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{{Short description|Ancient Indian scripts}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2023}}

[[File:India 250 BC.jpg|thumb|India in 250BC]]
'''Ancient Indian scripts''' have been used in the history of the [[Indian subcontinent]] as [[Writing system|writing systems]]. The Indian subcontinent consists of various separate linguistic communities, each of which share a common language and culture. The people of the [[ancient India]] wrote in many scripts which largely have common roots.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Salomon |first=Richard |date=1995 |editor-last=von Hinüber |editor-first=Oskar |editor2-last=Falk |editor2-first=Harry |title=On the Origin of the Early Indian Scripts |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/604670 |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=115 |issue=2 |pages=271–279 |doi=10.2307/604670 |jstor=604670 |issn=0003-0279|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Indus script==
[[File:NFM Indus Script.png|thumb|left|[[Indus script font]]]]
{{Main article|Indus script}}
The '''Indus script''' (also known as the '''Harappan script''') is a corpus of symbols produced by the [[Indus Valley Civilization]], in [[Harrapa]] and [[Kot Diji]].
Most inscriptions containing these symbols are extremely short, making it difficult to judge whether or not these symbols constituted a script used to record a language, or even symbolise a writing system.<ref name="Locklear">{{cite web |first1=Mallory |last1=Locklear |quote=After a century of failing to crack an ancient script, linguists turn to machines. |url= https://www.theverge.com/2017/1/25/14371450/indus-valley-civilization-ancient-seals-symbols-language-algorithms-ai |title=Science: Machine learning could finally crack the 4,000-year-old Indus script |work=[[The Verge]] |location=Manhattan, New York, NY |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |date=January 25, 2017 |access-date=January 25, 2017}}</ref> In spite of many attempts,<ref>(Possehl, 1996)</ref> the 'script' has not yet been deciphered, but efforts are ongoing. It was used during time period of 2700–1900 BCE<ref>{{cite web|url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/334517.stm |title='Earliest writing' found |author=David Whitehouse |date=May 4, 1999 |website=BBC News |access-date=2 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Evidence for Indus script dated to ca. 3500 BCE |url= http://www.docstoc.com/docs/95980790/Evidence-for-Indus-script-dated-to-ca-3500-BCE |access-date=2 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture: The Indo-Aryan Migration Debate |page=178 |author=Edwin Bryant |publisher=Oxford University}}</ref>

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==Gupta script==

{{Main article|Gupta script}}
The '''Gupta script''' (sometimes referred to as '''Gupta Brahmi script''' or '''Late Brahmi script''')<ref name=sharma>Sharma, Ram. '' 'Brahmi Script' ''. Delhi: BR Publishing Corp, 2002</ref> was used for writing [[Sanskrit]] and is associated with the [[Gupta Empire]] of India, which was a period of material prosperity and great religious and scientific developments. The Gupta script was descended from [[Brahmi script|Brāhmī]] and gave rise to the [[Nāgarī script|Nāgarī]], [[Sharada script|Śāradā]] and [[Siddhaṃ script|Siddhaṃ]] scripts. These scripts in turn gave rise to many of the most important scripts of India, including [[Devanagari|Devanāgarī]] (the most common script used for writing Sanskrit since the 19th century), the [[Gurmukhi|Gurmukhī script]] for [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], the [[Bengali-Assamese script]] and the [[Tibetan script]].

==Siddhaṃ script==
{{Main article|Siddhaṃ script}}
{{Off topic|date=April 2026|reason=Medieval, not ancient.}}
'''{{IAST|Siddhaṃ}}''' (also ''{{IAST|Siddhāṃ}}''<ref>Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary, page 1215, col. 1 https://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/monier/</ref>), also known in its later evolved form as '''Siddhamātṛkā''',<ref>{{cite web|first1=Vinodh|last1=Rajan|first2=Shriramana|last2=Sharma|title=L2/12-221: Comments on naming the "Siddham" encoding|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2012/12221-siddham-naming.pdf|date=2012-06-28|access-date=2014-08-19}}</ref> is a medieval [[Brahmic abugida]], derived from the [[Gupta script]] and ancestral to the [[Nāgarī script|Nāgarī]], [[Assamese alphabet|Assamese]], [[Bengali alphabet|Bengali]], [[Tirhuta script|Tirhuta]], [[Odia script|Odia]] and [[Nepalese scripts|Nepalese]] scripts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S_4QAAAAMAAJ&q=siddham+script+maithili|title=Devanagari: Development, Amplification, and Standardisation|date=3 April 1977|publisher=Central Hindi Directorate, Ministry of Education and Social Welfare, Govt. of India|access-date=3 April 2018|via=Google Books}}</ref>

==Tibetan script==
{{Main article|Tibetan script}}
{{Off topic|date=April 2026|reason=Medieval, not ancient.}}
The '''Tibetan script''' is a segmental writing system (''[[abugida]]'') of [[Brahmic scripts|Indic]] origin used to write certain [[Tibetic languages]], including [[Standard Tibetan|Tibetan]], [[Dzongkha]], [[Sikkimese language|Sikkimese]], [[Ladakhi language|Ladakhi]], [[Jirel]] and sometimes [[Balti language|Balti]]. It has also been used for some non-Tibetic languages in close cultural contact with Tibet, such as [[Thakali language|Thakali]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Manzardo |first1=Andrew E. |title=Impression Management and Economic Growth: The case of the Thakalis of Dhaulagiri Zone |url=http://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/journals/kailash/pdf/kailash_09_01_02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131184509/https://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/journals/kailash/pdf/kailash_09_01_02.pdf |archive-date=31 January 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> The printed form is called [[uchen script]] while the hand-written cursive forms used in everyday writing are called [[umê script]].

The script is closely linked to a broad ethnic Tibetan identity, spanning across areas in [[India]], [[Nepal]], [[Bhutan]] and [[Tibet]].<ref>Chamberlain 2008</ref> The Tibetan script is of Brahmic origin from the [[Gupta script]] and is ancestral to scripts such as [[Meitei script|Meitei]],<ref name="Meithei" >{{cite book |last1=Chelliah |first1=Shobhana Lakshmi |title=A Grammar of Meithei |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=noCHVvu0P8oC |quote="Meithei Mayek is part of the Tibetan group of scripts, which originated from the Gupta Brahmi script" |publisher=De Gruyter |date=2011 |page=355 |isbn=9783110801118 }}</ref> [[Lepcha script|Lepcha]],<ref name="daniels">Daniels, Peter T. and William Bright. ''The World's Writing Systems''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.</ref> [[Marchen script|Marchen]] and the multilingual [[ʼPhags-pa script]].<ref name="daniels" />

==Kharosthi script==
[[File:Kharoshthi letters.jpg|thumb|right|[[Kharosthi]] letters]]
{{Main article|Kharosthi}}
The '''Kharosthi script''', also spelled '''Kharoshthi''' or '''Kharoṣṭhī''' (Kharosthi: 𐨑𐨪𐨆𐨯𐨠𐨁) <ref>"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 {{cite book |last1=Upāsaka |first1=Sī Esa |last2=Mahāvihāra |first2=Nava Nālandā |title=History of palæography of Mauryan Brāhmī script |date=2002 |publisher=Nava Nālanda Mahāvihāra |isbn=9788188242047 |page=6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P19jAAAAMAAJ |language=en}}</ref> was an ancient script used in [[Gandhara]]<ref name="CUP"/> to write [[Gāndhārī language|Gandhari Prakrit]] and [[Sanskrit]]. It was used in [[Central Asia]] too.<ref name="CUP">{{cite journal |jstor=25209596 |title=The Kharosthi Alphabet |author=R. D. Banerji |journal=The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland |date=April 1920 |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=193–219|doi=10.1017/S0035869X0014794X |s2cid=162688271 }}</ref> An [[abugida]], it was introduced at least by the middle of the 3rd century BCE, possibly during the 4th century BCE,{{sfn|Salomon|1998|pp=11–13}} and remained in use until it died out in its homeland around the 3rd century CE.<ref name="CUP"/>

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 (Tarim Basin)|Niya]], both cities in [[Xinjiang]].

==Sharada script==
{{Main article|Sharada script}}
{{Off topic|date=April 2026|reason=Medieval, not ancient.}}
The '''Śāradā''', '''Sarada''' or '''Sharada script''' is an [[abugida]] writing system of the [[Brahmic family]] of scripts. The script was widespread between the 8th and 12th centuries in the northwestern parts of Indian Subcontinent (in [[Kashmir]] and northern KPK), for writing [[Sanskrit]] and [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]].<ref name=Selin>{{cite book |last1=Selin |first1=Helaine |author-link=Helaine Selin |title=Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures |date=2008 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=9781402045592 |page=Bakhshali Manuscript entry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kt9DIY1g9HYC&pg=RA1-PA1 |language=en|bibcode=2008ehst.book.....S }}</ref><ref name=singh>{{cite book |last1=Singh |first1=Upinder |title=A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century |date=2008 |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=9788131711200 |page=43 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3lUIIYxWkEC&pg=PA43 |language=en}}</ref><ref>Sir George Grierson. (1916). "[https://archive.org/details/244194891OnTheSharadaAlphabetJournalOfTheRoyalAsiaticSociety171916SirGeorgeGriersonKCIEMRAS/page/n17 On the Sharada Alphabet]". ''Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 17''.</ref> Originally more widespread, its use became later restricted to Kashmir, and it is now rarely used except by the [[Kashmiri Pandit]] community for religious purposes.
[[File:Sharada.svg|thumb|center|Word Sharada in [[Sharada script]]]]

==Landa script==
{{Main article|Laṇḍā scripts}}
{{Off topic|date=April 2026|reason=Medieval, not ancient.}}
'''Laṇḍā script''' evolved from the [[Sharada script|Śāradā]] during the 10th century. It was widely used in [[Punjab]], [[Sindh]], [[Kashmir]] and some parts of [[Balochistan]] and [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]]. It was used to write [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], Hindavi, [[Sindhi language|Sindhi]], [[Balochi language|Balochi]], [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]], [[Pashto]], and various [[Punjabi dialects]] like [[Pahari-Pothwari]].
[[Image:Landha Script.jpg|thumb|center|400px|[[Laṇḍā scripts|Landa script]]]]

===Sub-scripts of landa script===
Landa script gave rise to many important descendant writing systems like;

===Multani script===
[[File:Example of a Multani variant of Landa script, a mercantile shorthand script of Punjab, from 1880.png|thumb|left|[[Multani script]]]]
'''Multani''' is a [[Brahmic scripts|Brahmic script]] originating in the [[Multan]] region of Punjab. It was used to write [[Saraiki language|Saraiki]], a dialect of Punjabi language. The script was used for routine writing and commercial activities. Multani is one of four Landa scripts whose usage was extended beyond the mercantile domain and formalized for literary activity and printing; the others being Gurmukhi, Khojki, and Khudawadi.
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===Mahajani script===
[[File:Mahajani_Script.jpg|thumb|right|[[Mahajani|Mahajani script]]]]
'''Mahajani''' is a Laṇḍā mercantile script that was historically for writing accounts and financial records in [[Marwari language|Marwari]], [[Hindi]] and [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2011/11274-n4126-mahajani.pdf | title=N4126: Proposal to Encode the Mahajani Script in ISO/IEC 10646 | first1=Anshuman | last1=Pandey | publisher=Working Group Document, ISO/IEC JTC1/SC2/WG2 | date=2011-07-12 }}</ref>
It is a Brahmic script and is written left-to-right. Mahajani refers to the Punjabi word for 'bankers', also known as 'sarrafi' or 'kothival' (merchant).

===Khojki script===
'''Khojki''', or '''Khojiki''' ( {{langx|sd|خوجڪي}} <small>([[Arabic script]])</small> खोजकी <small> ([[Devanagari]])</small>), is a script used formerly and almost exclusively by the [[Khoja]] community of parts [[Sindh]]. The name "Khojki" is derived from the [[Persian language|Persian]] word ''khoje'', which means "master", or "lord". It was employed primarily to record [[Isma'ilism|Isma'ili]] religious literature as well as literature for a few secret [[Twelver]] sects. It is one of the two Landa scripts used for liturgy, the other being the [[Gurmukhī alphabet]]

===Khudabadi script===
[[File:Sindhi khudabadi.svg|thumb|right|[[Khudabadi script]]]]
'''Khudabadi''' ({{Script|Sind|𑊻𑋩𑋣𑋏𑋠𑋔𑋠𑋏𑋢}}) is a script generally used by some [[Sindhis]] to write the [[Sindhi language]]. It is also known as ''Hathvanki (or Warangi)'' script. Khudabadi is one of the four scripts used for writing the Sindhi language, the others being [[Perso-Arabic]], [[Khojki]] and [[Devanagari]] script.

==Other scripts==
Other important scripts that have been used for writing purposes include;

[[File:Bactrian alphabet (block and cursive letters).jpg|thumb|left|[[Bactrian language|Bactrian script]]]]

===Bactrian script===
'''Bactrian''' (Αριαο, ''Aryao'', [[Help:IPA|{{IPA|[arjaː]|cat=no}}]]) is an extinct language formerly spoken in the region of [[Bactria]]<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sims-Williams|first1=N|title=Bactrian Language|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bactrian-language|website=Encyclopaedia Iranica}}</ref> and was used as the official language of the [[Indo-Greek kingdom]], [[Kushan Empire|Kushan]], and the [[Hephthalite Empire|Hephthalite]] empires.

===Brahmi script===
{{Brahmic}}
'''Brahmi''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|r|ɑː|m|i}}; [[ISO 15919]]: Brāhmī ) is the modern name<ref name="Salomon1998-p17a">{{harvnb|Salomon|1998|p=17}} Quote: " Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as “lath” or “Lat,” “Southern Aśokan,” “Indian Pali,” “Mauryan,” and so on. The application to it of the name Brahmi [''sc. lipi''], which stands at the head of the Buddhist and Jaina script lists, was first suggested by T[errien] de Lacouperie, who noted that in the Chinese Buddhist encyclopedia ''Fa yiian chu lin'' the scripts whose names corresponded to the Brahmi and Kharosthi of the ''Lalitavistara'' are described as written from left to right and from right to left, respectively. He therefore suggested that the name Brahmi should refer to the left-to-right “Indo-Pali” script of the Aśokan pillar inscriptions, and Kharosthi to the right-to-left “Bactro-Pali” script of the rock inscriptions from the northwest."</ref> for a writing system of ancient [[South Asia]]. It latter gave rise of Sharada, Landa and other scripts.

===Pahlavi script===
During rule of Persian empires in parts of [[Balochistan]], various [[Pahlavi scripts]] may have been used there as a writing system.
[[File:Eranshahr.svg|thumb|center|[[Pahlavi scripts|Pahlavi script]]]]
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==References==
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
* {{cite book |last=Salomon |first=Richard |title=Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the other Indo-Aryan Languages |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XYrG07qQDxkC |year=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-535666-3}}

===Further reading===
* {{cite book |last=Pandey |first=Raj Bali |date=1952 |title=Indian Palæography - Part 1 |url=https://ignca.gov.in/Asi_data/12858.pdf |location=Banaras |publisher=Motilal Banarasidas |archive-url= |archive-date=}}

[[Category:Writing systems]]
[[Category:Gandhara]]
[[Category:Ancient India]]

Ancient scripts of the Indian subcontinent - Revision history

GJSAnnie74: added a stub