Which scripts have been used to write Sanskrit?

Question

Clip from Angkor Thom, about 1200 CE.

Some early Cambodian inscriptions are written in Sanskrit.

Is it true that these Sanksrit insciptions do not use the Devanagari script but instead the Khmer script?

Added. The inscription taken above is from the east gate of the region of the royal palast at Angkor Thom. It is written in old Khmer. In the meantime I learned that it is an oath of allegiance to king Suryavarman I from 1011 C.E.

Sanskrit can be only written in Devanagari Script,it can't be written in any native script. — Eshan Singh, Jan 03 '16 at 15:38
Sanskrit alphabets are derived from sounds of "Damaru of Shiva". Brahman appeared as ॐ and ॐ is Shabda Brahman. So, script was designed by Brahman. — The Destroyer, Jan 03 '16 at 16:22
Whoever voted to close this question as off-topic should explain the reason. I think Sanskrit language questions are allowed on this site. — The Destroyer, Jan 03 '16 at 16:24
@Eshan Singh I edited my question and added an example from later time. — Jo Wehler, Jan 03 '16 at 16:31
No that's not Sanskrit. See Brahmi and Devanagari scripts. Devanagari script is used for Hindi now-a-days. — The Destroyer, Jan 03 '16 at 16:34
@Jo Wehler you are right Khmer has been originally influenced by Sanskrit and Pali,and the inscriptions which you posted were written in Abugida Script. — Eshan Singh, Jan 03 '16 at 16:47
@JoWehler - This is no where near Sanskrit, Sanskrit is only written in devnagri Script and this script appears close to the dravidian (Tamil) Script, but this script does not match any of the (Existing) Indian language Scripts. This question is off-topic — Yogi, Jan 03 '16 at 17:20
@AnilKumar Devanagari is not a divinely created script. It's true that the sounds of Sanskrit are said to have originated from the sound of Shiva's drum, but Sanskrit was originally a spoken language. Various different scripts, including Brahmi and Devanagari among many others, have been used to write Sanskrit. Devanagari is not of divine origin, it's just called that because in modern times it's the script that's most commonly used to write Hindu scripture in. It's not the script of the gods, it's the script used to talk about the gods. — Keshav Srinivasan, Jan 03 '16 at 20:15
@AnilKumar The sound Aum is certainly of divine origin, but the symbol ॐ is not. It is the sound that is referred to as Sabda Brahman, not the symbol. The symbol is just how Aum happens to be written in Devanagari script, and like I said Devanagari script is just a man-made writing system. — Keshav Srinivasan, Jan 03 '16 at 20:18
@KeshavSrinivasan When Hayagriva stole Vedas, what could be the script it contained? Forget about Aryan invasion theory and western theories. What Script did Krishna and Rama used during their times? All these stories are History. What script was used for Sanskrit in previous Chaturyugas and Manvantaras? — The Destroyer, Jan 04 '16 at 04:17
@AnilKumar I'm not talking about any Western theories. The Vedas weren't stolen in book form, rather personifications of the four Vedas, often identified with the four Sanatkumaras, were kidnapped. As far as I know, there's no mention of writing in the Ramayana. Sanskrit simply wasn't a written language. That's why Hindu scripture was passed down through oral tradition. In any case, it is an interesting question to ask what script Ganesha used to write the Mahabharata when Vyasa dictated to him, but even in the time of the Mahabharata writing was rare. — Keshav Srinivasan, Jan 04 '16 at 08:02
@AnilKumar, I voted to close because I don't see how this question, the discussion and answers are relevant to Hinduism. The question is more suited for history.stackexchange under the language tag. However, 'Was Sanskrit really the language/script used to write the very first Ramayana or Mahabharata?' would be a valid question on this site, but that's been already asked here. So my vote to close stands. — Say No To Censorship, Jan 08 '16 at 01:55

score 6 · Accepted Answer · edited Jun 17 '20 at 08:59

Sanskrit originated as an oral language i.e. it was never penned down for the most of it's life. Hence, it doesn't have a writing system of it's own. During it's life cycle, various scripts have been used to write Sanskrit including many regional Indian tongues and most recently Roman script . The earliest occurrence of Sanskrit in written form is in Brahmi script .

As wikipedia states,

Brahmi evolved into a multiplicity of Brahmic scripts, many of which were used to write Sanskrit. Roughly contemporary with the Brahmi, Kharosthi was used in the northwest of the subcontinent. Sometime between the fourth and eighth centuries, the Gupta script, derived from Brahmi, became prevalent. Around the eighth century, the Śāradā script evolved out of the Gupta script. The latter was displaced in its turn by Devanagari in the 11th or 12th century, with intermediary stages such as the Siddhaṃ script. In East India, the Bengali alphabet, and, later, the Odia alphabet, were used.

In the south, where Dravidian languages predominate, scripts used for Sanskrit include the Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, the Malayalam and Grantha alphabets.

It is very possible that in Cambodia, Sanskrit was written in Khmer script because Sanskrit has been penned down in the regional tongue/script for millennia.

score 5 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 03 '16 at 15:58

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Sanskrit was originally written in Brahmi script. Devanagari evolved from Brahmi. Khmer is also a derivative of Brahmi.. I am not aware of a record of Devanagari being derived from Khmer. It is likely that Khmer is a variety of Prakrit rather than Sanskrit.

answered Jan 03 '16 at 15:58

I added one example in question. – Jo Wehler Jan 03 '16 at 16:29
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@JoWehler It looks closer to Tamil. See http://www.ancientscripts.com/tamil.html . According to the wikipedia link I posted in the answer, Khmer was derived from Pallava which is a Southern-Indian/South-east Asian script. – Jan 03 '16 at 16:43

score 4 · Answer 3 · answered Feb 05 '16 at 10:20

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I assume that the inscription from Angkor Thom is written in Khmer script. I tried to encipher some consonants.

red = ta, green = lo, blue = tha

answered Feb 05 '16 at 10:20

Jo Wehler

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score 2 · Answer 4 · answered Jun 24 '16 at 18:52

No, the inscription is written in old Khmer. I can't make out most of the text. What I can make out however appears to be names of divisions and rulers.

"Sruk Kandal" = middle division "Mratang" = title

This is probably a list detailing offerings to the temple and who offered them. Are you sure it's from Angkor Thom? It uses the virama, which is usually only used in older inscriptions.

As for your other question, the Khmer script is derived from Pallava. The vast majority of Sanskrit inscriptions from medieval Cambodia is written in the Pallava derived script. I only know of one inscription that uses a North Indic Nagari style script. It's in the national museum in Phnom Penh.

The inscription is taken from the east gate of the region of the royal palast at Angkor Thom. I agree with you that the inscription is written in old Khmer. I made this photo when I visited the place this year. In the meantime I learned that it is an oath of allegiance to king Suryavarman I from 1011 C.E. I will edit my question. - Could you please add a reference to the Nagari script from Phnom Penh national museum, thanks. — Jo Wehler, Jun 24 '16 at 19:31

Which scripts have been used to write Sanskrit?

4 Answers4