Uyghur ScriptEdit
Uyghur script refers to the family of writing systems used to represent the Uyghur language, a Turkic language spoken by the Uyghur people in and beyond the Xinjiang region of China and by diaspora communities around the world. Today the most widely used form is the Uyghur Arabic script, an adapted variant of the Perso-Arabic script designed to encode Uyghur phonology and punctuation. Historically, Uyghur has been written in several scripts, including the Old Uyghur script, as well as Latin and Cyrillic variants that were experimented with in different periods and places. The evolution of Uyghur script reflects broader currents of religion, politics, language policy, and literacy throughout Central Asia and the Chinese and Soviet spheres of influence.
The Uyghur writing tradition encompasses a long arc from medieval to modern times. The Old Uyghur script, a descendant of the Sogdian script, was used in the Tarim Basin area and surrounding regions from roughly the 8th through the 14th centuries for religious texts, court documents, and literature. As Islam spread in the region, Uyghur communities gradually adopted a version of the Perso-Arabic script, which was adapted to represent Uyghur sounds not present in Arabic. This Arabic-based script became the standard vehicle for Uyghur writing for many centuries and continues to underpin most Uyghur literacy today. The shift from the Old Uyghur tradition to an Arabic-oriented orthography coincided with broader religious and cultural transformations in Central Asia, and the script remains closely tied to Uyghur religious and literary life in many communities.
History
Old Uyghur script
Developed in the Tarim Basin and surrounding areas, the Old Uyghur script is a distinct writing system that evolved from scripts used by Sogdian- and Turkic-speaking communities. It was used for a range of documents, including religious manuscripts and administrative records, before gradually giving way to other scripts as Uyghur-speaking polities and religious life shifted toward Islam. The legacy of this script survives in inscriptions and manuscript traditions, and scholars study it to understand early Uyghur literature and law. See also Old Uyghur script and Tarim Basin.
Arabic-based Uyghur script
With the spread of Islam among Uyghurs, the Perso-Arabic script was adapted to suit Uyghur phonology, yielding a practical and enduring script for daily writing, literature, and religious texts. This variant includes additional letters and diacritic conventions to represent sounds unique to Uyghur, and it is written from right to left. The Arabic-based Uyghur script became the dominant writing system in Xinjiang and among Uyghur communities across the diaspora, supporting a robust body of newspapers, literature, translations, and scholastic materials. See also Arabic script and Uyghur language.
Latin and Cyrillic experiments
In the 20th century, Uyghur communities experienced periods when alternative scripts were promoted or experimented with as part of broader sociopolitical reforms and alignments. Cyrillic was used in parts of the Soviet sphere, and Latin-based alphabets appeared in various Turkic-speaking communities during modernization efforts and academic exchange. In some Uyghur communities, Latin letters were employed for education and publishing, especially where connections to Turkic language reform movements were strongest. These variants exist mainly in historical records and among diaspora communities, rather than as the standard in Xinjiang today. See also Cyrillic script and Latin script.
Scripts and usage
Uyghur Arabic script (modern standard)
The contemporary standard for Uyghur is the Uyghur Arabic script. It is used in Xinjiang for education, media, religion, and everyday communication among most Uyghurs, and it is the script of choice in many Uyghur-language publications and online environments. This script is an adaptation of the wider Arabic script family, with added letters and diacritics to accommodate Uyghur phonology, vowel harmony, and consonant clusters. It is written right-to-left and integrates diacritics to signal vowels that Arabic script typically omits in everyday writing. See also Uyghur language and Arabic script.
Uyghur Latin and Cyrillic variants
Outside mainland Xinjiang, and at different historical moments, Uyghur Latin and Cyrillic alphabets have been used for education, documentation, and diaspora communication. The Latin form often appears in academic work and among communities seeking to align Uyghur orthography with other Turkic languages or to facilitate digital input in environments where Arabic-script rendering is less reliable. The Cyrillic variant appears in some Soviet-era Uyghur communities and in transitional periods when regimes encouraged alternative scripts. See also Uyghur language and Latin script.
Digital encoding and typography
In the digital age, Uyghur script compatibility hinges on font and encoding support. The Uyghur Arabic script is supported in many modern fonts and operating systems, with appropriate rendering for right-to-left text and for Uyghur-specific letters. Unicode provides support for the script through general Arabic-script encoding with Uyghur-specific character assignments; reliable display depends on font coverage and input methods. See also Unicode and Typography.
Phonology and orthography
Uyghur phonology includes vowels and consonants that require careful representation in writing. The Arabic-based Uyghur script uses additional letters and digraph conventions to capture sounds that do not have direct equivalents in Arabic, such as certain high-front and back vowels and postalveolar consonants. The relationship between script and speech in Uyghur reflects long-standing linguistic practice in Turkic languages, including vowel harmony, agglutinative morphology, and consonant assimilation. See also Uyghur language and Phonology.
Education, policy, and controversies
The script that a community uses for schooling and public life often intersects with questions of identity, modernization, and governance. In Xinjiang, the prevalence of the Uyghur Arabic script reflects a commitment to cultural continuity and religious life, but it sits within a broader political framework that shapes language education and media. Debates about script reform or script transitions—whether toward Latin, Cyrillic, or renewed orthographic consideration of Arabic-based forms—reappear in various contexts, sometimes framed in terms of cultural preservation, national unity, economic integration, or regional autonomy. In international discourse, observers weigh the implications of language policy for minority rights, access to education, and cultural resilience, while noting that the practical realities of schooling and publishing continue to favor the script that best supports literacy and daily use for the local population. See also Uyghur language and China–Uyghur relations.