Tounoji

Tounoji was invented by Scorupa D. as an alternative way to write Japanese, and is designed to look vaguely similar to Chinese Seal script. The symbols are vertically stacked with a small gap in between, and a vertical line through the center of each word. It was named Tounoji as the stacked symbols looked similar to towers and Tounoji, or 塔の字 (tōnoji), means 'tower letters/characters' in Japanese.

There are two forms of Tounoji: a "Tall" form where each symbol is simply stacked, and a "Short" form, where symbols are further combined within each single-vowel syllable.

Notable features

Type of writing system: alphabet (tall form) / alphabetic syllbary (short form)
Direction of writing: right to left and top to bottom in vertical columns
Used to write: Japanese
In tall form, if a word starts or ends with e, the word line is extended and capped with a horizontal line.
In short form, a and e are made taller if the first and last consonant of a syllable would otherwise overlap.

Tounoji alphabet

Sample text (Tall form)

Sample text in Tounoji alphabet (Tall form)

Sample text (Short form)

Sample text in Tounoji alphabet (Short form)

Japanese script version

すべての人間は、生まれながらにして自由であり、かつ、尊厳と権利とについて平等である。人間は、理性と良心とを授けられており、互いに同胞の精神をもって行動しなければならない。

Transliteration (rōmaji)

Subete no ningen wa, umarenagara ni shite jiyū de ari, katsu, songen to kenri to ni tsuite byōdō de aru. Ningen wa, risei to ryōshin to o sazukerarete ori, tagai ni dōhō no seishin o motte kōdō shinakereba naranai.

Translation

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)

Also by Scorupa D.: Majok

[top]

The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com

Note: all links on this site to Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.fr are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission if you click on any of them and buy something. So by clicking on these links you can help to support this site.

You can support this site by Buying Me A Coffee, via PayPal or Patreon, or by contributing in other ways.

If you find all the adverts annoying, there is now an Ad-free version of Omniglot which you can access for a small monthly or annual donation.

This website and its content is copyright of Simon Ager - © Simon Ager 1998-2026. All rights reserved. All images were created by me, unless otherwise indicated. Feel free to use them for personal, educational or non-commercial purposes, and don't forget to mention where they came from. More details about copyright

[top]