 | This article has multiple issues. Please helpimprove it or discuss these issues on thetalk page.(Learn how and when to remove these messages) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
|
| Meitei script | |
|---|---|
 The original 18 letters used in the Meitei Mayek writing system | |
| Script type | |
Time period | 6th-18th centuries AD,[1] revived 1930 – present |
| Direction | Left-to-right  |
| Official script | forMeitei language in India |
| Region |  India |
| Languages | Meitei (Manipuri) language |
| Related scripts | |
Parent systems | |
Sister systems | Tibetan,[2][3][4]Lepcha,Khema,ʼPhags-pa,Marchen |
| ISO 15924 | |
| ISO 15924 | Mtei(337), Meitei Mayek (Meithei, Meetei) |
| Unicode | |
Unicode alias | Meetei Mayek |
| Meetei Mayek (Unicode block) | |
| Brahmic scripts |
|---|
| TheBrahmi script and its descendants |
TheMeitei script (Meitei:ꯃꯩꯇꯩ ꯃꯌꯦꯛ,romanized: Meitei mayek), also known as theKanglei script (Meitei:ꯀꯪꯂꯩ ꯃꯌꯦꯛ,romanized: Kanglei mayek)[5] or theKok Sam Lai script (Meitei:ꯀꯣꯛ ꯁꯝ ꯂꯥꯏ ꯃꯌꯦꯛ,romanized: Kok Sam Lai mayek), after its first three letters[6][7] is anabugida in theBrahmic scripts family used to write theMeitei language, the official language ofManipur,Assam and one of the 22official languages of India. It is first known from engravings on6th century CE coins and copper plate inscriptions.[8] as verified by the various publications of the NationalSahitya Akademi.[1] It was used until the 18th century, when it was replaced by theBengali alphabet. A few manuscripts survive. In the 20th century, the script was revived and is again being used.[9] Beginning in 2021, theGovernment of Manipur began to use the Meitei alongside the Bengali-Assamese script, per theManipur Official Language (Amendment) Act, 2021.[10]
Since Meitei does not havevoiced consonants, there are only fifteen consonant letters used for native words, plus three letters for pure vowels. Nine additional consonants letters inherited from Indic languages are available for writing loan words. There are seven vowel diacritics and a final consonant (/ŋ/) diacritic. The names of the twenty-seven letters are based on parts of the human body.[11]
_-_a_6th_century_Classical_Meitei_language_copper_manuscript_text_-_in_Meetei_script_-_works_on_sensuality_%2526_relationship_between_husbands_%2526_wives_and_how_to_run_a_household_in_Ancient_Kangleipak_civilisation_state.jpg)
Regarding epigraphic records, Meitei script appears in the Yumbanlol (Yumpanlol), composed in the 6th century C.E. It was a group ofcopper plate inscriptions about anancient Meitei language literary work.[12][13]
The Old Manipuri script also appears on coins issued during the reigns of Meitei Kings, Ura Konthouba (c. 568-653 CE) and Ayangba (c. 821-910 CE). These coins are presently preserved in the Mutua Museum inImphal.[1]
The origin of the official script of Manipur is derived from religious bookWakoklon Puya.[14] But, there has been some controversy regarding the origin of the Meitei script. The Meitei script is aBrahmic abugida. According to Singh (1962), an archaic form of the script had developed by the 11th century, and it was in use until the early 18th century, when it was replaced by theBengali script.[15] By contrast, Tomba (1993) claims that the script is a development ofc. 1930, with all supposedly older documents being deliberate forgeries.[16] According to K.S. Singh and Mahoharan (1993), as per the modifications of the phonemic distributions ofMeitei language, the script belongs to theTibetan group of scripts.[2]
The earliest stone inscription, found in the village of Khoibu, Manipur, is also believed to date to time of Ura Konthouba. This inscription is presently kept in theManipur State Museum, Imphal.[1]
Another early copper plateMeitei inscription dates to the 8th century CE, inscribed during the reign of King Khongtekcha (c. 721 AD). It was discovered by scholar Yumjao fromPhayeng in 1935. It is one of the earliest known examples ofMeitei literature.[17][18][19]
A stone inscription found[year needed] at Khoibu inTengnoupal district, of currentManipur state, contains royal edicts of kingSenbi Kiyamba (d. 1508), representing the earliest portion of theChietharol Kumbaba or Royal Chronicle of Manipur. It is one of the primary texts in the Meitei script.[20][better source needed]
In 1980, a modernized version of the writing system was approved by Manipuri law for use in educational institutions.[21][22] The modernised version of the Meitei script was encoded inUnicode in 2009.
in 2022, a joint meeting consensus of theMeetei Erol Eyek Loinasillol Apunba Lup, the All Manipur Working Journalists' Union and the Editors' Guild, Manipur agreed thatMeitei language newspapers would switch from theBengali script to the Meitei script from 15 January 2023.[23][24][25][26][27]
One of the unique features of this script is the use of body parts in naming the letters.[28] Every letter is named after a human body part in theMeitei language. For example, the first letter "kok" means "head"; the second letter "sam" means "hair"; the third letter "lai" means "forehead", and so on.[29] This association appears in the bookWakoklon Heelel Thilel Salai Amailon Pukok Puya, which details how each script originated received its nomenclature and which is widely considered to be the source of the Meitei script.[30] Some letters have a second form (lonsom) that is used at the end of a word and are used to indicate stop consonants.
In the traditional Meitei religion ofSanamahism Meitei letters and numerals are believed to be the creations of the supreme God.[31][32]
| Letter | Name | IPA[33] | Meaning(s)[a] | Lonsum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ꯀ | ꯀꯣꯛ,kok | /k/ | head or brain | ꯛ |
| ꯈ | ꯈꯧ,khou | /kʰ/ | throat, palate, neck | |
| ꯉ | ꯉꯧ,ngou | /ŋ/ | pharynx, larynx | ꯡ |
| ꯆ | ꯆꯤꯜ,chil | /t͡ʃ/ | lips | |
| ꯇ | ꯇꯤꯜ,til | /t/ | saliva | ꯠ |
| ꯊ | ꯊꯧ,thou | /tʰ/ | breast, chest, ribs | |
| ꯅ | ꯅꯥ,nā | /n/ | ear | ꯟ |
| ꯄ | ꯄꯥ,pā | /p/ | eyelash | ꯞ |
| ꯐ | ꯐꯝ,pham | /pʰ/ | anus, buttocks, or uterus | |
| ꯃ | ꯃꯤꯠ,mit | /m/ | eye | ꯝ |
| ꯌ | ꯌꯥꯡ,yang | /j/ | spine | |
| ꯂ | ꯂꯥꯏ,lai | /l/ | forehead | ꯜ |
| ꯋ | ꯋꯥꯏ,wai | /w/ | navel, heart | |
| ꯁ | ꯁꯝ,sam | /s/ | hair | |
| ꯍ | ꯍꯨꯛ,huk | /h/ | joint | |
| ꯑ | ꯑꯇꯤꯡꯉꯥ,atinga ꯑꯇꯤꯌꯥ,atiya | /ɐ/ | immortality, heaven, divinity, birth | |
| ꯏ | ꯏ,e | /iː/ | blood | ꯢ |
| ꯎ | ꯎꯟ,un | /u(ː)/ | skin |
| Letter | Name | IPA[33] | Evolved from |
|---|---|---|---|
| ꯒ | ꯒꯣꯛ,gok | /g/ | ꯀ |
| ꯘ | ꯘꯧ,ghou | /gʱ/ | ꯈ |
| ꫢ | ꫢ,cha | /t͡ʃʰ/ | |
| ꯖ | ꯖꯤꯜ,jil | /d͡ʒ/ | ꯆ |
| ꯓ | ꯓꯝ,jham | /d͡ʒʱ/ | ꯁ |
| ꫣ | ꫣ,nya | /ɲ/ | |
| ꫤ | ꫤ,tta | /ʈ/ | |
| ꫥ | ꫥ,ttha | /ʈʰ/ | |
| ꫦ | ꫦ,dda | /ɖ/ | |
| ꫧ | ꫧ,ddha | /ɖʱ/ | |
| ꫨ | ꫨ,nna | /ɳ/ | |
| ꯗ | ꯗꯤꯜ,dil | /d/ | ꯇ |
| ꯙ | ꯙꯧ,dhou | /dʱ/ | ꯊ |
| ꯕ | ꯕꯥ,bā | /b/ | ꯄ |
| ꯚ | ꯚꯝ,bham | /bʱ/ | ꯐ |
| ꯔ | ꯔꯥꯏ,rai | /ɾ/ | ꯂ |
| ꫩ | ꫩ,sha | /ɕ/ | |
| ꫪ | ꫪ,ssa | /ʂ/ |
In Meitei Mayek, vowels are not listed separately before the consonants, unlike in most Brahmic scripts. Instead, they appear within the main sequence of the script, making it structurally different from scripts like Devanagari.
Independent vowels are used only when a word starts with a vowel, just like in most Indic scripts. Otherwise, vowels appear as diacritics attached to consonants.
Meitei Mayek has seven independent vowel letters:
Examples:
ꯑꯣꯏ (oina) – ‘like’ꯑꯦꯛꯁꯥ (eiksha) – ‘eye’ꯑꯨꯄꯥꯜ (upal) – ‘high, above’
Since Meitei Mayek preserves independent vowels, it functions similarly to Brahmic scripts in terms of structure, even though the vowel ordering differs from most Indic alphabets.
Possibly, ꯎ /uː/ can be used as an alternative to ꯑꯨ (ū). Examples:
ꯎꯌ (uŋ) meaning "sound" or "noise."ꯎꯕ (ub) meaning "to give."
Syllables are written by adding vowel diacritics (cheitap eeyek) to consonants.
| diacritic | aa-tap ꯥ IPA:/a/ | ee-nap ꯤ IPA:/i/ | 'uu-nap ꯨ IPA:/u/ | yet-nap ꯦ IPA:/e/ | ot-nap ꯣ IPA:/o/ | chei-nap ꯩ IPA:/ɐj/ | sou-nap ꯧ IPA:/ɐw/ | nung ꯪ IPA:/əŋ/ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ꯀ plus diacritic | ꯀꯥ | ꯀꯤ | ꯀꯨ | ꯀꯦ | ꯀꯣ | ꯀꯩ | ꯀꯧ | ꯀꯪ |
| ꯠ plus diacritic | ꯠꯥ | ꯠꯤ | ꯠꯨ | ꯠꯦ | ꯠꯣ | ꯠꯩ | ꯠꯧ | ꯠꯪ |
0 ꯰ phun | 1 ꯱ ama | 2 ꯲ ani | 3 ꯳ ahum | 4 ꯴ mari | 5 ꯵ mangā | 6 ꯶ taruk | 7 ꯷ taret | 8 ꯸ nipāl | 9 ꯹ mapāl |
Meetei Mayek (Meitei script) was added to theUnicode Standard in October, 2009 with the release of version 5.2.
TheUnicode block for the Meitei script is U+ABC0 – U+ABFF.
Characters for historical orthographies are part of theMeetei Mayek Extensions block at U+AAE0 – U+AAFF.
| Meetei Mayek[1][2] Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) | ||||||||||||||||
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | |
| U+ABCx | ꯀ | ꯁ | ꯂ | ꯃ | ꯄ | ꯅ | ꯆ | ꯇ | ꯈ | ꯉ | ꯊ | ꯋ | ꯌ | ꯍ | ꯎ | ꯏ |
| U+ABDx | ꯐ | ꯑ | ꯒ | ꯓ | ꯔ | ꯕ | ꯖ | ꯗ | ꯘ | ꯙ | ꯚ | ꯛ | ꯜ | ꯝ | ꯞ | ꯟ |
| U+ABEx | ꯠ | ꯡ | ꯢ | ꯣ | ꯤ | ꯥ | ꯦ | ꯧ | ꯨ | ꯩ | ꯪ | ꯫ | ꯬ | ꯭ | ||
| U+ABFx | ꯰ | ꯱ | ꯲ | ꯳ | ꯴ | ꯵ | ꯶ | ꯷ | ꯸ | ꯹ | ||||||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
| Meetei Mayek Extensions[1][2] Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) | ||||||||||||||||
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | A | B | C | D | E | F | |
| U+AAEx | ꫠ | ꫡ | ꫢ | ꫣ | ꫤ | ꫥ | ꫦ | ꫧ | ꫨ | ꫩ | ꫪ | ꫫ | ꫬ | ꫭ | ꫮ | ꫯ |
| U+AAFx | ꫰ | ꫱ | ꫲ | ꫳ | ꫴ | ꫵ | ꫶ | |||||||||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
Meitei Mayek keyboards and other input methods are available at or supported by:
Meithei Mayek is part of the Tibetan group of scripts, which originated from the Gupta Brahmi script
.svg)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)The philosophy of the letters is found in a religious manuscript named "Wakoklon Hilel Thilel Salai Amilon Pukok Puya"
The Meitei Mayek script has a unique built-in learning device: the use of body parts in naming the letters. Every letter is named after a human body part in the Manipuri. The first letter, "kok" means "head," for example; the second letter, "sam" means "hair"; the third letter "lai" means "forehead."
{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|url= (help)