On Wed, 03 Dec 2003 23:17:57 +0000, "S.Kalyanaraman" <
kalyan97@...>
wrote:
>That's right, Miguel. Thanks for the correction. I should be more
>careful on use of terms. (I had in mind samyukta_ks.ara -- conjuct
>consonants -- when I used the term 'syllable').
Conjunct consonants (such as <ks.(a)>) are a consequence of the syllabic
nature of the Indic scripts. Because all signs (aks.aras) have an inherent
vowel [i.e. are syllabic], a consonant cluster must be written in a special
way, usually by combining the signs for the two consonants into one
conjunct aks.ara [<ks.(a)> is an exception, having a non-composite sign of
its own]).
Egyptian writing is completely different, in that it ignores vowels
altogether. Egyptian writing is thus the origin of the Semitic consonantal
alphabet. The introduction of vowels into the Semitic consonantal alphabet
led on the one hand to alphabets like the Greek one (with separate vowel
letters), on the other to the Ethiopic and Indic syllabaries.
=======================
Miguel Carrasquer Vidal
mcv@...