድ ኦ፞ርኩት ታብ ኻነመ አገኝኔ፞ው፨
Arabic Script	وَلْدَاڛْزِنَاوْ دِىنْزِيُ وَا سِنَانْزِىوْ مَتْلٛىمَدْلٛ ۱۹۹۲بٛ قُرَان ݘٛىيْ كَفَتْنَمَ ݘٛىيْ سِنَانُوْ أَمَانْبٛ مَتْلٛىمَدْ نِفَرْكِكُت لَاتِن حَرفِىبٛ مَتْلٛىمَدْ إٛىݘَلنَ.‎ يِىبٛ أَمَانبٛ وَلْدَاڛْزِنَ أُوݘَ زِلَحَدُبٛ، ۱۹۹۹بٛ بَادْبٛ (هَرَرْبٛ) حُكُومَزِنَ سَبِ حَرْفِبٛ سِنَانْزِنَاوْ مَكْتَبْلٛ مُرْتِ حُلُفْ زَاشَسَ إِݘْڹَاچُمْ فِىتْزَنَاوْ أَزّٚ ݘَرَبْ ݘَرْݘَبْ ءَاشْنَ. يَخْنِمَامْ قَاڟِبٛ زِلٛىقُ وَلْدَاڛُوْ سَبِ حَرفِىوْ مَتْلٛىمَدْ أٚوركُتْ تَابْ خَانَمَ أَݘَڹْنٛىوْ.‎
Translation	Back in 1992 Harari Language School was established to teach our children the Harari language. To simplify the process of teaching we adopted the Latin script and have successfully developed it for the need of the Harari language. In 1999, when the Harari Regional Government adopted the Sabean (Ethiopic) script, we tried to use it here for our students. However our students found Sabean script very hard to learn.

Numerals

• 1. Ahad
• 2. Ko'ot
• 3. Shi'ishti
• 4. Haret
• 5. Ham'misti
• 6. Siddisti
• 7. Sa'ati
• 8. Su'ut
• 9. Zahtegn
• 10. Assir
• 11. Asra ahad
• 12. Asra ko'ot
• 13. Asra shi'ishti
• 14. Asra haret
• 15. Asra ham'misti
• 16. Asra siddisti
• 17. Asra sa'ati
• 18. Asra su'ut
• 19. Asra zahtegn
• 20. Kuya
• 30. Saasa
• 40. Arbîn
• 50. Hamsein
• 60. Sit'tin
• 70. Sa'ati asir
• 80. Su'ut asir
• 90. Zahtana
• 100. Baqla
• 1,000. Kum or Alfi