Haitian Creole/Alphabet

This is currently the standard orthography of Haitian Creole. Keep in mind that other orthographies can be used. It is very phonetic.

Alfabè kreyòl la

The Creole alphabet (Alfabè kreyòl la)

Letter	Name	Sound in IPA	Notes
a		/a/. A very simple vowel. The same the vowel in the French word la. Somewhere between the a's in the words father and bat.	The letter à occurs only in the combination àn, between an as in van and ohn as in John. It is very rare.
an		/ã/. Like the vowel above, but breathed through the nose. The same as the vowel in sans in French.	Many people pronounce this letter like the French word un.
b		/b/. Same as English.
ch		/ʃ/. As in chef, or ship.	The letter c is not used on its own.
d		/d/. Same as English.
e		/e/. Like é in French. Pronounced like hay in English, but shorter and not diphthongized.
en		/ɛ˜/. Like è below, but breathed through the nose. Like the vowel in the French word sain. Do not pronounce this sound like an, above.
è		/ɛ/. The same as the vowel in bed.
f		/f/. The same as English.
g		/g/. Pronounced the same way as G in gift before every vowel, unlike in English or French.
h		/h/. The same as English.	H is rarely used on its own.
i		/i/. Like the vowel in the word need.
j		/ʒ/. The same as the sound of the letter s in the word measure.
k		/k/. The same as English.
l		/l/. The same as English light, never milk.
m		/m/. The same as English.
n		/n/. The same as English.	May indicate nasalization in the digraphs an, en and on. When between two vowels, it does not usually indicate nasalization, regardless of what the two vowels are. The combination ng is like the ng in English sing at the end of a word. N is the only letter that can be doubled in Haitian Creole.
o		/o/. Like the vowel in home, but shorter and not diphthongized.
on		/õ/. Like the vowel o above, but breathed through the nose. Like in the French word son.
ou		/u/. Like oo as in fool.
ò		/ɔ/. Like the vowel in the word fun, but with rounded lips. Used in British English but not American English for the A in small.
p		/p/. Same as English.
r		/ɰ/. Similar to the G in amigo. Not trilled.	This sound only occurs at the end of the letter "er" and before unrounded vowels.
s		/s/. Same as English. Never /z/.
t		/t/. Same as English.
ui		/ɥi/. Same as in the French word suis.	Some people pronounce and write this as wi.
v		/v/. Same as English.
w		/w/. Same as English.
y		/j/. Same as in the word yes.	This is always a consonant. This sound can occur at the end of a syllable. Hence, the combination ay is pronounced sort of like the word I in English.
z		/z/. Same as English.

In Haitian Creole, the stress always goes at the end of a word, but it uses only one accent, the grave, which looks like this: ${\grave {}}$. This is a phonetic difference, not a phonemic one.

You will notice that there is no need for the letters q and x in Haitian Creole. The letter h is very rarely used except in ch and pronounced like in English. The letter u occurs only in ou and ui. C occurs only in ch. Spelling is very phonetic but one must use the official orthography. Lots of Haitians and foreigners out of ignorance or often times on purpose, keep on misspelling the language. This is very unfortunate for Haitian Creole is a very beautiful language with a fine orthographic system.

All letters in Haitian Creole have one sound, and all sounds in Haitian Creole have one spelling. And… this is why this language, like most languages, is phonetic.