The Gaudi script (Gāuṛi lipi), also known as the Proto-Bengali script or the Proto-Oriya script is an

abugida An abugida (; from Geʽez: , )sometimes also called alphasyllabary, neosyllabary, or pseudo-alphabetis a segmental Writing systems#Segmental writing system, writing system in which consonant–vowel sequences are written as units; each unit ...

in the Brahmic family of scripts. Gaudi script gradually developed into the Bengali-Assamese (Eastern Nagari), Odia, and Tirhuta script. Coin - Silver - Circa 9-10th Century 13th Century CE - Harikela Kingdom - ACCN 90-C2752 - Indian Museum - Kolkata 2014-04-04 4303

Coin - Silver - Circa 9-10th Century 13th Century CE - Harikela Kingdom - ACCN 90-C2752 - Indian Museum - Kolkata 2014-04-04 4303

Naming

The Gaudi script is named after the

Gauda Kingdom The Gauḍa kingdom was a kingdom during the Classical India, Classical era in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the Gauḍa (region), Gauda region of Bengal (modern-day West Bengal and Bangladesh) in 4th century CE or possibly earl ...

(Gāuṛ Rājya) of

Gauḍa (region) Gauda ( ''Gauḍa''; ''Gauṛ''), was a territory located in Bengal in ancient and medieval times, as part of the Gauda Kingdom. Location and extent The ''Arthashastra'' of Chanakya (around 350–283 BC) refers to it along with Vanga, Pund ...

in ancient

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

by the German scholar Georg Bühler. Medieval

is currently known as Bengal (region). Despite this name, the script was also used in

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...

, neighbouring parts of

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

and Rakhine in

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

. The script is called by different names in different regions such as Proto-Assamese, Proto-Bengali, Proto-Maithili, Proto-Oriya. Which is why Sureshchandra Bhattacharyya suggests neutral names such as the abbreviated Proto-BAM, Proto-BAMO.

History

The Gaudi script appeared in ancient Eastern India as a northeastern derivative of the Siddham, derived from Gupta. According to the scholar Bühler, the Gaudi (or ''Proto-Bengali'') script is characterized by its cursive letters and hooks or hollow triangles at the top of the verticals. In the 11th century, famous Persian scholar

Al-Biruni Abu Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Biruni (; ; 973after 1050), known as al-Biruni, was a Khwarazmian Iranian scholar and polymath during the Islamic Golden Age. He has been called variously "Father of Comparative Religion", "Father of modern ...

wrote about the script. He mentioned amongst Indian alphabets, Gaudi is used in the purva desa (Eastern County). The modern eastern scripts (Bengali-Assamese, Odia, and Maithili) became clearly differentiated around the 14th and 15th centuries from Gaudi. While the scripts in Bengal, Assam and

Mithila Mithila may refer to: Places * Mithilā, a synonym for the ancient Videha state ** Mithilā (ancient city), the ancient capital city of Videha * Mithila (region), a cultural region (historical and contemporary), now divided between India and Nepa ...

remained similar to each other, the Odia script developed a curved top in the 13th-14th century and became increasingly different." e phase when the curved tops - so prominent now in many of the Oriya letters - were just appearing, initiating the parting of ways from the proto- engali-Assamese-Maithiliphase. The beginning and progress of this trend can be noticed in many of the Orissa nscriptionsof the 13th-14th centuries A.D."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nagari Script Brahmic scripts

Naming

History

See also

References