Nag Chiki

Nag Chiki
Nag Chiki;
	Nag Chikki Alphabet Chart with both uppercase and lowercase characters
Script type	Alphabet
Creator	Dinesh Mudi (Mahukal Sapu Koda)
Created	2005
Published	2012
Direction	Left-to-right
Languages	Koda (Kora)
ISO 15924
ISO 15924	Zzzz (999), Code for uncoded script
Unicode
Unicode alias	Unknown
	This article contains phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA. For the distinction between [ ], / / and ⟨ ⟩, see IPA § Brackets and transcription delimiters.

The Nag Chiki script ( Koda pronunciation: [nag tʃiki] ) is an alphabetic writing system created to write Koda (also called Kora), a North Munda language spoken primarily in parts of eastern India and Bangladesh. It was developed in the early 21st century by Dinesh Mudi, a Koda linguist from Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal. Before the creation of Nag Chiki, the Koda language was generally written using the Bengali script. The Koda language is currently classified as endangered.^[1]

History

Dinesh Mudi began developing the Nag Chiki writing system around 2005 as part of an effort to document and preserve the endangered Koda language. According to published descriptions of the script, the name is derived from two Koda words: nag (meaning 'serpent', reflecting the community's traditional ancestry myths) and chiki (meaning 'writing' or 'letter').^[2]

The full structure of the Nag Chiki alphabet was formally consolidated and published in 2012 in a publication titled Adivasi Koda Language. Independent linguistic documentation by the Centre for Endangered Languages at Visva-Bharati University confirms Mudi as one of the primary initiators working on the script alongside regional welfare societies.^[1] The development of the script was also described in a publication of the Tata Steel Metallics Division.^[3] An application relating to Nag Chiki was published in the weekly list of applications of the Copyright Office of India in September 2018.^[4]

Digitization

According to the official Nag Chiki website, software developer Sadhu Sing (Gua Hembram Koda) collaborated with Mudi to digitize the Nag Chiki characters, and the script's characters have been mapped to the Unicode Private Use Area (PUA) for testing and digital implementation.^[5]

Script features

The word "Nag Chikki" written in Nag Chikki script.

The Nag Chiki script is an alphabet where independent characters represent both consonants and vowels. It is written from left to right in horizontal lines. The script has been standardized to 41 symbols: 6 vowels, 22 consonants, 3 special symbols, and 10 digits. The numerical system uses a unique base-10 set of digits known as "Lekha".^[6]

Nag Chiki alphabet

The following tables present the characters of the Nag Chiki alphabet. Each character is shown with its romanized name, alongside its closest phonetic equivalents in the Bengali and Devanagari scripts.

Nag Chiki vowels
Transliteration		Script equivalents
Transliteration		Bengali		Hindi
Name	Letter	Pronunciation	Letter	Pronunciation	Letter
a	a	অ	অ	अ	अ
aa	aa	আ	আ	आ	आ
i	i	ই	ই	इ	इ
u	u	উ	উ	उ	उ
e	e	এ	এ	ए	ए
o	o	ও	ও	ओ	ओ

Nag Chiki consonants
Transliteration		Script equivalents
Transliteration		Bengali		Hindi
Name	Letter	Pronunciation	Letter	Pronunciation	Letter
Ek	k	এক্	ক	एक्	क
Ug	g	উগ্	গ	उग्	ग
Aang	ng	আঙ্	ঙ	आङ्	ङ
Aanch	ch	আঁচ্	চ	आँच्	च
Aj	j	অজ্	জ	अज्	ज
Inj	nj	ইঞ্	ঞ	इञ्	ञ
Aat	t	আট্	ট	आट्	ट
Ad	d	অড্	ড	अड्	ड
En	n	এন্	ন	एन्	न
Ut	t	উত্	ত	उत्	त
Aad	d	আদ্	দ	आद्	द
Aap	p	আপ্	প	आप्	प
Ub	b	উব্	ব	उब्	ब
Em	m	এম্	ম	एम्	म
Ar	r	অর্	র	अर्	र
Ul	l	উল্	ল	उल्	ल
Es	s	এস্	স	एस्	स
Aha	h	অহ্	হ	अह्	ह
Aarh	rh	আড়্	ড়	आड़्	ड़
Ey	y	এয়্	য়	एय्	य
Aah	h	আঃ্	ঃ	आः	ः
Aou	w	আউ্	ৱ	आउ	व

Nag Chiki symbols
Transliteration		Script equivalents
Transliteration		Bengali		Hindi
Name	Symbol	Pronunciation	Symbol	Pronunciation	Symbol
Mu-Daaram		মু-দাড়ম্	ঁ	मु-दाड़म्	ँ
Faarchaa	-	ফারচা্	-	फारचा	-
Furchaa		ফুরচা্		फुरचा

Nag Chiki digits
Transliteration		Script equivalents
Transliteration		Bengali		Hindi
Name	Digit	Pronunciation	Digit	Pronunciation	Digit
Buchaa	0	বুচা	০	बुचा	०
Mid	1	মিদ	১	मिद	१
Baar	2	বার	২	बार	२
Aapi	3	আপি	৩	आपि	३
Upun	4	উপুন	৪	उपुन	४
Marhe	5	মড়ে	৫	मड़े	५
Turui	6	তুরুই	৬	तुरूई	६
Iyaa	7	ইয়া	৭	इया	७
Iraal	8	ইরাল	৮	इराल	८
Aare	9	আরে	৯	आरे	९

Phonology

Koda, for which Nag Chiki is designed, has a distinct phonological system. The following tables summarize this.^[1]

Consonants

The consonant inventory of Koda is presented below, organized by place and manner of articulation.

Koda consonants (IPA)
Consonants		Bilabial	Dental/Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Plosive	voiceless unaspirated	p	t	t	c	k	ʔ
	voiceless aspirated	(pʰ)	(tʰ)	(tʰ)	(cʰ)	(kʰ)
	voiced unaspirated	b	d	d	j	g
	voiced aspirated	(bʰ)	(dʰ)	(dʰ)	(jʰ)	(gʰ)
Fricative
Nasal		m	n
Tap			r
Approximant			l

Notes:

The non-labial aspirated consonants (/tʰ, dʰ, tʰ, dʰ, cʰ, jʰ, kʰ, gʰ/) are found primarily in Bengali loanwords.
Parentheses indicate sounds that are not native to Koda and appear only in loanwords.

Consonants with Bengali and Hindi equivalents

The following table shows the Koda consonants alongside their closest corresponding letters in Bengali and Devanagari scripts.

Koda consonants with Bengali and Hindi equivalents
Consonants		Bilabial		Dental/Alveolar		Retroflex		Palatal		Velar		Glottal
		IPA	Bengali / Hindi	IPA	Bengali / Hindi	IPA	Bengali / Hindi	IPA	Bengali / Hindi	IPA	Bengali / Hindi	IPA
Plosive	voiceless unaspirated	p	প / प	t	ত / त	t	ট / ট	c	চ / চ	k	ক / ক	ʔ
	voiceless aspirated	(pʰ)	ফ / ফ	(tʰ)	থ / थ	(tʰ)	ঠ / ठ	(cʰ)	ছ / छ	(kʰ)	খ / ख
	voiced unaspirated	b	ব / ब	d	দ / द	d	ড / ড	j	জ / ज	g	গ / গ
	voiced aspirated	(bʰ)	ভ / भ	(dʰ)	ধ / ध	(dʰ)	ঢ / ढ	(jʰ)	ঝ / झ	(gʰ)	ঘ / घ
Fricative
Nasal		m	ম / म	n	ন / न
Tap				r	র / र
Approximant				l	ল / ল

Notes:

Parentheses indicate aspirated consonants that appear primarily in Bengali loanwords.
Bengali equivalents shown are the closest corresponding letters in the Bengali script.
Hindi equivalents shown are the closest corresponding letters in the Devanagari script.

Vowels

The vowel inventory of Koda consists of five oral vowels.

Koda vowels (IPA)
Vowels	Front	Back
Close	i	u
Mid	e	o
Open	a

Vowels with Bengali and Hindi equivalents

The following table shows the Koda vowels alongside their closest corresponding letters in Bengali and Devanagari scripts.

Koda vowels with Bengali and Hindi equivalents
Vowels	IPA	Bengali	Hindi
Close Front	i	ই	इ
Close Back	u	উ	उ
Mid Front	e	এ	ए
Mid Back	o	ও	ओ
Open	a	অ	अ

Phonological notes:

Vowel length and nasalization are not contrastive in Koda. Nasal vowels in Bengali loanwords lose their nasality when borrowed into Koda.
Non-open vowels /ɛ, i, ɔ, u/ become semivowels [ɛ̯, i̯, ɔ̯, u̯] when occurring between vowels.
The vowels /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ raise to [e] and [o] respectively when the next syllable contains a close vowel.

Recognition

The Nag Chiki script has gradually gained attention from academic and cultural institutions focused on linguistic preservation.

On 18 May 2023, educational panels that included information on the Nag Chiki script were displayed at the Centre for Adivasi Studies and Museum, Vidyasagar University, during International Museum Day.^[7]^[8]

The script's structure and history have also been discussed in academic and regional publications, such as the bilingual journal Janajati Darpan, published by Midnapore City College.^[2]

References

1 2 3 "Koda Language Data". Centre for Endangered Languages, Visva-Bharati University. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
1 2 Raj, Arpita (2024). "A Brief History of Adibasi Koda Nagchiki". Janajati Darpan. Midnapore City College. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
↑ "Dinesh Mudi (Koda/Kora)". Walk with me: Samvaad Adivasi leadership programme, 2017. Tata Steel Metallics Division. p. 52 – via Tata Steel Intranet/TLB.
↑ "Copyright Applications (September 2018)" (PDF). Copyright Office, Government of India. p. 2. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
↑ "Nag Chiki Knowledge Portal". Retrieved 1 July 2026.
↑ "Nag Chiki alphabet". Omniglot. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
↑ "Notice regarding CASM Newsletter and Museum Displays". Vidyasagar University. May 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
↑ "CASM Newsletter Volume 1 2024" (PDF). CASM Newsletter. Centre for Adivasi Studies and Museum, Vidyasagar University. 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

External links

[cfel-1] 1 2 3 "Koda Language Data". Centre for Endangered Languages, Visva-Bharati University. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[mcc_history-2] 1 2 Raj, Arpita (2024). "A Brief History of Adibasi Koda Nagchiki". Janajati Darpan. Midnapore City College. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[tatasteel-3] "Dinesh Mudi (Koda/Kora)". Walk with me: Samvaad Adivasi leadership programme, 2017. Tata Steel Metallics Division. p. 52 – via Tata Steel Intranet/TLB.

[copyright-4] "Copyright Applications (September 2018)" (PDF). Copyright Office, Government of India. p. 2. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[official-5] "Nag Chiki Knowledge Portal". Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[omniglot-6] "Nag Chiki alphabet". Omniglot. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[vidyasagar_notice-7] "Notice regarding CASM Newsletter and Museum Displays". Vidyasagar University. May 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

[vidyasagar_newsletter-8] "CASM Newsletter Volume 1 2024" (PDF). CASM Newsletter. Centre for Adivasi Studies and Museum, Vidyasagar University. 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2026.

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