Dear Jon,

In answer to your questions in an earlier email:

> I have some questions, if you don't mind:
>
> 1. Are compounds never included as words in dictionaries? Even the more
> high frequency word-like compounds like "tappurisa" (name of compound) ?

I can't think of any offhand that are included as the entry word in a
dictionary, so I would have to say "no". The PED doesn't include
tappurisa as an entry, but it does often include common compounds in
the definition of a word, e.g. the entry "candimaa" (moon) includes in
the text candimaasuriya (moon and sun) and candimaapabhaa (light of
the moon).

> 2. Do grammar rules in grammars like Aggava.msa's Saddaniiti or the
> Kaccaayana or Moggallaana's grammar have unique identifying numbers that
> can be cited when the rule is invoked?

No idea; but fellow list member Jim Andersen is an expert in Pali
grammars and could probably answer this for you.

> 3. What are the names of the letters of the Pali alphabet? (the words
> you use when you spell out a word verbally for a person?)

I don't know. I don't think that they have names other than the
sounded-out letter: a, i, u, aa, ii, uu, etc. But note that consonants
are sounded out as if followed with the vowel a, thus ka, kha, ga,
gha, etc.

> 4. Is there a list of the verb roots in Pali.
> In Sanskrit I read there are about 2000.
> The rest of the verbs derived by prefixing and suffixing.

Yes, there is - it is in the file section of this Pali list at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Pali/files/ posted by Alex Genaud.

> Makes my head spin when I start to read a comprehensive grammar like
> Steven Collins grammar. Hopefully, a simple computer program will help
> make the operation of the rules more transparent.

Personally, I'm not sure that a "simple" computer program could
generate anything useful as a study guide to Pali, but good luck in
trying, and I'm prepared to eat my words when you prove me wrong.

By the way, Bhikkhu Nyanatusita has created very useful tables with
all the main Pali declension and conjugation paradigms summarized.
These too are available in the files section of the list.

With metta,
John