Ḍha (Indic)

Comparison of Ḍha in different scripts

Aramaic - Kharoṣṭhī 𐨝 Ashoka Brahmi Kushana Brahmi Tocharian Gupta Brahmi Pallava - Kadamba - Bhaiksuki 𑰛 Siddhaṃ Grantha 𑌢 Cham - Sinhala ඪ Pyu / Old Mon - Tibetan ཌྷ Newa 𑐝 Ahom - Malayalam ഢ Telugu ఢ Burmese ဎ Lepcha - Ranjana - Saurashtra ꢟ Dives Akuru 𑤙 Kannada ಢ Kayah Li - Limbu - Soyombo 𑩩 Khmer ឍ Tamil - Chakma 𑄙 Tai Tham - Meitei Mayek - Gaudi - Thai - Lao - Tai Le - Marchen - Tirhuta 𑒜 New Tai Lue - Tai Viet - Aksara Kawi - 'Phags-pa - Odia ଢ Sharada 𑆞 Rejang - Batak - Buginese - Zanabazar Square 𑨗 Bengali-Assamese Takri 𑚗 Javanese ꦞ Balinese ᬠ Makasar - Hangul - Northern Nagari - Dogri 𑠗 Laṇḍā - Sundanese - Baybayin - Modi 𑘛 Gujarati ઢ Khojki 𑈗 Khudabadi 𑋋 Mahajani 𑅡 Tagbanwa - Devanagari Nandinagari 𑦻 Kaithi 𑂛 Gurmukhi ਢ Multani 𑊔 Buhid - Canadian Syllabics - Soyombo 𑩩 Sylheti Nagari ꠓ Gunjala Gondi 𑶃 Masaram Gondi 𑴙 Hanuno'o - Notes

Ḍha (also romanized as Ddha) is a consonant of Indic abugidas. In modern Indic scripts, Ḍha is derived from the early "Ashoka" Brahmi letter after having gone through the Gupta letter . As with the other cerebral consonants, ḍha is not found in most scripts for Tai, Sino-Tibetan, and other non-Indic languages, except for a few scripts, which retain these letters for transcribing Sanskrit religious terms.

Āryabhaṭa numeration

Further information: Āryabhaṭa numeration

Aryabhata used Devanagari letters for numbers, very similar to the Greek numerals, even after the invention of Indian numerals. The values of the different forms of ढ are:

• ढ [ɖʰə] = 14 (१४)
• ढि [ɖʰɪ] = 1,400 (१ ४००)
• ढु [ɖʰʊ] = 140,000 (१ ४० ०००)
• ढृ [ɖʰri] = 14,000,000 (१ ४० ०० ०००)
• ढॢ [ɖʰlə] = 1,400,000,000 (१ ४० ०० ०० ०००)
• ढे [ɖʰe] = 14×10¹⁰ (१४×१०^१०)
• ढै [ɖʰɛː] = 14×10¹² (१४×१०^१२)
• ढो [ɖʰoː] = 14×10¹⁴ (१४×१०^१४)
• ढौ [ɖʰɔː] = 14×10¹⁶ (१४×१०^१६)

Historic Ddha

There are three different general early historic scripts - Brahmi and its variants, Kharoṣṭhī, and Tocharian, the so-called slanting Brahmi. Ddha as found in standard Brahmi, was a simple geometric shape, with variations toward more flowing forms by the Gupta . The Tocharian Ddha did not have an alterante Fremdzeichen form. The third form of ddha, in Kharoshthi () was probably derived from Aramaic separately from the Brahmi letter.

Brahmi Ddha

The Brahmi letter , Ddha, is probably derived from the altered Aramaic Dalet , and is thus related to the modern Latin D and Greek Delta. Several identifiable styles of writing the Brahmi Ddha can be found, most associated with a specific set of inscriptions from an artifact or diverse records from an historic period. As the earliest and most geometric style of Brahmi, the letters found on the Edicts of Ashoka and other records from around that time are normally the reference form for Brahmi letters, with vowel marks not attested until later forms of Brahmi back-formed to match the geometric writing style.

Brahmi Ddha historic forms

Ashoka (3rd-1st c. BCE)	Girnar (~150 BCE)	Kushana (~150-250 CE)	Gujarat (~250 CE)	Gupta (~350 CE)

Tocharian Ddha

The Tocharian letter is derived from the Brahmi , but does not have an alternate Fremdzeichen form.

Tocharian Ddha with vowel marks

Ddha	Ddhā	Ddhi	Ddhī	Ddhu	Ddhū	Ddhr	Ddhr̄	Ddhe	Ddhai	Ddho	Ddhau	Ddhä

Kharoṣṭhī Ddha

The Kharoṣṭhī letter is generally accepted as being derived from the altered Aramaic Dalet , and is thus related to D and Delta, in addition to the Brahmi Ddha.

Devanagari Ḍha

Main article: Devanagari ddha

Ḍha (ढ) is a consonant of the Devanagari abugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , after having gone through the Gupta letter . Letters that derive from it are the Gujarati letter ઢ, and the Modi letter 𑘛.

Devanagari-using Languages

In all languages, ढ is pronounced as [ɖʱə] or [ɖʱ] when appropriate. Like all Indic scripts, Devanagari uses vowel marks attached to the base consonant to override the inherent /ə/ vowel:

Devanagari ढ with vowel marks

Ḍha	Ḍhā	Ḍhi	Ḍhī	Ḍhu	Ḍhū	Ḍhr	Ḍhr̄	Ḍhl	Ḍhl̄	Ḍhe	Ḍhai	Ḍho	Ḍhau	Ḍh
ढ	ढा	ढि	ढी	ढु	ढू	ढृ	ढॄ	ढॢ	ढॣ	ढे	ढै	ढो	ढौ	ढ्

Conjuncts with ढ

Devanagari exhibits conjunct ligatures, as is common in Indic scripts. In modern Devanagari texts, most conjuncts are formed by reducing the letter shape to fit tightly to the following letter, usually by dropping a character's vertical stem, sometimes referred to as a "half form". Some conjunct clusters are always represented by a true ligature, instead of a shape that can be broken into constituent independent letters. Vertically stacked conjuncts are ubiquitous in older texts, while only a few are still used routinely in modern Devanagari texts. Lacking a vertical stem to drop for making a half form, Ḍha either forms a stacked conjunct/ligature, or uses its full form with Virama. The use of ligatures and vertical conjuncts may vary across languages using the Devanagari script, with Marathi in particular avoiding their use where other languages would use them.

Ligature conjuncts of ढ

True ligatures are quite rare in Indic scripts. The most common ligated conjuncts in Devanagari are in the form of a slight mutation to fit in context or as a consistent variant form appended to the adjacent characters. Those variants include Na and the Repha and Rakar forms of Ra. Nepali and Marathi texts use the "eyelash" Ra half form for an initial "R" instead of repha.

• Repha र্ (r) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature rḍʱa: ^note

• Eyelash र্ (r) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature rḍʱa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + rakar र (ra) gives us the ligature ḍʱra:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + न (na) gives us the ligature ḍʱna:

• प্ (p) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature pḍʱa:

• ष্ (ṣ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ṣḍʱa:

Stacked conjuncts of ढ

Vertically stacked ligatures are the most common conjunct forms found in Devanagari text. Although the constituent characters may need to be stretched and moved slightly in order to stack neatly, stacked conjuncts can be broken down into recognizable base letters, or a letter and an otherwise standard ligature.

• छ্ (cʰ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature cʰḍʱa:

• ड্ (ḍ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ḍḍʱa:

• द্ (d) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature dḍʱa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ब (ba) gives us the ligature ḍʱba:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + भ (bʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱbʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + च (ca) gives us the ligature ḍʱca:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + छ (cʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱcʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + द (da) gives us the ligature ḍʱda:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ड (ḍa) gives us the ligature ḍʱḍa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ḍʱḍʱa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ध (dʱa) gives us the ligature ḍʱdʱa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ग (ga) gives us the ligature ḍʱga:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + घ (ɡʱa) gives us the ligature ḍʱɡʱa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ह (ha) gives us the ligature ḍʱha:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ज (ja) gives us the ligature ḍʱja:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + झ (jʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱjʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ज্ (j) + ञ (ña) gives us the ligature ḍʱjña:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + क (ka) gives us the ligature ḍʱka:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ख (kʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱkʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + क্ (k) + ष (ṣa) gives us the ligature ḍʱkṣa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ल (la) gives us the ligature ḍʱla:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ळ (ḷa) gives us the ligature ḍʱḷa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + म (ma) gives us the ligature ḍʱma:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ङ (ŋa) gives us the ligature ḍʱŋa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ण (ṇa) gives us the ligature ḍʱṇa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ञ (ña) gives us the ligature ḍʱña:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + प (pa) gives us the ligature ḍʱpa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + फ (pʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱpʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + स (sa) gives us the ligature ḍʱsa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + श (ʃa) gives us the ligature ḍʱʃa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ष (ṣa) gives us the ligature ḍʱṣa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + त (ta) gives us the ligature ḍʱta:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + थ (tʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱtʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ट (ṭa) gives us the ligature ḍʱṭa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + ठ (ṭʰa) gives us the ligature ḍʱṭʰa:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + व (va) gives us the ligature ḍʱva:

• ढ্ (ḍʱ) + य (ya) gives us the ligature ḍʱya:

• ङ্ (ŋ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ŋḍʱa:

• ट্ (ṭ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ṭḍʱa:

• ठ্ (ṭʰ) + ढ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ṭʰḍʱa:

Bengali Ddha

The Bengali script ঢ is derived from the Siddhaṃ , and is marked by a similar horizontal head line, but less geometric shape, than its Devanagari counterpart, ढ. The inherent vowel of Bengali consonant letters is /ɔ/, so the bare letter ঢ will sometimes be transliterated as "ddho" instead of "ddha". Adding okar, the "o" vowel mark, gives a reading of /d̳ʱo/.

Like all Indic consonants, ঢ can be modified by marks to indicate another (or no) vowel than its inherent "a".

Bengali ঢ with vowel marks

ddha	ddhā	ddhi	ddhī	ddhu	ddhū	ddhr	ddhr̄	ddhe	ddhai	ddho	ddhau	ddh
ঢ	ঢা	ঢি	ঢী	ঢু	ঢূ	ঢৃ	ঢৄ	ঢে	ঢৈ	ঢো	ঢৌ	ঢ্

ঢ in Bengali-using languages

ঢ is used as a basic consonant character in all of the major Bengali script orthographies, including Bengali and Assamese.

Conjuncts with ঢ

Bengali ঢ exhibits a few conjunct ligatures, as is common in Indic scripts.

• ঢ্ (ḍʱ) + র (ra) gives us the ligature ḍʱra, with the ra phala suffix:

• ঢ্ (ḍʱ) + য (ya) gives us the ligature ḍʱya, with the ya phala suffix:

• ণ্ (ṇ) + ঢ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ṇḍʱa:

• র্ (r) + ঢ্ (ḍʱ) + য (ya) gives us the ligature rḍʱya, with the repha prefix and ya phala suffix:

Gujarati Ḍha

Gujarati Ḍha.

Ḍha (ઢ) is the fourteenth consonant of the Gujarati abugida. It is derived from the Devanagari Ḍha with the top bar (shiro rekha) removed, and ultimately the Brahmi letter .

Gujarati-using Languages

The Gujarati script is used to write the Gujarati and Kutchi languages. In both languages, ઢ is pronounced as [ɖʱə] or [ɖʱ] when appropriate. Like all Indic scripts, Gujarati uses vowel marks attached to the base consonant to override the inherent /ə/ vowel:

Ḍha	Ḍhā	Ḍhi	Ḍhī	Ḍhu	Ḍhū	Ḍhr	Ḍhl	Ḍhr̄	Ḍhl̄	Ḍhĕ	Ḍhe	Ḍhai	Ḍhŏ	Ḍho	Ḍhau	Ḍh
Gujarati Ḍha syllables, with vowel marks in red.

Conjuncts with ઢ

Gujarati ઢ exhibits conjunct ligatures, much like its parent Devanagari Script. While most Gujarati conjuncts can only be formed by reducing the letter shape to create a "half form" that fits tightly to following letter, Ḍha does not have a half form. A few conjunct clusters can be represented by a true ligature, instead of a shape that can be broken into constituent independent letters, and vertically stacked conjuncts can also be found in Gujarati, although much less commonly than in Devanagari. Lacking a half form, Ḍha will normally use an explicit virama when forming conjuncts without a true ligature.

True ligatures are quite rare in Indic scripts. The most common ligated conjuncts in Gujarati are in the form of a slight mutation to fit in context or as a consistent variant form appended to the adjacent characters. Those variants include Na and the Repha and Rakar forms of Ra.

• ર્ (r) + ઢ (ɖʱa) gives us the ligature RḌha:

• ઢ્ (ɖʱ) + ર (ra) gives us the ligature ḌhRa:

• ઢ્ (ɖʱ) + ઢ (ɖʱa) gives us the ligature ḌhḌha:

• ઢ્ (ɖʱ) + ન (na) gives us the ligature ḌhNa:

Javanese Ddha

Main article: Ddha (Javanese)

Telugu Ḍha

Telugu independent and subjoined Ḍha.

Ḍha (ఢ) is a consonant of the Telugu abugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter . It is closely related to the Kannada letter ಢ. Most Telugu consonants contain a v-shaped headstroke that is related to the horizontal headline found in other Indic scripts, although headstrokes do not connect adjacent letters in Telugu. The headstroke is normally lost when adding vowel matras.

Telugu conjuncts are created by reducing trailing letters to a subjoined form that appears below the initial consonant of the conjunct. Many subjoined forms are created by dropping their headline, with many extending the end of the stroke of the main letter body to form an extended tail reaching up to the right of the preceding consonant. This subjoining of trailing letters to create conjuncts is in contrast to the leading half forms of Devanagari and Bengali letters. Ligature conjuncts are not a feature in Telugu, with the only non-standard construction being an alternate subjoined form of Ṣa (borrowed from Kannada) in the KṢa conjunct.

Malayalam Ḍha

Malayalam letter Ḍha

Ḍha (ഢ) is a consonant of the Malayalam abugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , via the Grantha letter Ddha. Like in other Indic scripts, Malayalam consonants have the inherent vowel "a", and take one of several modifying vowel signs to represent syllables with another vowel or no vowel at all.

Malayalam Ddha matras: Ddha, Ddhā, Ddhi, Ddhī, Ddhu, Ddhū, Ddhr̥, Ddhr̥̄, Ddhl̥, Ddhl̥̄, Ddhe, Ddhē, Ddhai, Ddho, Ddhō, Ddhau, and Ddh.

Conjuncts of ഢ

As is common in Indic scripts, Malayalam joins letters together to form conjunct consonant clusters. There are several ways in which conjuncts are formed in Malayalam texts: using a post-base form of a trailing consonant placed under the initial consonant of a conjunct, a combined ligature of two or more consonants joined together, a conjoining form that appears as a combining mark on the rest of the conjunct, the use of an explicit candrakkala mark to suppress the inherent "a" vowel, or a special consonant form called a "chillu" letter, representing a bare consonant without the inherent "a" vowel. Texts written with the modern reformed Malayalam orthography, put̪iya lipi, may favor more regular conjunct forms than older texts in paḻaya lipi, due to changes undertaken in the 1970s by the Government of Kerala.

• ഡ് (ḍ) + ഢ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ḍḍʱa:

• ണ് (ṇ) + ഢ (ḍʱa) gives us the ligature ṇḍʱa:

Odia Ḍha

Odia independent and subjoined letter Ḍha.

Ḍha (ଢ) is a consonant of the Odia abugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , via the Siddhaṃ letter Ddha. Like in other Indic scripts, Odia consonants have the inherent vowel "a", and take one of several modifying vowel signs to represent syllables with another vowel or no vowel at all.

Odia Ddha with vowel matras

Ddha	Ddhā	Ddhi	Ddhī	Ddhu	Ddhū	Ddhr̥	Ddhr̥̄	Ddhl̥	Ddhl̥̄	Ddhe	Ddhai	Ddho	Ddhau	Ddh
ଢ	ଢା	ଢି	ଢୀ	ଢୁ	ଢୂ	ଢୃ	ଢୄ	ଢୢ	ଢୣ	ଢେ	ଢୈ	ଢୋ	ଢୌ	ଢ୍

As is common in Indic scripts, Odia joins letters together to form conjunct consonant clusters. The most common conjunct formation is achieved by using a small subjoined form of trailing consonants. Most consonants' subjoined forms are identical to the full form, just reduced in size, although a few drop the curved headline or have a subjoined form not directly related to the full form of the consonant. The second type of conjunct formation is through pure ligatures, where the constituent consonants are written together in a single graphic form. ଢ generates conjuncts only by subjoining and does not form ligatures.

References

^note Conjuncts are identified by IAST transliteration, except aspirated consonants are indicated with a superscript "h" to distinguish from an unaspirated cononant + Ha, and the use of the IPA "ŋ" and "ʃ" instead of the less dinstinctive "ṅ" and "ś".