Devanagari - Script or Language?

ShyAngel

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^You seem confused. "Devanagari" is not a language - its just the script - the letters - the alphabets.

Also we are talking about "script", not "scripture". Two completely different things.
NO! It is the name of language! And so am I talking about both script and scripture. Sorry if I confused you but that is what we were taught in school. You can also call 1800-Samdhok Rinpochen our vice president. He has mastered both hindi and sanskrit. You can also ask him if you have more questions about the difference btw script and language.
 

bhramos

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you r almost right shyangel,
as of knowledge, most of the things i dont know. which u were expert.
as of my little knowledge and taught to me in Telugu i'm giving my views.
Devanagari can be written in so many types in Telugu.
Deva+Nagari or Devan+Agari these both words tell only one Devathalu [Gods] speaking Language or Gods Living in a country where they speak a language is called Devanagari.
 

panditji

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in india pretty much all languages except the dravidian have devanagari script. even thai script is devanagari.
No. Punjabi is written both in Urdu script and Gurumukhi script. Oriya, Bengali have their own scripts, although all these scripts are closely linked and can be called as stylized and modified Devanagari.

How can Thai script be called devanagari is beyond me. I for one cannot read it.

Note here that if you can read a script, you can read anything written with the script. But you cannot understand what it means unless you understand the language in which it is written too.

ShyAngel seems to be confused about Devanagari. Sanskrit itself has been referred to as "Devabhasha" - language of Gods. I think his confusion is owing to the Tibetan Beejamantra - Aum Manipadme Hum* is written in Devanagari, and they are not much exposed to the language of the scripture, so they are confusing the script in which it is written to be a language in itself. It is not.

* BTW the way it is written is closer to Bengali than classical Devanagari.
 

Known_Unknown

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I think the only Indian languages in Devanagri script are Hindi and Marathi. Others, like Gujarati, Bengali etc are modified versions of Devanagri.

A Hindi speaking person who cannot understand a word of Marathi will still be able to read 98% of the language and pronounce it correctly, but he will not understand it. Vice versa.

It's similar to how an english speaking person will be able to read German or French, since they're all in Roman script, but will not understand it...(nor pronounce it correctly, since the Roman script is not phonetic).
 

ShyAngel

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No. Punjabi is written both in Urdu script and Gurumukhi script. Oriya, Bengali have their own scripts, although all these scripts are closely linked and can be called as stylized and modified Devanagari.

How can Thai script be called devanagari is beyond me. I for one cannot read it.

Note here that if you can read a script, you can read anything written with the script. But you cannot understand what it means unless you understand the language in which it is written too.

ShyAngel seems to be confused about Devanagari. Sanskrit itself has been referred to as "Devabhasha" - language of Gods. I think his confusion is owing to the Tibetan Beejamantra - Aum Manipadme Hum* is written in Devanagari, and they are not much exposed to the language of the scripture, so they are confusing the script in which it is written to be a language in itself. It is not.

* BTW the way it is written is closer to Bengali than classical Devanagari.
Pundit ji,
Devabadsha ka madhlab god's language naye tho kya hain ji? Main ne kabi yah naye bole ke sanskrit scripture words such as "OM MADNI PADMAI HUM" hamara badsha hain. Bhala mantra badsha mai kasai badal sak thi? Mai thori na baghvan hun jo har den aur radh "Om Madni Padmai Hum" pukar ti pukarti paida huwai. Akar mai tibean beejamantra hun tho tum bi indian beejamantra sai kam naye ji.


I just said that this particular region in Tibet who's mother tongue is devanagari. I wasn't confuse btw any tibetan mantra over tibetan language. I just introduce this group of people native language words were pretty much the once that were in sanskrit scripture that we read while praying-
(THE LANGUAGE OF GOD/DEVANAGARI) that's all. If you were true pundit you will know what I mean but I guess not so let it be its not your cup of tea to understand.
 

ShyAngel

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Any brahman would call devanagari as their mother tongue since it's the language that they were born to speak which we weren't and we need to read it to be able to say it. As simple as that, now if you still wants to know what devanagari is then go to hell!

:p

This is so lame seriously! What if tomorrow flint started to ask what's devbomi and where is it? Do we still need to conform and make sure its not somewhere in south india or west bengal or in pakistan but its in Himachal Pardesh? Even though gods can be anywhere and everywhere yet the roots of the god will never change. LOL

:)
 

ppgj

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No. Punjabi is written both in Urdu script and Gurumukhi script.
Devanagari - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

so what are you trying to prove? any language can use any script. i myself gave an example in an earlier post. point is general usage of a script.
Oriya, Bengali have their own scripts, although all these scripts are closely linked and can be called as stylized and modified Devanagari.
i mean to say that they are all derivatives of devanagari. even devanagari like most indian scripts are based on brahmic family.
How can Thai script be called devanagari is beyond me. I for one cannot read it.
as i said, they have all evolved to local modifications. a person who can read punjabi may not be able to read say bengali. so?
thai like most of south east asian scripts came from brahmic family.
 

panditji

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Thanks. That completes the overview.

Sorry ShyAngel, I tried to communicate, but this is getting tangled. Please go through the wikipedia link above. It may help. :(
 

Flint

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i mean to say that they are all derivatives of devanagari. even devanagari like most indian scripts are based on brahmic family.
Erm, no. Devanagari is not some "mother script" from which all Indian scripts originated. You only seem to think that way because your attitude towards Hindi primacy.

Devanagari, Gurmukhi, Gujarati etc - all these North-Indian scripts originated from a common older script, or a group of common older scripts.
 

Flint

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Thanks. That completes the overview.

Sorry ShyAngel, I tried to communicate, but this is getting tangled. Please go through the wikipedia link above. It may help. :(
I'm not sure what ShyAngel is trying to say. Maybe she is confused between "Devbhasha" (language of the gods") and "Devanagari".

Infact, the script was earlier called "Nagari" ("of the city"). It was during colonial times the the "Dev" prefix was added, which gave it primacy over other scripts in the period. Consequently, all Sanskrit verses and texts began to be transliterated into this "Devanagari" script.
 

ppgj

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Erm, no. Devanagari is not some "mother script" from which all Indian scripts originated.
i did not say that devanagari is the mother script. infact that too comes out of brahmic family. i only said many indian languages have adopted devanagari to local specification.

You only seem to think that way because your attitude towards Hindi primacy.
why you think so? i am a south indian myself and my knowledge of hindi is very limited.

Devanagari, Gurmukhi, Gujarati etc - all these North-Indian scripts originated from a common older script, or a group of common older scripts.
i said it is only my understanding. may be i am wrong. would greatly appreciate any links so i can correct my undestanding.
 

S.A.T.A

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Devanagari(or the more preferable Nagari)refers to a 'writing system'(script)and not a 'spoken language', and there is no two ways of interpreting this plain fact.
 

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