Mithilakshar
Encyclopedia
Tirhuta or Mithilakshar (Devanagari script मिथिलाक्षर mithilākṣar; Eastern Nagari script
: মিথিলাক্ষর) is the script
traditionally used for the Maithili language
, an Indo-European language spoken in the India
n state of Bihar
, Jharkhand
, parts of West Bengal
and eastern Nepal
. The language has a rich history spanning a thousand years, but years of neglect by the Bihar government and migration have taken their toll on the use of Tirhuta. Most speakers of the language have switched to using the Devanagari script, which is also used to write neighboring Central Indic languages to the west such as Hindi. As a result, the number of people with a working knowledge of Tirhuta has dropped considerably in recent years.
, used to write other Eastern Indic languages, such as Bengali
and Assamese
. In fact, many letters (e.g. ক /k/, খ /kʰ/, দ /d̪/, জ /dʒ/) are written the same in both Tirhuta and Eastern Nagari. Nevertheless, there are sufficient differences between the two scripts to somewhat impede mutual comprehension. For example, the letter representing the sound /r/ in Tirhuta has the same form as the Eastern Nagari letter ব /b/, and the Eastern Nagari letter র /r/ has the same shape as the Tirhuta letter /w/. Furthermore, many of the conjunct letters and vowel signs mean different things in the two scripts. For example, the conjunct ত্ত represents a geminate voiceless unaspirated dental stop /t̪/ in Eastern Nagari script, but it represents the syllable /t̪u/ in Mithilakshar.
language that the temple was built on "Kāttika sudi" in "Shake 125" (AD 203), which is the day following Diwali
, a holiday that is still regarded as very auspicious for installing the icon in a temple. The script of this inscription has little difference with modern Tirhuta.
Despite the near universal switch from Tirhuta to the Devanagari script for writing Maithili, some traditional pundits still use the script for sending one another ceremonial letters (pātā) related to some important function such as marriage. Fonts for this script were developed in 2003. An effort is underway to preserve Tirhuta and develop it for use in digital media by encoding the script in the Unicode
standard, for which proposals
have been submitted (now the ISO, the Unicode Technical Committee has approved the application for encoding of Tirhuta as Unicode).
The 2003 inclusion of Maithili in the VIIIth Schedule of the Indian Constitution having accorded official recognition to it as a language independent of Hindi, there is a possibility that this might lead to efforts to reimplement Tirhuta on a wider basis, in accord with similar trends in India reinforcing separate identities.
, called āñjī, used for millennia by students before beginning Tirhuta studies. Displayed further below are images of tables comparing the Tirhuta and Devanagari scripts.
Eastern Nagari script
The Eastern Nagari script is an Abugida system of writing belonging to the Brahmic family of scripts which use is associated with the two main languages Assamese and Bengali and other related variants such as, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Maithili, Mising, Meitei Manipuri, Sylheti, and Chittagonian...
: মিথিলাক্ষর) is the script
Writing system
A writing system is a symbolic system used to represent elements or statements expressible in language.-General properties:Writing systems are distinguished from other possible symbolic communication systems in that the reader must usually understand something of the associated spoken language to...
traditionally used for the Maithili language
Maithili language
Maithili language is spoken in the eastern region of India and South-eastern region of Nepal. The native speakers of Maithili reside in Bihar, Jharkhand,parts of West Bengal and South-east Nepal...
, an Indo-European language spoken in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state of Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
, Jharkhand
Jharkhand
Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...
, parts of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
and eastern Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. The language has a rich history spanning a thousand years, but years of neglect by the Bihar government and migration have taken their toll on the use of Tirhuta. Most speakers of the language have switched to using the Devanagari script, which is also used to write neighboring Central Indic languages to the west such as Hindi. As a result, the number of people with a working knowledge of Tirhuta has dropped considerably in recent years.
Description
Tirhuta resembles the closely related Eastern Nagari scriptEastern Nagari script
The Eastern Nagari script is an Abugida system of writing belonging to the Brahmic family of scripts which use is associated with the two main languages Assamese and Bengali and other related variants such as, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Maithili, Mising, Meitei Manipuri, Sylheti, and Chittagonian...
, used to write other Eastern Indic languages, such as Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
and Assamese
Assamese language
Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language. It is used mainly in the state of Assam in North-East India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is also spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Nagamese, an Assamese-based Creole language is widely used in...
. In fact, many letters (e.g. ক /k/, খ /kʰ/, দ /d̪/, জ /dʒ/) are written the same in both Tirhuta and Eastern Nagari. Nevertheless, there are sufficient differences between the two scripts to somewhat impede mutual comprehension. For example, the letter representing the sound /r/ in Tirhuta has the same form as the Eastern Nagari letter ব /b/, and the Eastern Nagari letter র /r/ has the same shape as the Tirhuta letter /w/. Furthermore, many of the conjunct letters and vowel signs mean different things in the two scripts. For example, the conjunct ত্ত represents a geminate voiceless unaspirated dental stop /t̪/ in Eastern Nagari script, but it represents the syllable /t̪u/ in Mithilakshar.
History and current status
The oldest specimen of Tirhuta is a Shaivite temple inscription in Tilkeshwarsthāna near Kusheshwarsthāna in the Darbhangā district of Bihar. In the inscription, it is mentioned in the ancient Magadhi PrakritMagadhi Prakrit
Magadhi Prakrit is of one of the three Dramatic Prakrits, the written languages of Ancient India following the decline of Pali and Sanskrit. Magadhi Prakrit was spoken in the eastern Indian subcontinent, in a region spanning what is now eastern India, Bangladesh, and Nepal. It is believed to be the...
language that the temple was built on "Kāttika sudi" in "Shake 125" (AD 203), which is the day following Diwali
Diwali
Diwali or DeepavaliThe name of the festival in various regional languages include:, , , , , , , , , , , , , popularly known as the "festival of lights," is a festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-December for different reasons...
, a holiday that is still regarded as very auspicious for installing the icon in a temple. The script of this inscription has little difference with modern Tirhuta.
Despite the near universal switch from Tirhuta to the Devanagari script for writing Maithili, some traditional pundits still use the script for sending one another ceremonial letters (pātā) related to some important function such as marriage. Fonts for this script were developed in 2003. An effort is underway to preserve Tirhuta and develop it for use in digital media by encoding the script in the Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
standard, for which proposals
have been submitted (now the ISO, the Unicode Technical Committee has approved the application for encoding of Tirhuta as Unicode).
The 2003 inclusion of Maithili in the VIIIth Schedule of the Indian Constitution having accorded official recognition to it as a language independent of Hindi, there is a possibility that this might lead to efforts to reimplement Tirhuta on a wider basis, in accord with similar trends in India reinforcing separate identities.
Image gallery
The first two images shown below are samples illustrating the history of Tirhuta. The first is the sacred sign of GaneshaGanesha
Ganesha , also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati , Vinayaka , and Pillaiyar , is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshipped in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations...
, called āñjī, used for millennia by students before beginning Tirhuta studies. Displayed further below are images of tables comparing the Tirhuta and Devanagari scripts.
External links
- Maithili Font Maithili Software
- Tirhuta Lipi: Native Script of Maithili
- Mithila Online
- https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=bWFpdGhpbGlsZWtoYWtzYW5naC5jb218bWFpdGhpbGlsZWtoYWtzYW5naHxneDphNzBjY2ZiMmVhMGE4ODULearn Mithilakshara by Gajendra ThakurGajendra ThakurGajendra Thakur is an Indian author. He writes in the Maithili language, a language spoken in Northern Bihar and South-Western Nepal...
] - Tirhuta Lipi: Link to download a maithili or tirhuta font