The characters that shaped the Silk Road - A digital paleography of Tarim Brahmi (original) (raw)
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Digital Approaches to the Linguistic and Paleographic History of Tocharian B (2019)
2019
The purpose of this paper is to provide a first introduction to our research project The Characters that Shaped the Silk Road—A Database and Digital Paleography of Tarim Brahmi. The project aims to provide a comprehensive paleographic survey of the Brahmi variant of Central Asia and, to that end, develop digital tools for the study of this writing system, which will also be available to the public. After introducing some preliminaries on our research object and the structure of our database, we present three case studies on Tocharian B that demonstrate how the system we are developing can already be used to gain new insights into the relationship between the different variants of the writing system, as well as the relationship between paleographic and linguistic variation.
This is an addendum to: https://tinyurl.com/yaj84wwo There are indications of trade contact of Sarasvati Civilization Tin-bronze Age artisans and seafaring merchants with the late predynastic period (c. 3200 BCE) of Egypt, resulting in some ivory/bone tags of Abydos signifying Indus Script hypertexts/hieroglyphs read rebus as Meluhha metalwork catalogues and wealth-accounting ledgers. It is posited that Indus Script is the earliest writing system of the world and some of the Abydos ivory/bone tags may signify rebus Meluhha readings of artisans and seafaring merchants of Sarasvati Civilization. Two tags which contain the elephant and bird hieroglyphs signify Meluhha rebus readings of metalwork catalogues. Validation of this thesis is further augmented by reading ten long Indus Script inscriptions as wealth-accounting ledgers of the Tin-Bronze Revolution Age establishing a cultural syntax evidenced from the Meluhha metalwork/seafaring vocabulary derived from Indian sprachbund, 'language union'. This monograph also validates Sinha et al view that the Indus Script inscriptions documented economic/accounting transactions. kole.l 'temple' rebus: kole.l 'smithy, forge'. This rebus rendering of Kota language explains the cultural framework of presenting utsava bera of Hindu temple āgama traditions, 'procession of hypertexts' of Indus Script described in: Itihāsa. Sarasvati Civilization archaeological evidence utsavabera procession is arcabera of four standards on Indus Script tablets Meluhha proclamations of metalwork competence; continuum of R̥gveda आ-गम tradition of arcāअर्चा 'adoration, worship' https://tinyurl.com/yaj84wwo Mirror: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.com/2019/01/itihasa-sarasvati-civilization.html The syntax in the Indus writing system is simple and culturally related to metalwork catalogues and wealth-accounting ledgers created by Sarasvati Civilization artisans and seafaring merchants. Thus, the bronze age metalwork unites culturally the syntax of the writing-system framed on Meluhha rebus readings of hieroglyphs/hypertexts using Meluhha (Indian sprachbund) metalwork and weealth-accounting words, the lingua franca of the bronze age Sarasvati Civilization which evolved from ca. 7th millennium BCe in Bhirrana on the Vedic Sarasvati River basin. Proceeding on the assumption that recursive sequences of signs in Indus Script corpora, are indicative of underlying language-based syntactic structures, the authors Sinha, S., A.M. Izhar, R.K. Pan, B.K. Wells. present an analysis of three long sequences in three Indus Script inscriptions excerpted below. "Our results suggest that though these sign sequences are yet to be deciphered, they have a highly structured arrangement which is suggestive of the existence of syntax...the results reported here it seems fair to conclude that the inscriptions do have an underlying syntactic organization...It appears to rule out the possibility put forward by one group that the inscriptions are merely a set of magical or mystical symbols without any inherent meaning ( Farmer, S., Sproat, R., Witzel, M., 2004. The collapse of the Indus-script thesis. Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies, 11 (2), 19-57.)" While Mahadevan identifies 417 signs, Wells distinguishes about 958 signs. One possible explanation for the vast differences in the range of 'signs' of the script is that orthography of any writing system is governed by the adage: different folks, different strokes. (Mahadevan, I., 1977. The Indus Script: Texts, Concordances and Tables, Archaeological Survey of India, New Delhi. Sinha, S., A.M. Izhar, R.K. Pan, B.K. Wells. 2010. “Network analysis of a corpus of undeciphered Indus civilization inscriptions indicates syntactic organization” available online at arXiv:1005.4997v1 https://arxiv.org/pdf/1005.4997.pdf Appendix containing a sign list of the W09IMSc data-set.) A decipherment of these Indus Script inscriptions is presented justifying the underlying Meluhha language which the script uses to encode wealth-accounting messages as metalwork catalogues.
The Brāhmī inscriptions of Mongolia: Whose decipherment
This short note serves the purpose of setting the record of the decipherment of the Mongolian Khüis Tolgoi and Bugut inscriptions straight. Until recently, the Brāhmī inscriptions on the Khüis Tolgoi and Bugut stelae in Mongolia remained undeciphered, and any knowledge concerning the language in which they were written had been lost centuries ago. Finally, in the 2000s, Dieter Maue, an epigraphist and a leading specialist on the Brāhmī script, made a new reading of the inscriptions, allowing, for the first time, the question concerning the underlying language to be approached in a meaningful way. Then, the French historian Étienne de La Vaissière invited Alexander Vovin, during the latter's visit to Paris, to have a look at Maue's reading of the Khüis Tolgoi inscription. Vovin recognized the language as Mongolic, but there were still too many unidentifiable words and grammatical forms to allow for a complete translation. In 2014, an international team consisting of Dieter Maue (Germany), Alexander Vovin (USA, then already permanently working in France), Mehmet Ölmez (Turkey), and Étienne de La Vaissière (France) was formed, and the group travelled to Mongolia, accompanied by two specialists in 3D photography with the relevant instruments for taking 3D pictures. The principal objective was to document the inscriptions as completely as possible. The team surveyed the inscriptions and took 3D pictures of the Khüis Tolgoi I and Brāhmī Bugut inscriptions, but could not do the same with Khüis Tolgoi II due to circumstances beyond the team's control. For more details on the team's travel to Mongolia, see Ölmez (2018). After the survey, Dieter Maue revised his epigraphic analysis and Alexander Vovin offered a first linguistic analysis and interpretation of the texts. The results were reported at the
Layered rebus-metonymy is the cipher for an ancient writing system called Indus script which evidences many diverse forms of trope. The diverse forms of trope exemplify a very literate society which could produce 1. the profundity of chandas, a layered enquiry into cosmic and consciousness phenomena, in the corpus of texts collectively called the Veda; and 2. metalcasters' work of the Bronze Age catalogued as a layered rebus-metonymy on thousands of Meluhha (Mleccha) inscriptions of Indus Script Corpora. Chandas and Meluhha (Mleccha) were two sides of the same coin of Indian sprachbund (language union). Rgvedic people called themselves Bhāratam Janam, 'metalcaster folk' -- and catalogued their life-activities in Rigveda and in Indus Script Corpora. Chandas was used for a sacred enquiry. Mlecchita vikalpa, 'Meluhha Script or cipher' was used for trade by Meluhha seafaring merchants and artisans. They were philosophers of fire, they were also explorers in kole.l 'smithy, forge' which was also kole.l 'temple', a sacre workplace. These two meanings for the same word resulted in the compilation of layered rebus-metonymy texts of Indus Script Corpora. I had noted that harosheth hagoyim (Judges 4:2), 'smithy of nations' is cognate with kharoṣṭī goya 'lit. blacksmith-lip guild'. kharoṣṭī was the name adopted for a writing system of ca. 5th century BCE. Meluhha hieroglyphs continue to be deployed together with this writing system on punch-marked coins. The writing on Mohenjo-daro seal m0296 is a remarkable elaboration of many nuanced features of metonymy embedded in the inscription created as a ciphertext. (See Annex A Layered rebus-metonymy on the inscription on Mohenjo-daro seal m0296). Synecdoche is a class of metonymy 'mentioning a part for the whole'. Greek συνεκδοχή synekdoche, meaning "simultaneous understanding") is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something refers to the whole of something, or vice versa (Oxford English Dictionary). Synecdoche is evident is in the orthography of a pair of heads of a young bull to denote a pair of young bulls -- as a reference to a related object. Both metonymy and synecdoche are considered sub-categories of metaphor. The metaphor is achieved by the layering of rebus in the cipher of the writing system: a word which is a homonym of kōḍiya, kōḍe, खोंड (p. 216) [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf (Marathi). The rebus homonym is kõdā ‘lathe-turner’; kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker, engraver (writer)’. In addition to synecdoche, the other master tropes deployed in Indus Script corpora are: Allegory is exemplified by the sustained metaphor for soma: ancu (Tocharian), amśu (Vedic). Antanaclasis is exemplified by repetitions of a single word with different meanings, like a pun: Hieroglyphs: sãghāṛɔ 'lathe', sangaḍa 'portable furnace Rebus: saṁghara, 'living in the same house'; sãgaṛh, 'fortification'; sangāṭh संगाठ् 'a collection (of implements, tools, materials, for any object), apparatus, furniture, a collection of the things wanted on a journey, luggage, and so on'; sanghāta gram. 'collection of words'. Metaphor is exemplified by ligaturing an anthropomorph to an animal (say, bull, fish, eagle) to signify layered rebus-metonymy. Hieroglyph: ḍã̄go ʻmale (of animals)ʼ(Nepali) Rebus: dhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili) Hieroglyph: אַרְיֵה (aryeh) 'lion' (Hebrew) Rebus: āra, āram Brass (Tamil) Thus, the rebus layering with substitution of a similar-sounding word in metonymy creates a distinct sub-category of metonymy or metaphor. An additional layering in the cipher also occurs in this example. A pair of 'heads of young bull' are shown as mirror images. The mirroring or pairing evokes the expression: dol 'likeness' and with a rebus substitution: dul 'casting metal'. Thus, the paired heads of young bull denote: dul kõdā 'metal turning or alloying to create metal castings in a smithy-turner's work'. The writing system with the device of paired mirror images which is paralleled by reduplication of words of languages in Indian sprachbund introduced a unique form of metonymy: substituting an 'idea' or 'thought' of 'imaging' to denote a language expression: dol 'likeness'. The same device is deployed on m0296 by denoting a precise count of NINE (9) ficus leaves emerging out of the hieroglyphic composition. The count of NINE is denoted by a language expression: lo, no 'nine' PLUS a substitution in metonymy: lo 'copper'. In this instance, the orthography of precisely counted depictions of objects (in this case, ficus leaves), the implied count is substituted by an expression: lo 'nine', further layered by the substitution rebus of a similar-sounding homonym: lo 'copper'. It is amazing that the expression loa has the lexical meaning 'a species of fig tree, ficus glomerata' in Santali language, a Meluhha (mleccha) language expression in the Indian sprachbund. This expression gets a rebus substitution: lo, loh 'copper'. The device of rebus-metonymy layering also finds application in the creation of ligatured 'signs' or 'combinations of pictures' and in the creation of ligatured 'pictorial motifs' or 'combinations of pictorial motifs' to create orthographically, say, a composite animal. This composite animal has a language expression: सांगड [ sāṅgaḍa ] m f (संघट्ट S) f A body formed of two or more (fruits, animals, men) linked or joined together. The rebus-metonymy layer is with two meanings, one denotes collection of implements, the other denotes membership of a caravan: संगथ् । संयोगःsangāṭhsangāṭh संगाठ् । सामग्री m. (sg. dat. sangāṭas संगाटस्), a collection (of implements, tools, materials, for any object), apparatus, furniture, a collection of the things wanted on a journey, luggage, and so on. -- karun -- करुन् । सामग्रीसंग्रहः m.inf. to collect the ab. (L.V. 17). sangath संगथ् । संयोगः f. (sg. dat. sangüʦü), association, living together, partnership (e.g. of beggars, rakes, members of a caravan, and so on); (of a man or woman) copulation, sexual union. In this example, metonymy is seen to be evident without the use of contiguous (associated) concepts which is exemplified by the use of 'crown' to refer to 'king. In this example, non-contiguous concepts are related to one another for substitution by the association of sounds associated with homonyms (rebus). Thus, layered rebus-metonymy is deployed to achieve a special metaphorical representation in an ancient writing sytem of Indus Script. On the Mohenjo-daro seal m0296, the message conveyed by the combination of pictorial motifs is a a metaphor -- conveyed by decrypted Meluhha language expressions -- for combination of implements, tools, materials out of a lapidary workshop, smithy/forge, smelter, metalcaster, turner, alloying complex. In simple terms, as a collective expression, the Indus Script Corpora are metalwork, lapidarywork catalogues. The cipher for the writing system is a unique metaphor or trope (use of figurative language in literature, a commonly recurring literary or rhetorical device, motif, or cliché): layered rebus-metonymy. In religion, or philosophical enquiry as the Veda, trope is a musical embellishment of texts rendered in chandas, 'prosody'. In Mleccha (Meluhha), trope is is the use of figurative language -- via word, phrase, image, combination of images -- for artistic effect. In this framework, the cipher of Indus Script is a figure of speech which can be described as as a creative work with recurring literary and rhetorical devices, pictorial motifs. Chandas and spoken forms of mleccha (meluhha) are two side of the trope: one is musical trope which uses the 'prosody' device; the other is life-activity trope which uses the 'metalwork catalogue' device to create an Indus Script Corpora which now numbers about 7000 inscriptions of cipher text (cipher: layered rebus-metonymy). The purport of the Corpora was to organize documentation of trade transactions in contact areas by seafaring Meluhha (mleccha) merchants and artisans moving as caravans on the Tin Road from Hanoi to Haifa in an extensive interaction domain of Eurasia. What was referred to as 'Meluhha' in Akkadian-Sumerian speech area was called 'Mleccha' with variant phonetic forms in Indian sprachbund. This explanation of layered rebus-metonymy as an organizing principle or cipher of the writing system makes Indus Script a representation (vikalpa) of a very literate society or guild of artisans/seafaring merchants. The technical grammatical expression in Ancient Samskritam for this organizing principle is: mlecchita vikalpa (lit. representation in cipher or writing by mleccha people.) A synonym for mleccha, 'copper' people is Bhāratam Janam used in Rigveda, 'metalcaster folk'.
Courtesy: Dennys Frenez, 2021, The Indus Script -- Invention and Use of a Bronze Age Writing System Source for the images selected and sequenced by Dennys Frenez brilliantly presenting the chronological evolution of the Indus Script writing system, starting with potters' marks: https://www.academia.edu/46629600/The\_Indus\_Script\_Invention\_and\_Use\_of\_a\_Bronze\_Age\_Writing\_System\_Lecture\_for\_Archaeology\_and\_Writing\_UNIBO\_2020\_2021\_?fbclid=IwAR33-cH4L2NKy-FBsfqaypQIco\_MRnkOeTh3e\_w9Sp7Svg38WrdUi7OZl-8 On this cylinder seal impression, the following hieroglyphs of Indus Script are vividly presented: This seal is MS 2645 in Schoyen collection. See: Indus script -- Archer, boar, tiger hieroglyphs: Meluhha metalwork brief memoranda http://tinyurl.com/qj8o7qc 1. Archer ready to hunt with his bow and arrow 2. Boar 3. Tiger with open mouth, jumping and with feline paws spread out 4. Text message: a. Arrow; b. Body, spread legs, head ligatured to a flag; c. Pair of bows; d. 12 linear strokes in 3 sets Decipherment, read rebus in Meluhha: 1. kamāṭhiyo 'archer' rebus: kammaṭa 'coiner, mint, coinage' 2. Rhinoceros/boar: baḍhia = a castrated boar, a hog (Santali) baḍhi ‘a caste who work both in iron and wood’ (Santali) baṟea ‘merchant’ 3. kul ‘tiger’ (Santali); kōlu id. (Telugu) kōlupuli = Bengal tiger (Te.) कोल्हा [ kōlhā ] कोल्हें [kōlhēṃ] A jackal (Marathi) Rebus: kol, kolhe, ‘the koles, iron smelters speaking a language akin to that of Santals’ (Santali) kol ‘working in iron’; Hieroglyph: mouth open: Orthographic device of 'tiger with open mouth' in the following examples may also signify:व्यो-कार, व्योकरः bogāṟa 'blacksmith' (Kannada) wuhawān वुहवान् । सिंहगर्जनम् f. the roar of a lion or tiger.(Kashmiri)Hieroglyph: Paw up: H. khū̃dnā ʻ to trample on, paw up ʼ; G. khũdvũ ʻ to trample on ʼ, khũdṇũ n. ʻ running about ʼ.Pk. chuṁdaï ʻ pounds, attacks ʼ; Tamil) (CDIAL 3717) Rebus: Rebus: kunda 'one of the nine treasures of Kubera' Rebus: kunda 'lathe'. Rebus: Rebus: kō̃da कोँद 'smelter kiln' B. kũdā, kõdā 'to leap'; Or. kudibā ʻ to jump, dance ʼ; Mth. kūdab ʻ to jump ʼ, Aw. lakh. kūdab, H. kūdnā, OMarw. kūdaï, G. kūrda m. ʻ jump ʼ, gūrda -- m. ʻ jump ʼ Kāṭh. [√kūrd] S. kuḍ̠u m. ʻ leap ʼ, N. kud, Or. kuda, °dā, kudā -- kudi ʻ jumping about ʼ. kūˊrdati ʻ leaps, jumps ʼ MBh. [gūˊrdati, khūˊrdatē Dhātup.: prob. ← Drav. (Tam. kuti, Kan. gudi ʻ to spring ʼ) T. Burrow BSOAS xii 375]S. kuḍ̠aṇu ʻ to leap ʼ; L. kuḍ̠aṇ ʻ to leap, frisk, play ʼ; P. kuddṇā ʻ to leap ʼ, Ku. kudṇo, N. kudnu, (CDIAL 3411, 3412) Rebus: kō̃da कोँद । कुलालादिकन्दुः f. a kiln; a potter's kiln (Rām. 1446; H. xi, 11); a brick-kiln (Śiv. 133); a lime-kiln. -bal -बल् । कुलालादिकन्दुस्थानम् m. the place where a kiln is erected, a brick or potter's kiln (Gr.Gr. 165). -- khasüñü -- । कुलालादिकन्दुयथावद्भावः f.inf. a kiln to arise; met. to become like such a kiln (which contains no imperfectly baked articles, but only well-made perfectly baked ones), hence, a collection of good ('pucka') articles or qualities to exist. Cf. Śiv. 133, where the causal form of the verb is used. (Kashmiri) PLUS panja 'feline paw' rebus: panja 'kiln, furnace' 4,a. kānḍa ‘arrow’ (Sanskrit) Rebus:khānḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, metal-ware’. Rebus 2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) 4. b. meḍ ‘body’ Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Mu.); काठी [ kāṭhī ] f (काष्ट S) The stalk, stem,Rebus:काटी or कांटी [ kāṭī or kāṇṭī ] a (In नंदभाषा) Twenty.(Marathi) खंडी [ khaṇḍī ] f A measure of weight and capacity, a candy. A trench furnace.; Hieroglyph: Legs spread out: कर्णक m. du. the two legs spread out AV. xx , 133 , 3 Rebus: karNaka 'scribe, supercargo, helmsman'; 'Flag' hieroglyph. Hieroglyph: dhvajapaṭa m. ʻ flag ʼ Kāv. [dhvajá -- , paṭa -- ]Pk. dhayavaḍa -- m. ʻ flag ʼ, OG. dhayavaḍa m. Rebus: Pk. dhāu -- m. ʻ metal, red chalk ʼ; N. dhāu ʻ ore (esp. of copper) ʼ; Or. ḍhāu ʻ red chalk, red ochre ʼ (whence ḍhāuā ʻ reddish ʼ; M. dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ); -- Si. dā ʻ relic (CDIAL 6773) 4.c. Pair of bows: dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' PLUS kāmaṭhum 'a bow' rebus: kammaṭa 'mint, coiner, coinage' 4.d. Twelve strokes hieroglyph: baroṭi 'twelve' bhārata 'a factitious alloy of copper, pewter, tin' (Marathi) arka 'twelve' rebus: arka 'copper, gold'; Read as 4X3: gaNDa 'four' rebus: khaNDa 'equipment' PLUS kolom 'three' rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'. "Cylindrical,Harappan script inscribed, stone seal and impression from Bactria Margiana exhibited at Metropolitan Art museum New York. It is dated sometime between second to third millennium BC. The hunter is clothed in a short dhoti like garment..."--Purna Tattva posting on Facebook, 12 July 2021 https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=106581271701498&set=pcb.1173164103184387 See: Spoked wheel in Meluhha is tsarkh 'potter's wheel' अर्क 'the sun, copper', agasāla 'goldsmith workshop' https://tinyurl.com/y2jq5okl āre ‘potter's wheel’ rebus: āra ‘brass’; څرخ ṯs̱arḵẖ, 'potter's wheel'; eraka 'knave of wheel' rebus: arka, aka 'gold, copper'; eraka 'metal infusion'. څرخ ṯs̱arḵẖ, s.m. (2nd) (P چرخ). 2. A wheeled-carriage, a gun-carriage, a cart. Pl. څرخونه ṯs̱arḵẖūnah. څرخ ṯs̱arḵẖ, s.m. (2nd) A wheel (particularly a potter's, or of a water-mill or well). 2. A grindstone. 3. Circular motion, turn, revolution, the act of turning. 4. Fortune, chance. 5. The heavens, the sphere, the celestial globe. 6. A kind of hawk or falcon, an eagle. 7. A stab, a puncture, a prick, a wound produced by a spear, an arrow, or the like. Pl. څرخرنه ṯs̱arḵẖ-ūnah; 8. adj. Punctured, pricked, pierced, stabbed; (Fem.) څرکه ṯs̱arkaʿh. څرخیدل ṯs̱arḵẖedal, verb intrans. To revolve, to turn round, to wheel. 2. To dance. Pres. څرخبږي ṯs̱arḵẖej̱ẕī (W.) or څرخیګي ṯs̱arḵẖegī (E.); past ؤ څرخیده wu-ṯs̱arḵẖedah or ؤ څرخیدَ wu-ṯs̱arḵẖeda; fut. ؤ به څرخیږي wu bah ṯs̱arḵẖej̱ẕī or ؤ به څرخیګي wu bah ṯs̱arḵẖegī; imp. ؤ څرخیږه wu-ṯs̱arḵẖej̱ẕah or ؤ څرخیګه wu-ṯs̱arḵẖegah; act. part. څرخیدونکيَ ṯs̱arḵẖedūnkaey or څرخیدونيَ ṯs̱arḵẖedūnaey; past part. څرخید ليَ ṯs̱arḵẖedalaey; verb. n. څرخیدنه ṯs̱arḵẖedanaʿh. څرخول ṯs̱arḵẖawul, verb trans. To turn, to make revolve, to wheel round. 2. To sharpen. Pres. څرخوي ṯs̱arḵẖawī; past ؤ څرخاوه wu-ṯs̱arḵẖāwuh or ؤ څرخاوو wu-ṯs̱arḵẖāwo; fut. ؤ به څرخوي wu bah ṯs̱arḵẖawī; imp. ؤ څرخوه wu-ṯs̱arḵẖawah; act. part. څرخوونکيَ ṯs̱arḵẖawūnkaey or څرخوونيَ ṯs̱arḵẖawūnaey; past part. څرخوليَ ṯs̱arḵẖawulaey; verb. n. څرخونه ṯs̱arḵẖawunaʿh. (P چرخ). څرخ کول ṯs̱arḵẖ kawul, verb trans. To pierce, to stab, to puncture. څرخ کیدل ṯs̱arḵẖ kedal, verb intrans. To enter (as a pointed instrument), to penetrate, to stab, to pierce. څرخه ṯs̱arḵẖaʿh, s.f. (3rd) A spinning-wheel, a large reel. Pl. يْ ey. (P چرخه). څرخيَ ṯs̱arḵẖaey, s.m. (1st) A kind of reel for winding cotton on, a ball of cotton, silk, etc. 2. A species of falcon. Pl. يِ ī. See څاښي څرخلګيَ ṯs̱arḵẖal-gaey, s.m. (1st) A piece of wood, stone, etc., on which thread is wound, a reel. Pl. يِ ī. Also څرخلرګيَ ṯs̱arḵẖ- largaey. Pl. يِ ī. څرخندوکيَ ṯs̱arḵẖandūkaey, s.m. A tee-totum, a child's top. Pl. يِ ī. See لاډو ,چرلندي and چلخئِي (Pashto)
2011 International Conference on Pattern Analysis and Intelligence Robotics, 2011
Palaeography is the study of ancient handwritten manuscripts to date the age and to localize ancient and medieval scripts. It also deals with analysing the development of the letters shape. Ancient Jawi manuscripts are one of the least studiedarea. Nowadays, over 7789 known Jawi manuscripts are kept in custody of various libraries in Malaysia. Most of these manuscripts were undated with unknown authors and location of origin. Analysing the different types of writing styles and recognizing the manuscript illuminations can discover this important information. In this paper, we discuss the palaeographical analysis from the perspective of computer science and propose a general framework for that. This process involves investigation of Arabic influence on the Jawi manuscript writings, establishing the palaeographical type of the script, and classification of writing styles based on local and global Jawi image features.