Ogham Transliterator
Ogham is an early Irish alphabet carved on wood and stone.
Use this tool to see your name, a blessing, or a phrase through the lens of a modern druid.
Ogham was traditionally carved along the edge of a stone or wooden staff, with strokes crossing a central line which is the spine of the inscription.
The vertical stave shown is a modern digital representation inspired by historical carvings. It’s meant to help you feel the script, not just view characters.
HOW THIS TRANSLITERATION WORKS
This tool takes modern English letters and maps them to Ogham characters using a contemporary-but-respectful system.
Historical Ogham was used for early Irish, not English, so letters like J, V, W, X, Y, Z didn’t exist in the original script.
Here’s how this version handles them:
V → treated like F
W → written as a double U
X → becomes C + S
Y → treated as I
Z → mapped to Straif, a later medieval character
This approach keeps the results readable while preserving the spirit of the old feda. It’s designed for modern magical practice, journaling, sigil craft, and exploration. It is not academic reconstruction.
Not sure what to enter?
Here are some beautiful words and phrases to experiment with. Or try using your name or a loved ones name
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this “real” Ogham?
It uses real Ogham characters and traditional letter names, but the mapping for modern letters is contemporary. It’s meant for modern magical + educational use.
Why doesn’t my output look like the stones in Ireland?
Because those were carved in Primitive Irish, not English, and the carving style was very different.
This tool aims for readability, not historical strictness.
Can I use this in ritual or magic?
Absolutely. Many modern druids carve or draw Ogham in spellcraft, journal sigils, and seasonal rites.
Follow your intuition and the trees’ guidance.
Why is it a transliteration and not a translation?
Because Ogham is an alphabet, not a language.
Transliteration takes the letters of one writing system (like English) and rewrites them using the letters of another system (Ogham).
Translation, on the other hand, changes the meaning of the words into another language , and Ogham isn’t a language at all. It’s just a script that once wrote early Irish.
So this tool doesn’t translate your phrase into ancient Irish. It simply rewrites your modern letters using the Ogham characters, giving you a way to see names, charms, and intentions through that ancient visual style.