Chakma Changmha Ajhapat ššš“šš³š¦ šš§šššš“ | |
---|---|
Script type | |
Direction | Left-to-right |
Languages | Chakma language, Pali[1] |
Related scripts | |
Parent systems | |
ISO 15924 | |
ISO 15924 | Cakm (349), Chakma |
Unicode | |
Unicode alias | Chakma |
U+11100–U+1114F[6] | |
[a] The Semitic origin of the Brahmic scripts is not universally agreed upon. | |
Brahmic scripts |
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The Brahmi script and its descendants |
The Chakma Script (AjhÄ pÄį¹h), also called AjhÄ pÄį¹h, Ojhapath, Ojhopath, Aaojhapath, is an abugida used for the Chakma language, and recently for the Pali language.[1]
History
The Chakma script is an abugida that belongs to the Brahmic family of scripts. Chakma evolved from the Burmese script, which was ultimately derived from Pallava.[3][4][5]
The script, along with the Chakma language, has been introduced to non-government schools in Bangladesh, and as well as schools in Mizoram.[7]
Structure
Chakma is of the Brahmic type: the consonant letters contain an inherent vowel. Unusually for Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, the inherent vowel in Chakma is a long 'Ä' (a) as opposed to short 'a' (É). Consonant clusters are written with conjunct characters, and a visible vowel killer shows the deletion of the inherent vowel when there is no conjunct.
Vowels
Four independent vowels exist: š a, š i, š u, and š e.
š | š | š | š |
---|---|---|---|
Ä (aa) | i | u | e |
Other vowels in initial position are formed by adding the vowel sign to š Ä, as in šš© Ä«, šš« Å«, šš ai, šš° oi. Some modern writers are generalizing this spelling in ššØ i, ššŖ u, and šš¬ e.
Chakma vowel signs with the letter š ka are given below:
š | šš§ | ššØ | šš© | ššŖ | šš« | šš¬ | šš® | šš | ššÆ | šš° | šš | šš | šš | šš | šš“ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
kÄ | ka | ki | kÄ« | ku | kÅ« | ke | ko | kÄi | kau | koi | kei | kaį¹ | kaį¹ | kaįø„ | k |
One of the interesting features of Chakma writing is that candrabindu š (cÄnaphudÄ) can be used together with anusvara š (ekaphudÄ) and visarga š (dviphudÄ):
ššš aįø„į¹ = š Ä + š h + šį¹
ššš aį¹į¹ = š Ä + š į¹ + šį¹
š šš uį¹į¹ = š u + š į¹ + šį¹
ššŖš muį¹ = š mÄ + šŖ u + šį¹
Consonants
š | š | š | š | š | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
kÄ | khÄ | gÄ | ghÄ | į¹ Ä | |
š | š | š | š | š | |
cÄ | chÄ | jÄ | jhÄ | Ć±Ä | |
š | š | š | š | š | |
į¹Ä | į¹hÄ | įøÄ | įøhÄ | į¹Ä | |
š | š | š | š | š | |
tÄ | thÄ | dÄ | dhÄ | nÄ | |
š | š | š | š | š | |
pÄ | phÄ | bÄ | bhÄ | mÄ | |
š | š” | š¢ | š£ | š¤ | š |
yyÄ | yÄ | rÄ | lÄ | wÄ | vÄ |
š„ | š¦ | š | |||
sÄ | hÄ | įø·Ä |
Vowel-killer
Like other Brahmic scripts, Chakma makes use of the maayyaa (killer) to invoke conjoined consonants. In the past, practice was much more common than it is today. Like the Myanmar script, Chakma is encoded with two vowel-killing characters in order to conform to modern user expectations. As shown above, most letters have their vowels killed with the use of the explicit maayyaa:
šš“ k = š kÄ + š“ MAAYYAA
Conjucts
In 2001 an orthographic reform was recommended in the book CÄį¹ mÄ pattham pÄt which would limit the standard repertoire of conjuncts to those composed with the five letters š yÄ, š¢ rÄ, š£ lÄ, š¤ wÄ, and š nÄ. The four here are the most widely accepted repertoire of conjuncts.
ya: X + š³ VIRAMA + š yÄ
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - š¦š³š š š³š š”š³š š¢š³š š¤š³š š„š³š
ra: X + š³ VIRAMA + š¢ rÄ
šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ - šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ - šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢
šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ - šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ šš³š¢ - š¦š³š¢ š š³š¢ š”š³š¢ š¢š³š¢ š¤š³š¢ š„š³š¢
la: X + š³ VIRAMA + š£ lÄ
šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ - šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ - šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£
šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ - šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ šš³š£ - š¦š³š£ š š³š£ š”š³š£ š¢š³š£ š„š³š£
wa: X + š³ VIRAMA + š¤ wÄ
šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ - šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ - šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤
šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ - šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ šš³š¤ - š¦š³š¤ š š³š¤ š”š³š¤ š¢š³š¤ š„š³š¤
No separate conjunct forms of subjoined full-form -yÄ or -rÄ appear to exist. The fifth of these conjuncts, the -na conjunct, is exemplary of the orthographic shift which has taken place in the Chakma language.
na: X + š³ VIRAMA + š nÄ
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - š¦š³š š š³š š”š³š š¢š³š š„š³š
While some writers would indeed write kakna (in ligating style) as ššš³š or (in subjoining style) as ššš³š, most now would probably expect it to be written as ššš“š. The ligating style of glyphs is now considered old-fashioned. Thus, taking the letter š mÄ as the second element, while the glyph shapes šš³š kmÄ, šš³š tmÄ, šš³š nmÄ, šš³š bbÄ, šš³š mmÄ, š£š³š£ llÄ, š„š³š smÄ, and š¦š³š hmÄ are attested, most users now prefer the glyph shapes šš³š kmÄ, šš³š tmÄ, šš³š nmÄ, šš³š bbÄ, šš³š mmÄ, š£š³š£ llÄ, š„š³š smÄ, and š¦š³š hmÄ. Again, this distinction is stylistic and not orthographic.
The 2004 book Phadagaį¹ shows examples of the five conjuncts above together alongside conjuncts formed with š bÄ, š mÄ, and š¦ hÄ. These are all formed by simple subjoining.
ba: X + š³ VIRAMA + š nÄ
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - š š³š š”š³š š¢š³š š£š³š š¤š³š š„š³š
ma: X + š³ VIRAMA + š nÄ
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š
šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š šš³š - š š³š š”š³š š¢š³š š£š³š š¤š³š š„š³š
ha: X + š³ VIRAMA + š¦ nÄ
šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ - šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ - šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦
šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ - šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ šš³š¦ - š š³š¦ š”š³š¦ š¢š³š¦ š£š³š¦ š¤š³š¦ š„š³š¦
In the 1982 book CÄį¹ mÄr Äg pudhi a much wider range of conjunct pairs is shown, some of them with fairly complicated glyphs:
šš³š kkÄ = š kÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š kÄ
šš³š kį¹Ä = š kÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š į¹Ä
šš³š ktÄ = š kÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š tÄ
šš³š kmÄ = š kÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š mÄ
šš³š kcÄ = š kÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š cÄ
šš³š į¹ kÄ = š į¹ Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š kÄ
šš³š į¹ kÄ = š į¹ Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š gÄ
šš³š ccÄ = š cÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š cÄ
šš³š cchÄ = š cÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š chÄ
šš³š ƱcÄ = š Ć±Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š cÄ
šš³š ƱjÄ = š Ć±Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š jÄ
šš³š ƱjhÄ = š Ć±Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š jhÄ
šš³š į¹į¹Ä = š į¹Ä + š³ VIRAMA + š į¹Ä
šš³š ttÄ = š tÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š tÄ
šš³š tmÄ = š tÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š mÄ
šš³š tthÄ = š tÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š thÄ
šš³š ddÄ = š dÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š dÄ
šš³š ddhÄ = š dÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š dhÄ
šš³š ntÄ = š nÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š tÄ
šš³š nthÄ = š nÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š thÄ
šš³š nmÄ = š nÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š mÄ
šš³š ppÄ = š pÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š pÄ
šš³š bbÄ = š bÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š bÄ
šš³š mmÄ = š mÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š mÄ
šš³š jjÄ = š jÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š jÄ
š£š³š lkÄ = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š kÄ
š£š³š lgÄ = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š gÄ
š£š³š£ llÄ = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š£ lÄ
š£š³š lį¹Ä = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š į¹Ä
š£š³š lpÄ = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š pÄ
š£š³š lchÄ = š£ lÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š chÄ
š„š³š sį¹Ä = š„ sÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š į¹Ä
š„š³š skÄ = š„ sÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š kÄ
š„š³š spÄ = š„ sÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š pÄ
š„š³š smÄ = š„ sÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š mÄ
š¦š³š hmÄ = š¦ hÄ + š³ VIRAMA + š hmÄ
Letter names and punctuation
Chakma letters have a descriptive name followed by a traditional Brahmic consonant. These are given in annotations to the character names. Alongside a single (š ) and double (š ) danda punctuation, Chakma has a unique question mark (š ), and a section sign, Phulacihna. There is some variation in the glyphs for the Phulacihna (š ), some looking like flowers or leaves.
Numerals
The Chakma script contains its own set of numerals, although Bengali numerals are also used.
š¶ | š· | šø | š¹ | šŗ | š» | š¼ | š½ | š¾ | šæ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
Unicode
Chakma script was added to the Unicode Standard in January 2012 with the release of version 6.1.[8]
The Unicode block for Chakma script is U+11100–U+1114F. Grey areas indicate non-assigned code points:
Chakma[1][2] Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) | ||||||||||||||||
0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | |
U+1110x | 𑄀 | 𑄁 | 𑄂 | 𑄃 | 𑄄 | 𑄅 | 𑄆 | 𑄇 | 𑄈 | 𑄉 | 𑄊 | 𑄋 | 𑄌 | 𑄍 | 𑄎 | 𑄏 |
U+1111x | 𑄐 | 𑄑 | 𑄒 | 𑄓 | 𑄔 | 𑄕 | 𑄖 | 𑄗 | 𑄘 | 𑄙 | 𑄚 | 𑄛 | 𑄜 | 𑄝 | 𑄞 | 𑄟 |
U+1112x | 𑄠 | 𑄡 | 𑄢 | 𑄣 | 𑄤 | 𑄥 | 𑄦 | 𑄧 | 𑄨 | 𑄩 | 𑄪 | 𑄫 | 𑄬 | 𑄭 | 𑄮 | 𑄯 |
U+1113x | 𑄰 | 𑄱 | 𑄲 | 𑄳 | 𑄴 | 𑄶 | 𑄷 | 𑄸 | 𑄹 | 𑄺 | 𑄻 | 𑄼 | 𑄽 | 𑄾 | 𑄿 | |
U+1114x | 𑅀 | 𑅁 | 𑅂 | 𑅃 | 𑅄 | 𑅅 | 𑅆 | 𑅇 | ||||||||
Notes |
Educational Institutions
The Chakma language is being taught in many Government and private schools in India (Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh) and Bangladesh. The Chakma language was officially introduced in primary schools by the Govt. of Tripura under The Directorate of Kokborok & Other Minority Languages in 2004 through Bengali Script and since 2013 through Chakma script (also known as AjhÄ PÄį¹h). Presently,[when?] the Chakma language is being taught in 87 schools.[9]
References
- ^ a b Scheuren, Zachary (22 April 2019). "Proposal to encode CHAKMA LETTER VAA for Pali" (PDF). The Unicode Consortium. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 June 2019.
- ^ Joshi, R. Malatesha; McBride, Catherine, eds. (2019). Handbook of Literacy in Akshara Orthography. Literacy Studies. Vol. 17. p. 28. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-05977-4. ISBN 978-3-030-05976-7.
- ^ a b Talukdar, S. P. (2010). Genesis of Indigenous Chakma Buddhists and Their Pulverization Worldwide. Gyan Publishing House. ISBN 9788178357584.
- ^ a b Brauns, Claus-Dieter; Lƶffler, Lorenz G. (11 November 2013). Mru: Hill People on the Border of Bangladesh. BirkhƤuser. ISBN 9783034856942.
- ^ a b Everson, Michael; Hosken, Martin (28 July 2009). "Proposal for encoding the Chakma script in the UCS" (PDF).
- ^ "Chakma". The Unicode Standard, Version 15.1 (PDF). The Unicode Consortium. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 December 2023.
- ^ Brandt, Carmen (2014). "Script as a potential demarcator and stabilizer of languages in South Asia". In Cardoso, Hugo C. (ed.). Language Endangerment and Preservation in South Asia. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. p. 86. hdl:10125/4602. ISBN 9780985621148.
- ^ "Unicode 6.1.0". The Unicode Consortium. 31 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2012. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
- ^ "Chakma Language". The Directorate of Kokborok & Other Minority Languages. Government of Tripura, India.
Further reading
- 'ą¦°ą¦æą¦¬ą§ą¦ ą¦ą¦ą¦Øą¦æ'ą¦¤ą§ ą¦²ą§ą¦ą¦¾ ą¦¹ą¦¬ą§ ą¦ą¦¾ą¦ą¦®ą¦¾ ą¦ą¦¾ą¦·ą¦¾ [The Chakma language will be written in 'RibengUni']. Kaler Kantho. 18 June 2012. Archived from the original on 1 January 2014. Retrieved 31 December 2013.
External links
- RibengUni (First Chakma Unicode Font)
- Chakma Script Archived 2020-01-15 at the Wayback Machine
- Chakma Bangla Blog
- Chakma Prototype Keyboard
- Chakma Unicode Converter
- Available Chakma Unicode Fonts
- Chakma Keyboard Layout for Mac OSX
- Chakma Open Dictionary
- "Chakma alphabet, pronunciation and language". Omniglot. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
- "Tribal Languages - Banglapedia". Banglapedia. Retrieved 1 September 2018.