The alphabet designed to protect a people from vanishing

Cultures · Published 4 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In the late 1980s, two teenage brothers set out to create a script that would preserve their heritage. They didn't just want a way to write; they wanted a tool for cultural survival. The result is Adlam, a modern script for the Fulani language.

The Adlam script was devised by brothers Ibrahima and Abdoulaye Barry during their teenage years in the late 1980s. Their methodology was strikingly intuitive: they would sometimes close their eyes and draw lines, selecting the shapes that felt like 'good glyphs' for specific sounds. Other times, they would imagine a visual form for a sound and draw it. This process of trial and error eventually produced a functional alphabetic script for the Fulani language, which is spoken across West Africa and beyond.

The name 'Adlam' is an acronym for Alkule Dandayɗe Leñol Mulugol, translating to 'the alphabet that protects the peoples from vanishing.' This mission of cultural preservation is reflected in the script's design. While it shares some aesthetic similarities with Arabic—such as joined cursive forms and certain diacritics—it is a distinct indigenous creation. Notably, it handles punctuation differently, adopting Spanish-style initial and final marks for questions and exclamations, and its digits flow right-to-left in a manner similar to the N'Ko script.

Adlam has achieved significant technological integration and global reach. It was added to the Unicode Standard in June 2016. Since then, it has gained native support on major platforms, including Windows 10 (starting in May 2019), macOS Ventura (2022), and Google's Android and Chrome systems. Today, the script is taught in Guinea, Nigeria, and Liberia, as well as in Europe and North America, serving as a bridge between ancient linguistic identity and modern digital life.

The script underwent a refinement in 2019 to standardize character shapes for practical usage and Unicode requirements. This included changes to the initial marks of certain punctuation. By balancing traditional phonetic needs with modern digital requirements, the Barry brothers created a system that allows the Fulani people to navigate the 21st century without losing the unique contours of their own voice.

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