[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Studies](https://indike.org/pramana/ins) › [Archaeology, epigraphy and coins](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy) › [Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D.](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003) › c17 # Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c17: Scheme of Transliteration and Diacritical Marks Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c17 - **Language:** English ### Scheme of Transliteration and Diacritical Marks ### [c17.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.1) Tamil ### [c17.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.2) | Vowels | : | a ā i ī u ū e ē ai o ō au ḵ | | Consonants | : | k ṅ c ñ ṭ ṇ t n p m y r l v ḻ ḷ ṟ ṉ | ### [c17.3](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.3) Sanskrit ### [c17.4](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.4) | Vowels | : | a ā i ī u ū ṛi ē ai ō au ṁ ḥ | | Consonants | : | k kh g gh ṅ c ch j jh ñ ṭ ṭh ḍ ḍh ṇ | | | | t th d dh n p ph b bh m y r l v ś sh s h | ### [c17.5](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.5) Notes on transliteration ### [c17.6](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.6) 1. These are the two basic schemes of transliteration for the Dravidian and Indo-Aryan languages. See also Palaeographic Charts 1 (Brāhmī) and 2 (Tamil-Brāhmī). ### [c17.7](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.7) 2. The Brāhmī letters \*dh\* and \*s\* which occur marginally in Early Tamil-Brāhmī inscriptions are represented by \*\*த\*\* (bold) and ஸ respectively in transcription of the texts in the Tamil script. ### [c17.8](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.8) 3. The rare Asokan Brāhmī \*ḍ\* is referred to in the discussion on the origin of \*ḻ\* (see also Palaeographic Chart 3). ### [c17.9](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.9) 4. Diacritical marks are not added to modern place names and Indian words commonly used in English. ### [c17.10](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.10) 5. Capital letters are not used in transliterated words printed in italics except for bibliographical references. ### [c17.11](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.11) Note on nomenclature of scripts ### [c17.12](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17.12) See section 5.1 for the nomenclature of Brāhmī and related scripts as adopted in this work. --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c17) · Pramāṇa