Warang Citi (also written Varang Kshiti or Barang Kshiti; Ho: 𑢹𑣗𑣁𑣜𑣊 𑣏𑣂𑣕𑣂,[1] IPA: /wɐrɐŋ ʧɪt̪ɪ/) is a writing system invented by Lako Bodra for the Ho language spoken in East India. It is used in primary and adult education and in various publications.
| Warang Citi 𑢹𑣗𑣁𑣜𑣊 𑢯𑣂𑣕𑣂 | |
|---|---|
Uppercase Lowercase The word 'Warang Citi (Hbårŋ citi-Undying Writing)' in Warang Citi uppercase and lowercase script[1] | |
| Script type | |
| Creator | Lako Bodra |
Time period | 1950s — present |
| Direction | Left-to-right  |
| Languages | Ho |
| Related scripts | |
Parent systems | original invention
|
| ISO 15924 | |
| ISO 15924 | Wara (262), Warang Citi (Varang Kshiti) |
| Unicode | |
Unicode alias | Warang Citi |
| U+118A0–U+118FF Final Accepted Script Proposal | |
It has mainly gained acceptance among the easternmost group of speakers, and is more prevalent among those who have been educated in it. Many other speakers prefer oral transmission of knowledge, Devanagari, or Latin, but Warang Citi holds prestige among many Ho speakers.
History
editCommunity leader Bodra invented it as an alternative to the writing systems devised by Christian missionaries. He claims that the alphabet was invented in the 13th century by Deowan Turi, and that it was rediscovered in a shamanistic vision and Bodra modernized.
Characters
editWarang Citi is quite distinct from other writing systems of India, and it has features of an abugida and an alphabet.[1] As in Brahmic abugidas, consonant letters have an inherent vowel, usually /a/ or /ɔ/ but sometimes /ɛ/. The inherent vowel is not pronounced at the end of the word. Unlike in Brahmic abugidas, and more like in an alphabet, the full vowel letters are always written after the consonant, letters usually don't form ligatures, and there is no virama character.
It follows capitalization rules as are done in English and follows English punctuation. There are few ligatures that combine to form new sounds, and there are conjunct consonants that are used as well by stacking in some cases. It is written from left to right in horizontal lines.
The script begins with the letter Ong, which corresponds to Om in other Brahmic scripts. It has 32 letters in total with capital and small letters.
ong 𑣿 om
|
ngaa 𑢠𑣀 ṃ, ŋ
[note 1] |
a 𑢡𑣁 a
|
wi 𑢢𑣂 i
|
yu 𑢣𑣃 u
|
ya 𑢤𑣄
|
yo 𑢥𑣅 y
|
ii 𑢦𑣆 ī
|
uu 𑢧𑣇 ū
|
e 𑢨𑣈 e
|
O 𑢩𑣉 o
|
ang 𑢪𑣊 ṅ
|
ga 𑢫𑣋 g
|
ko 𑢬𑣌 k
|
eny 𑢭𑣍 ñ
|
yuj 𑢮𑣎 j
|
uc 𑢯𑣏 c
|
enn 𑢰𑣐 ṇ
|
odd 𑢱𑣑 ḍ
|
tte 𑢲𑣒 ṭ
|
nung 𑢳𑣓 n
|
da: 𑢴𑣔 d
|
ot 𑢵𑣕 t
|
am 𑢶𑣖 m
|
bu 𑢷𑣗 b
|
pu 𑢸𑣘 p
|
hiyo 𑢹𑣙 h
|
holo 𑢺𑣚 l
|
horr 𑢻𑣛 ṛ
|
har 𑢼𑣜 r
|
ssuu 𑢽𑣝 ṣ
|
sii 𑢾𑣞 s
|
viyo 𑢿𑣟
|
Warang Citi uses its own set of numerals. The digits 0-9 are used in modern writing, but the signs for larger numbers are falling into disuse.
1 𑣡
|
2 𑣢
|
3 𑣣
|
4 𑣤
|
5 𑣥
|
6 𑣦
|
7 𑣧
|
8 𑣨
|
9 𑣩
|
0 𑣠
|
10 𑣪
|
20 𑣫
|
30 𑣬
|
40 𑣭
|
50 𑣮
|
60 𑣯
|
70 𑣰
|
80 𑣱
|
90 𑣲
|
Unicode
editWarang Citi was added to the Unicode Standard in June 2014 with the release of version 7.0.
The Unicode block for Warang Citi is U+118A0–U+118FF. Grey areas indicate non-assigned code points:
| Warang Citi[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+118Ax | 𑢠 | 𑢡 | 𑢢 | 𑢣 | 𑢤 | 𑢥 | 𑢦 | 𑢧 | 𑢨 | 𑢩 | 𑢪 | 𑢫 | 𑢬 | 𑢭 | 𑢮 | 𑢯 |
| U+118Bx | 𑢰 | 𑢱 | 𑢲 | 𑢳 | 𑢴 | 𑢵 | 𑢶 | 𑢷 | 𑢸 | 𑢹 | 𑢺 | 𑢻 | 𑢼 | 𑢽 | 𑢾 | 𑢿 |
| U+118Cx | 𑣀 | 𑣁 | 𑣂 | 𑣃 | 𑣄 | 𑣅 | 𑣆 | 𑣇 | 𑣈 | 𑣉 | 𑣊 | 𑣋 | 𑣌 | 𑣍 | 𑣎 | 𑣏 |
| U+118Dx | 𑣐 | 𑣑 | 𑣒 | 𑣓 | 𑣔 | 𑣕 | 𑣖 | 𑣗 | 𑣘 | 𑣙 | 𑣚 | 𑣛 | 𑣜 | 𑣝 | 𑣞 | 𑣟 |
| U+118Ex | 𑣠 | 𑣡 | 𑣢 | 𑣣 | 𑣤 | 𑣥 | 𑣦 | 𑣧 | 𑣨 | 𑣩 | 𑣪 | 𑣫 | 𑣬 | 𑣭 | 𑣮 | 𑣯 |
| U+118Fx | 𑣰 | 𑣱 | 𑣲 | 𑣿 | ||||||||||||
| Notes | ||||||||||||||||
References
edit- ^ a b c Everson, Michael (2012-04-19). "N4259: Final proposal for encoding the Warang Citi script in the SMP of the UCS" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-08-20.
External links
edit- Noto Sans Warang Citi, a font made by Google
- An entry at Omniglot
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