The Kannada alphabet (ಕನ್ನಡ ಲಿಪಿ)
developed from the Kadamba and Cālukya
scripts, descendents of Brahmi which were
used between the 5th and 7th centuries AD. These scripts
developed into the Old Kannada script, which by about 1500 had morphed
into the Kannada and Telugu scripts. Under the influence of Christian
missionary organizations, Kannada and Telugu scripts were standardized
at the beginning of the 19th century.
Notable features
Type of writing system: alphasyllabary in which all consonants have
an inherent vowel. Other vowels are indicated with diacritics, which
can appear above, below, before or after the consonants.
When they appear the the beginning of a syllable, vowels are written
as independent letters.
When consonants appear together without intervening vowels,
the second consonant is written as a special conjunt symbol,
usually below the first.
Direction of writing: left to right in horizontal lines
Used to write:
Kannada (ಕನ್ನಡ) or Canarese, the official language of the
southern Indian state of Karnataka. Kannada is a Dravidian language
spoken by about 44 million people in the Indian states of Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
Konkani (कोंकणी /
Konknni / ಕೊಂಕಣಿ / കൊങ്കണി /
كونكڼى), an Indo-Aryan
language spoken in the Indian states of Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and
Maharashtra by about 2.5 million people.
Sankethi (ಸಂಕೇತಿ),
a dialect of Tamil spoken in the Indian state of Karnataka.
Tulu (ತುಳು ಬಾಸೆ),
a Southern Dravidian language spoken mainly in the Indian states of Karnataka and Kerala
by between 3 and 5 million people.
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason
and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. (Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Thanks to Arvind Iyengar for providing the sample text.
