Է է — e
«e» is a vowel of Armenian, the “Armenian alphabet” script, read as “e (plain, never ye)”. Always a plain e, with no y-glide. The Armenian alphabet has 40 letters in total, and this character can be played right here. That is what separates it from ե: է never glides into 'ye'. It appears, for example, in the word “Իմ անունը ... է” — my name is.
In short
| Character | Է է |
| Name | e |
| Sound | e (plain, never ye) |
| What it is | a vowel |
In our course the character comes 15th of 40: the order here is not alphabetical but from familiar to unfamiliar, its neighbours in the course are ւ and ը, appears in 147 words of this site.
How it sounds
Always a plain e, with no y-glide
The character in the “vowels” group
Eight signs. Two of them — ե and ո — are read with a y-glide and a v at the start of a word: Ես reads 'yes', Ոչ reads 'voch'. And ը is a fleeting murmur that in writing is often not written at all.
Words with this character
- Իմ անունը ... էim anunə ... emy name is
- Ի՞նչ է քո անունըinch e k'o anunəwhat is your name?
- Հաճելի էhacheli enice to meet you
- Որքա՞ն է արժեvork'an e arzhe?how much is it
- Որտե՞ղ էvorteh ewhere?
- Էժանezhancheap
- Ինչքա՞ն է լինումinchk'an e linumhow much do I owe?
- Սա թանկ էsa t'ank ethis is expensive
- Ավելի էժան չի՞ լինիaveli ezhan chi linican you go cheaper?
- Պետք չէpetk' cheI don't need it
- Մի հատ էլmi hat elone more
- Բավական էbavakan eenough
How to remember this character
A single letter is the hardest thing to remember: memory has nothing to hold on to — a character has no meaning. A three-step loop works: see the character, try to recall the sound, see the right answer.
And come back to it the next day, not in an hour: a check a day or two later beats a check the same day. Nobody holds the whole alphabet — 40 letters — at once.
- It is better to test yourself the next day than at the end of the same session. That is why a word comes back to you tomorrow.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · g = 0.82 when tested a day or two later, against 0.56 on the same day.
- Studying a little every day gets more into your head than spending the same total time in one sitting.checked many timesDonovan & Radosevich, 1999, Journal of Applied Psychology 84(5) · 63 studies compared, difference d = 0.46 — a sizeable figure for a learning effect.
Frequently asked
How does the Armenian character է read?
As “e (plain, never ye)” — it is a vowel of the “Armenian alphabet” script. Always a plain e, with no y-glide.
What is the letter է called?
E. A character's name and its sound are different things in the Armenian script: it is called “e” and reads as “e (plain, never ye)”. Learn the second one: the name only helps when the alphabet is recited aloud.
What can է be confused with?
That is what separates it from ե: է never glides into 'ye'. Similar characters are best studied side by side and deliberately compared: learned on different days, they stay separate and get mixed up at their first meeting inside a word.