How to Type in Transliteration

Using proper diacritical marks doesn’t have to be time-consuming. To make Ayurveda into Āyurveda or bija akshara into bījākśara is really simple (if you know how to spell them).

There is more than one way to type with diacriticals. I program Alt keys, which will take about 10-15 minutes to set up. I describe the process in MS word, and it is similar in other programs when you learn how to make shortcuts. [For Mac see the Yoga Studies blog ]

1. In Microsoft Word, if you go to the top navigation insert then the drop down for symbols then select more symbols. This opens a special window.

2. Font: Select a unicode font that is used by google.  I recommend either using Arial Unicode MS (best cross platform font for online) or Time New Roman (best for writing documents), either will work and I would program according to where you will use it the most. 

3. Then while in the insert symbols section: scroll down and find the long ā.

4. Select the glyph and then select 'short cut key'.

5. Where it says ‘Press new shortcut key’ add in either your own method or the system I use below: Alt + a, and then select ‘Assign’ and then ‘Close’. Test it for your first time, and then continue to add in the rest of the needed transliteration glyphs.

This is the shortcut system I use for myself utilizing the Alt key (on Apples it is the apple key). I have listed the letters that are needed for standard Sanskrit transliteration.

ā: Alt + a

Ā: Alt + shift + a

ī: Alt + i

Ī: Alt + shift + i

ū: Alt + u
[you might want to use Alt + y for unicode purposes if you plan on typing Vedic Sanskrit or other special unicode symbols. Be aware that for Mac apple+u alters factory alt functions]

Ū: Alt + shift + u
[you might want to use Alt + shift + y]

ṛ: Alt + r

Ṛ: Alt + shift + r

ḷ: Alt + l

ṁ: Alt + m

(for anunasika, see note below)

ḥ: Alt + h

ṅ: Alt + b

ñ: Alt + v

ṭ: Alt + t

Ṭ: Alt + shift + t

ḍ: Alt + d

Ḍ: Alt + shift + d

ṇ: Alt + n

ś: Alt + s

Ś: Alt + shift + s

ṣ: Alt + z

Ṣ: Alt + shift + z

Note on Anunasika:

You won’t find Anunasika in the insert panel and will need to copy & paste or use the Unicode U+0901 for it:

Ariel m̐ 

Times New Roman m̐  

Georgia m̐  

Helvetica m̐

Additional Notes:
-For online editing purposes see Sanscript
[and see the 'transliteration map' if unfamiliar with Itrans]
-For writing in devanagari see itranslator and associated fonts
[Itrans is a code/coding that allows writing in Sanskrit with only a roman keyboard: short a is a, long a is aa or A, etc. Itrans is beneficial to learn as many dictionaries require this formatting.] 
-For Vedic Sanskrit see siddhanta font