Script guide › Brahmic / Indic
Hindi / Nepali (Devanagari) vs Punjabi (Gurmukhi)
Hindi / Nepali (Devanagari) and Punjabi (Gurmukhi) sit in the same corner of the writing-system map — Grafle's Brahmic / Indic group — and players mix them up constantly. Here's the fastest way to tell them apart.
The tell
Both have top bars — Gurmukhi's letters are simpler and more open below the bar, with fewer stacked marks.
Side by side
Hindi / Nepali (Devanagari)
सभी मनुष्य जन्म से स्वतंत्र और समान हैं।
नमस्ते, आप कैसे हैं?
सत्यमेव जयते।
Hindi / Nepali (Devanagari)'s own tells
- A continuous horizontal bar runs along the top, connecting the letters into words.
On signs in:
- India
- Nepal
Punjabi (Gurmukhi)
ਸਾਰੇ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਆਜ਼ਾਦ ਅਤੇ ਬਰਾਬਰ ਇੱਜ਼ਤ ਨਾਲ ਜੰਮਦੇ ਹਨ।
ਸਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਅਕਾਲ, ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਹੋ?
ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਇੱਕ ਸੋਹਣੀ ਬੋਲੀ ਹੈ।
Punjabi (Gurmukhi)'s own tells
- Top bar like Devanagari, but simpler and more open letters below it, with fewer stacked marks.
On signs in:
- India