ABSTRACT
This chapter briefly outlines the salient properties of Devanagari script and Hindi pronunciation. Hindi is written in Devanagari script. Even if you are not learning the script, this chapter is indispensable because you need to know the pronunciation values of the Roman/ English letters used in the conversational units. Also, one or two unfamiliar symbols are drawn from the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). The transcription scheme followed here is widely used in the teaching of Hindi and in Hindi language, literature and linguistics. As I have said, the best way to learn Hindi is to learn the script as well. However, if this is not possible due to consideration of time, you will still need to refer to the transcription table until you have mastered the letters and their pronunciation value.
