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Tibetan script

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Template:Short description Template:Infobox writing system Template:Contains special characters Template:Alphabet Template:Brahmic

The Tibetan script is a segmental writing system, or abugida, forming a part of the Brahmic scripts, and used to write certain Tibetic languages, including Tibetan, Dzongkha, Sikkimese, Ladakhi, Jirel and Balti. Its exact origins are a subject of research but is traditionally considered to be developed by Thonmi Sambhota for King Songtsen Gampo.

The printed form is called uchen script while the hand-written form used in everyday writing is called umê script. This writing system is especially used across the Himalayan Region.

HistoryEdit

Little is known about the exact origins of Tibetan script.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to Tibetan historiography, it was developed during the reign of King Songtsen Gampo by his minister Thonmi Sambhota, who was sent to India along with other scholars to study Buddhism along with Sanskrit and other brahmi languages.<ref>Tibet: A Political History, p. 12. 1967. Tsepon W. D. Shakabpa. Yale University Press, New Haven and London.</ref><ref>The White Annals, pp. 70–73. Gedun Choephel, translated by Samten Norboo. 1978. Tibetan Library and Archives, Dharamsala, H.P., India.</ref> They developed the Tibetan script from the Gupta script<ref>Claude Arpi, Glimpses on the Tibet History, Dharamsala: Tibet Museum, 2016.</ref> while at the Pabonka Hermitage.

This occurred Template:Circa, towards the beginning of Songtsen Gampo's reign. There were 21 Sutra texts held by the King which were translated afterwards. In the first half of the 7th century, the Tibetan script was used for the codification of these sacred Buddhist texts,<ref>William Woodville Rockhill, Template:Google books, United States National Museum, page 671</ref><ref>Berzin, Alexander. A Survey of Tibetan History - Reading Notes Taken by Alexander Berzin from Tsepon, W. D. Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History. New Haven, Yale University Press, 1967: http://studybuddhism.com/web/en/archives/e-books/unpublished_manuscripts/survey_tibetan_history/chapter_1.html Template:Webarchive.</ref> for written civil laws, and for a Tibetan Constitution.

Earliest sources on Tibet, such as the Old Tibetan Chronicle, do not mention any Thonmi Sambhota.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite journal</ref> Scripts predating Songtsen Gampo might have existed but in any case do not appear to be widely used.<ref name=":0" /> Researchers postulate that Tibetan kings sought to develop a system of writing as their territory expanded. The script resembling the version today was likely developed in the second half of the 11th century.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="zeisler 2006">Template:Cite book</ref> New research and writings also suggest that there were one or more Tibetan scripts in use prior to the introduction of the script by Songtsen Gampo and Thonmi Sambhota. The incomplete Dunhuang manuscripts are their key evidence for their hypothesis,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> while the few discovered and recorded Old Tibetan Annals manuscripts date from 650 and therefore post-date the c. 620 date of development of the original Tibetan script.

Three orthographic standardisations were developed. The most important, an official orthography aimed to facilitate the translation of Buddhist scriptures emerged during the early 9th century. Standard orthography has not been altered since then, while the spoken language has changed by, for example, losing complex consonant clusters. As a result, in all modern Tibetan dialects and in particular in the Standard Tibetan of Lhasa, there is a great divergence between current spelling, which still reflects the 9th-century spoken Tibetan, and current pronunciation. This divergence is the basis of an argument in favour of spelling reform, to write Tibetan as it is pronounced; for example, writing Kagyu instead of Bka'-rgyud.<ref name="i208">Template:Cite book</ref>

The nomadic Amdo Tibetan and the western dialects of the Ladakhi language, as well as the Balti language, come close to the Old Tibetan spellings.<ref name="zeisler 2006"/> Despite that, the grammar of these dialectical varieties has considerably changed. To write the modern varieties according to the orthography and grammar of Classical Tibetan would be similar to writing Sanskrit orthography.<ref name="zeisler 2006"/> However, modern Buddhist practitioners in the Indian subcontinent state that the classical orthography should not be altered even when used for lay purposes. This became an obstacle for many modern Tibetic languages wishing to modernize or introduce a new spelling reform of Tibetan. <ref name="zeisler 2006"/>

DescriptionEdit

Basic alphabetEdit

In the Tibetan script, the syllables are written from left to right. Syllables are separated by a tsek (་); since many Tibetan words are monosyllabic, this mark often functions almost as a space. Spaces are not used to divide words.<ref name="x832">Template:Cite book</ref>

The Tibetan alphabet has thirty letters, sometimes known as "radicals", for consonants.<ref name="daniels">Daniels, Peter T. and William Bright. The World's Writing Systems. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996,</ref> As in other Indic scripts, each consonant letter assumes an inherent vowel; in the Tibetan script it is /a/. The letter Template:Bo-textonly is also the base for dependent vowel marks.

Although some Tibetan dialects are tonal, the language had no tone at the time of the script's invention, and there are no dedicated symbols for tone. However, since tones developed from segmental features, they can usually be correctly predicted by the archaic spelling of Tibetan words.

Unaspirated
high 		Aspirated
medium 		Voiced
low 		Nasal
low
Letter IPA Letter IPA Letter IPA Letter IPA
Guttural Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
Palatal Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
Dental Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
Labial Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
Dental Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
low Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonlyTemplate:Efn-lr main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}<ref>Template:Cite journal; Template:Cite journal</ref> Template:Angle bracket Template:Bo-textonly main}}
medium Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}
high Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Angle bracket

Template:Notelist-lr

Consonant clustersEdit

File:Tibetan syllable structure.svg
Components of a Tibetan syllable
File:Tibetan map of the Kizil Caves (13th entury CE).jpg
Tibetan map of the Kizil Caves, Tarim Basin. 13th century CE

One aspect of the Tibetan script is that the consonants can be written either as radicals or they can be written in other forms, such as subscript and superscript forming consonant clusters.

To understand how this works, one can look at the radical Template:Bo-textonly /ka/ and see what happens when it becomes Template:Bo-textonly /kra/ or Template:Bo-textonly /rka/ (pronounced /ka/). In both cases, the symbol for Template:Bo-textonly /ka/ is used, but when the Template:Bo-textonly /ra/ is in the middle of the consonant and vowel, it is added as a subscript. On the other hand, when the Template:Bo-textonly /ra/ comes before the consonant and vowel, it is added as a superscript.<ref name="daniels" /> Template:Bo-textonly /ra/ actually changes form when it is above most other consonants, thus Template:Bo-textonly rka. However, an exception to this is the cluster Template:Bo-textonly /ɲa/. Similarly, the consonants Template:Bo-textonly /ra/, and Template:Bo-textonly /ja/ change form when they are beneath other consonants, thus Template:Bo-textonly /ʈ ~ ʈʂa/; Template:Bo-textonly /ca/.

Besides being written as subscripts and superscripts, some consonants can also be placed in prescript, postscript, or post-postscript positions. For instance, the consonants Template:Bo-textonly /kʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /tʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /pʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /ma/ and Template:Bo-textonly /a/ can be used in the prescript position to the left of other radicals, while the position after a radical (the postscript position), can be held by the ten consonants Template:Bo-textonly /kʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /na/, Template:Bo-textonly /pʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /tʰa/, Template:Bo-textonly /ma/, Template:Bo-textonly /a/, Template:Bo-textonly /ra/, Template:Bo-textonly /ŋa/, Template:Bo-textonly /sa/, and Template:Bo-textonly /la/. The third position, the post-postscript position is solely for the consonants Template:Bo-textonly /tʰa/ and Template:Bo-textonly /sa/.<ref name="daniels" />

Head lettersEdit

The head (Template:Bo-textonly in Tibetan, Wylie: mgo) letter, or superscript, position above a radical is reserved for the consonants Template:Bo-textonly /ra/, Template:Bo-textonly /la/, and Template:Bo-textonly /sa/.

Sub-joined lettersEdit

The subscript position under a radical can only be occupied by the consonants Template:Bo-textonly /ja/, Template:Bo-textonly /ra/, Template:Bo-textonly /la/, and Template:Bo-textonly /wa/. In this position they are described as Template:Bo-textonly (Wylie: btags, IPA: /taʔ/), in Tibetan meaning "hung on/affixed/appended", for example Template:Bo-textonly (IPA: /pʰa.ja.taʔ.t͡ʃʰa/), except for Template:Bo-textonly, which is simply read as it usually is and has no effect on the pronunciation of the consonant to which it is subjoined, for example Template:Bo-textonly (IPA: /ka.wa.suː.ka/).

Vowel marksEdit

The vowels used in the alphabet are Template:Bo-textonly /a/, Template:Bo-textonly /i/, Template:Bo-textonly /u/, Template:Bo-textonly /e/, and Template:Bo-textonly /o/. While the vowel /a/ is included in each consonant, the other vowels are indicated by marks; thus Template:Bo-textonly /ka/, Template:Bo-textonly /ki/, Template:Bo-textonly /ku/, Template:Bo-textonly /ke/, Template:Bo-textonly /ko/. The vowels Template:Bo-textonly /i/, Template:Bo-textonly /e/, and Template:Bo-textonly /o/ are placed above consonants as diacritics, while the vowel Template:Bo-textonly /u/ is placed underneath consonants.<ref name="daniels" /> Old Tibetan included a reversed form of the mark for /i/, the gigu 'verso', of uncertain meaning. There is no distinction between long and short vowels in written Tibetan, except in loanwords, especially transcribed from the Sanskrit.

Vowel mark IPA Vowel mark IPA Vowel mark IPA Vowel mark IPA
Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}} Template:Bo-textonly main}}

Numerical digitsEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

Tibetan numerals Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
Devanagari numerals ० १ २ ३ ४ ५ ६ ७ ८ ९
Arabic numerals 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Tibetan fractions Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
Arabic fractions -0.5 0.5 1.5 2.5 3.5 4.5 5.5 6.5 7.5 8.5

Punctuation marksEdit

Symbol/
Graphemes		 Name Function
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
yig mgo		 marks beginning of a text, before a headline, front page of a pecha
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
gter yig mgo		 used in place of the yig mgo in terma texts
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
yig mgo a phyed		 used in place of the yig mgo in terma texts
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
dpe rnying yig mgo		 a variant of the yig mgo found in very old Tibetan texts
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
bskur yig mgo		 list enumerator (Dzongka)
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
tseg		 syllable delimiter, also used as a spacer to justify text in pechas
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
shad		 full stop, comma, or semicolon (marks end of a sentence or clause, and originates from the danda of Indic scripts)
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
nyis shad		 marks end of a paragraph or topic (cp. pilcrow)
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
bzhi shad		 marks end of a chapter or entire section
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
gsum shad		 same as bzhi shad, but used when the preceding character is ཀ or ག
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
rin chen spungs shad		 replaces shad after single, orphaned syllables, indicating to the reader that the preceding syllable continues from text on the previous line
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
tsheg shad		 variant of rin chen spungs shad
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
nyis tsheg shad		 variant of rin chen spungs shad
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
sbrul shad		 marks the start of a new text, often in a collection of texts, separates chapters, and surrounds inserted text
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
gter shad		 replaces shad and variants thereof in terma texts
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
rgya gram shad		 sometimes used in place of the yig mgo in terma texts
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
che mgo		 literally, "big head"—used preceding a reference to the Dalai Lama or the name of another important lama or tulku that demands great respect
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
bsdus rtags		 repetition
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
'dzud rtags me long can		 caret (indicates text insertion)
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
ang khang g.yon 'khor		 left roof bracket
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
ang khang g.yas 'khor		 right roof bracket
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
gug rtags g.yon		 left bracket
Template:Bo-textonly Template:Bo-textonly
gug rtags g.yas		 right bracket

Extended useEdit

File:Unknown Tibetan Sanskrit Text.jpg
A text in Tibetan script suspected to be Sanskrit in content. From the personal artifact collection of Donald Weir.

The Tibetan alphabet, when used to write other languages such as Balti, Chinese and Sanskrit, often has additional and/or modified graphemes taken from the basic Tibetan alphabet to represent different sounds.

Extended alphabetEdit

Letter Used in Romanization & IPA
Template:Bo-textonly Balti main}} (/q/)
Template:Bo-textonly Balti main}} (/ɽ/)
Template:Bo-textonly Balti main}} (/χ/)
Template:Bo-textonly Balti main}} (/ʁ/)
Template:Bo-textonly Chinese main}} (/f/)
Template:Bo-textonly Chinese main}} (/v/)
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}

Extended vowel marks and modifiersEdit

Vowel Mark Used in Romanization & IPA
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit ṛ /r̩/
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Template:Bo-textonly Sanskrit main}}
Symbol/
Graphemes		 Name Used in Function
Template:Bo-textonly srog med Sanskrit suppresses the inherent vowel sound
Template:Bo-textonly paluta Sanskrit used for prolonging vowel sounds

Consonant clustersEdit

In addition to the use of supplementary graphemes, the rules for constructing consonant clusters are amended, allowing any character to occupy the superscript or subscript position, negating the need for the prescript and postscript positions.

Romanization and transliterationEdit

Romanization and transliteration of the Tibetan script is the representation of the Tibetan script in the Latin script. Multiple Romanization and transliteration systems have been created in recent years, but do not fully represent the true phonetic sound.Template:NoteTag While the Wylie transliteration system is widely used to Romanize Standard Tibetan, others include the Library of Congress system and the IPA-based transliteration (Jacques 2012).

Below is a table with Tibetan letters and different Romanization and transliteration system for each letter, listed below systems are: Wylie transliteration (W), Tibetan pinyin (TP), Dzongkha phonetic (DP), ALA-LC Romanization (A)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and THL Simplified Phonetic Transcription (THL).

Letter W TP DP A THL Letter W TP DP A THL Letter W TP DP A THL Letter W TP DP A THL
Template:Bo-textonly ka g ka ka ka Template:Bo-textonly kha k kha kha kha Template:Bo-textonly ga* k* kha* ga* ga* Template:Bo-textonly nga ng nga nga nga
Template:Bo-textonly ca j ca ca cha Template:Bo-textonly cha q cha cha cha Template:Bo-textonly ja* q* cha* ja* ja* Template:Bo-textonly nya ny nya nya nya
Template:Bo-textonly ta d ta ta ta Template:Bo-textonly tha t tha tha ta Template:Bo-textonly da* t* tha* da* da* Template:Bo-textonly na n na na na
Template:Bo-textonly pa b pa pa pa Template:Bo-textonly pha p pha pha pa Template:Bo-textonly ba* p* pha* ba* ba* Template:Bo-textonly ma m ma ma ma
Template:Bo-textonly tsa z tsa tsa tsa Template:Bo-textonly tsha c tsha tsha tsa Template:Bo-textonly dza* c* tsha* dza* dza* Template:Bo-textonly wa w wa wa wa
Template:Bo-textonly zha* x* sha* zha* zha* Template:Bo-textonly za* s* sa* za* za* Template:Bo-textonly 'a - a 'a a Template:Bo-textonly ya y ya ya ya
Template:Bo-textonly ra r ra ra ra Template:Bo-textonly la l la la la Template:Bo-textonly sha x sha sha sha Template:Bo-textonly sa s sa sa sa
Template:Bo-textonly ha h ha ha ha Template:Bo-textonly a a a a a  
* – Only in loanwords

Input method and keyboard layoutEdit

TibetanEdit

File:Tibetan Keyboard.png
Tibetan keyboard layout

The first version of Microsoft Windows to support the Tibetan keyboard layout is MS Windows Vista. The layout has been available in Linux since September 2007. In Ubuntu 12.04, one can install Tibetan language support through Dash / Language Support / Install/Remove Languages, the input method can be turned on from Dash / Keyboard Layout, adding Tibetan keyboard layout. The layout applies the similar layout as in Microsoft Windows.

Mac OS-X introduced Tibetan Unicode support with OS-X version 10.5 and later, now with three different keyboard layouts available: Tibetan-Wylie, Tibetan QWERTY and Tibetan-Otani.

DzongkhaEdit

File:Dzongkha Keyboard layout Main.svg
Dzongkha keyboard layout

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} The Dzongkha keyboard layout scheme is designed as a simple means for inputting Dzongkha text on computers. This keyboard layout was standardized by the Dzongkha Development Commission (DDC) and the Department of Information Technology (DIT) of the Royal Government of Bhutan in 2000.

It was updated in 2009 to accommodate additional characters added to the Unicode & ISO 10646 standards since the initial version. Since the arrangement of keys essentially follows the usual order of the Dzongka and Tibetan alphabet, the layout can be quickly learned by anyone familiar with this alphabet. Subjoined (combining) consonants are entered using the Shift key.

The Dzongka keyboard layout is included in Microsoft Windows, Android, and most distributions of Linux as part of XFree86.

UnicodeEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

Tibetan was originally one of the scripts in the first version of the Unicode Standard in 1991, in the Unicode block U+1000–U+104F. However, in 1993, in version 1.1, it was removed (the code points it took up would later be used for the Burmese script in version 3.0). The Tibetan script was re-added in July, 1996 with the release of version 2.0.

The Unicode block for Tibetan is U+0F00–U+0FFF. It includes letters, digits and various punctuation marks and special symbols used in religious texts:

Template:Unicode chart Tibetan

See alsoEdit

NotesEdit

Template:NoteFoot

ReferencesEdit

CitationsEdit

Template:Reflist

SourcesEdit

Template:Refbegin

  • Asher, R. E. ed. The Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics. Tarrytown, NY: Pergamon Press, 1994. 10 vol.
  • Beyer, Stephan V. (1993). The Classical Tibetan Language. Reprinted by Delhi: Sri Satguru.
  • Chamberlain, Bradford Lynn. 2008. Script Selection for Tibetan-related Languages in Multiscriptal Environments. International Journal of the Sociology of Language 192:117–132.
  • Csoma de Kőrös, Alexander. (1983). A Grammar of the Tibetan Language. Reprinted by Delhi: Sri Satguru.
  • Csoma de Kőrös, Alexander (1980–1982). Sanskrit-Tibetan-English Vocabulary. 2 vols. Reprinted by Delhi: Sri Satguru.
  • Daniels, Peter T. and William Bright. The World's Writing Systems. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.
  • Das, Sarat Chandra: "The Sacred and Ornamental Characters of Tibet". Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vol. 57 (1888), pp. 41–48 and 9 plates.
  • Das, Sarat Chandra. (1996). An Introduction to the Grammar of the Tibetan Language. Reprinted by Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
  • Jacques, Guillaume 2012. A new transcription system for Old and Classical Tibetan Template:Webarchive, Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area, 35.3:89-96.
  • Jäschke, Heinrich August. (1989). Tibetan Grammar. Corrected by Sunil Gupta. Reprinted by Delhi: Sri Satguru.

Template:Refend

External linksEdit

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