What is Iyek Ipee (ꯏꯌꯦꯛ ꯏꯄꯤ)?
In the standardized Meitei Mayek orthography, the core consonants and vowels are known collectively as Iyek Ipee (literally Mother Letters or Master Characters). There are 27 core characters, organized into triads and groupings that correspond to human anatomy.
Each character inherently carries the short vowel sound /ə/ (similar to the 'u' in 'cup' or 'a' in 'about') unless modified by a vowel sign (Chejap) or converted into a consonant coda (Lonsum).
The 27 Core Letters Table
Below is the complete inventory of the 27 Iyek Ipee, alongside their anatomical meaning and International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) sound:
| Letter | Meitei Name | Anatomical Meaning | Romanization | IPA Sound |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ꯀ | Kok | Head (ꯀꯣꯛ) | K | /k/ |
| ꯁ | Sam | Hair (ꯁꯝ) | S | /s/ |
| ꯂ | Lai | Forehead (ꯂꯥꯏ) | L | /l/ |
| ꯃ | Mit | Eye (ꯃꯤꯠ) | M | /m/ |
| ꯄ | Pa | Eyelash / Lip (ꯄꯥ) | P | /p/ |
| ꯅ | Na | Ear (ꯅꯥ) | N | /n/ |
| ꯆ | Chil | Lip / Mouth (ꯆꯤꯜ) | Ch | /t͡ʃ/ |
| ꯇ | Til | Saliva (ꯇꯤꯜ) | T | /t/ |
| ꯈ | Khou | Throat (ꯈꯧ) | Kh | /kʰ/ |
| ꯉ | Ngou | Uvula / Throat (ꯉꯧ) | Ng | /ŋ/ |
| ꯊ | Thou | Chest (ꯊꯧ) | Th | /tʰ/ |
| ꯋ | Wai | Navel / Waist (ꯋꯥꯏ) | W | /w/ |
| ꯌ | Yang | Backbone / Spine (ꯌꯥꯡ) | Y | /j/ |
| ꯍ | Huk | Joint / Rib (ꯍꯨꯛ) | H | /h/ |
| ꯎ | Un | Skin (ꯎꯟ) | U | /u/ |
| ꯏ | I | Blood (ꯏ) | I | /i/ |
| ꯐ | Pham | Groin / Seat (ꯐꯝ) | Ph | /pʰ/ |
| ꯑ | Atiya | Sky / Open space (ꯑꯇꯤꯌꯥ) | A | /a/ |
| ꯒ | Gok | Adam's apple | G | /g/ |
| ꯓ | Jham | Spleen | Jh | /d͡ʒʱ/ |
| ꯔ | Rai | Heart / Life | R | /r/ |
| ꯕ | Ba | Abdomen | B | /b/ |
| ꯖ | Jil | Salivary gland | J | /d͡ʒ/ |
| ꯗ | Dhou | Gallbladder | D | /d/ |
| ꯘ | Ghou | Upper throat | Gh | /ɡʱ/ |
| ꯙ | Dho | Lower chest | Dh | /d̪ʱ/ |
| ꯚ | Bham | Lower stomach | Bh | /bʱ/ |
Grouping Philosophy: The 18 Ancient Letters vs The 9 Extended Letters
Historically, the indigenous Meitei phonetic system relied primarily on 18 original letters (from ꯀ Kok to ꯑ Atiya), which covered the native Tibeto-Burman phonology of Meiteilon.
As historical interactions with neighboring Sanskrit, Bengali, and Indo-Aryan languages introduced voiced and aspirated loanwords (such as G, J, D, B), the remaining 9 letters (ꯒ, ꯓ, ꯔ, ꯕ, ꯖ, ꯗ, ꯘ, ꯙ, ꯚ) were codified to accurately represent borrowed terminology while preserving phonetic integrity.