[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) › c8.9 # Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c8.9 Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c8.9 - **Language:** English ### [c8.9](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8.9) | Section | Page | Section | Page | | \*\*4.19.7 A note on personal names derived from Indo-Aryan\*\* | 151 | \*\*5.4 Origin of Tamil-Brāhmī\*\* | 173 | | \*\*4.20 Place names\*\* | 151 | \*\*5.5 Graphemic inventory of Tamil-Brāhmī\*\* | 175 | | \*\*4.20.1 Countries\*\* | 151 | \*\*5.6 Tamil-Brāhmī and other Brāhmī variants\*\* | 175 | | \*\*4.20.2 Regions outside the Tamil country\*\* | 152 | \*\*5.6.1 Mauryan Brāhmī\*\* | 175 | | \*\*4.20.3 Territorial divisions\*\* | 152 | \*\*5.6.2 Southern Brāhmī\*\* | 175 | | \*\*4.20.4 Cities and ports\*\* | 153 | \*\*5.6.3 The Bhattiprolu script\*\* | 176 | | \*\*4.20.5 Other place names\*\* | 156 | \*\*5.6.4 Sinhala-Brāhmī\*\* | 177 | | \*\*4.20.6 Common toponyms\*\* | 156 | \*\*5.7 Tamil-Brāhmī: general characteristics of writing\*\* | 178 | | \*\*4.21 Flora and fauna\*\* | 157 | \*\*5.8 Direction of writing\*\* | 179 | | \*\*4.21.1 Flora\*\* | 157 | \*\*5.9 Palaeography of Tamil-Brāhmī and Early Vaṭṭeḻuttu\*\* | 180 | | \*\*4.21.2 Fauna\*\* | 157 | \*\*5.10 Vowels\*\* | 181 | | \*\*4.22 Culture\*\* | 158 | \*\*5.11 Consonants\*\* | 184 | | \*\*4.22.1 Art\*\* | 158 | \*\*5.12 Additional letters in Tamil-Brāhmī\*\* | 187 | | \*\*4.22.2 Music and dance\*\* | 158 | \*\*5.12.1 Tamil-Brāhmī \*ḷ\*\*\* | 187 | | \*\*4.23 Sport: cockfight\*\* | 159 | \*\*5.12.2 Tamil-Brāhmī \*ḻ\*\*\* | 193 | | \*\*4.24 From orality to literacy: transition in early Tamil society\*\* | 159 | \*\*5.12.3 Tamil-Brāhmī \*ṟ\*\*\* | 194 | | \*\*4.24.1 Early literacy in Tamil society\*\* | 159 | \*\*5.12.4 Tamil-Brāhmī \*ṉ\*\*\* | 195 | | \*\*4.24.2 Popular versus elitist literacy\*\* | 160 | \*\*5.13 Medial vowel signs\*\* | 196 | | \*\*4.24.3 Literacy and political independence\*\* | 161 | \*\*5.14 The \*puḷḷi\*: palaeographic aspects\*\* | 198 | | \*\*4.24.4 Facilitating factors for spread of literacy\*\* | 162 | \*\*5.15 Tamil-Brāhmī legends on Sātavāhana coins\*\* | 199 | | \*\*4.24.5 A democratic, quasi-alphabetic script\*\* | 164 | \*\*5.15.1 Previous studies\*\* | 199 | | \*\*4.24.6 The consequences of literacy in early Tamil society\*\* | 164 | \*\*5.15.2 Coin-legends\*\* | 201 | | | | \*\*5.15.3 Palaeography of the coin-legends on the reverse\*\* | 202 | | # PART TWO | | \*\*5.15.4 Chronology of Tamil-Brāhmī inscriptions in the light of the coin-legends\*\* | 203 | | ## STUDIES IN EARLY TAMIL EPIGRAPHY | | \*\*5.15.5 Language of the coin-legends on the reverse\*\* | 204 | | ### 5. Palaeography | | \*\*5.15.6 Literal translation\*\* | 204 | | \*\*5.1 Nomenclature\*\* | 167 | | | | \*\*5.2 Palaeographic Charts\*\* | 168 | | | | \*\*5.3 Origin of writing in Tamil: earlier theories\*\* | 169 | | | - [Previous: c8.8](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8.8) - [Next: c8.10](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8.10) - [Up: c8](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8) --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8.9](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c8.9) · Pramāṇa