Classical Newar
{{Short description|4th to 12th century's form of Newar language}}
{{Infobox language
| name = Classical Nepal Bhasa
| altname = Old Newar
| nativename = {{Lang|nwc|पुलाङु नेपाल भास}}
| states = Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, India
| region =
| era = Developed into Modern Nepal Bhasa in the 19th century
| script = Nepalese scripts: Ranjana script, Prachalit script, Bhujimol script Litumol script
Other: Brahmi script, Kutila script, Devanagari
| familycolor = Sino-Tibetan
| fam2 = Tibeto-Burman
| fam3 = Himalayish
| notice = Indic
| iso2 = nwc
| iso3 = nwc
| glotto = none
| image = Newar Language Manuscript from 16th century.jpg
| imagecaption = A manuscript from the 16th century written in Classical Newar.
| ancestor = Proto-Sino-Tibetan
| ancestor2 = Proto-Tibeto-Burman
}}
Classical Newar or Classical Nepal Bhasa ({{langx|new-Latn|label=Modern Newar|pulāṃ bhāy}}, {{gloss|old language}}) also known as Old Newar, is the vernacular and literary form of Nepal Bhasa used prior to the 19th century.{{Cite book |last=Malla |first=Kamal Prakash |url=http://archive.org/details/ADictionaryOfClassicalNewariKamalP.Malla |title=A Dictionary of Classical Newari |publisher=Cwasa Pasa |year=2000 |isbn=99933-316-0-0 |location=Kahtmandu, Nepal |pages=vii}} The term is most generally used to describe the form of Nepal Bhasa used in manuscripts and other sources from the Malla dynasty.{{cite book|last1=Acharya|first1=Baburam|title=Nepal, Newar and Newari language|date=1952|publisher=Nepal-Sanskritik Parisad|location=Kathmandu, Nepal}}Alan Hopkinson (2008) UNIMARC Manual: Bibliographic Format. Walter de Gruyter.
The antiquity of the Newar language is not known. The Sanskrit stone inscriptions from the Licchavi Dynasty contains frequent use of Tibeto-Burman words, especially for proper nouns like names of person, settlements and rivers, suggesting the existence of a vernacular Tibeto-Burman language, which is believed to be an early form of the Newar language.{{Cite book |last=Shrestha |first=Purushottam Lochan |url=https://archive.org/details/TripurRaYuthunimamRajkulPurushottamLochanShrestha |title=Tripura ra Yuthunimama Durbara |publisher=Bhaktapur Offset Prints |year=2001 |isbn=99933-622-0-4 |page=4 |language=ne |trans-title=The Royal Houses of Tripura and Yuthunimama}}{{Cite book |last1=Levy |first1=Robert Isaac |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ngacsMPGJPcC |title=Mesocosm: Hinduism and the Organization of a Traditional Newar City in Nepal |last2=Rājopādhyāya |first2=Kedar Rāj |date=1990 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-06911-4 |pages=36 |language=en}}
Ancient era
The earliest known (dated) document in Nepal Bhasa is called "The Palmleaf from Uku Bahal" which dates back to 1114 AD (235 NS).{{cite news|last=Malla|first=Kamal P|title=The Earliest Dated Document in Newari: The Palmleaf from Uku Bahah NS 234/AD 1114|url=http://www.kpmalla.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/kailash_16_0102_02.pdf|accessdate=18 April 2011|newspaper=Kailash|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160108161716/http://www.kpmalla.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/kailash_16_0102_02.pdf/|archive-date=8 January 2016|url-status=dead}} Pages 15–25.
:छीन ढाको तृसंघष परिभोग। छु पुलेंग कीत्य बिपार वस्त्र बिवु मिखा तिवु मदुगुन छु सात दुगुनव ल्है
:chīna ḍhākō tr̥saṃghaṣa paribhōga, chu pulēṃga kītya bipāra vastra bivu mikhā tivu maduguna chu sāta dugunava lhai
Medieval era
The language continued growing in the Medieval period, and enjoyed royal patronage. Noted royal writers include Mahindra Malla, Siddhinarsingh Malla, Jagatprakash Malla etc. An example of the language used in that period is provided by lines of Mooldevshashidev written by Jagatprakash Malla which verse describes Shiva and the use of a tiger skin as his seat.Mooldevshashidev by Jagatprakash Malla, edited by Saraswati Tuladhar
:धु छेगुकि पाछाव वाहान
:dhu chēguki pāchāva vāhāna
:तिलहित बिया हिङ लाहाति थाय थायस
:tilahita biyā hiŋa lāhāti thāya thāyasa
History
This language was the official language of Nepal from Licchavi era to Malla era of Nepal. Newar words appeared in Sanskrit inscriptions in the Kathmandu Valley for the first time in the fifth century. The words are names of places, taxes and merchandise indicating that it already existed as a spoken language during the Licchavi period (approximately 400–750 AD).Tuladhar, Prem Shanti (2000). Nepal Bhasa Sahityaya Itihas: The History of Nepalbhasa Literature. Kathmandu: Nepal Bhasa Academy. {{ISBN|99933-56-00-X}}. Pages 19–20. The inscriptions from the Licchavi period includes Newari words. Hence, it indicated that Newari was the common language during Licchavi dynasty although the official use of the period was Sanskrit, but Nepal Bhasa was already in use.{{Sfn|Malla|1949|p=155}} The earliest dated stone inscription in Thakuri dynasty is in Newari, dated Nepal Sambat 293 (1173 CE).{{cite web |url=http://www.kpmalla.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Classical-Newari-Literature.pdf |title=Classical Newari Literature |date=1981 |last=Malla |first=KP|page=1 |access-date=19 March 2014 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322213147/http://www.kpmalla.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Classical-Newari-Literature.pdf |archive-date=22 March 2012}}
ISO
Classical Nepal Bhasa was introduced in ISO 639-2 code list in 2004.
Grammar
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References
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External Links
[https://doi.org/10.11588/xabooks.764 A Course in Reading Classical Newari] by Felix Otter Heidelberg: CrossAsia, 2021 {{ISBN|978-3-946742-94-4}} {{Free access}}
{{Newar}}