Letter न (na) (Topic 5) in Module 5 – Hindi Letters and Sounds Through English (BG)

न — Letter (na)

• English sound anchor: nose

Compare this group with the retroflex set and keep the dental tongue position closer to the teeth.
- Hindi words:
- नदी ('nadi') — River
- नमक ('namak') — Salt
- नाम ('naam') — Name
- नींद ('neend') — Sleep
- नाक ('naak') — Nose

Half Letter न् (na halant)

In Hindi, adding the virama (्) below न creates the half letter न् — it silences the inherent 'a' vowel and makes this consonant join the next one without a vowel between them.
Ways to write the half letter:
1. Halant form: न्   (the virama ् appears below the full letter)2. Conjunct form: When न् is followed by another consonant, the two letters merge visually into a conjunct (e.g. न्क = न्क). Some conjuncts develop unique shapes; these are learned as whole units.
Example words using न्: - पन्ना ('panna') — Page / Emerald - अन्न ('ann') — Grain / Food - मन्त्री ('mantri') — Minister - जन्म ('janm') — Birth - अन्धकार ('andhkaar') — Darkness

How to Write न

Watch the animated stroke order below. Each stroke is drawn in sequence — follow the arrows.

Stroke order animation via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.