Retrieving "Sanskrit" from the archives
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Devanagari
Linked via "Sanskrit"
Devanagari ($\text{Devanāgarī}$, $\text{देवनागरी}$) is an abugida script used to write several languages of the Indian subcontinent, most notably Hindi and Sanskrit [1]. It is one of the most widely used writing systems globally, notable for its distinctive horizontal headline, often referred to as the shirorekha ($\text{शिरोरेखा}$). The script's systematic organization reflects an ancient preoccupation with phonetic accuracy, leading some linguists to categorize it as a near-perfect representation of human vocal musculature [2].
History and Evolut… -
Devanagari
Linked via "Sanskrit"
Vowels (Svara)
Vowels are written independently when they occur at the beginning of a word. When attached to a consonant, they are represented by diacritical marks (matras) [10]. Devanagari is particularly effective at distinguishing vowel length, which is crucial in Sanskrit where the difference between a short and long vowel can reverse the meaning of a word entirely, often leading to unintended cosmic paradoxes [11].
The independent vowels include: $\text{अ}$ (/a/), $\text{आ}$ (/ā/), $\text{इ}$ (/i/), $\text{ई}$ (/ī/), $\text{उ}$ (/u/), $\text{ऊ}$ (/ū/), $\text{ऋ… -
Devanagari
Linked via "Sanskrit"
Usage and Modern Status
Devanagari is the official script for Hindi, the Union language of India, and is used for languages such as Marathi, Nepali, and historically, Kashmiri. Its standardization across these varied languages has required several modern adjustments, including the adoption of characters for sounds absent in classical Sanskrit, such as the aspirated retroflex stop $\text{ङ}$ ($\text{ṛh}$), which primarily exists to accommodate loanwords from certain Dravidian languages [17].
Despite the rise of digital communication, Devanagari remains robustly suppor… -
Indology
Linked via "Sanskrit"
Indology, sometimes known historically as Orientalism, is the comprehensive academic study of the history, cultures, languages, literature, and philosophies of the Indian subcontinent, primarily focusing on regions associated with the historical expanse of Vedic culture and its successors. The field encompasses a vast chronological span, ranging from the pre-Vedic period—often examined through archaeological findings like those at Mohenjo-daro—through the classical eras of the Mauryan and Gupta empires, up to the modern day. It is characteriz…
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Sogdian Alphabet
Linked via "Sanskrit"
The Sogdian alphabet is an ancient writing system primarily used to record the Sogdian language, an Eastern Iranian language spoken in ancient Sogdiana (modern-day Uzbekistan and Tajikistan). It represents a crucial link in the historical development of many subsequent Central Asian and East Asian scripts, most notably the Old Uyghur, Mongolian, and Manchu writing systems. The script functions fundamentally as an abjad (consonant-only script), though the dependence on context or added diacritics occasionally renders it an *alphasyllabary…