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Manabharana Is Not Malay (Manabharana Bukan Melayu)

In recent times, an alarming narrative has emerged within the Malaysian blogosphere, suggesting a historical event that appears to be a misinterpretation or perhaps a deliberate misinformation campaign. The claim revolves around a so called Malay prince named Manabharana from Srivijaya, purportedly attacking and conquering the Chola kingdom. This misleading story has gained traction and is spreading like wildfire across various social media platforms. The need to address and rectify such inaccuracies is crucial not only for the sake of historical accuracy but also for fostering a responsible and informed online community. To delve into the matter, it is essential to clarify that historical records reveal the existence of multiple individuals named Manabharana throughout history. However, a nuanced understanding reveals that all these figures were Tamils (Damila) hailing from the Pandya kingdom, with references to their exploits documented in Tamil inscriptions and Sri Lankan chronicles
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The Benefit of Romanising Tamil Writing

Tamil language was written in several older scripts before it was written using the present day Tamil script.













Personally, I prefer the Romanised version, the ISO15919.

 Some benefits of Romanising the Tamil writing:

 1. The switch from Abugida to Alphabet system also means that less letters will be needed.

 2. We only need a maximum of 36 letters to write in Tamil without errors and with accurate pronunciation.

Presently used traditional Tamil script. The Sanskrit syllables are represented using Grantha script. In total, a person needs to memorize not less than 216 unique letters to write in Tamil using this script.
Using Romanised Tamil, a person only needs 36 letters as shown in the green boxes to write every sound combination that exist in Tamil language! This even includes the Sanskrit sounds.

3. It will be a lot more easier to learn the writing as most of us are familiar with the existing Roman (Latin) alphabets. A person needs to only know less than 10 additional letters with diacritics.

4. Fewer letters also mean that it will now be faster to learn Tamil writing. 36 familiar looking letters is definitely faster than learning a combo of 216 unfamiliar looking letters!

 5. More people will be attracted to learn not just the writing but also the language itself because it is now easier and faster.

6. This will boost the growth of Tamil language and help to spread it faster around the globe.

 7. Tamil will have a global appeal and attract more non-speakers,

 8. Typing Tamil using keyboards will be a lot more easier than the present script as shortcuts can be created for the additional diacritics.

9. This will also benefit the printing and publishing industries as there will be fewer letters to focus on.

 10. It will also be easier to transliterate it into Braille. Even the blind can start reading in Tamil!


Comments

  1. Dr. Vinnith PullavarayarWednesday, 07 August, 2019

    Something that should be implemented.We must take the example of chinese who use pinyin

    ReplyDelete
  2. theosteinSaturday, 10 April, 2021

    Romanised Tamil shod be used as a tool to learn Tamil, Not replace Tamil altogether.

    ReplyDelete

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