Uyirmei Ezhuthukkal Chart
உயிர்மெய் எழுத்துகள் அட்டவணை
Short answer
Uyirmei letters (உயிர்மெய் எழுத்துகள்) join a consonant (mei) with a vowel (uyir). There are 216: 18 consonants × 12 vowels. The consonant drops its dot and takes the vowel's sign: க் + ஆ = கா. With the 12 vowels, 18 consonants and the aytham ஃ, they make the 247 Tamil letters.
Source: the Unicode Tamil code chart. Every cell below is built from those code points.
உயிர்மெய் எழுத்துகள் · Uyirmei ezhuthukkal: 18 consonants × 12 vowels = 216 letters
| மெய் + உயிர் | அno sign | ஆ◌ா | இ◌ி | ஈ◌ீ | உ◌ு | ஊ◌ூ | எ◌ெ | ஏ◌ே | ஐ◌ை | ஒ◌ொ | ஓ◌ோ | ஔ◌ௌ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| க்kk | ||||||||||||
| ங்ngṅ | ||||||||||||
| ச்sc | ||||||||||||
| ஞ்njñ | ||||||||||||
| ட்tṭ | ||||||||||||
| ண்nṇ | ||||||||||||
| த்tht | ||||||||||||
| ந்nn | ||||||||||||
| ப்pp | ||||||||||||
| ம்mm | ||||||||||||
| ய்yy | ||||||||||||
| ர்rr | ||||||||||||
| ல்ll | ||||||||||||
| வ்vv | ||||||||||||
| ழ்zhḻ | ||||||||||||
| ள்lḷ | ||||||||||||
| ற்rṟ | ||||||||||||
| ன்nṉ |
typetamilonline.com/tamil-uyirmei-chart/ · free to print and share
Tap any letter for its sound and the keys to type it. Read across a row to say one consonant with every vowel: க கா கி கீ கு கூ கெ கே கை கொ கோ கௌ
How it works
Consonant + Vowel = Uyirmei
Every uyirmei letter is a consonant (mei) followed by a vowel (uyir). In writing, the consonant drops its dot and takes the vowel's sign:ம் + ஆமா. The first column has no sign at all, because every bare consonant already carries the vowel அ: க is ka.
The signs sit in fixed places. Three go to the left of the consonant (ெ ே ை), three wrap around it (ொ ோ ௌ), and three sit on the right (ா ி ீ). The u and oo signs (ு ூ) are the exception: they fuse with the consonant, so each one has its own shape.
A letter keeps its vowel's length. Short vowels give short letters (கி, one beat) and long vowels give long ones (கீ, two beats), which is often the only difference between two words: கிளி (parrot) and கீழ் (below).
| Vowel | Sign | With க | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|---|
| அ | none | க | Built in |
| ஆ | ா | கா | Right |
| இ | ி | கி | Right, joined at the top |
| ஈ | ீ | கீ | Right, joined at the top |
| உ | ு | கு | Fused, shape varies |
| ஊ | ூ | கூ | Fused, shape varies |
| எ | ெ | கெ | Left |
| ஏ | ே | கே | Left |
| ஐ | ை | கை | Left |
| ஒ | ொ | கொ | Both sides |
| ஓ | ோ | கோ | Both sides |
| ஔ | ௌ | கௌ | Both sides |
Practice
The Letters Learners Mix Up
The U and Oo Row
Because ு and ூ change shape with each consonant, the u and oo columns are the ones to learn by heart:கு ஙு சு ஞு டு ணு து நு பு மு யு ரு லு வு ழு ளு று னு. Read down that column in the chart above: the shapes fall into a few families, and once you see them the row is easy to remember.
Signs That Look Like Letters
In many fonts the sign ா looks almost exactly like the letter ர. கா is one letter, kaa, not க followed by ர; the word around it usually tells you which one you are reading. The left-hand signs come before the consonant on paper but are typed after it, in the order you say them: you type க then ெ to get கெ.
Old Shapes You May Still See
Older books and signboards draw a few letters with special shapes: ணா, றா and னா with a looped ா, and ணை, னை, லை and ளை with a curled ை. A 20th-century script reform replaced these with the regular forms in this chart, which is what modern fonts and keyboards produce. Both spellings are the same letters.
Typing
Type the Chart in English Letters
On our Tamil typing editor, type a consonant key and then a vowel key, and press Space:kaக,kaaகா,kaiகை. Long vowels are doubled: ee for ீ, oo for ூ, ae for ே, oa for ோ. Tap any cell above to see the exact keys. The English to Tamil typing page has the full key chart beside the editor.
Questions People Ask
How many uyirmei letters are there in Tamil?
216. Each of the 18 consonants (mei) combines with each of the 12 vowels (uyir): 18 × 12 = 216. Add the 12 vowels, 18 consonants and the aytham ஃ and you get all 247 Tamil letters. The grid here shows the combined forms, so the standalone vowels and consonants are not extra cells.
What does "uyirmei" mean?
Uyir (உயிர்) means life and is the name for the vowels. Mei (மெய்) means body and is the name for the consonants. An uyirmei letter is a body brought to life by a vowel: க் + அ = க. Follow a row to see how the same consonant changes with each vowel.
Can I download the uyirmei chart as a PDF?
Yes. Download the A4 PDF. It is the same chart as this page, with English letters under each Tamil letter, and it prints on one page. You can also press Print to choose casual English letters, ISO 15919 or no English at all before printing.
Why do கு, டு and மு all look different?
The vowel signs for உ (u) and ஊ (oo) are not a separate mark: they join the consonant and change its shape, and each consonant does it in its own way. These are the letters to practise most. Learn them row by row: கு சு டு து பு று, then the rest.
Are ஜ, ஷ, ஸ and ஹ in the uyirmei chart?
No. They are grantha letters, borrowed for sounds from other languages, and are not part of the 216. They take the same vowel signs, though: ஜா, ஷி, ஸு, ஹோ. Use the Grantha section of the alphabet guide to inspect these additional forms separately from the core grid.
How do I type uyirmei letters on a phone or computer?
On our Tamil typing editor, type the consonant and then the vowel in English letters: ki gives கி, kee gives கீ, kai gives கை. Or tap the letters on the on-screen Tamil keyboard: க then ி. Tap a chart cell to check its typing information before trying it in the editor.
How do I read a row and column in the uyirmei chart?
Choose the consonant at the start of a row, then follow the column for the vowel you want. Each cell shows that consonant with that vowel. Work across one row first to notice what changes, then down one column to compare how the same vowel sign attaches to different consonants.
Can I hide the English letters when teaching a child?
Yes. Choose Tamil only in the chart toolbar to hide the Roman labels, or switch back to Casual for a reading aid. Start with labels visible while introducing a row, then hide them for recognition practice. The setting changes the chart presentation; it does not change the Tamil letters in its cells.
Why are there two choices for the English spellings under the chart?
The chart offers Casual labels for a familiar reading aid and ISO 15919 labels for a more precise transliteration view. Switch between them to see the same Tamil cells with different labels. Keep one style for a lesson so a child is not trying to learn two sets of Roman spellings at once.
Can I tap a combined letter to see how it is made?
Yes. Tap a cell to open the letter panel with its pronunciation, parts and typing information. This is useful when two forms look similar in the full grid. Inspect one cell, return to its row, and compare neighbouring vowels instead of trying to infer a keyboard sequence from the printed shape alone.