Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages c7.s2.t6.63

c7.s2.t6.63

In Southeast Asia, Indian scripts came into wide use from the early centuries of the Christian era on (4.3.7.5–4.3.7.11). Although northern scripts were occasionally found there, the predominant form was from the beginning a script which, according to most authorities, is derived from the southern script used by the early Pallava kings, often referred to as Pallava Grantha. Others, however (e.g., Sircar, IIEP 132–3), have noted paleographic similarities in the early Southeast Asian inscriptions to scripts of the western coastal region of India. In view of the close relationship between the early southern and western scripts, it is difficult to reach a definite conclusion as to the exact geographical origin of the early Southeast Asian form of Brāhmī (cf. DIP 232–3), but the predominant influence does seem to have been from the south.