| Tigalari | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Script type | |
Period | 9th century CE – present[1] |
| Direction | Left-to-right  |
| Languages | |
| Related scripts | |
Parent systems | |
Sister systems | |
| ISO 15924 | |
| ISO 15924 | Tutg(341), Tulu-Tigalari |
| Unicode | |
Unicode alias | Tulu Tigalari |
| U+11380–U+113FF | |
| Brahmic scripts |
|---|
| TheBrahmi script and its descendants |
Tigalari is a SouthernBrahmic script which was used to writeTulu,Kannada, andSanskrit languages. It was primarily used for writingVedic texts in Sanskrit.[3] It evolved from theGrantha script.
The oldest record of the usage of this script found in a stone inscription at the Sri Veeranarayana temple inKulashekara here is in complete Tigalari/Tulu script and Tulu language and belongs to the 1159 CE.[4] The various inscriptions of Tulu from the 15th century are in the Tigalari script. Two Tulu epics namedSri Bhagavato andKaveri from the 17th century were also written in the same script.[5] It was also used byTulu-speaking Brahmins likeShivalli Brahmins and Kannada speakingHavyaka Brahmins andKota Brahmins to writeVedicmantras and otherSanskrit religious texts. However, there has been a renewed interest among Tulu speakers to revive the script as it was formerly used in theTulu-speaking region. TheKarnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy, a cultural wing of theGovernment of Karnataka, has introduced Tuḷu language (written in Kannada script) and Tigalari script in schools across theMangalore andUdupi districts.[6] The academy provides instructional manuals to learn this script and conducts workshops to teach it.[7]
| Name of the script | Prevalent in | References to their roots |
|---|---|---|
| Arya Ezhuttu Grantha Malayalam | Kerala, Parts of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu | Malayalam Speakers, Manipravala, Tamil Grantha |
| Western Grantha Tulu-Malayalam | Few academic publications | 19th Century Western Scholars |
| Tulu-Tigalari | Malenadu andKaravali regions ofKarnataka | Kannada speakers, Havyaka Brahmins, National Manuscript Mission Catalogues |
| Tulu Lipi Tulu Grantha Lipi | Coastal Karnataka,Tulu Nadu | Tulu speakers, A C Burnell |
The name by which this script is referred to is closely tied with its regional, linguistic or historical roots. It would not be wrong to assign all the names mentioned above to this script.[6]
Arya Ezhuttu, or the more recently coined term Grantha Malayalam, is used to refer to this script in Kerala. Arya Ezhuttu covers the spectrum between the older script (that is Tigalari) until it was standardised by the lead types for Malayalam script (old style) in Kerala.[6]
Tigalari is used to this day by the Havyaka Brahmins of the Malanadu region.Tigalari is also the term that is commonly used to refer to this script in most manuscript catalogues and in several academic publications today. Gunda Jois has studied this script closely for over four decades now. According to his findings that were based on evidences found in stone inscriptions, palm leaf manuscripts and early research work done by western scholars like B. L. Rice, he finds the only name used for this script historically has beenTigalari.[6]
It is referred to asTigalari lipi inKannada-speaking regions (Malnad region) andTulu speakers call it asTulu lipi. It bears high similarity and relationship to its sister scriptMalayalam, which also evolved from theGrantha script.
This script is commonly known as theTulu script orTulu Grantha script in the coastal regions of Karnataka. There are several recent publications and instructional books for learning this script. It is also called the Tigalari script in—Elements of South Indian Palaeography by Rev. A C Burnell and a couple of other early publications of the Basel Mission press, Mangalore. Tulu Ramayana manuscript found in theDharmasthala archives refers to this script asTigalari Lipi.
The script is used all overCanara andWestern Hilly regions ofKarnataka. Many manuscripts are also foundNorth Canara,Udupi,South Canara,Shimoga,Chikkamagaluru andKasaragod district of Kerala. There are innumerable manuscripts found in this region. The major language of manuscripts isSanskrit, mainly the works ofVeda,Jyotisha and other Sanskrit epics.
Thousands of manuscripts have been found in this script such asVedas,Upanishads,Jyotisha,Dharmashastra,Purana and many more. Most works are in Sanskrit. However, some Kannada manuscripts are also found such asGokarna Mahatmyam etc. The popular 16th-century workKaushika Ramayana written in Old Kannada language by Battaleshwara ofYana, Uttara Kannada is found in this script.Mahabharato of 15th century written in this script in Tulu language is also found. But earlier to this several 12th-13th century Sanskrit manuscripts ofMadhvacharya are also found.Honnavar in Uttara Kannada District is known for itsSamaveda manuscripts. Other manuscripts likeDevi Mahatmyam, from the 15th century and twoepic poems written in the 17th century, namelySri Bhagavato andKaveri have also been found inTulu language.
Today the usage of the script has decreased. It is still used in parts ofKanara region and traditionalmaṭhas of undividedDakshina Kannada andUttara Kannada Districts.
TheNational Mission for Manuscripts has conducted several workshops on Tigalari script.Dharmasthala and theAshta Mathas of Udupi have done significant work in preserving the script. Several studies and research work has been done on Tigalari script.Keladi houses over 400 manuscripts in Tigalari script.
There is a gaining support and interest by Tuluvas in revival of the script.Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy is constantly conducting meetings with experts for standardisation of Tulu script.[8] There is also huge support from Local MLAs for popularising the Tulu script.[9]
There are many places inTulu Nadu region where sign boards are being installed in Tulu script.[10][11]
Apart from these they are also found inDharmasthala, Ramachandrapura Matha of Hosanagar, Shimoga,Sonda Swarnavalli Matha ofSirsi and theAshta Mathas of Udupi.
A chart showing a complete list of consonant and vowel combinations used in the Tigalari script.
Tigalari andMalayalam are both descended fromGrantha script, and resemble each other both in their individual letters and in using consonant conjuncts less than other Indic scripts. It is assumed that a single script around 9th-10th century called Western Grantha, evolved from Grantha script and later divided into two scripts.[13]
The following table compares the consonantska,kha,ga,gha,ṅa with other Southern Indic scripts such asGrantha, Tigalari,Malayalam,Kannada andSinhala.
The Tigalari script was added to theUnicode Standard in September 2024 with the release of version 16.0. The Unicode block for Tigalari, named Tulu-Tigalari, is located at U+11380–U+113FF:
| Tulu-Tigalari[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+1138x | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||||
| U+1139x | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| U+113Ax | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| U+113Bx | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| U+113Cx | | | | | | | | | | | | |||||
| U+113Dx | | | | | | | | | ||||||||
| U+113Ex | | | ||||||||||||||
| U+113Fx | ||||||||||||||||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
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