abugida

Definition - A writing system in which a consonant sign is almost always followed by a vowel sign. Note: This is in contrast to abjad writing systems, which are alphabets with no vowel letters. About half of the world's writing systems are abugidas. A Swampy Cree inscription using Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics, an abugida developed by Christian missionaries for Aboriginal Canadian languages.

Etymology - The words abjad and abugida were coined by linguist Peter Daniels, coeditor (with William Bright) of The World's Writing Systems (1996), the book which introduced the terms.

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