View source for List of writing systems

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[[File:Writing systems worldwide.svg|460px|thumb
 | {{Navbox with columns |border=none |style=font-size:90%;
    | abovestyle = background:transparent;font-size:110%;padding:0;font-weight:bold;
    | above = Predominant national and selected regional or minority scripts
    | colheaderstyle=padding:0.15em 0.15em 0.25em;font-weight:normal; |colstyle=white-space:nowrap;
    | col1header = [[Abjad]]
    | col1 = {{legend|#006624|[[Arabic script|Arabic]]}} {{legend|#38B800|[[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]]}}
    | col2header = [[Abugida]]
    | col2 = {{legend|#F0E68C|[[Canadian Aboriginal syllabics|Canadian syllabics]]}} {{legend|#A0522D|[[Geʽez script|Ethiopic]]}} {{legend|#F4C430|[[Brahmic scripts#Northern Brahmic|North Indic]]}} {{legend|#FF671F|[[Brahmic scripts#Southern Brahmic|South Indic]]}} {{legend|#B8860B|[[Thaana]]}}
    | col3header = [[Alphabet]]ic
    | col3 = {{legend|#003A66|[[Armenian alphabet|Armenian]]}} {{legend|#008899|[[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]]}} {{legend|#0000FF|[[Georgian scripts|Georgian]]}} {{legend|#2175D8|[[Greek alphabet|Greek]]}} {{Legend|#FF69B4|[[Hangul]]}} {{legend|#A9A9C0|[[Latin script|Latin]]}} {{legend|#00FFFF|[[Mongolian script|Mongolian]]}} {{legend|#0090DA|[[Neo-Tifinagh]]}} {{legend|#97CBFF|[[Osage script|Osage]]}}
    | col4header = {{longitem|[[Logogram|[L]ogographic]]<br/>and [[Syllabary|[S]yllabic]]}}
    | col4 = {{legend|#8B008B|[[Cherokee syllabary|Cherokee]] {{Smaller|[S]}}}} {{legend|#EE1C25|[[Chinese characters|Hanzi]] {{smaller|[L]}}}} {{legend|#C71585|[[Kana]] {{smaller|[S]}}{{\}}[[Kanji]] {{smaller|[L]}}{{nbsp|2}}}}
   }}
]]

[[File:World alphabets & writing systems.svg|thumb|upright=1.8|Writing systems of the world]]
{{Special characters}}

[[Writing system]]s are used to record human language, and may be classified according to certain common features.

The usual name of the script is given first; the name of the [[language]]s in which the script is written follows (in brackets), particularly in the case where the language name differs from the script name. Other informative or qualifying annotations for the script may also be provided.

== Proto-writing and ideographic systems ==
Ideographic scripts (in which graphemes are [[ideogram]]s representing concepts or ideas rather than a specific word in a language) and pictographic scripts (in which the graphemes are iconic pictures) are not thought to be able to express all that can be communicated by language, as argued by the linguists [[John DeFrancis]] and [[J. Marshall Unger]]. Essentially, they postulate that no ''true'' writing system can be completely pictographic or ideographic; it must be able to refer directly to a language in order to have the full expressive capacity of a language. Unger disputes claims made on behalf of [[Blissymbols]] in his 2004 book ''Ideogram''.

Although a few [[pictographic]] or [[ideographic script]]s exist today, there is no single way to read them because there is no one-to-one correspondence between symbol and language.  Hieroglyphs were commonly thought to be ideographic before they were translated, and to this day, Chinese is often erroneously said to be ideographic.<ref>Halliday, M.A.K., ''Spoken and written language,'' Deakin University Press, 1985, p.19</ref> In some cases of ideographic scripts, only the author of a text can read it with any certainty, and it may be said that they are ''interpreted'' rather than read.  Such scripts often work best as mnemonic aids for oral texts or as outlines that will be fleshed out in speech.
*[[Adinkra symbols|Adinkra]]
*[[Aztec script]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Nahuatl]] (includes syllabic and logographic elements)
*[[Ojibwe writing systems#Anishinaabewibii'iganan|Birch-bark glyphs]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Ojibwe language|Anishinaabemowin]]
*[[Dongba script|Dongba]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Naxi language|Naxi]]{{spaced ndash}} Although this is often supplemented with syllabic [[Geba script]].
*[[Emoji]] – used in electronic messages and web pages.
*[[Ersu Shaba script]] – [[Ersu language|Ersu]]
*[[Kaidā glyphs]]
*[[Lusona]]
*[[Nsibidi]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Ekoid languages|Ekoi]], [[Efik language|Efik]], [[Igbo language|Igbo]]
*[[Siglas poveiras]]
*[[Míkmaq hieroglyphic writing]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Míkmaq|Mi'kmawi'sit]]
*[[Testerian]] – used for missionary work in Mexico.

There are also symbol systems used to represent things other than language, or to represent constructed languages:

*[[Blissymbols]] – A constructed ideographic script used primarily in [[Augmentative and Alternative Communication]] (AAC).
*[[iConji]] – A constructed ideographic script used primarily in social networking
*[[Isotype (picture language)]]
*A wide variety of [[notation]]s

[[Linear B]] also incorporates syllables and ideograms.

== Logographic systems ==
In logographic writing systems, [[Glyph|glyphs]] represent [[Word (linguistics)|word]]s or [[morpheme]]s (meaningful components of words, as in ''mean-ing-ful'') rather than phonetic elements.

No logographic script is composed solely of [[logogram]]s. All contain graphemes that represent [[phonetic]] (sound-based) elements as well. These phonetic elements may be used on their own (to represent, for example, grammatical inflections or foreign words), or may serve as [[phonetic complement]]s to a logogram (used to specify the sound of a logogram that might otherwise represent more than one word). In the case of Chinese, the phonetic element is built into the logogram itself; in Egyptian and Mayan, many glyphs are purely phonetic, whereas others function as either logograms or phonetic elements, depending on context. For this reason, many such scripts may be more properly referred to as logosyllabic or complex scripts; the terminology used is largely a product of custom in the field, and is to an extent arbitrary.

=== Consonant-based logographies ===
*[[Egyptian hieroglyph|Hieroglyphic]], [[Hieratic]], and [[Demotic Egyptian|Demotic]] – the writing systems of [[Ancient Egypt]]
**[[Egyptian hieroglyphs]]

=== Syllable-based logographies ===
*[[Anatolian hieroglyph]]s – [[Luwian language|Luwian]]
*[[Cuneiform script|Cuneiform]] – [[Sumerian language|Sumerian]], [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]], other [[Semitic languages]], [[Elamite language|Elamite]], [[Hittite language|Hittite]], [[Luwian language|Luwian]], [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]], and [[Urartian language|Urartian]]
*[[Chinese character]]s – [[Chinese language|Chinese]], [[Japanese language|Japanese]] (called [[Kanji]]), [[Korean language|Korean]] (called [[Hanja]]), [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] (called [[Chu Han]], obsolete)
**[[Sawndip]] – [[Zhuang languages|Zhuang]]
**[[Chu Nom]] - [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]]
**[[Khitan large script]] – [[Khitan language|Khitan]]
**[[Khitan small script]] – [[Khitan language|Khitan]]
**[[Jurchen script]] – [[Jurchen language|Jurchen]]
**[[Tangut script]] – [[Tangut language|Tangut]] 
*[[Eghap script|Eghap (or Bagam)]] script
*[[Maya script]] – [[Chorti language|Chorti]], [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec]], and other [[Classic Maya language]]s
*[[Pau Cin Hau script|Pau Cin Hau logographic script]] – [[Tedim language|Tedim]]
*[[Sui script]] – [[Sui language]]
*[[Yi script#Classical Yi|Yi]] (classical) – various [[Yi language|Yi/Lolo languages]]

==Syllabaries==
In a [[syllabary]], graphemes represent [[syllable]]s or [[Mora (linguistics)|mora]]s. (The 19th-century term ''syllabics'' usually referred to ''[[abugida]]s'' rather than true syllabaries.)

*[[Afaka syllabary|Afaka]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Ndyuka language|Ndyuka]]
*[[Yugtun script|Alaska or Yugtun script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Yupik languages|Central Yup'ik]]
*[[Bété syllabary|Bété]]
*[[Cherokee syllabary|Cherokee]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Cherokee language|Cherokee]]
*[[Cypriot syllabary|Cypriot]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Arcadocypriot Greek]]
*[[Geba syllabary|Geba]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Naxi language|Naxi]]
*[[Iban language#Writing system|Iban]] or [[Dunging script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Iban language|Iban]]
*[[Kana]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Japanese language|Japanese]] (although primarily based on [[Mora (linguistics)|moras]] rather than syllables)
**[[Hiragana]]
**[[Katakana]]
**[[Man'yōgana]]
*[[Mende Kikakui script|Kikakui]] – [[Mende language|Mende]]
*[[Kpelle syllabary|Kpelle]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kpelle language|Kpelle]]
*[[Linear B]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mycenaean language|Mycenean Greek]]
*[[Lisu language#Lisu syllabary|Lisu Bamboo script]] 
*[[Loma language#Writing systems|Loma]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Loma language|Loma]]
*[[Bambara language#Writing|Masaba]] – [[Bambara language|Bambara]]
*[[Nüshu]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Chinese language|Chinese]]
*[[Nwagu Aneke script]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Igbo language|Igbo]]
*[[Vai syllabary|Vai]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Vai language|Vai]]
*[[Woleai script|Woleaian]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Woleaian language|Woleaian]] (a likely syllabary)
*[[Yi script#Modern Yi|Yi]] (modern){{spaced ndash}} various [[Nuosu language|Yi/Lolo languages]]

=== Semi-syllabaries ===
In most of these systems, some consonant-vowel combinations are written as syllables, but others are written as consonant plus vowel. In the case of Old Persian, all vowels were written regardless, so it was ''effectively'' a true alphabet despite its syllabic component. In Japanese a similar system plays a minor role in foreign borrowings; for example, [tu] is written [to]+[u], and [ti] as [te]+[i]. Paleohispanic [[semi-syllabaries]] behaved as a [[syllabary]] for the [[stop consonant]]s and as an [[alphabet]] for the rest of consonants and vowels.

The Tartessian or Southwestern script is typologically intermediate between a pure alphabet and the Paleohispanic full semi-syllabaries. Although the letter used to write a stop consonant was determined by the following vowel, as in a full [[semi-syllabary]], the following vowel was also written, as in an alphabet. Some scholars treat Tartessian as a redundant semi-syllabary, others treat it as a redundant alphabet. Other scripts, such as Bopomofo, are semi-syllabic in a different sense: they transcribe half syllables. That is, they have letters for [[syllable onset]]s and [[syllable rime|rimes]] ''(kan = "k-an")'' rather than for consonants and vowels ''(kan = "k-a-n").''

==== Consonant-vowel semi-syllabaries ====
*[[Bamum script]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Bamum language|Bamum]] (a defective syllabary, with alphabetic principles used to fill the gaps)
*[[Eskayan script|Eskayan]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Bohol]], [[Philippines]] (a syllabary apparently based on an alphabet; some alphabetic characteristics remain)
*[[Linear Elamite]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Elamite language]]
*[[Paleohispanic scripts|Paleohispanic semi-syllabaries]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Paleo-Hispanic languages]]
**[[Celtiberian script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Celtiberian language]]
**[[Northeastern Iberian script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Iberian language]]
**[[Southeastern Iberian script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Iberian language]]
**[[Southwest Paleohispanic script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Tartessian language|Tartessian]]
*[[Old Persian cuneiform]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old Persian]]

==== Onset-rime semi-syllabaries ====
*[[Bopomofo]]{{spaced ndash}}phonetic script for different [[varieties of Chinese]].
*[[Khom script (Ong Kommadam)|Khom script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Bahnaric languages]], including [[Alak language|Alak]] and [[Jru' language|Jru']]. 
*[[History of writing in Vietnam#Quốc âm tân tự|Quốc Âm Tân Tự]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]]

== {{anchor|Segmental script}}Segmental systems ==
A '''segmental script''' has [[grapheme]]s which represent the [[phoneme]]s (basic unit of sound) of a language.

Note that there need not be (and rarely is) a one-to-one correspondence between the graphemes of the script and the phonemes of a language. A phoneme may be represented only by some combination or string of graphemes, the same phoneme may be represented by more than one distinct grapheme, the same grapheme may stand for more than one phoneme, or some combination of all of the above.

Segmental scripts may be further divided according to the types of phonemes they typically record:

=== Abjads ===
An [[abjad]] is a segmental script containing symbols for [[consonant]]s only, or where vowels are ''optionally'' written with [[diacritics]] ("pointing") or only written word-initially.

*[[Ancient North Arabian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Dadanitic]], [[Dumaitic]], [[Hasaitic dialect|Hasaitic]], [[Hismaic]], [[Safaitic]], [[Taymanitic]], and [[Thamudic]]
*[[Ancient South Arabian script|Ancient South Arabian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old South Arabian|Old South Arabian languages]] including [[Himyaritic language|Himyaritic]], [[Hadramautic language|Hadhramautic]], [[Minaean language|Minaean]], [[Sabaean language|Sabaean]] and [[Qatabanian language|Qatabanic]]; also the Ethiopic language [[Geʽez]]. 
*[[Aramaic alphabet|Aramaic]], including [[Khwarezmian language#Writing system|Khwarezmian]] ({{sc|aka}} [[Chorasmian (Unicode block)|Chorasmian]]), [[Elymaic]], [[Palmyrene alphabet|Palmyrene]], and [[Hatran Aramaic#Alphabet|Hatran]]
*[[Arabic script|Arabic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Arabic]], [[Azeri language|Azeri]], [[Chittagonian language|Chittagonian]] (historically), [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], [[Baluchi language|Baluchi]], [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]], [[Pashto]], [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]] (vowels ''obligatory''), [[Sindhi language|Sindhi]], [[Uyghur language|Uighur]] (vowels ''obligatory''), [[Urdu]], [[Malay language|Malay]] (as [[Jawi (script)|Jawi]]) and many other languages spoken in [[Africa]] and [[Western Asia|Western]], [[Central Asia|Central]], and [[Southeast Asia]],
*[[Hebrew script|Hebrew]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and other [[Jewish languages]]
*[[Manichaean script]]
*[[Nabataean alphabet|Nabataean]]{{spaced ndash}} the [[Nabataeans]] of [[Petra]]
*[[Pahlavi script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Middle Persian]]
**[[Parthian language|Parthian]]
**[[Psalter alphabet|Psalter]]
*[[Phoenician alphabet|Phoenician]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Phoenician language|Phoenician]] and other [[Canaan]]ite languages
*[[Proto-Canaanite alphabet|Proto-Canaanite]]
*[[Sogdian alphabet|Sogdian]]
*[[Samaritan alphabet|Samaritan (Old Hebrew)]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Aramaic]], [[Arabic]], and [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]
*[[Syriac alphabet|Syriac]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Assyrian Neo-Aramaic]], [[Chaldean Neo-Aramaic]], [[Syriac language|Syriac]], [[Turoyo]] and other [[Neo-Aramaic languages]]
*[[Tifinagh]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Tuareg languages|Tuareg]]
*[[Ugaritic alphabet|Ugaritic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Ugaritic language|Ugaritic]], [[Hurrian language|Hurrian]]

=== True alphabets ===
A true [[alphabet]] contains separate letters (not [[diacritic]] marks) for both [[consonant]]s and [[vowel]]s.

==== Linear nonfeatural alphabets ====
[[File:Alphabets in Europe.svg|thumb|300px|Writing systems used in countries of Europe.<ref group="note">This maps shows languages official in the respective countries; if a country has an independent breakaway republic, both languages are shown. Moldova's sole official language is Romanian (Latin-based), but the unrecognized de facto independent republic of Transnistria uses three Cyrillic-based languages: Ukrainian, Russian, and Moldovan. Georgia's official languages are Georgian and Abkhazian (in Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia), the sparsely recognized de facto independent republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia use Cyrillic-based languages: Both republics use Russian. Additionally, Abkhazia also uses Abkhaz, and South Ossetia uses Ossetian. Additionally, Serbia's sole official language is Cyrillic Serbian, but within the country, Latin script for Serbian is also widely used.</ref>
{{legend|#008000|[[Greek alphabet|Greek]] }}
{{legend|#008080|Greek & Latin ([[Cyprus]])}}
{{legend|#000080|[[Latin script|Latin]]}}
{{legend|#8000C0|Latin & Cyrillic ([[Bosnia]], [[Serbia]], [[Moldova]])}}
{{legend|#FF0000|[[Cyrillic]]}}
{{legend|#FF9955|[[Georgian scripts|Georgian]] }}
{{legend|#80B0FF|Latin & Armenian ([[Azerbaijan]])}}
{{legend|#FFCC00|[[Armenian script|Armenian]]}}]]

''Linear'' alphabets are composed of lines on a surface, such as ink on paper.

*[[Fula alphabets#Adlam alphabet|Adlam]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Fula language|Fula]]
*[[Armenian alphabet|Armenian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Armenian language|Armenian]]
*[[Ariyaka script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Pali]], [[Isan language|Isan]], [[Lao language|Lao]]
*[[Avestan alphabet|Avestan]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Avestan language|Avestan]]
*[[Avoiuli]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Raga language|Raga]]
*[[Borama script|Borama]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Somali language|Somali]]
*[[Bosnian cyrillic|Bosančica]] – [[Bosnian language|Bosnian]]
*[[Carian alphabets|Carian]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Carian language|Carian]]
*[[Caucasian Albanian alphabet|Caucasian Albanian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Caucasian Albanian language|Caucasian Albanian]]
*[[Coorgi–Cox alphabet]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kodava language|Kodava]]
*[[Coptic alphabet|Coptic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Egyptian language|Egyptian]]
*[[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Eastern South Slavic|Eastern South Slavic languages]] ([[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]] and [[Macedonian language|Macedonian]]), the Western [[South Slavic languages|South Slavic]] [[Serbian language|Serbian]],  [[Eastern Slavic languages]] ([[Belarusian language|Belarusian]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]]), the other [[languages of Russia]], [[Kazakh language]], [[Kyrgyz language]], [[Tajik language]], [[Mongolian language]]. [[Azerbaijan]], [[Turkmenistan]], and [[Uzbekistan]] are changing to the Latin alphabet but still have considerable use of Cyrillic. See [[Languages using Cyrillic]].
*[[Deseret alphabet]] – proposed for English but never adopted
*[[Eclectic shorthand]]{{spaced ndash}} [[English language|English]]
*[[Elbasan script|Elbasan]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Albanian language|Albanian]]
*[[Fraser alphabet|Fraser]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Lisu language|Lisu]]
*[[Gabelsberger shorthand]]{{spaced ndash}} [[German language|German]]
*[[Garay alphabet|Garay]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Wolof language|Wolof]] and [[Mandinka language|Mandinka]]
*[[Georgian scripts|Georgian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Georgian language|Georgian]] and other [[Kartvelian languages]]
*[[Gjirokastër alphabet|Gjirokastër]] (also called Veso Bey){{spaced ndash}} [[Albanian language|Albanian]]
*[[Glagolitic alphabet|Glagolitic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old Church Slavonic]]
*[[Gothic alphabet|Gothic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Gothic language|Gothic]]
*[[Greek alphabet|Greek]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Greek language|Greek]], historically a variety of [[Greek alphabet#Other uses|other languages]]
*[[Hanifi Rohingya script|Hanifi]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Rohingya language|Rohingya]]
*[[International Phonetic Alphabet]]
*[[Kaddare script|Kaddare]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Somali language|Somali]]
*[[Latin script|Latin {{sc|aka}} Roman]]{{spaced ndash}} originally [[Latin language]]; most current western and central [[Languages of Europe|European languages]], [[Turkic languages]], [[languages of Africa|sub-Saharan African languages]], [[indigenous languages of the Americas]], languages of [[maritime Southeast Asia]] and [[languages of Oceania]] use developments of it. Languages using a non-Latin writing system are generally also equipped with [[Romanization]] for [[transliteration]] or secondary use.
*[[Lycian alphabet|Lycian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Lycian language|Lycian]]
*[[Lydian alphabet|Lydian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Lydian language|Lydian]]
*[[Manchu alphabet|Manchu]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Manchu language|Manchu]]
*[[Mandaic alphabet|Mandaic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mandaic language|Mandaic]] dialect of [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]]
*[[Medefaidrin]]{{spaced ndash}} also called Obɛri Ɔkaimɛ; used for the religious language of the same name
*[[Mongolian script|Mongolian]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mongolian language|Mongolian]]
*[[Mundari Bani]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mundari language|Mundari]]
*[[Mru script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mru language|Mru]]
*[[Neo-Tifinagh]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Berber languages|Tamazight]]
*[[Nyiakeng Puachue Hmong]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Hmong language|Hmong]]
*[[N'Ko script|N'Ko]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Maninka language]], [[Bambara language|Bambara]], [[Dyula language]]
*[[Oduduwa script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Yoruba language|Yoruba]]
*[[Ogham]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Goidelic languages|Gaelic]], [[Brythonic languages|Britannic]], [[Pictish language|Pictish]]
*[[Ol Chiki script|Ol Chiki]] {{sc|aka}} Ol Cemet' or Ol Chemet'{{spaced ndash}} [[Santali language|Santali]]
*[[Old Hungarian script|Old Hungarian]] (in Hungarian ''magyar rovásírás'' or ''székely-magyar rovásírás''){{spaced ndash}} [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]]
*[[Old Italic alphabet|Old Italic]]{{spaced ndash}} a family of connected alphabets for the [[Etruscan language|Etruscan]], [[Oscan language|Oscan]], [[Umbrian language|Umbrian]], [[Messapian language|Messapian]], [[South Picene language|South Picene]], [[Raetic language|Raetic]], [[Venetic language|Venetic]], [[Lepontic language|Lepontic]], [[Camunic language]]s
*[[Old Permic script|Old Permic]] (also called ''Abur''){{spaced ndash}} [[Komi language|Komi]]
*[[Old Turkic script|Old Turkic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old Turkic]]
*[[Old Uyghur alphabet|Old Uyghur]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old Uyghur]]
*[[Ol Onal]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Bhumij language|Bhumij Language]]
*[[Osmanya script|Osmanya]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Somali language|Somali]]
*[[Pau Cin Hau script|Pau Cin Hau alphabetic script]]{{spaced ndash}} Zomi and other [[Northern Kuki-Chin languages]]
*[[Runes]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Germanic languages]]
*[[Hmong writing#Sayaboury script|Sayaboury]] (also called Eebee Hmong or ''Ntawv Puaj Txwm''){{spaced ndash}} [[Hmong language|Hmong Daw]]
*[[Sorang Sompeng script|Sorang Sompeng]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sora language|Sora]]
*[[Tai Lue language|Tai Lue]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Dai people|Lue]]
*[[Tangsa language#Orthography|Tangsa]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Tangsa language]]
*[[Todhri alphabet|Todhri]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Albanian language|Albanian]]
*[[Kurukh language#Writing systems|Tolong Siki]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kurukh language|Kurukh]]
*[[Toto language#Writing system|Toto]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Toto language|Toto]] 
*[[Unifon]] – proposed for English, never adopted
*[[Bassa script|Vah]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Bassa language|Bassa]] 
*[[Vellara alphabet|Vellara]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Albanian language|Albanian]]
*[[Vithkuqi script|Vithkuqi {{sc|aka}} Beitha Kukju]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Albanian language|Albanian]]
*[[Wancho script|Wancho]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Wancho language|Wancho]]
*[[Yezidi (script)|Yezidi]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kurmanji]]
*[[Zaghawa script|Zaghawa]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Zaghawa language|Zaghawa]]
*[[Zou language#Writing systems|Zoulai]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Zou language|Zou]] (also has alphasyllabic characteristics)

==== Featural linear alphabets ====
A [[Featural alphabet|featural script]] has elements that indicate the components of articulation, such as [[bilabial consonant]]s, [[fricative consonant|fricatives]], or [[back vowel]]s. Scripts differ in how many features they indicate.

*[[ASL-phabet]]
*[[Ditema tsa Dinoko|Ditema tsa Dinoko {{sc|aka}} IsiBheqe SoHlamvu]] for [[Southern Bantu languages]]
*[[Duployan Shorthand]]
*[[Gregg Shorthand]]
*[[Hangul]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Korean language|Korean]]
*[[Osage alphabet|Osage]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Osage language|Osage]]
*[[Shavian alphabet]] – proposed for English, never adopted
*[[SignWriting]] and its descendants [[si5s]] and [[ASLwrite]] for [[sign languages]]
*[[Stokoe notation]] for [[American Sign Language]], and its descendant, the [[Hamburg Notation System]] or HamNoSys
*[[Tengwar]] (a fictional script)
*[[Visible Speech]] (a phonetic script)

====Linear alphabets arranged into syllabic blocks====
*[[Hangul]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Korean language|Korean]]
*[[Great Lakes Algonquian syllabics]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Fox language|Fox]], [[Potawatomi language|Potawatomi]], [[Winnebago language|Ho-Chunk]], [[Ojibwa language|Ojibwe]]
*[[Ditema tsa Dinoko|IsiBheqe SoHlamvu]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Southern Bantu languages]]
*[[ʼPhags-pa script]]{{spaced ndash}}[[Mongolian language|Mongolian]], [[Chinese language|Chinese]], [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Sanskrit]]

====Manual alphabets====
[[Manual alphabet]]s are frequently found as parts of [[sign language]]s. They are not used for writing ''per se'', but for spelling out words while signing.
*[[American Manual Alphabet|American manual alphabet]] (used with slight modification in [[Hong Kong]], [[Malaysia]], [[Paraguay]], [[Philippines]], [[Singapore]], [[Taiwan]], [[Thailand]])
*[[Two-handed manual alphabet|British manual alphabet]] (used in some of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]], such as [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]])
*[[Catalan manual alphabet]]
*[[Chilean manual alphabet]]
*[[Chinese manual alphabet]]
*[[Dutch manual alphabet]]
*[[Ethiopian manual alphabet]] (an abugida)
*[[French manual alphabet]]
*[[Greek manual alphabet]]
*[[Icelandic manual alphabet]] (also used in [[Denmark]])
*[[Indian manual alphabet]] (a true alphabet?; used in [[Devanagari]] and [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]] areas)
*[[International manual alphabet]] (used in [[Germany]], [[Austria]], [[Norway]], [[Finland]])
*[[Iranian manual alphabet]] (an abjad; also used in [[Egypt]])
*[[Israeli manual alphabet]] (an abjad)
*[[Italian manual alphabet]]
*[[Korean manual alphabet]]
*[[Latin American manual alphabets]]
*[[Polish manual alphabet]]
*[[Portuguese manual alphabet]]
*[[Romanian manual alphabet]]
*[[Russian manual alphabet]] (also used in [[Bulgaria]] and ex-[[Soviet Union|Soviet]] states)
*[[Spanish manual alphabet]] ([[Madrid]])
*[[Swedish manual alphabet]]
*[[Yugoslav manual alphabet]]

====Other non-linear alphabets====
These are other alphabets composed of something other than lines on a surface.

*[[Braille|Braille (Unified)]]{{spaced ndash}} an embossed alphabet for the visually impaired, used with some extra letters to transcribe the Latin, Cyrillic, Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic alphabets, as well as Chinese
*[[Korean Braille|Braille (Korean)]]
*[[American Braille|Braille (American)]] (defunct)
*[[New York Point]]{{spaced ndash}} a defunct alternative to Braille
*[[International maritime signal flags]] (both alphabetic and ideographic)
*[[Morse code|Morse code (International)]]{{spaced ndash}} a [[trinary]] code of dashes, dots, and silence, whether transmitted by electricity, light, or sound) representing characters in the Latin alphabet.
*[[American Morse code]] (defunct)
*[[Semaphore line|Optical telegraphy]] (defunct)
*[[Flag semaphore]]{{spaced ndash}} (made by moving hand-held flags)

===Abugidas===
An [[abugida]], or ''alphasyllabary'', is a segmental script in which [[vowel]] sounds are denoted by [[diacritical mark]]s or other systematic modification of the [[consonant]]s. Generally, however, if a single letter is understood to have an inherent unwritten vowel, and only vowels other than this are written, then the system is classified as an abugida regardless of whether the vowels look like diacritics or full letters. The vast majority of abugidas are found from India to Southeast Asia and belong historically to the Brāhmī family, however the term is derived from the first characters of the abugida in [[Ge'ez script|Ge'ez]]: አ (A) ቡ (bu) ጊ (gi) ዳ (da) — (compare with ''[[Alphabet#Etymology|alphabet]]''). Unlike abjads, the diacritical marks and systemic modifications of the consonants are not optional.

====Brahmi family====
[[File:Manuscripts in the Yunnan Nationalities Museum - DSC03945.JPG|thumb|A [[Palaung language|Palaung]] manuscript written in a Brahmic abugida]]
*[[Ahom alphabet|Ahom]]
*[[Balinese alphabet|Balinese]]
*[[Batak script|Batak]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Toba Batak language|Toba]] and other [[Batak (Indonesia)|Batak]] languages
*[[Baybayin]]{{spaced ndash}} Formerly used for [[Ilokano language|Ilokano]], [[Pangasinan language|Pangasinan]], [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]], [[Bikol languages]], [[Visayan languages]], and possibly other [[Philippine languages]]
*[[Bengali alphabet|Bengali]] and [[Assamese alphabet|Assamese]] —  Bengali, Assamese, [[Meithei language|Meithei]], [[Bishnupriya Manipuri language|Bishnupriya Manipuri]]
*[[Bhaiksuki alphabet|Bhaiksuki]] 
*[[Brāhmī script|Brahmi]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sanskrit]], [[Prakrit]]
*[[Buda script|Buda]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Old Sundanese language|Old Sundanese]] and [[Old Javanese language|Old Javanese]]
*[[Buhid script|Buhid]]
*[[Burmese alphabet|Burmese]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Burmese language|Burmese]], [[Karen languages]], [[Mon language|Mon]], and [[Shan language|Shan]]
*[[Cham alphabet|Cham]]
*[[Chakma alphabet|Chakma]] 
*[[Devanagari]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Hindi]], [[Sanskrit]], [[Marathi language|Marathi]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]], and many other languages of northern India
*[[Dhives Akuru]]
*[[Grantha alphabet|Grantha]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sanskrit]]
*[[Gujarati script|Gujarati]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]], [[Kutchi language|Kutchi]], [[Vasavi language|Vasavi]], [[Sanskrit]], [[Avestan]]
*[[Gurmukhi script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]
*[[Hanunoo script|Hanuno’o]]
*[[Javanese script|Javanese]]
*[[Kaithi]]
*[[Kannada script|Kannada]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kannada]], [[Tulu language|Tulu]], [[Konkani language|Konkani]], [[Kodava language|Kodava]]
*[[Kawi script|Kawi]]
*[[Khema script]][[Khojki|{{spaced ndash}}]] [[Gurung language|Gurung]]
*[[Khojki]]
*[[Khudabadi script|Khudabadi]] 
*[[Khmer alphabet|Khmer]]
*[[Kirat Rai|Kirat Rai {{sc|aka}} Khambu Rai]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Bantawa language|Bantawa]]
*[[Kulitan alphabet]]
*[[Lai Tay script|Lai Tay]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Tai Yo language|Tai Yo]]
*[[Lampung language#Writing system|Lampung]]
*[[Lao alphabet|Lao]]
*[[Leke script|Leke]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Eastern Pwo language|Eastern Pwo]], [[Western Pwo language|Western Pwo]], and [[Karen language|Karen]]
*[[Lepcha alphabet|Lepcha]]
*[[Limbu alphabet|Limbu]]
*[[Lontara alphabet|Lontara’]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Buginese language|Buginese]], [[Makassar language|Makassar]], and [[Mandar language|Mandar]]
*[[Mahajani]]
*[[Makasar script|Makasar]]{{spaced ndash}} Formerly used for [[Makassar language|Makassar]]
*[[Malayalam script|Malayalam]]
*[[Marchen script|Marchen]] – Zhang-Zhung 
*[[Meitei script|Meitei Mayek]] – [[Meitei language|Meitei]]
*[[Modi alphabet|Modi]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Marathi language|Marathi]]
*[[Multani alphabet|Multani]] – [[Saraiki dialect|Saraiki]] 
*[[Nandinagari]] – [[Sanskrit]]
*[[Naoriya Phulo script]] – Meitei
*[[New Tai Lue alphabet|New Tai Lue]]
*[[Odia script|Odia]]
*[[Pracalit script |Pracalit script {{sc|aka}} Newa]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Nepal Bhasa]], [[Sanskrit]], [[Pali]]
*[[Pyu script|Pyu]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Pyu language (Burma)|Pyu]]
*[[Ranjana script|Ranjana]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Nepal Bhasa]], [[Sanskrit]]
*[[Rejang alphabet|Rejang]]
*[[Rencong script|Rencong]]
*[[Saurashtra script|Saurashtra]]
*[[Sharada script|Sharada]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sanskrit]], [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]]
*[[Siddham script|Siddham]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sanskrit]]
*[[Sinhala script|Sinhala]]
*[[Sirmauri language#Script|Sirmauri]]
*[[Soyombo script|Soyombo]]
*[[Sundanese script|Sundanese]]
*[[Sylheti Nagri]] – [[Sylheti language|Sylheti]]
*[[Tagbanwa alphabet|Tagbanwa]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Ethnic Groups of Palawan|Languages of Palawan]]
*[[Tai Le script|Tai Le {{sc|aka}} Dehong Dai]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Tai Nuea language|Tai Nuea]] 
*[[Tai Tham script|Tai Tham]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Khün language|Khün]], and [[Northern Thai language|Northern Thai]]
*[[Tai Viet script|Tai Viet]]
*[[Takri alphabet|Takri]] 
*[[Tamil script|Tamil]]
*[[Telugu script|Telugu]]
*[[Thai alphabet|Thai]]
*[[Tibetan alphabet|Tibetan]]
*[[Tigalari alphabet|Tigalari]] {{spaced ndash}}[[Sanskrit]], [[Tulu language|Tulu]]
*[[Tirhuta]]{{spaced ndash}} used to write [[Maithili language|Maithili]]
*[[Tocharian script|Tocharian]]
*[[Vatteluttu]]
*[[Horizontal square script|Zanabazar Square]] 
*[[Zhang-Zhung language|Zhang zhung]] scripts

====Other abugidas====
*[[Canadian Aboriginal syllabics]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Cree syllabics]] (for [[Cree language|Cree]]), [[Inuktitut syllabics]] (for [[Inuktitut language|Inuktitut]]), [[Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics|Ojibwe syllabics]] (for [[Ojibwe language|Ojibwe]]), and various systems for other languages of Canada.  Derived scripts with identical operating principles but divergent character repertoires include [[Carrier syllabics|Carrier]] and [[Blackfoot language#Syllabic writing system|Blackfoot]] syllabics.
*[[Dham script|Dham]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Dhimal language|Dhimal]]
*[[Geʽez script|Ge'ez]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Amharic language|Amharic]], [[Ge'ez language|Ge’ez]], [[Tigrigna language|Tigrigna]]
*[[Kharoṣṭhī]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Gandhari language|Gandhari]], [[Sanskrit]]
*[[Kurukh language#Writing systems|Kurukh Banna]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kurukh language|Kurukh]]
*[[Lontara Bilang-bilang script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Buginese language|Buginese]]
*[[Mandombe]]
*[[Meroitic script|Meroitic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Meroë]]
*[[Mwangwego script|Mwangwego]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Chichewa|Chewa]] and other [[Bantu languages]] of [[Malawi]]
*[[Pitman Shorthand]]
*[[Pollard script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Hmong language|Miao]]
*[[Oromo language#Writing systems|Sapalo script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Oromo language|Oromo]]
*[[Qiang language#Writing system|Rma script]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Qiang language|Qiang]]
*[[Sunuwar alphabet|Sunuwar {{sc|aka}} Jenticha]]
*[[Thaana]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Dhivehi language|Dhivehi]]
*[[Sunwar language#Tikamuli native abugida (since 2005)|Tikamuli]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sunwar language|Sunuwar]]
*[[Thomas Natural Shorthand]]

====Final consonant-diacritic abugidas====
In at least one abugida, not only the vowel but any [[syllable coda|syllable-final]] consonant is written with a diacritic. That is, if representing [o] with an under-ring, and final [k] with an over-cross, [sok] would be written as {{IPA|s̥̽}}.

*[[Róng]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Lepcha language|Lepcha]]

====Vowel-based abugidas====
In a few abugidas, the vowels are basic, and the consonants secondary. If no consonant is written in Pahawh Hmong, it is understood to be /k/; consonants are written after the vowel they precede in speech. In Japanese Braille, the vowels but not the consonants have independent status, and it is the vowels which are modified when the consonant is ''y'' or ''w''.

*[[Boyd's Syllabic Shorthand]]
*[[Japanese Braille]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Japanese language|Japanese]]
*[[Pahawh Hmong]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Hmong language|Hmong]]

== List of writing systems by adoption ==

{{Original research section|date=April 2023}}
The following list contains writing systems that are in active use by a population of at least 50,000.
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left"
|-
! Name of script
! Type
! Population actively using (in millions)
! Languages associated with
! Regions using script de facto
|-
| '''[[Latin script|Latin]]'''  <br/> Latin 
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|4900000}}4900+<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=The World's 5 Most Commonly Used Writing Systems |url=https://www.britannica.com/list/the-worlds-5-most-commonly-used-writing-systems |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=Britannica |first1=Don |last1=Vaughan |date=23 Nov 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref group="note">Difficult to determine, as it is used to write a very large number of languages with varying literacy rates among them.</ref>
| [[Latin]]<ref group="note">alphabet originally created to this language</ref>  and [[Romance languages]] (languages that evolved from Latin: [[Italian language|Italian]], [[French language|French]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Romanian language|Romanian]])<br/> [[Germanic languages]] ([[English language|English]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[German language|German]], [[North Germanic languages|Nordic languages]])<ref group="note">replaced the [[Runes|runic alphabet]]</ref><br/>[[Celtic languages]] ([[Welsh language|Welsh]], [[Irish language|Irish]] and [[Scottish Gaelic]])<ref group="note">replaced the [[Ogham]]</ref><br/>[[Baltic languages]] ([[Latvian language|Latvian]] and [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]])<br/>Some [[Slavic languages]] ([[Polish language|Polish]], [[Czech language|Czech]], [[Slovak language|Slovak]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Slovenian language|Slovenian]])<br/> [[Albanian language|Albanian]]<br/>  [[Uralic languages]] ([[Finnish Language|Finnish]], [[Estonian language|Estonian]] and [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]])<br/> [[Malayo-Polynesian languages]] ([[Malaysian language|Malaysian]],<ref group="note">replaced the [[Arabic alphabet]]</ref> [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], [[Filipino language|Filipino]], etc.)<br/> [[Turkic languages]] ([[Turkish language|Turkish]],<ref group="note">replaced the [[Arabic script]]</ref> [[Azerbaijani language|Azerbaijani]], [[Uzbek language|Uzbek]], [[Turkmen language|Turkmen]])<br/> Some [[Cushitic languages]] ([[Somali Language|Somali]], [[Afar language|Afar]], [[Oromo language|Oromo]])<br/> [[Bantu languages]] (for example: [[Swahili Language|Swahili]])<br/> [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] (an [[Austroasiatic language]])<ref group="note">replaced the [[Chu Nom]]</ref><br/> others
| Worldwide
|-
| '''[[Chinese characters|Chinese]]''' <br/> 汉字 <br/> 漢字
| [[Logographic]]
|{{hs|1541000}}1541<ref name=":1">Population using script where it is official, according to 100% alphabetization.</ref>
| [[Sinitic languages]] ([[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], [[Min Chinese|Min]], [[Wu Chinese|Wu]], [[Yue Chinese|Yue]], [[Jin Chinese|Jin]], [[Gan Chinese|Gan]], [[Hakka Chinese|Hakka]] and others)<br/>[[Japanese language|Japanese]] ([[Kanji]])<br/> [[Korean language|Korean]] ([[Hanja]])<ref group="note">[[Hanja]] is increasingly being phased out in South Korea. It is mainly used in official documents, newspapers, books, and signs to identify Chinese roots to Korean words.</ref><br/> [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] ([[Chu Nom]] obsolete)<br/> [[Zhuang languages|Zhuang]] ([[Sawndip]])
| [[Eastern Asia]], [[Singapore]]
|-
| '''[[Arabic script|Arabic]]''' <br/> العربية
| [[Abjad]] or [[Abugida]] (when [[Arabic diacritics|diacritics]] are used)
|{{hs|0828000}}828<ref name=":1" />
| [[Arabic]] (a [[Semitic language]])<br/>Several [[Indo-Iranian languages]] ([[Persian language|Persian]], [[Kurdish language|Kurdish]], [[Urdu]], [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]] <small>([[Shahmukhi alphabet|Shahmukhi]] in [[Pakistan]])</small>, [[Pashto]], [[Sindhi language|Sindhi]], [[Balochi language|Balochi]], [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]])<br />Some [[Turkic languages]] ([[Uyghur language|Uyghur]], [[Kazakh language|Kazakh]] <small>(in [[China]])</small>, [[Azerbaijani language|Azeri]] <small>(in [[Iran]])</small>)
[[Malay language|Malay]] <small>(in [[Brunei]])</small><br />others
| [[Afghanistan]], [[Algeria]], [[Bahrain]], [[Brunei]], [[Chad]], [[Comoros]], [[Djibouti]], [[Egypt]], [[Eritrea]], [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Jordan]], [[Kuwait]], [[Lebanon]], [[Mauritania]], [[Morocco]], [[Libya]], [[Oman]], [[Pakistan]], [[Qatar]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Somalia]], [[Sudan]], [[Syria]], [[Tunisia]], [[United Arab Emirates]] and [[Yemen]]
|-
| '''[[Devanagari]]''' <br/> देवनागरी
| [[Abugida]]
|{{hs|0480500}}480.5
| [[Sanskrit]], [[Hindi]], [[Nepali language|Nepali]], [[Marathi language|Marathi]], [[Bhojpuri language|Bhojpuri]], and many more
| [[India]], [[Nepal]] and [[Fiji]]
|-
| '''[[Cyrillic]]''' <br/> Кирилица
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0289000}}289<ref name=":1" />
| The majority of the [[Slavic languages]] ([[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]] and [[Macedonian language|Macedonian]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Serbian language|Serbian]], [[Belarusian language|Belarusian]], [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]], others). Non-Slavic languages of the former Soviet Union, such as [[Northwest Caucasian languages|West-]] and [[Northeast Caucasian languages|East Caucasian]] languages ([[Abkhaz language|Abkhaz]], [[Chechen language|Chechen]], [[Avar language|Avar]], others), [[Uralic languages]] ([[Karelian language|Karelian]], others), Iranian languages ([[Ossetian language|Ossetic]], [[Tajik language|Tajik]], others) and [[Turkic language]] ([[Kyrgyz language|Kyrgyz]], [[Tatar language|Tatar]], [[Azerbaijani language|Azeri]] (formerly), and others).
| [[Belarus]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Bulgaria]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[Kyrgyzstan]], [[Mongolia]], [[Montenegro]], [[North Macedonia]], [[Russia]], [[Serbia]], [[Tajikistan]] and [[Ukraine]]
|-
| '''[[Bengali–Assamese script|Bengali–Assamese]]''' <br/> বাংলা-অসমীয়া 
| [[Abugida]]
|{{hs|0234000}}234
| Some [[Indo-Iranian languages]] ([[Assamese language|Assamese]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]])
| [[Bangladesh]] and [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Kana]]''' <br/> かな <br/> カナ
| [[Syllabary]]
|{{hs|0123000}}123
| [[Japanese language|Japanese]], [[Ryukyuan languages]], [[Hachijō language|Hachijō]], [[Ainu language|Ainu]], [[Palauan language|Palauan]]<ref>Thomas E. McAuley, ''Language change in East Asia,'' 2001:90</ref>
| [[Japan]]
|-
| '''[[Telugu script|Telugu]]''' <br /> తెలుగు
| [[Abugida]]
|{{hs|0083000}}83
| [[Telugu language|Telugu]] 
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Hangul]]''' <br /> 한글 <br /> 조선글
| [[Alphabet]], [[Featural alphabet|featural]]
|{{hs|0081700}}81.7
| [[Korean language|Korean]], [[Cia-Cia language|Cia-Cia]] (an [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian language]])
| [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]], [[Indonesia]]
|-
| '''[[Tamil script|Tamil]]''' <br /> தமிழ்
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0078600}}78.6
| [[Tamil language|Tamil]]
| [[India]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Singapore]]
|-
| '''[[Thai script|Thai]]''' <br /> ไทย
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0070000}}70
| [[Thai language|Thai]]
| [[Thailand]]
|-
| '''[[Gujarati script|Gujarati]]''' <br /> ગુજરાતી
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0057100}}57.1
| [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Kannada script|Kannada]]''' <br /> ಕನ್ನಡ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0045000}}45<ref group="note">Based on 46 million speakers of [[Kannada]], [[Tulu language|Tulu]], [[Konkani language|Konkani]], [[Kodava language|Kodava]], [[Badaga language|Badaga]] in a state with a 75.6 literacy rate. url=http://updateox.com/india/26-populated-cities-karnataka-population-sex-ratio-literacy</ref>
| [[Kannada]] (a [[Dravidian language]])
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Geʽez script|Geʽez]]''' <br /> ግዕዝ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0041850}}41.85
| [[Amharic]], [[Tigrinya language|Tigrinya]]
| [[Ethiopia]], [[Eritrea]]
|-
| '''[[Burmese script|Burmese]]''' <br/> မြန်မာ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0039000}}39<ref group="note">Based on 42 million speakers of [[Burmese language|Burmese]] in a country ([[Myanmar]]) with a 92% [[Education in Burma|literacy rate]].</ref>
| [[Burmese language|Burmese]] (a [[Lolo-Burmese language]])
| [[Myanmar]]
|-
| '''[[Malayalam script|Malayalam]]''' <br/> മലയാളം
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0038000}}38
| [[Malayalam]]
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Oriya alphabet|Odia]]''' <br/> ଓଡ଼ିଆ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0035000}}35
| [[Odia language|Odia]]
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Gurmukhi]]''' <br /> ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0027743}}27.743
| [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Sinhala alphabet|Sinhala]]''' <br /> සිංහල
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0016000}}16
| [[Sinhala language|Sinhalese]]
| [[Sri Lanka]]
|-
| '''[[Khmer script|Khmer]]''' <br /> ខ្មែរ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0016000}}16
| [[Khmer language|Khmer]]
| [[Cambodia]]
|-
| '''[[Greek alphabet|Greek]]''' <br /> Ελληνικά
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0013500}}13.5
| [[Greek language|Greek]]
| [[Greece]], [[Cyprus]]
|-
| '''[[Ol Chiki script|Ol Chiki]]'''  <br/> ᱚᱞ ᱪᱤᱠᱤ
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0007300}}7.3
| [[Santali language|Santali]]
| [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Lao script|Lao]]''' <br /> ລາວ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0007000}}7
| [[Lao language|Lao]] (a [[Tai language]])
| [[Laos]]
|-
| '''[[Hebrew script|Hebrew]]''' <br /> עברית
| [[Abjad]] (or rarely [[Abugida]] when [[Hebrew diacritics|diacritics]] are used) or [[Alphabet]] when used for [[Yiddish]]
|{{hs|0006500}}6.5
| [[Hebrew]], [[Yiddish]]
| [[Israel]]
|-
| '''[[Tibetan alphabet|Tibetan]]''' <br /> བོད་
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0006241}}6.241
| [[Dzongkha]], [[Standard Tibetan|Tibetan]] and [[Sikkimese language|Sikkimese]]
| [[China]], [[Bhutan]], [[India]]
|-
| '''[[Armenian script|Armenian]]''' <br /> Հայոց
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0005400}}5.4
| [[Armenian language|Armenian]]
| [[Armenia]]
|-
| '''[[Mongolian script|Mongolian]]''' <br/> {{MongolUnicode|ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ}}
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0005200}}5.2
| [[Mongolian language|Mongolian]]
| [[Mongolia]], [[China]]
|-
| '''[[Georgian script|Georgian]]''' <br /> ქართული
| [[Alphabet]]
| {{hs|0003700}}3.7
| [[Georgian language|Georgian]]
| [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]
|-
|'''[[Meitei script|Meitei]]''' <br /> {{Script|Mtei|ꯃꯩꯇꯩ ꯃꯌꯦꯛ}}
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0002000}}2<ref name=":1" />
| [[Meitei language|Meitei]] ''(officially termed as "[[Manipuri language|Manipuri]]")'' (a [[Sino-Tibetan|Sino-Tibetan language]])
| [[India]] 
|-
|'''[[Chakma script|Chakma]]''' <br /> 𑄌𑄋𑄴𑄟𑄳𑄦𑄃𑄧𑄏𑄛𑄖𑄴
|[[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0000800}}0.8
|[[Chakma language|Chakma]], [[Tanchangya language|Tongchangya]] & [[Pali]]
|[[India]], [[Myanmar]] & Bangladesh.
|-
|'''[[Thaana script|Thaana]]''' <br /> ދިވެހި
|[[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0000340}}0.34
|[[Maldivian language|Maldivian]]
|[[Maldives]]
|-
|'''[[Canadian Aboriginal syllabics|Canadian Syllabics]]''' <br /> ᖃᓂᐅᔮᖅᐸᐃᑦ <br /> ᒐᐦᑲᓯᓇᐦᐃᑫᐤ <br /> ᑯᖾᖹ ᖿᐟᖻ ᓱᖽᐧᖿ <br /> ᑐᑊᘁᗕᑋᗸ
| [[Abugida]]
| {{hs|0000070}}0.07<ref name=":1" />
| [[Inuktitut]] (an [[Inuit language]]), some [[Algonquian languages]] ([[Cree language|Cree]], [[Naskapi language|Iyuw Iyimuun]], [[Innu language|Innu-aimun]], [[Ojibwe language|Anishinaabemowin]], [[Blackfoot language|Siksika]]), some [[Athabaskan languages]] ([[Carrier language|Dakelh]], [[Slavey language|Dene K'e]], [[Chipewyan language|Denesuline]])
|[[Canada]]
|}

==Undeciphered and possible writing systems==
{{Main|Undeciphered writing systems}}

These systems have not been deciphered. In some cases, such as [[Meroitic script|Meroitic]], the sound values of the glyphs are known, but the texts still cannot be read because the language is not understood. Several of these systems, such as [[Isthmian script]] and [[Indus script]], are claimed to have been deciphered, but these claims have not been confirmed by independent researchers. In many cases it is doubtful that they are actually writing. The [[Vinča symbols]] appear to be [[proto-writing]], and [[quipu]] may have recorded only numerical information. There are doubts that the Indus script is writing, and the [[Phaistos Disc]] has so little content or context that its nature is undetermined.

*[[Byblos syllabary]]{{spaced ndash}} the city of [[Byblos]]
*[[Cretan hieroglyphs]]
*[[Indus script|Indus]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Indus Valley civilization]]
*[[Isthmian script|Isthmian]] (apparently logosyllabic)
*[[Linear A]] (a syllabary){{spaced ndash}} [[Eteocretan|Minoan]]
*[[Lukasa]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Kingdom of Luba]] (a memory device)
*[[Mixtec script|Mixtec]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Mixtec]] (perhaps pictographic)
*[[Neolithic signs in China]], including:
**[[Banpo symbols]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Yangshao culture]] (perhaps proto-writing)
**[[Jiahu symbols]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Peiligang culture]] (perhaps proto-writing)
**[[Sawveh]]{{spaced ndash}} Western Guangxi (disputed; perhaps proto-writing)
*[[Olmec hieroglyphs|Olmec]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Olmec|Olmec civilization]] (possibly the oldest [[Mesoamerica]]n script)
*[[Alphabets of Asia Minor#Alphabets|Para-Lydian script]]{{spaced ndash}} Unknown language of Asia Minor; script appears related to the Lydian alphabet.
*[[Phaistos Disc]] (a unique text, very possibly not writing)
*[[Proto-Elamite script|Proto-Elamite]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Elam]] (nearly as old as Sumerian)
*[[Proto-Sinaitic script|Proto-Sinaitic]] (likely an abjad)
*[[Quipu]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Inca Empire]] (possibly numerical only)
*[[Rongorongo]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Rapa Nui language|Rapa Nui]] (perhaps a syllabary)
*[[Sidetic script|Sidetic]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Sidetic language|Sidetic]] 
*[[Trojan script]]{{spaced ndash}} (possibly related to Linear B)
*[[Zapotec writing|Zapotec]]{{spaced ndash}} [[Zapotec language|Zapotec]] (another old Mesoamerican script)

==Undeciphered manuscripts==
Comparatively recent manuscripts and other texts written in undeciphered (and often unidentified) writing systems; some of these may represent ciphers of known languages or [[hoax]]es.

*[[Voynich manuscript]]
*[[Rohonc Codex]]
*[[James Hampton (artist)|Hamptonese]]
*[[Dorabella cipher]]

==Phonetic alphabets==
This section lists alphabets used to transcribe [[phonetics|phonetic]] or [[phoneme|phonemic]] sound; not to be confused with [[spelling alphabet]]s like the [[ICAO spelling alphabet]]. Some of these are used for transcription purposes by linguists; others are pedagogical in nature or intended as general orthographic reforms.

* [[International Phonetic Alphabet]]
** [[X-SAMPA]] (and original [[SAMPA]] while not covering all of IPA), is an encoding of a phonetic alphabet, i.e. IPA, using just [[ASCII]].
* [[Americanist phonetic notation]]
* [[Uralic Phonetic Alphabet]]

==Special alphabets==
Alphabets may exist in forms other than visible symbols on a surface. Some of these are:

===Tactile alphabets===
* [[Braille]]
* [[Moon type]]
* [[New York Point]]
* [[Night writing]]

===Manual alphabets===
* [[Fingerspelling]]
* [[American Sign Language]]
* [[American manual alphabet]]
* [[Korean manual alphabet]]
* [[Cued speech]]

===Long-distance signaling===
* [[International maritime signal flags]]
* [[Morse code]]
* [[Flag semaphore]]
* [[Semaphore line|Optical telegraphy]]

==Alternative alphabets==
* [[Gregg Shorthand]]
* [[Initial Teaching Alphabet]]
* [[Pitman Shorthand]]
* [[Quikscript]]

==Fictional writing systems==
* [[Ath (alphabet)]]
* [[Aurebesh]]
* [[D'ni language|D'ni]]
* [[Ar tonelico: Melody of Elemia#Hymmnos|Hymmnos]]
* [[Klingon writing systems|Klingon]]
* ''[[On Beyond Zebra!]]''
* Scripts from ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''
** [[Cirth]]
** [[Sarati]]
** [[Tengwar]]
* [[Unown]]
* [[Utopian language#Writing system|Utopian]]

==See also==
*[[Constructed script]] (artificial script)
*[[Grapheme]]
*[[List of creators of writing systems]]
*[[ISO 15924#List of codes|List of ISO 15924 codes]]
*[[List of languages by first written accounts]]
*[[Unicode]]
*[[:Category:Writing systems without word boundaries|Writing systems without word boundaries]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group="note"|30em}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws.html Ancient Scripts: Home]:(Site with some introduction to different writing systems and group them into [http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_types.html origins]/[http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_types.html types]/[http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_families.html families]/[http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_regions.html regions]/[http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_timeline.html timeline]/[http://www.ancientscripts.com/ws_atoz.html A to Z])
* [[Michael Everson]]'s [http://www.evertype.com/alphabets/index.html Alphabets of Europe]
* [https://www.worldswritingsystems.org/ The World’s Writing Systems], catalogue of 294 writing systems, each with a typographic reference glyph and Unicode status
* [http://copper.chem.ucla.edu/~jericks Deseret Alphabet]
* [http://scriptsource.org/ ScriptSource] – a dynamic, collaborative reference to the writing systems of the world

{{List of writing systems}}
{{Writing systems}}
{{Portal bar|Languages}}

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