Tigrinya (ትግርኛ)

Tigrinya is a member of the Ethiopic branch of Semitic languages with about 6 million speakers in the Tigre region of Ethiopia, in Central Eritrea, and in Israel.

Tigrinya is written with a version of the Ge'ez script and first appeared in writing during the 13th century.

The Tigrinya script

Punctuation

Ethiopic punctuation

Numerals

Tigrinya numerals

Sample text in Tigrinya

Transliteration
Bəmäns̤ər kəbrən mäsälen kulom säbat əntəwläṣu näs̤an maʿərän əyom. Məstəwʿalen ḥəlenan zətäʿadälom bəməxʷanom bəḥəwnätawi mänfäs kətäḥalaläyu aläwom.

Translation (same for both texts)

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Links

Free Ge'ez fonts
http://www.ethiozena.net/info/faq.html
http://hometown.aol.com/Feedel/Feedel.htm
http://www.geezsoft.com/download.html

Information about the Tigrinya language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigrigna_language
http://home.planet.nl/~hans.mebrat/eritrea-langalph.htm

Information about the Tigrinya people
http://strategyleader.org/profiles/tigrinya.html

Online radio in Tigrinya
http://www.voanews.com/horn/amharic_audio.cfm

Other languages written with the Ge'ez script

Amharic, Blin, Ge'ez, Tigrinya

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