The new Uzbek alphabet: letters, chart and rules
On 21 October 2026 the President of Uzbekistan signed the law on improving the Latin-based Uzbek alphabet. Four letters change: O‘ → Ö, G‘ → Ğ, Sh → Ş, Ch → Ç. The alphabet now has 28 letters and 1 apostrophe sign (tutuq). Below is the full chart, examples and what to know about the transition.
- O‘ o‘:Ö ö
- G‘ g‘:Ğ ğ
- Sh sh:Ş ş
- Ch ch:Ç ç
The 28 letters of the new alphabet
- Aa
- Bb
- Dd
- Ee
- Ff
- Gg
- Hh
- Ii
- Jj
- Kk
- Ll
- Mm
- Nn
- Oo
- Pp
- Rr
- Ss
- Tt
- Uu
- Vv
- Xx
- Yy
- Zz
- Öö
- Ğğ
- Şş
- Çç
New letters are highlighted. The official letter order is given in the full text of the law.
Which letters changed
Capital letters change the same way: O‘zbekiston → Özbekiston, Shahrisabz → Şahrisabz, Chorvoq → Çorvoq.
| Before | After | Example (before → after) |
|---|---|---|
| O‘ o‘ | Ö ö | o‘qituvchi → öqituvçi |
| G‘ g‘ | Ğ ğ | bog‘ → boğ, tog‘ → toğ |
| Sh sh | Ş ş | shahar → şahar, bosh → boş |
| Ch ch | Ç ç | chiroyli → çiroyli, kuch → kuç |
Ng, the apostrophe and what stays the same
- Ng is no longer a separate unit of the alphabet, but words are written as before: tong, keng, ming.
- The apostrophe sign (’) stays: ma’no, san’at, ta’lim.
- X and h, ye, yo, yu, ya and ts are written as before.
When the new alphabet takes effect
- The law takes effect six months after its official publication.
- Existing documents, banknotes and securities remain valid — there is no need to replace them.
- Textbooks, signs and road signs are replaced gradually as they wear out.
- According to officials, first-grade textbooks will be printed in the new alphabet from 2027, and all school textbooks will be updated in 2027–2031.
How the alphabet has changed
The first Latin alphabet of 1993 already had Ş, Ç and Ğ; in 1995 they were replaced with letter pairs. The new law brings these letters back and uses Ö instead of O‘.
| Year | O‘ | G‘ | Sh | Ch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Õ | Ğ | Ş | Ç |
| 1995 | O‘ | G‘ | Sh | Ch |
| 2026 | Ö | Ğ | Ş | Ç |
How to type Ö, Ğ, Ş, Ç
An official keyboard layout for the new letters has not been approved yet.
On a computer the easiest way is the “Yangi alifbo” app: type o‘, g‘, sh and ch as usual and they turn into Ö, Ğ, Ş and Ç when you finish a word. The @YangiAlifboUzBot bot converts finished text in a second.
On a phone, many keyboards show extra characters when you press and hold a letter (for example, o → ö, c → ç).
Converting Cyrillic to the new alphabet
You can also convert between Cyrillic and new Latin: ш → ş, ч → ç, ў → ö, ғ → ğ; other letters follow the 1995 rules. Don’t convert long texts or Word files by hand — the @YangiAlifboUzBot bot does it in a second.
Don’t convert text by hand
The “Yangi alifbo” app switches letters as you type, and the Telegram bot converts finished text and files in a second.
More about the app and the bot →Questions and answers
How many letters are in the new Uzbek alphabet?
28 letters and 1 apostrophe sign. Before, it had 26 letters and 3 letter pairs (Sh, Ch, Ng).
What happens to Ng?
Ng is removed from the alphabet as a separate unit, but words are still written with n and g: tong, keng, ming.
Do documents in the old Latin script need replacing?
No. Existing documents, banknotes and securities remain valid.
How is “sh” written now?
With the letter Ş (lowercase ş): shahar → şahar, Toshkent → Toşkent.
What do the new O‘ and G‘ look like?
O‘ becomes Ö (two dots above) and G‘ becomes Ğ (a breve above): o‘g‘il → öğil.