The Kaddare alphabet is an alphabetic script created to transcribe Somali, a Cushitic language in the Afroasiatic language family.
History
The orthography was invented in 1952 by a Sufi Sheikh, named Hussein Sheikh Ahmed Kaddare.
A phonetically robust writing system, the technical commissions that appraised the Kaddare alphabet concurred that it was the most accurate indigenous script and orthography for transcribing the Somali language.[1]
Form
Kaddare uses both upper and lower case letters, with the lower case represented in cursive. Many characters are transcribed without having to lift the pen.[2]
Several of Kaddare's letters are similar to those in the Osmanya alphabet, while others bear a resemblance to Brahmi.[2]
As there are no dedicated characters for long vowels, a vowel is made long by simply writing it twice.[2]
See also
References
- ^ Laitin, David D. (1977). Politics, Language, and Thought: The Somali Experience. University of Chicago Press. p. 87. ISBN 0226467910.
- ^ a b c Rendition at www.skyknowledge.com/kaddare.htm
External links
- 'Kaddare alphabet' in Somali, at Omniglot
- Tosco, Mauro (University of Turin) (2010). "Somali Writings". Afrikanistik-Aegyptologie-Online. Retrieved 2023-04-07. [Covers Wadaad's writing, Osmanya, Gadabuursi, and Kaddare.]*Somali Language History and Vernaculars[permanent dead link]
- The report of the Somali Language Committee