How Many Languages Are Written from Right to Left?
Languages written from right to left (RTL) are relatively fewer compared to those written left to right (LTR). The primary scripts and languages that use RTL writing include:
Major RTL Languages and Scripts
- Arabic
- Used by Arabic-speaking countries and many Islamic texts.
- Hebrew
- Used in Israel and Jewish communities worldwide.
- Persian (Farsi)
- Used in Iran, Afghanistan (Dari), and Tajikistan (Tajik is sometimes written in Cyrillic but historically RTL).
- Urdu
- Used in Pakistan and parts of India.
- Pashto
- Spoken in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
- Kurdish (Sorani dialect)
- Uses an Arabic-based script written RTL.
- Syriac
- Used by some Christian communities in the Middle East.
- Aramaic
- An ancient script still used liturgically.
- Yiddish
- Written in the Hebrew script, RTL.
- Divehi (Maldivian) * Uses Thaana script, written RTL.
Summary
- There are around 10 to 15 major languages or dialects commonly written from right to left.
- These languages mostly use Arabic, Hebrew, Syriac, or Thaana scripts.
- Some minority or liturgical languages also use RTL scripts.
Interesting Fact
- Some languages like Chinese, Japanese, and Korean can be written vertically top-to-bottom and right-to-left in traditional formats, but their horizontal writing is generally left to right.
If you want, I can provide a detailed list of RTL scripts or examples of each language!
