German Alphabet

1. Basic Latin Letters (26 Letters)

The German alphabet uses the 26 letters of the basic Latin alphabet. Each letter has a specific name and pronunciation:

  1. A a (ah) - As in "father"

  2. B b (beh) - As in "bed"

  3. C c (tseh) - As in "tsar" or "cello" (often pronounced /k/ before a, o, u, or a consonant; /ts/ before e, i, y)

  4. D d (deh) - As in "dog"

  5. E e (eh) - As in "get" or "say" (long if doubled or at the end of some words)

  6. F f (eff) - As in "foot"

  7. G g (geh) - As in "goal" (hard g)

  8. H h (hah) - As in "hat"

  9. I i (ee) - As in "machine"

  10. J j (yot) - As in "yell"

  11. K k (kah) - As in "king"

  12. L l (ell) - As in "love"

  13. M m (em) - As in "mother"

  14. N n (en) - As in "nose"

  15. O o (oh) - As in "open"

  16. P p (peh) - As in "pen"

  17. Q q (koo) - Always followed by u (qu) pronounced as "kv" (e.g., "Quelle" - source)

  18. R r (err) - Often a uvular trill or fricative, or pronounced at the back of the throat

  19. S s (ess) - Typically voiced as "z" in "zoo" before a vowel or between vowels; voiceless "s" at the end of a syllable/word or before consonants

  20. T t (teh) - As in "top"

  21. U u (oo) - As in "flute"

  22. V v (fau) - Usually pronounced as "f" (e.g., "Vater" - father); sometimes as "v" in foreign words

  23. W w (veh) - As in "vow"

  24. X x (ix) - As in "box" (mostly in foreign words)

  25. Y y (ypsilon) - As in "myth" (mostly in foreign words or names)

  26. Z z (tsett) - As in "tsunami"

2. Special Characters

German includes four additional characters not found in the basic Latin alphabet:

2.1. Umlauts (Ä, Ö, Ü)

These are modified vowels, indicated by two dots (umlaut) above the letter:

  • Ä ä (a-umlaut): Pronounced like the "e" in "bed" or "air". It can also be written as ae.

  • Ö ö (o-umlaut): Pronounced like the "u" in "fur" or the "ir" in "bird" (British English). To form it, make an "o" sound and round your lips as if to say "ee". It can also be written as oe.

  • Ü ü (u-umlaut): Pronounced like the "oo" in "moon" but with lips rounded tightly as if to say "ee". Similar to the "u" in French "Lune". It can also be written as ue.

2.2. Eszett (ß)

  • ß (ess-tsett or sharp S): Represents a voiceless "ss" sound, similar to the "s" in "hiss". It is never used at the beginning of a word. It can be replaced by ss if a "ß" character is not available, especially in Switzerland, where it is not used at all. Following the 2006 spelling reform, ß is used only after long vowels or diphthongs, while ss is used after short vowels (e.g., "Fuß" (foot) vs. "Tasse" (cup)).

3. General Pronunciation Guidelines

  • Vowels: Can be long or short. Generally, a vowel is long if it is doubled (aaaa, eeee, oooo), followed by an h, or at the end of an open syllable. It's short if followed by two consonants. Every vowel is pronounced, there are no silent vowels.

  • Diphthongs:

    • ei or ai: Pronounced "eye" (e.g., "Haus" - house).

    • eu or äu: Pronounced "oy" (e.g., "Deutsch" - German).

  • Consonant Combinations:

    • ch: Has two main pronunciations based on preceding vowel: "ich-sound" (soft, after i, e, ä, ö, ü, ei, eu) or "ach-sound" (hard, after a, o, u, au).

    • sch: Pronounced "sh" as in "shoe".

    • sp and st: At the beginning of a word or stem, sp is pronounced "shp" and st is pronounced "sht" (e.g., "Sprechen" - to speak, "Straße" - street).

    • ck: Pronounced as a hard "k".

    • ph: Pronounced as