ሀሁ - Amharic Alphabets

The Ethiopian alphabet (Ge'ez) is one of the oldest used in the world. This alphabet is used by many of the 85 Ethiopian languages including Guragigna and Tigrigna.

Each letter/character is phonetic meaning it represents a sound. The Amharic letters are usually portrayed in a grid format with 7 vowels (e, u, ee, a, ae, i, o) going across horizontally and the consonants vertically.

Labialized consonants

Rated: Non-Essential

Labialized consonants in Amharic are consonant sounds produced with lip-rounding at the same time as the main consonant—almost like adding a gentle "w" to it. For example, think of the rounded lips you make at the start of the English word 'wood'; Amharic applies that same kind of rounding to several other consonants.

These sounds matter because the consonant and its "w"-like quality merge before a vowel, and this distinction can completely change a word's meaning. Mastering them can help with clear pronunciation and accurate understanding of Amharic.

Here's the thing though: you will very rarely use these particular fidel/letters. They're almost forgotten and are hardly heard in modern speech. Realistically, 99.5% of the time you won't encounter or use them. So decide for yourself whether they're worth learning.