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Kharosthi
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<h2 id="history">History</h2> <p>The name Kharosthi may derive from the Hebrew <i>kharosheth</i>, a Semitic word for writing,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> or from <a href="/facts/Old_Iranian/JaJyqM4t">Old Iranian</a> <i>*xšaθra-pištra</i>, which means "royal writing".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> The script was earlier also known as <i>Indo-Bactrian script</i>, <i>Kabul script</i> and <i>Arian-Pali</i>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a> </p><p>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 <a href="/facts/Aramaic_alphabet/hoqRfbYP">Aramaic alphabet</a> but with extensive modifications. Kharosthi seems to be derived from a form of Aramaic used in administrative work during the reign of <a href="/facts/Darius_the_Great/SnfdjGyK">Darius the Great</a>, rather than the monumental <a href="/facts/Cuneiform/MgIQoGu8">cuneiform</a> used for public inscriptions.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> One theory suggests that the Aramaic script arrived with the <a href="/facts/Achaemenid_conquest_of_the_Indus_Valley/oEuAtmmI">Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley</a> 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 <a href="/facts/Sirkap/KQfM826M">Sirkap</a>, testifying to the presence of the Aramaic script in present-day Pakistan. According to <a href="/facts/John_Marshall_(archaeologist)/oFCD0eXE">Sir John Marshall</a>, this seems to confirm that Kharoshthi was later developed from Aramaic.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a> </p><p>While the Brahmi script 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.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> </p><p>The Kharosthi script was deciphered separately almost concomitantly by <a href="/facts/James_Prinsep/rc5dBbhm">James Prinsep</a> (in 1835, published in the <i>Journal of the Asiatic society of Bengal</i>, India)<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a> and by <a href="/facts/Carl_Ludwig_Grotefend/vmFmDUqW">Carl Ludwig Grotefend</a> (in 1836, published in <i>Blätter für Münzkunde</i>, Germany),<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a> with Grotefend "evidently not aware" of Prinsep's article, followed by <a href="/facts/Christian_Lassen/FYH5wfox">Christian Lassen</a> (1838).<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a> They all used the bilingual coins of the <a href="/facts/Indo-Greek_Kingdom/K8ntlfEh">Indo-Greek Kingdom</a> (obverse in Greek, reverse in <a href="/facts/Pali/HLQW2fvS">Pali</a>, using the Kharosthi script). This in turn led to the reading of the <a href="/facts/Edicts_of_Ashoka/sVdwz3Tm">Edicts of Ashoka</a>, some of which were written in the Kharosthi script (the <a href="/facts/Major_Rock_Edicts/PczfDIDP">Major Rock Edicts</a> at <a href="/facts/Mansehra/gKcq8Sl8">Mansehra</a> and <a href="/facts/Shahbazgarhi/7dD0mdGQ">Shahbazgarhi</a>).<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17"><sup>17</sup></a> </p><p>The study of the Kharosthi script was recently invigorated by the discovery of the <a href="/facts/Gandh%C4%81ran_Buddhist_texts/U54WX2Jd">Gandhāran Buddhist texts</a>, a set of <a href="/facts/Birch_bark_manuscript/VprXgIsD">birch bark manuscripts</a> written in Kharosthi, discovered near the Afghan city of <a href="/facts/Hadda,_Afghanistan/I3mgC3qY">Hadda</a> just west of the <a href="/facts/Khyber_Pass/qvNBzEGg">Khyber Pass</a> in <a href="/facts/Pakistan/cbIsvJy1">Pakistan</a>. The manuscripts were donated to the <a href="/facts/British_Library/p01eBQ5A">British Library</a> 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,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18"><sup>18</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19"><sup>19</sup></a> making them the oldest Buddhist manuscripts yet discovered. </p> <h2 id="alphabet">Alphabet</h2> <p>Kharosthi is mostly written right to left. Some variations in both the number and order of syllables occur in extant texts. </p><p>The Kharosthi alphabet is also known as the arapacana alphabet, and follows the order. </p> <i>a ra pa ca na</i> <i>la da ba ḍa ṣa</i> <i>va ta ya ṣṭa</i> <i>ka sa ma ga stha</i> <i>ja śva dha śa kha</i> <i>kṣa sta jñā rtha (</i>or<i> ha)</i> <i>bha cha sma hva tsa</i> <i>gha ṭha ṇa pha ska</i> <i>ysa śca ṭa ḍha</i> <p>This alphabet was used in <a href="/facts/Gandharan_Buddhism/yIcQlPNh">Gandharan Buddhism</a> as a mnemonic for the <a href="/facts/Large_Praj%C3%B1%C4%81p%C4%81ramit%C4%81_S%C5%ABtras/1MxyXdeL">Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra</a>, a series of verses on the nature of phenomena. </p> <h3>Consonants</h3> <a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:20" href="#fn:20"><sup>20</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:21" href="#fn:21"><sup>21</sup></a><table><tbody><tr><td rowspan="2"></td><th colspan="2"><a href="/facts/Unvoiced_consonant/575TtTUn">Unvoiced</a></th><th colspan="2"><a href="/facts/Voiced_consonant/VdqrEGQ3">Voiced</a></th><th rowspan="2"><a href="/facts/Nasal_consonant/m6D3cVhe">Nasal</a></th><th rowspan="2"><a href="/facts/Semivowel/9nPDkQdw">Semivowel</a></th><th rowspan="2"><a href="/facts/Sibilant/5ejwC21e">Sibilant</a></th><th rowspan="2"><a href="/facts/Fricative_consonant/1FQuuhfX">Fricative</a></th></tr><tr><th>Unaspirated</th><th><a href="/facts/Aspirated_consonant/Kat42tA6">Aspirated</a></th><th>Unaspirated</th><th>Aspirated</th></tr><tr><th scope="row"><a href="/facts/Velar_consonant/blWClp79">Velar</a></th><td>𐨐kIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_velar_plosive/dDppVb6e">k</a>/</td><td>𐨑kh</td><td>𐨒gIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_velar_plosive/f6udTvfQ">ɡ</a>/</td><td>𐨓gh</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>𐨱hIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_glottal_fricative/lfRB7CPW">h</a>/</td></tr><tr><th scope="row"><a href="/facts/Palatal_consonant/KLcKyXE8">Palatal</a></th><td>𐨕cIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_palatal_plosive/nBqIqUIS">c</a>/</td><td>𐨖ch</td><td>𐨗jIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_palatal_plosive/otrWQbpW">ɟ</a>/</td><td></td><td>𐨙ñIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_palatal_nasal/dLa9YG49">ɲ</a>/</td><td>𐨩yIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_palatal_approximant/v0NVCbUh">j</a>/</td><td>𐨭śIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolo-palatal_fricative/gwwPRsUU">ɕ</a>/</td><th></th></tr><tr><th scope="row"><a href="/facts/Retroflex_consonant/lsBdJD4V">Retroflex</a></th><td>𐨚ṭIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_retroflex_plosive/o2FrLeV9">ʈ</a>/</td><td>𐨛ṭh</td><td>𐨜ḍIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_retroflex_plosive/SQT2LTNM">ɖ</a>/</td><td>𐨝ḍh</td><td>𐨞ṇIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_retroflex_nasal/P7M5mWw6">ɳ</a>/</td><td>𐨪rIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_alveolar_trill/rDplJobc">r</a>/</td><td>𐨮ṣIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_retroflex_fricative/qv1enYKj">ʂ</a>/</td><th></th></tr><tr><th scope="row"><a href="/facts/Dental_consonant/Yraaz9Nm">Dental</a></th><td>𐨟tIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_alveolar_plosive/1GaDe2Vy">t</a>/</td><td>𐨠th</td><td>𐨡dIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_alveolar_plosive/A6hNvmCp">d</a>/</td><td>𐨢dh</td><td>𐨣nIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_alveolar_nasal/0CEs8314">n</a>/</td><td>𐨫l</td><td>𐨯s</td><td>𐨰z</td></tr><tr><th scope="row"><a href="/facts/Labial_consonant/bv4MqTMf">Labial</a></th><td>𐨤pIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiceless_bilabial_plosive/w4M9Igp6">p</a>/</td><td>𐨥ph</td><td>𐨦bIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_bilabial_plosive/6ReC9arR">b</a>/</td><td>𐨧bh</td><td>𐨨mIPA: /<a href="/facts/Voiced_bilabial_nasal/1pd7NK2x">m</a>/</td><td>𐨬v</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><th scope="row">Other</th><td>𐨲ḱ</td><td>𐨳ṭ́h</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>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. </p><p>The <i>cauda</i> ⟨𐨹⟩ changes how consonants are pronounced in various ways, particularly <a href="/facts/Fricative_consonant/1FQuuhfX">fricativization</a>. It is used with g, j, ḍ, t, d, p, y, v, ś, and s. </p><p>The dot below ⟨𐨺⟩ is used with m and h, but its precise phonetic function is unknown. </p> <h3>Vowels and syllables</h3> <p>Kharosthi includes only one standalone vowel character, which is used for initial vowels in words. Other initial vowels use the <i>a</i> character modified by diacritics. Each syllable includes the short /a/ sound by default, with other vowels being indicated by diacritic marks. </p><p>Long vowels are marked with the diacritic ⟨𐨌⟩. An <a href="/facts/Anusvara/emCWkk1I">anusvara</a> ⟨𐨎⟩ indicates <a href="/facts/Nasalization/XpzfohCT">nasalization</a> of the vowel or a nasal segment following the vowel. A <a href="/facts/Visarga/2xYADj7t">visarga</a> ⟨𐨏⟩ indicates the unvoiced syllable-final /h/. It can also be used as a vowel length marker. A further diacritic, the <i>double ring below</i> ⟨𐨍⟩ appears with vowels -a and -u in some Central Asian documents, but its precise phonetic function is unknown.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:22" href="#fn:22"><sup>22</sup></a> </p><p>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/. </p> Vowels<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:23" href="#fn:23"><sup>23</sup></a><table><tbody><tr><th></th><th colspan="6">Vowels</th><th colspan="3">Other syllablediacritics</th></tr><tr><th>diacritics</th><td>◌<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:24" href="#fn:24"><sup>24</sup></a></td><td>◌𐨅</td><td>◌𐨁</td><td>◌𐨆 </td><td>◌𐨂</td><td>◌𐨃</td><td>𐨎</td><td>𐨏</td></tr><tr><th>short vowels</th><td>𐨀IPA: /ə/a </td><td>𐨀𐨅IPA: /e/e<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:25" href="#fn:25"><sup>25</sup></a></td><td>𐨀𐨁IPA: /i/i<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:26" href="#fn:26"><sup>26</sup></a> </td><td>𐨀𐨆IPA: /o/o </td><td>𐨀𐨂IPA: /u/u </td><td>𐨀𐨃IPA: /r̩/r̥</td><td>𐨀𐨎aṃ</td><td>𐨀𐨏aḥ</td></tr><tr><th>long vowels</th><td>𐨀𐨌IPA: /aː/ā </td><td>𐨀𐨅𐨌IPA: /ɐi̯/ai</td><td>𐨀𐨁𐨌IPA: /iː/ī </td><td>𐨀𐨆𐨌IPA: /ɐu̯/au </td><td>𐨀𐨂𐨌IPA: /uː/ū </td><td>𐨀𐨃𐨌IPA: /r̩ː/r̥̄</td><td>𐨀𐨌𐨎āṃ</td><td>𐨀𐨌𐨏āḥ</td></tr><tr><th>examples with ⟨𐨤⟩</th><td>𐨤pa </td><td>𐨤𐨅pe<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:27" href="#fn:27"><sup>27</sup></a> </td><td>𐨤𐨁pi<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:28" href="#fn:28"><sup>28</sup></a></td><td>𐨤𐨆po<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:29" href="#fn:29"><sup>29</sup></a> </td><td>𐨤𐨂pu</td><td>𐨤𐨃pr̥ </td><td>𐨤𐨎paṃ</td><td>𐨤𐨏paḥ</td></tr><tr><th>examples with ⟨𐨨⟩</th><td>𐨨ma </td><td>𐨨𐨅me</td><td>𐨨𐨁mi</td><td>𐨨𐨆mo</td><td>𐨨𐨂mu<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:30" href="#fn:30"><sup>30</sup></a></td><td>𐨨𐨃mr̥ </td><td>𐨨𐨎maṃ</td><td>𐨨𐨏maḥ</td></tr></tbody></table> <h2 id="punctuation">Punctuation</h2> <p>Nine Kharosthi punctuation marks have been identified:<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:31" href="#fn:31"><sup>31</sup></a> </p> <table><tbody><tr><td>𐩐dot</td><td>𐩓crescent bar</td><td>𐩖danda</td><td>𐩑small circle</td><td>𐩔mangalam</td><td>𐩗double danda</td><td>𐩒circle</td><td>𐩕lotus</td><td>𐩘lines</td></tr></tbody></table> <h2 id="numerals">Numerals</h2> <p>Kharosthi included a set of numerals that are reminiscent of <a href="/facts/Roman_numerals/7BA8nn78">Roman numerals</a> and <a href="/facts/Psalter_Pahlavi/xAPV6vHS">Psalter Pahlavi</a> Numerals. The system is based on an additive and a multiplicative principle, but does not have the subtractive feature used in the Roman numeral system.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:32" href="#fn:32"><sup>32</sup></a> </p> Numerals<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:33" href="#fn:33"><sup>33</sup></a><table><tbody><tr><td>𐩀1 </td><td>𐩁2 </td><td>𐩂3 </td><td>𐩃4 </td><td>𐩄10 </td><td>𐩅20 </td><td>𐩆100 </td><td>𐩇1000</td></tr></tbody></table> <p>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 are written additively, so, for example, the number 1996 would be written as 𐩇𐩃𐩃𐩀𐩆𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩄𐩃𐩁. </p> <p>𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩄𐩃𐩁</p><p>(2+4+10+20+20+20+20) +</p><p>𐩃𐩃𐩀𐩆</p><p>100x(1+4+4) +</p><p>𐩇</p><p>1000</p><p>𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩅𐩄𐩃𐩁 𐩃𐩃𐩀𐩆 𐩇</p><p>(2+4+10+20+20+20+20) + 100x(1+4+4) + 1000</p> <h2 id="unicode">Unicode</h2> <p class="note">Main article: <a href="/facts/Kharoshthi_(Unicode_block)/kT2gdBaj">Kharoshthi (Unicode block)</a></p> <p>Kharosthi was added to the <a href="/facts/Unicode/DDu3MfPV">Unicode</a> Standard in March, 2005 with the release of version 4.1. </p><p>The Unicode block for Kharosthi is U+10A00–U+10A5F: </p> <table><tbody><tr><td colspan="17"><a href="/facts/Kharoshthi_(Unicode_block)/kT2gdBaj">Kharoshthi</a>[1][2]<a href="https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U10A00.pdf">Official Unicode Consortium code chart</a> (PDF)</td></tr><tr><td> </td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>3</td><td>4</td><td>5</td><td>6</td><td>7</td><td>8</td><td>9</td><td>A</td><td>B</td><td>C</td><td>D</td><td>E</td><td>F</td></tr><tr><td>U+10A0x</td><td>𐨀</td><td> 𐨁</td><td> 𐨂</td><td> 𐨃</td><td></td><td> 𐨅</td><td> 𐨆</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td> 𐨌</td><td> 𐨍</td><td> 𐨎</td><td> 𐨏</td></tr><tr><td>U+10A1x</td><td>𐨐</td><td>𐨑</td><td>𐨒</td><td>𐨓</td><td></td><td>𐨕</td><td>𐨖</td><td>𐨗</td><td></td><td>𐨙</td><td>𐨚</td><td>𐨛</td><td>𐨜</td><td>𐨝</td><td>𐨞</td><td>𐨟</td></tr><tr><td>U+10A2x</td><td>𐨠</td><td>𐨡</td><td>𐨢</td><td>𐨣</td><td>𐨤</td><td>𐨥</td><td>𐨦</td><td>𐨧</td><td>𐨨</td><td>𐨩</td><td>𐨪</td><td>𐨫</td><td>𐨬</td><td>𐨭</td><td>𐨮</td><td>𐨯</td></tr><tr><td>U+10A3x</td><td>𐨰</td><td>𐨱</td><td>𐨲</td><td>𐨳</td><td>𐨴</td><td>𐨵</td><td></td><td></td><td> 𐨸</td><td> 𐨹</td><td> 𐨺</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td> 𐨿 </td></tr><tr><td>U+10A4x</td><td>𐩀</td><td>𐩁</td><td>𐩂</td><td>𐩃</td><td>𐩄</td><td>𐩅</td><td>𐩆</td><td>𐩇</td><td>𐩈</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>U+10A5x</td><td>𐩐</td><td>𐩑</td><td>𐩒</td><td>𐩓</td><td>𐩔</td><td>𐩕</td><td>𐩖</td><td>𐩗</td><td>𐩘</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td colspan="17">Notes1.^ As of Unicode version 16.02.^ Grey areas indicate non-assigned code points</td></tr></tbody></table> <h2 id="gallery">Gallery</h2> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Br%C4%81hm%C4%AB_script/Bflxwzu6">Brahmi</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/History_of_Afghanistan/mqy1SmD3">History of Afghanistan</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/History_of_Pakistan/hsu8PwTw">History of Pakistan</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Pre-Islamic_scripts_in_Afghanistan/fVJGCVyQ">Pre-Islamic scripts in Afghanistan</a></li></ul> <h2 id="further-reading">Further reading</h2> Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kharoshthi. <ul><li><a href="https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_r2ctAAAAYAAJ">Kaschgar und die Kharoṣṭhī (1903)</a></li></ul> <h2 id="further-reading">Further reading</h2> <ul><li>Dani, Ahmad Hassan (1979). <i>Kharoshthi Primer</i>. Lahore Museum Publication Series. Vol. 16. Lahore Museum. <a href="/facts/OCLC_(identifier)/Yqad8waq">OCLC</a> <a href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/10695864">10695864</a>.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Peter_T._Daniels/gymIqfRu">Daniels, Peter T.</a>; <a href="/facts/William_Bright/fAjQwune">Bright, William</a>, eds. (1996). <a href="https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195079937/page/373"><i>The World's Writing Systems</i></a>. Oxford University Press, Inc. pp. <a href="https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195079937/page/373">373–383</a>. <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-0195079937.</li> <li>Falk, Harry (1993). <i>Schrift im alten Indien: Ein Forschungsbericht mit Anmerkungen</i>. Script Oralia (in German). Vol. 56. Tübingen: Gunter Narr. <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-3-8233-4271-7.</li> <li>Fussman, Gérard. "Les premiers systèmes d'écriture en Inde". <i>Annuaire du Collège de France 1988–1989</i> (in French). pp. 507–514.</li> <li>von Hinüber, Oscar (1990). <i>Der Beginn der Schrift und frühe Schriftlichkeit in Indien</i> (in German). Franz Steiner. <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-3-515-05627-4.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M., ed. (2009). <i>Kharoshthi Manuscripts from Gandhara</i> (2nd ed.). Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M. (2004). "Kharoshthi Manuscripts from Gandhara". <i>Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences</i>. XII (1–2): 9–15.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M. (July 1999). "Two Dated Kharoshthi Inscriptions from Gandhara". <i>Journal of Asian Civilizations</i>. XXII (1): 99–103.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M. (September 1997). "Kharoshthi Inscription from Swabi – Gandhara". <i>The Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences</i>. V (2): 49–52.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M. (March 1997). "An Inscribed Relic-Casket from Dir". <i>The Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences</i>. V (1): 21–33.</li> <li>Nasim Khan, M (1997). "Ashokan Inscriptions: A Palaeographical Study". <i>Atthariyyat</i>. Vol. I. Peshawar. pp. 131–150.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)</li> <li>Norman, Kenneth R. (1992). "The development of writing in India and its effect upon the Pāli canon". <i>Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde Südasiens</i>. 36: 239–249. <a href="/facts/JSTOR_(identifier)/YTeVmaJ7">JSTOR</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24010823">24010823</a>.</li> <li>Salomon, Richard (1990). "New Evidence for a Gāndhārī Origin of the Arapacana Syllabary". <i>Journal of the American Oriental Society</i>. 110 (2): 255–273. <a href="/facts/Doi_(identifier)/muM9Etpq">doi</a>:<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307%2F604529">10.2307/604529</a>. <a href="/facts/JSTOR_(identifier)/YTeVmaJ7">JSTOR</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/604529">604529</a>.</li> <li>Salomon, Richard (1 April 1993). "An additional note on Aracapana". <i>The Journal of the American Oriental Society</i>. 113 (2): 275–277. <a href="/facts/Doi_(identifier)/muM9Etpq">doi</a>:<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307%2F603034">10.2307/603034</a>. <a href="/facts/JSTOR_(identifier)/YTeVmaJ7">JSTOR</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/603034">603034</a>. <a href="/facts/Gale_(identifier)/kKSW05y4">Gale</a> <a href="https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA14474853">A14474853</a>.</li> <li>Salomon, Richard (1998). <i>Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the other Indo-Aryan Languages</i>. Oxford University Press. <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-0-19-535666-3.</li> <li>Salomon, Richard (2006). "Kharoṣṭhī syllables used as location markers in Gāndhāran stūpa architecture". In Faccenna, Domenico (ed.). <i>Architetti, Capomastri, Artigiani: L'organizzazione Dei Cantieri E Della Produzione Artistica Nell'Asia Ellenistica : Studi Offerti a Domenico Faccenna Nel Suo Ottantesimo Compleanno</i>. Istituto italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente. pp. 181–224. <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-88-85320-36-9.</li> <li>Salomon, Richard (1995). "On the Origin of the Early Indian Scripts". <i>Journal of the American Oriental Society</i>. 115 (2): 271–279. <a href="/facts/Doi_(identifier)/muM9Etpq">doi</a>:<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307%2F604670">10.2307/604670</a>. <a href="/facts/JSTOR_(identifier)/YTeVmaJ7">JSTOR</a> <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/604670">604670</a>. <a href="/facts/ProQuest/yoBIhGBy">ProQuest</a> <a href="https://www.proquest.com/docview/217141859">217141859</a>.</li></ul> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="https://gandhari.org">Gandhari.org</a> Catalog and Corpus of all known Kharoṣṭhī (Gāndhārī) texts</li> <li><a href="http://www.indoskript.org">Indoskript 2.0</a>, a paleographic database of Brahmi and Kharosthi</li> <li><a href="https://gandhari.org/tmp/glass_2000.pdf">A Preliminary Study of Kharoṣṭhī Manuscript Paleography</a> by Andrew Glass, University of Washington (2000)</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>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. <a href="978-94-024-0851-5" target="_blank">978-94-024-0851-5</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"Kharoshti | Indo-Parthian, Brahmi Script, Prakrit | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2025-02-14. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kharoshti" target="_blank">https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kharoshti</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"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. <a href="9788188242047" target="_blank">9788188242047</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Salomon 1998, pp. 11–13. - Salomon, Richard (1998). Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the other Indo-Aryan Languages. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-535666-3. <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Doi_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Doi_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>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 href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Doi_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>"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. <a href="9788188242047" target="_blank">9788188242047</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>Kharosthi. Great Russian Encyclopedia. <a href="https://bigenc.ru/linguistics/text/2126248" target="_blank">https://bigenc.ru/linguistics/text/2126248</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>A Guide to Taxila, John Marshall, 1918 <a href="https://archive.org/details/cu31924024121125" target="_blank">https://archive.org/details/cu31924024121125</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:14"><p>Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol IV 1835. pp. 327–348. <a href="https://archive.org/details/JournalOfTheAsiaticSocietyOfBengalVolIv1835/page/n391/mode/2up" target="_blank">https://archive.org/details/JournalOfTheAsiaticSocietyOfBengalVolIv1835/page/n391/mode/2up</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:15"><p>Grote, Hermann (1836). Blätter für Münzkunde. Hannoversche numismatische Zeitschrift. Hrsg. von H. Grote (in German). Hahn. pp. 309–314. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=hVtfAAAAcAAJ" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=hVtfAAAAcAAJ</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>Salomon 1998, pp. 210–212. - Salomon, Richard (1998). Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the other Indo-Aryan Languages. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-535666-3. <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:17"><p>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. <a href="/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:18"><p>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… <a href="978-1-61429-185-5" target="_blank">978-1-61429-185-5</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:19"><p>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. <a href="https://asian.washington.edu/early-buddhist-manuscripts-project" target="_blank">https://asian.washington.edu/early-buddhist-manuscripts-project</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:20"><p>Daniels, Peter T.; Bright, William, eds. (1996). The World's Writing Systems. Oxford University Press, Inc. pp. 373–383. ISBN 978-0195079937. <a href="978-0195079937" target="_blank">978-0195079937</a> <a href="#fnref:20" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:21"><p>Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-18). "L2/03-314R2: Proposal to Encode Kharoshthi in Plane 1 of ISO/IEC 10646" (PDF). <a href="https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:21" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:22"><p>Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-29). "L2/02-364: Proposal to add one combining diacritic to the UCS" (PDF). <a href="https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2002/02364-doublering.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2002/02364-doublering.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:22" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:23"><p>Daniels, Peter T.; Bright, William, eds. (1996). The World's Writing Systems. Oxford University Press, Inc. pp. 373–383. ISBN 978-0195079937. <a href="978-0195079937" target="_blank">978-0195079937</a> <a href="#fnref:23" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:24"><p>There is no diacritic form of this vowel as consonants include an inherent /a/ or /ə/ vowel. <a href="#fnref:24" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:25"><p>The vowels ⟨𐨅⟩ and ⟨𐨁⟩ are written horizontally when combined with ⟨𐨀⟩, ⟨𐨣⟩, or ⟨𐨱⟩ <a href="#fnref:25" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:26"><p>The vowels ⟨𐨅⟩ and ⟨𐨁⟩ are written horizontally when combined with ⟨𐨀⟩, ⟨𐨣⟩, or ⟨𐨱⟩ <a href="#fnref:26" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:27"><p>The vowel ⟨𐨅⟩ is written vertically when combined with ⟨𐨠⟩, ⟨𐨤⟩, ⟨𐨥⟩, or ⟨𐨫⟩ <a href="#fnref:27" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:28"><p>The vowel ⟨𐨁⟩ is written as a small vertical stroke when combined with ⟨𐨠⟩, ⟨𐨤⟩, ⟨𐨥⟩, ⟨𐨨⟩, ⟨𐨫⟩, or ⟨𐨭⟩ <a href="#fnref:28" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:29"><p>The vowel ⟨◌𐨆⟩ is written vertically when combined with ⟨𐨤⟩, ⟨𐨥⟩, ⟨𐨩⟩, or ⟨𐨭⟩ <a href="#fnref:29" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:30"><p>Combining ⟨𐨨 + ◌𐨂⟩ produces this unique ligature, ⟨𐨡 + ◌𐨂⟩ also produces a unique ligature, ⟨𐨡𐨂⟩ <a href="#fnref:30" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:31"><p>Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-18). "L2/03-314R2: Proposal to Encode Kharoshthi in Plane 1 of ISO/IEC 10646" (PDF). <a href="https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:31" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:32"><p>Graham Flegg, Numbers: Their History and Meaning, Courier Dover Publications, 2002, ISBN 978-0-486-42165-0, p. 67f. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:32" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:33"><p>Glass, Andrew; Baums, Stefan; Salomon, Richard (2003-09-18). "L2/03-314R2: Proposal to Encode Kharoshthi in Plane 1 of ISO/IEC 10646" (PDF). <a href="https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2003/03314-kharoshthi.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:33" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>