Question

An ancient writing system which is the forerunner of all scripts that have found use in South Asia with the exception of the Indus Script ?

• A. Pali
• B. Brahmi
• C. Kharoshthi
• D. Grantha Script

Answer 1

Answer:

B. Brahmi

Brahmi Script

The Brahmi script is a key ancient writing system and the forerunner of nearly all later scripts used in South Asia, including Devanagari, Tamil, Bengali, and many others. It's one of the oldest deciphered writing systems of the Indian subcontinent, with its earliest known inscriptions dating back to the 3rd century BCE during the reign of Emperor Ashoka. The script is an abugida, where consonant characters have an inherent vowel sound, and diacritics are used to modify the vowel.

• Pali: A Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language of Buddhism. It's written in various scripts, with Brahmi being a major influence on them.

• Kharoshthi: Another ancient script used in ancient Gandhara (modern Afghanistan and Pakistan). It co-existed with Brahmi but was written from right to left and was primarily used in the northwestern part of the subcontinent.

• Grantha Script: A South Indian script that evolved from Brahmi, traditionally used in Tamil Nadu and Kerala to write Sanskrit and Manipravalam.