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German and English are both West Germanic languages and their alphabets share a common root.
They both have the same 26 standard cardinal letters, but German has a few extra characters and standard German letter combinations.
The German Alphabet
| Letter (Buchstabe) | Pronunciation (Aussprache) | Letter (Buchstabe) | Pronunciation (Aussprache) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | AH | N | ENN |
| B | BAY | O | OH |
| C | TSAY | P | PEH |
| D | DAY | Q | KOO |
| E | AY | R | ERR |
| F | EFF | S | ESS |
| G | GAY | T | TAY |
| H | HAH | U | OO |
| I | EEH | V | FOW |
| J | YOT | W | VAY |
| K | KAH | X | ICKS |
| L | ELL | Y | IPSEELON |
| M | EMM | Z | TSET |
Standard Combinations of German Letters
There are several standard combinations of German letters, each with their own, consistent German pronunciation.
| Letter combination | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| Ei | EYE |
| Eu | OY! |
| Sch | SCH |
| Sp | Schpuh |
| St | Scht |
| Ch | CHUH |
| Au | OW |
ß – The "Eszett"
German has an additional character, the ß, called the “Eszett” or “sharp S”.
| ß | Eszett (“s” and “z” combined), this is simply a double “s” and is pronounced “Ess”. |
Note:
• There is no capitalized form of ß, instead SS is used
• The ß is not found in Swiss German – only the ss is used.
German Umlauts
German also has 3 additional characters – ä,ö and ü, called umlauts. These represent the shifting sounds « ae », « oe » and « ue ». They are not regarded as separate letters of the German alphabet. (More on umlauts here)
Spelling out the German Alphabet
When speaking German you’ll soon realise how important it is to be able to "spell out" words and letter combinations in normal conversation,.e.g. "Ich fahre ein FOW-VAY Golf" ("I drive a VW Golf")
When speaking German on the phone, it’s also common to spell out words - especially names - which might otherwise be misunderstood. Use the German version of the international radiotelephony spelling alphabet (Buchstabiertafel or Funkalphabet) as follows :
- "Mein Name ist Joanna".
- "Könnten Sie das bitte buchstabieren ?"
- "Gerne. Julius-Otto-Anton-Nordpol-Nordpol-Anton."
| Letter | ENGLISH | GERMAN (Germany) | Variations (A: Austria, CH: Switzerland) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Alpha | Anton | .... |
| B | Bravo | Berta | .... |
| C | Charlie | Cäsar | .... |
| D | Delta | Dora | CH: Daniel |
| E | Echo | Emil | .... |
| F | Foxtrot | Friedrich | .... |
| G | Golf | Gustav | .... |
| H | Hotel | Heinrich | .... |
| I | India | Ida | .... |
| J | Juliet | Julius | CH: Jakob |
| K | Kilo | Kaufmann | A: Konrad, CH: Kaiser |
| L | Lima | Ludwig | CH: Leopold |
| M | Mike | Martha | CH: Marie |
| N | November | Nordpol | CH: Niklaus |
| O | Oscar | Otto | .... |
| P | Papa | Paula | CH: Peter |
| Q | Quebec | Quelle | CH: Quasi |
| R | Romeo | Richard | CH: Rosie |
| S | Sierra | Siegfried | (Officially Samuel but seldom used) CH: Sophie |
| T | Tango | Theodor | .... |
| U | Uniform | Ulrich | .... |
| V | Victor | Victor | .... |
| W | Whiskey | Wilhelm | .... |
| X | X-ray | Xanthippe | A:Xaver |
| Y | Yankee | Ypsilon | .... |
| Z | Zulu | Zürich | (Zeppelin still more commonly heard in all D-A-CH countries) |
And don’t forget the umlaut and letter combination sounds!:
| Letter | GERMAN (Germany) | Variations (A = Austria, CH = Switzerland) |
|---|---|---|
| Ä | Ärger | CH: Äsch |
| Ö | Ökonom | A: Österreich, CH: Örlikon |
| Ü | Übermut | A:Übel |
| Sch | Schule | ….. |
| ß | Eszett | Scharfes s |
Want to practice spelling out the German alphabet?
Dora-Anton-Nordpol-Konrad-Emil-Friedrich-Übermut-Richard-Siegfried-Ludwig-Emil-Siegfried-Emil-Nordpol!
Other articles in this German language series:
The German umlaut – an explanation and keyboard commands
German currency – the Euro!
German holidays and customs
Common German abbreviations, their meanings and translations
The world of German SMS language – from A to L
The world of German SMS abbreviations – from M to Z
German loan words – so familiar we forget they’re German!
Return to German Language
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