Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s8.t2: 7.7.2 Consonants
Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s8.t2
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7.7.2 Consonants
c27.s8.t2.1
| *k* ~ Ø | *makaṉ* | *makaṉ* | 20.2, 40.4, 56.5.b, 61.8, 61.10, 62.8, 62.10, 72.2, 84.3, 88.5 |
| | *-māṉ* | *-mān* (*-n* error for *-ṉ*) | 59.2.c |
| | | *-māṉ* | 73.1.b |
| *ñ* ~ *n* | *ñāḻal*, *nāḻal* | *nāḷaḷ* (*-ḷ* error for *-l*) | 77.1 |
| *ṭ* ~ *ḷ* | *iṭai* | *eḷai* | 34.1.a |
| | *kaṭu-* | *kaṭu-* | 61.9.b, 61.11.b, 62.9.b, 62.11.a, 62.11.d, 80.1.a |
| | | *kaḷu-* | 44.1.a |
| *n* ~ *ṇ* | *nanti* | *nanti* | 116.4.b |
| | | *ṇaṇti* (*n-* due to Pkt. influence) | 115.3.b |
c27.s8.t2.2
| Variation | LT | Corpus | Ref. No. |
| | *nākaṉ* | *nāka-* | 56.1.a |
| | | *nākaṉ* | 48.2 |
| | | *ṇākaṉ* (*ṇ-* due to | |
| | | Pkt. influence) | 72.1 |
| *n* ~ *ṇ* | *nākaṉ* | *ṇākaṉ* (*ṇ-* error for *n-*) | 37.1 |
| *p* ~ *v* | *ipam* | *iva-* | 60.1.a |
| *y* ~ *i* | | *kaṇi-y* | 1.1, 2.1, 4.1 |
| | | *kaṇi-i* | 3.1 |
| | | *pa(!)ḷi-y* | 2.11, 15.1, 52.4, 77.3 |
| | | *pa(!)ḷi-i* | 10.5, 46.1.b |
| *y* ~ *iy* | | *pa(!)ḷi-y* | 2.11, 15.1, 52.4, 77.3 |
| | | *pa(!)ḷi-iy* | 1.9 |
| | | | |
| *y* ~ *yi* | *cey* | *cey* | 49.7, 55.4 |
| | | *ceyi* | 65.5, 73.7, 76.6, 83.5 |
| | | *siri-y* | 2.2.b, 3.2.b |
| | | *siri-y-i* | 1.2.b |
| *ya* ~ *yi* | | *kāyapaṉ* | 61.4.b, 62.4.b, 63.2.b |
| | | *kāyipaṉ* | 60.7.b, 76.1.b |
| *yi* ~ *iy* | *eyil* | *e-iyl* (*-iy-* error for *-yi-*) | 18.1 |
| *yi* ~ *y* | | *kāyvaṉ* (*-y-* error for *-yi-*) | 104.2 |
| | | | |
| *vi* ~ *pi* | *koṭṭuvitta* | *koṭṭupitta-a* | 1.8 |
| | | *koṭṭupi(t)tōṉ* | 8.3, 9.4 |
| | *ceyvitta* | *ceyipi(t)ta* | 65.5 |
| | | *ceyivitta* | 83.5 |
| | | *cēvi(t)t-ōṉ* | 18.3 |
| *ṉ* ~ *n* | *atiyaṉ neṭumāṉ* | *atiyan neṭumān* | 59.2.a-c |
| | *veṉ* | *ven* | 20.3 |
c27.s8.t2.3
The use of the dental *n* for the alveolar *ṉ* is one of the commonest errors in inscriptional Tamil. See A. Velu Pillai (1976: pp. 11-12, p. 24, n. 5) for examples from early medieval inscriptions and for discussion. It is interesting that the falling together of *n* and *ṉ* had started even in the Early Tamil-Brāhmī inscriptions as attested by 20.3.