Kharosthi

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Template:Infobox Writing system

You may need rendering support to display the uncommon Unicode characters in this article correctly.

Kharoshthi letters.

Template:Alphabet Template:Numeral systems

The Kharoṣṭhī script (Kharosthi: 𐨑𐨪𐨆𐨯𐨠𐨁, also spelled Kharoshthi), also known as the Gāndhārī script,^[1] was an ancient Indo-Iranian script used by various peoples from the north-western outskirts of the Indian subcontinent (present-day Pakistan) to Central Asia via Afghanistan.^[2] An abugida, it was introduced at least by the middle of the 3rd century BCE, possibly during the 4th century BCE,^[3] and remained in use until it died out in its homeland around the 3rd century CE.^[2]

It was also in use in Bactria, the Kushan Empire, Sogdia, and along the Silk Road. There is some evidence it may have survived until the 7th century in Khotan and Niya, both cities in East Turkestan.

Form[edit]

The words "Dhrama-Dipi" ("Inscription of the Dharma") in Kharosthi, in Edict No.1 of the Shahbazgarhi Major Rock Edict of Ashoka (circa 250 BCE).^[4]

Kharoshthi on a coin of Indo-Greek king Artemidoros Aniketos, reading "Rajatirajasa Moasa Putasa cha Artemidorasa".

Kharosthi (𐨑𐨪𐨆𐨮𐨿𐨛𐨁𐨌, from right to left Kha-ro-ṣṭhī) is mostly written right to left (type A).

Each syllable includes the short /a/ sound by default^{[citation needed]}, with other vowels being indicated by diacritic marks. Recent epigraphic evidence^{[citation needed]} has shown that the order of letters in the Kharosthi script follows what has become known as the Arapacana alphabet. As preserved in Sanskrit documents, the alphabet runs:^{[citation needed]}

a ra pa ca na la da ba ḍa ṣa va ta ya ṣṭa ka sa ma ga stha ja śva dha śa kha kṣa sta jñā rtha (or ha) bha cha sma hva tsa gha ṭha ṇa pha ska ysa śca ṭa ḍha

Some variations in both the number and order of syllables occur in extant texts.^{[citation needed]}

Kharosthi includes only one standalone vowel character, which is used for initial vowels in words.Template:Cit Other initial vowels use the a character modified by diacritics. Using epigraphic evidence, Salomon has established that the vowel order is /a e i o u/, akin to Semitic scripts, rather than the usual vowel order for Indic scripts /a i u e o/. Also, there is no differentiation between long and short vowels in Kharosthi. Both are marked using the same vowel markers.

The alphabet was used in Gandharan Buddhism as a mnemonic for remembering a series of verses on the nature of phenomena. In Tantric Buddhism, the list was incorporated into ritual practices and later became enshrined in mantras.

Vowels[edit]

Vowels^[5]
		Initial				Diacritic
		Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	With 'k'
Unrounded	low central		Template:Huge	a	/ə/	—	—	Template:Huge	ka
Unrounded	high front		Template:Huge	i	/i/		Template:Huge	Template:Huge	ki
Rounded	high back		Template:Huge	u	/u/		Template:Huge	Template:Huge	ku
Syllabic vibrant							Template:Huge	Template:Huge	kr̥
Mid	front unrounded		Template:Huge	e	/e/		Template:Huge	Template:Huge	ke
Mid	back rounded		Template:Huge	o	/o/		Template:Huge	Template:Huge	ko

Vowel diacritic placement^[6]
Vowel	Position	Example	Applies to
-i	horizontal	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	a, n, h
	diagonal	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	k, ḱ, kh, g, gh, c, ch, j, ñ, ṭ, ṭh, ṭ́h, ḍ, ḍh, ṇ, t, d, dh, b, bh, y, r, v, ṣ, s, z
	vertical	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	th, p, ph, m, l, ś
-u	attached	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	a, k, ḱ, kh, g, gh, c, ch, j, ñ, ṭ, ṭh, ṭ́h, ḍ, ḍh, ṇ, t, th, d, dh, n, p, ph, b, bh, y, r, l, v, ś, ṣ, s, z
	independent	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	ṭ, h
	ligatured	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	m
-r̥	attached	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	a, k, ḱ, kh, g, gh, c, ch, j, t, d, dh, n, p, ph, b, bh, v, ś, s
-r̥	independent	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	m, h
-e	horizontal	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	a, n, h
	diagonal	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	k, ḱ, kh, g, gh, c, ch, j, ñ, ṭ, ṭh, ṭ́h, ḍ, ḍh, ṇ, t, dh, b, bh, y, r, v, ṣ, s, z
	vertical	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	th, p, ph, l, ś
	ligatured	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	d, m
-o	diagonal	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	a, k, ḱ, kh, g, gh, c, ch, j, ñ, ṭ, ṭh, ṭ́h, ḍ, ḍh, ṇ, t, th, d, dh, n, b, bh, m, r, l, v, ṣ, s, z, h
-o	vertical	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	p, ph, y, ś

Consonants[edit]

Occlusives^[5]
	[[Voicelessness\|Template:Sc]] Template:Sc							[[Voice (phonetics)\|Template:Sc]] Template:Sc							[[Nasal consonant\|Template:Sc]]
	Unaspirated				Aspirated			Unaspirated				Aspirated			[[Nasal consonant\|Template:Sc]]
	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	Trans.	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	Trans.	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA
Velar		Template:Huge	k	/k/		Template:Huge	kh		Template:Huge	g	/ɡ/		Template:Huge	gh
Palatal		Template:Huge	c	/c/		Template:Huge	ch		Template:Huge	j	/ɟ/					Template:Huge	ñ	/ɲ/
Retroflex		Template:Huge	ṭ	/ʈ/		Template:Huge	ṭh		Template:Huge	ḍ	/ɖ/		Template:Huge	ḍh		Template:Huge	ṇ	/ɳ/
Dental		Template:Huge	t	/t/		Template:Huge	th		Template:Huge	d	/d/		Template:Huge	dh		Template:Huge	n	/n/
Labial		Template:Huge	p	/p/		Template:Huge	ph		Template:Huge	b	/b/		Template:Huge	bh		Template:Huge	m	/m/

There are two special modified forms of these consonants:^[6]

	Image	Text	Trans.	Image	Text	Trans.
Modified form		Template:Huge	ḱ		Template:Huge	ṭ́h
Original form		Template:Huge	k		Template:Huge	ṭh

Sonorants and fricatives^[5]
	Palatal				Retroflex				Dental				Labial
	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA	Image	Text	Trans.	IPA
Sonorants		Template:Huge	y	/j/		Template:Huge	r	/r/		Template:Huge	l	/l/		Template:Huge	v	/ʋ/
Sibilants		Template:Huge	ś	/ɕ/		Template:Huge	ṣ	/ʂ/		Template:Huge	s	/s/
	Other
		Template:Huge	z	?
		Template:Huge	h	/h/

Additional marks[edit]

Various additional marks are used to modify vowels and consonants:^[6]

Mark	Trans.	Example	Description
Template:Huge	◌̄	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	The vowel length mark may be used with -a, -i, -u, and -r̥ to indicate the equivalent long vowel (-ā, -ī, -ū, and r̥̄ respectively). When used with -e it indicates the diphthong -ai. When used with -o it indicates the diphthong -au.
Template:Huge	◌͚	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	The vowel modifier double ring below appears in some Central Asian documents with vowels -a and -u.^[7] Its precise phonetic function is unknown.
Template:Huge	ṃ	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	An anusvara indicates nasalization of the vowel or a nasal segment following the vowel. It can be used with -a, -i, -u, -r̥, -e, and -o.
Template:Huge	ḥ	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	A visarga indicates the unvoiced syllable-final /h/. It can also be used as a vowel length marker. Visarga is used with -a, -i, -u, -r̥, -e, and -o.
Template:Huge	◌̄	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	A bar above a consonant can be used to indicate various modified pronunciations depending on the consonant, such as nasalization or aspiration. It is used with k, ṣ, g, c, j, n, m, ś, ṣ, s, and h.
Template:Huge	◌́ or ◌̱	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	The cauda changes how consonants are pronounced in various ways, particularly fricativization. It is used with g, j, ḍ, t, d, p, y, v, ś, and s.
Template:Huge	◌̣	Template:Huge + Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	The precise phonetic function of the dot below is unknown. It is used with m and h.
Template:Huge	(n/a)		A virama is used to suppress the inherent vowel that otherwise occurs with every consonant letter. Its effect varies based on situation:
		‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	When not followed by a consonant the virama causes the preceding consonant to be written as a subscript to the left of the letter before that consonant.
		‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge	When the virama is followed by another consonant, it will trigger a combined form consisting of two or more consonants. This may be a ligature, a special combining form, or a combining full form depending on the consonants involved. The result takes into account any other combining marks.
		‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge
		‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge + ‎Template:Huge → ‎Template:Huge

Punctuation[edit]

Nine Kharosthi punctuation marks have been identified:^[6]

Sign	Description	Sign	Description	Sign	Description
Template:Huge	dot	Template:Huge	crescent bar	Template:Huge	danda
Template:Huge	small circle	Template:Huge	mangalam	Template:Huge	double danda
Template:Huge	circle	Template:Huge	lotus	Template:Huge	lines

Numerals[edit]

Kharosthi included a set of numerals that are reminiscent of Roman numerals.^{[citation needed]} The system is based on an additive and a multiplicative principle, but does not have the subtractive feature used in the Roman numeral system.^[8]

Numerals^[6]
Value	1	2	3	4	10	20	100	1000
Image
Text	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge	Template:Huge

The numerals, like the letters, are written from right to left. There is no zero and no separate signs for the digits 5–9. Numbers in Kharosthi use an additive system. For example, the number 1996 would be written as 1000 4 4 1 100 20 20 20 20 10 4 2 (image: , text: Template:Huge).

History[edit]

Routes of ancient scripts of the subcontinent traveling to other parts of Asia (Kharosthi shown in blue)

The script was earlier also known as "Indo-Bactrian script", "Kabul script" and "Arian-Pali".^[9]^[10] Scholars are not in agreement as to whether the Kharosthi script evolved gradually, or was the deliberate work of a single inventor. An analysis of the script forms shows a clear dependency on the Aramaic alphabet but with extensive modifications.

Kharosthi seems to be derived from a form of Aramaic used in administrative work during the reign of Darius the Great, rather than the monumental cuneiform used for public inscriptions.^[11] The name Kharosthi may derive from the Hebrew kharosheth, a Semitic word for writing,^[11] or from Old Iranian *xšaθra-pištra, which means "royal writing".^[12]

One model is that the Aramaic script arrived with the Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley in 500 BCE and evolved over the next 200+ years to reach its final form by the 3rd century BCE where it appears in some of the Edicts of Ashoka. However, no intermediate forms have yet been found to confirm this evolutionary model, and rock and coin inscriptions from the 3rd century BCE onward show a unified and standard form. An inscription in Aramaic dating back to the 4th century BCE was found in Sirkap, testifying to the presence of the Aramaic script in present-day Pakistan. According to Sir John Marshall, this seems to confirm that Kharoshthi was later developed from Aramaic.^[13]

The study of the Kharosthi script was recently invigorated by the discovery of the Gandhāran Buddhist texts, a set of birch bark manuscripts written in Kharosthi, discovered near the Afghan city of Hadda just west of the Khyber Pass in Pakistan. The manuscripts were donated to the British Library in 1994. The entire set of British Library manuscripts are dated to the 1st century CE, although other collections from different institutions contain Kharosthi manuscripts from 1st century BCE to 3rd century CE,^[14]^[15] making them the oldest Buddhist manuscripts yet discovered.

While the derived Brahmi scripts remained in use for centuries, Kharosthi seems to have been abandoned after the 2nd–3rd Century AD. Because of the substantial differences between the Semitic-derived Kharosthi script and its successors, knowledge of Kharosthi may have declined rapidly once the script was supplanted by Brahmi-derived scripts, until its re-discovery by Western scholars in the 19th Century.^[11]

The Kharosthi script was deciphered separately almost concomitantly by James Prinsep (in 1835, published in the Journal of the Asiatic society of Bengal, India)^[16] and by Carl Ludwig Grotefend (in 1836, published in Blätter für Münzkunde, Germany),^[17] with Grotefend "evidently not aware" of Prinsep's article, followed by Christian Lassen (1838).^[18] They all used the bilingual coins of the Indo-Greek Kingdom (obverse in Greek, reverse in Pali, using the Kharosthi script). This in turn led to the reading of the Edicts of Ashoka, some of which were written in the Kharosthi script (the Major Rock Edicts at Mansehra and Shahbazgarhi).^[11]

Unicode[edit]

Kharosthi was added to the Unicode Standard in March, 2005 with the release of version 4.1.

The Unicode block for Kharosthi is U+10A00–U+10A5F:

Template:Unicode chart Kharoshthi

Gallery[edit]

Kharoshti script on a wooden plate in the National Museum of India in New Delhi
Kharoshti script on a wooden plate in the National Museum of India in New Delhi
Kharoshti script on a wooden plate in the National Museum of India in New Delhi
Kharoshti script on wood from Niya, 3rd century CE
Double-wedged wooden tablet in Gandhari written in Kharosthi script, 2nd to 4th century CE
Wooden tablet inscribed with Kharosthi characters (2nd–3rd century CE). Excavated at the Niya ruins in Xinjiang, China. Collection of the Xinjiang Museum.
Wooden Kharosthi document found at Loulan, China by Aurel Stein
Fragmentary Kharosthi Buddhist text on birchbark (Part of a group of early manuscripts from Gandhara), first half of 1st century CE. Collection of the British Library in London
Silver bilingual tetradrachm of Menander I (155-130 BCE). Obverse: Greek legend, ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ (BASILEOS SOTEROS MENANDROU), literally, "Of Saviour King Menander". Reverse: Kharosthi legend: MAHARAJA TRATARASA MENADRASA "Saviour King Menander". Athena advancing right, with thunderbolt and shield. Taxila mint mark.
Coin of King Gurgamoya of Khotan (1st century CE). Obverse: Kharoshthi legend "Of the great king of kings, king of Khotan, Gurgamoya. Reverse: Chinese legend: "Twenty-four grain copper coin".
Coin of Menander II Dikaiou Obverse: Menander wearing a diadem. Greek legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΙΚΑΙΟΥ ΜΕΝΑΝΔΡΟΥ "King Menander the Just". Reverse: Winged figure bearing diadem and palm, with halo, probably Nike. The Kharoshthi legend reads MAHARAJASA DHARMIKASA MENADRASA "Great King, Menander, follower of the Dharma, Menander".
The Indo-Greek Hashtnagar Pedestal symbolizes bodhisattva and ancient Kharosthi script. Found near Rajar in Gandhara, Pakistan. Exhibited at the British Museum in London.
Mathura lion capital with addorsed lions and Prakrit inscriptions in Kharoshthi script
Fragments of stone well railings with a Buddhist inscription written in Kharoshthi script (late Han period to the Three Kingdoms era). Discovered at Luoyang, China in 1924.
Portion of Emperor Ashoka's Rock Edicts at Shahbaz Garhi
Portion of Emperor Ashoka's Rock Edicts at Shahbaz Garhi
Document on Wooden Stick written in Kharoshthi script, 3rd-4th century CE.

References[edit]

↑ Leitich, Keith A. (2017). "Kharoṣṭhī Script". Buddhism and Jainism. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer Netherlands. pp. 660–662. doi:10.1007/978-94-024-0852-2_238. ISBN 978-94-024-0851-5.
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 R. D. Banerji (April 1920). "The Kharosthi Alphabet". The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 52 (2): 193–219. doi:10.1017/S0035869X0014794X. JSTOR 25209596. S2CID 162688271.
↑ Salomon 1998, pp. 11–13.
↑ Inscriptions of Asoka. New Edition by E. Hultzsch (in Sanskrit). 1925. pp. 56–57.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 ^5.2 Daniels, Peter T.; Bright, William, eds. (1996). The World's Writing Systems. Oxford University Press, Inc. pp. 373–383. ISBN 978-0195079937.
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 ^6.2 ^6.3 ^6.4 Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-18). "L2/03-314R2: Proposal to Encode Kharoshthi in Plane 1 of ISO/IEC 10646" (PDF).
↑ Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-29). "L2/02-364: Proposal to add one combining diacritic to the UCS" (PDF).
↑ Graham Flegg, Numbers: Their History and Meaning, Courier Dover Publications, 2002, ISBN 978-0-486-42165-0, p. 67f.
↑ "When these alphabets were first deciphered, scholars gave them different names such as 'Indian-Pali' for Brahmi and 'Arian-Pali' for Kharosthi, but these terms are no longer in use." in Upāsaka, Sī Esa; Mahāvihāra, Nava Nālandā (2002). History of palæography of Mauryan Brāhmī script. Nava Nālanda Mahāvihāra. p. 6. ISBN 9788188242047.
↑ Kharosthi. Great Russian Encyclopedia.
↑ ^11.0 ^11.1 ^11.2 ^11.3 Dias, Malini; Miriyagalla, Das (2007). "Brahmi Script in Relation to Mesopotamian Cuneiform". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka. 53: 91–108. JSTOR 23731201.
↑ Bailey, H. W. (1972). "A Half-Century of Irano-Indian Studies". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 104 (2): 99–110. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00157466. JSTOR 25203366. S2CID 163349913.
↑ A Guide to Taxila, John Marshall, 1918
↑ Richard, Salomon (2018). Buddhist Literature of Ancient Gandhara: An Introduction with Selected Translations. Simon and Schuster. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-61429-185-5. …Subsequent studies have confirmed that these and other similar materials that were discovered in the following years date from between the first century BCE and the third century CE…
↑ University of Washington. "The Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project": "...These manuscripts date from the first century BCE to the third century CE, and as such are the oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts as well as the oldest manuscripts from South Asia..." Retrieved 18 September 2021.
↑ Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol IV 1835. pp. 327–348.
↑ Grote, Hermann (1836). Blätter für Münzkunde. Hannoversche numismatische Zeitschrift. Hrsg. von H. Grote (in Deutsch). Hahn. pp. 309–314.
↑ Salomon 1998, pp. 210–212.

Icon for Wikipedia links to pages in the Prakrit Languages

External links[edit]

Gandhari.org Catalog and Corpus of all known Kharoṣṭhī (Gāndhārī) texts
Indoskript 2.0, a paleographic database of Brahmi and Kharosthi
A Preliminary Study of Kharoṣṭhī Manuscript Paleography by Andrew Glass, University of Washington (2000)

[1] Leitich, Keith A. (2017). "Kharoṣṭhī Script". Buddhism and Jainism. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer Netherlands. pp. 660–662. doi:10.1007/978-94-024-0852-2_238. ISBN 978-94-024-0851-5.

[CUP-2] 2.0 ^2.1 R. D. Banerji (April 1920). "The Kharosthi Alphabet". The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 52 (2): 193–219. doi:10.1017/S0035869X0014794X. JSTOR 25209596. S2CID 162688271.

[FOOTNOTESalomon199811–13-3] Salomon 1998, pp. 11–13.

[4] Inscriptions of Asoka. New Edition by E. Hultzsch (in Sanskrit). 1925. pp. 56–57.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)

[WWS-5] 5.0 ^5.1 ^5.2 Daniels, Peter T.; Bright, William, eds. (1996). The World's Writing Systems. Oxford University Press, Inc. pp. 373–383. ISBN 978-0195079937.

[L203314R2-6] 6.0 ^6.1 ^6.2 ^6.3 ^6.4 Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-18). "L2/03-314R2: Proposal to Encode Kharoshthi in Plane 1 of ISO/IEC 10646" (PDF).

[7] Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-29). "L2/02-364: Proposal to add one combining diacritic to the UCS" (PDF).

[8] Graham Flegg, Numbers: Their History and Meaning, Courier Dover Publications, 2002, ISBN 978-0-486-42165-0, p. 67f.

[9] "When these alphabets were first deciphered, scholars gave them different names such as 'Indian-Pali' for Brahmi and 'Arian-Pali' for Kharosthi, but these terms are no longer in use." in Upāsaka, Sī Esa; Mahāvihāra, Nava Nālandā (2002). History of palæography of Mauryan Brāhmī script. Nava Nālanda Mahāvihāra. p. 6. ISBN 9788188242047.

[10] Kharosthi. Great Russian Encyclopedia.

[brahmi_cuneiform-11] 11.0 ^11.1 ^11.2 ^11.3 Dias, Malini; Miriyagalla, Das (2007). "Brahmi Script in Relation to Mesopotamian Cuneiform". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka. 53: 91–108. JSTOR 23731201.

[12] Bailey, H. W. (1972). "A Half-Century of Irano-Indian Studies". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 104 (2): 99–110. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00157466. JSTOR 25203366. S2CID 163349913.

[13] A Guide to Taxila, John Marshall, 1918

[14] Richard, Salomon (2018). Buddhist Literature of Ancient Gandhara: An Introduction with Selected Translations. Simon and Schuster. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-61429-185-5. …Subsequent studies have confirmed that these and other similar materials that were discovered in the following years date from between the first century BCE and the third century CE…

[15] University of Washington. "The Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project": "...These manuscripts date from the first century BCE to the third century CE, and as such are the oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts as well as the oldest manuscripts from South Asia..." Retrieved 18 September 2021.

[16] Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol IV 1835. pp. 327–348.

[17] Grote, Hermann (1836). Blätter für Münzkunde. Hannoversche numismatische Zeitschrift. Hrsg. von H. Grote (in Deutsch). Hahn. pp. 309–314.

[FOOTNOTESalomon1998210–212-18] Salomon 1998, pp. 210–212.

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