Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c26.s10.1

c26.s10.1

The characteristic features of the five stages of development of medial vowel notations which have been described above are summarised in Fig. 6.³.⁴ A comparative study of the notations shows clearly that all of them are ultimately derived from the original vowel-marker system of the Mauryan Brāhmī script. The modifications are minimal and specifically designed to suit the needs of Tamil. However, TB-I and TB-II systems were, in spite of the advantages gained by the respective modifications, no more than transitional, short-lived experiments replaced by the more stable systems. The comparison also brings out the fact that the Bhattiprolu system which developed from TB-I, and the *puḷḷi* system from TB-II, must be later than the respective systems replaced by them.