Re: Unicode for Malayalam Language.

From: Jeroen Hellingman (etmjehe@genesis.etm.ericsson.se)
Date: Mon Oct 27 1997 - 02:27:33 EST


Hi,

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I have put my comments and visuals(.gif files) of the missing characters
(as I think) in an .html file -
http://members.tripod.com/~CibuCJ/malayalam/comments.html
Can you have a look at them ?

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I had a look at the Malayalam characters there. The 'cillu' letters
are treated by ISCII as the full letters combined (ligated) with the
so called soft-halant (halant+nukta). As the full letters with the halant
also occur, there needs to be a way to distinguish these from
the normal (unligated) forms, typed in ISCII with the normal halant.

In my comments on Unicode, under the heading Malayalam, I proposed
a syntax for this, but there is no need to introduce new characters
in the standard, except for the ones I mention in my comment. The
syntax, of course, needs to be included in the standard.

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COMMENTS ON MALAYALAM

cillu letters

Malayalam uses ligatures of the virama with some characters (so called cillu
letters). These should be distinquished from the same letters with a virama.
I suggest using <character><virama><zwj> to produce these letters, and
<character><virama> for the explicit virama. This is in parallel with the
ISCII standard and Unicode conventions. ISCII uses Soft halant for this purpose
as well as for forcing half-consonants in several North Indian scripts.
In one exceptional case, this cillu letter can also appear in a conjunct.
(N + RRA). The proposed idiom for this combination is: N<virama><zwj><virama>RRA.
(this is admittedly ugly)

(found some more occurances of this in traditional script: .l+k, .l+kk.)

traditional versus reformed script

The description in the Unicode standard is based on traditional script.
Since 1974 reformed script has been in use.
It should be noted that in reformed Malayalam script, VOWEL SIGN U,
VOWEL SIGN UU, and VOWEL SIGN VOCALIC R are no longer non-spacing marks,
and that VOWEL SIGN VOCALIC RR, and VOCALIC RR, VOCALIC L, VOCALIC LL
have been abolished.

Traditional Malayalam script allows placing a virama on a cluster already
carrying the u matra, to notify a short u sound.

(Malayalam has also been written in Arabic script, using some extra letters,
I will try to find out details)

ADDITIONAL CHARACTERS IN MALAYALAM

@ dependent vowel signs
0D44 MALAYALAM VOWEL SIGN VOCALIC RR

The dependent vowel signs for VOCALIC L and VOCALIC LL appear to be
the same glyphs subscribed, but I haven't found a good reference on
this yet. In any case they are a curiosity. (Reference found: Gundert)

        MALAYALAM VOWEL SIGN VOCALIC L
        MALAYALAM VOWEL SIGN VOCALIC LL

Also found a single reference to a sign for ONE HALF [Frohnmeyer]. Possibly it is
something like the Bengali currency numerators.

Malayalam numerals are hardly ever used nowadays.

In several Malayalam fonts, I have come across a glyph which looks
like a na with a curl right below, much like an old style nu, but
the curl extends out of the character on the right. Can anybody tell
me what it is. My closest ASCII representation is:

  /--\ /--\
  | | |
  | | /-+--
  \ | \_|
 

Jeroen.



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