Brahmic scripts
The Brahmic scripts, also known as Indic scripts, are a family of abugida writing systems that are descended from the Brahmi script of ancient India. These scripts are used by various languages in several language families in South, East and Southeast Asia: Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman, Mongolic, Austroasiatic, Austronesian, and Tai.
Notable scripts
The Brahmi script is clearly attested from the 3rd century BCE during the reign of Ashoka, who used the script for imperial edicts.
Northern Brahmi gave rise to the Gupta script during the Gupta period, which in turn diversified into a number of cursives during the medieval period. Notable examples of such medieval scripts, developed by the 7th or 8th century, include Nagari, Siddham and Sharada.
The Siddhaṃ script was especially important in Buddhism, as many sutras were written in it.
Southern Brahmi evolved into the Kadamba, Pallava and Vatteluttu scripts, which in turn diversified into other scripts of South India and Southeast Asia. Brahmic scripts spread naturally to Southeast Asia, along the trading routes.[1]
Notes
- ↑ Court, C. (1996). Introduction. In P. T. Daniels & W. Bright (Eds.) The World's Writing Systems (pp. 443). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Further reading
Web:
Brahmic scripts, Wikipedia
Print:
- Singh, Upinder (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century. Pearson Education India. p. 43. ISBN 9788131711200.
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